The
First Universalist Society of
A
Unitarian Universalist Congregation
www.geocities.com/centralsquareuu/
|
OUR
The
mission of the First Universalist
Society of
MINISTERIAL MUSINGS
Dear friends,
As I write this, we are about to kick off our stewardship campaign with a
potluck lunch on May 6. This will be followed by our Annual Congregational
Meeting on June 3, with an election and other church business. Perhaps a
potluck is an applicable image to represent the stewardship of our church... we
are all in this together... whatever we bring to this community is what we will
have to eat. There is always more than enough great food at a potluck;
even those who don't contribute something to a particular meal are welcome to
attend. And yet, if we all came empty-handed, there wouldn't be a meal.
Our church
is something like that.... there always seems to be plenty... of programming,
activities, and so on. And yet, I am aware that certain people are
contributing a lot, serving on several committees, and engaging in all the
activities...and getting a bit burned out....while others may find themselves
sitting back. I am also aware that we are looking for some key officers of
the Board (including a President, Vice President, Recording Secretary, and
Treasurer) as well as an Administrative Assistant and an Archivist. There
are many opportunities to serve our church. The recent Service and
Merchandise Auction was a great way to highlight the various talents within the
congregation. .. it really was impressive. Mary Perkins conducted a survey
to help get to know the members and friends of the congregation better, and Rita
helped us play a "getting to know you" game during a recent coffee
hour. Each of has been blessed with a unique set of interests and talents,
as well as with varying levels of treasure.
As we
approach our stewardship campaign and our Annual Congregaional Meeting, I hope
we will all be generous with our time, talent, and treasure. We can think
about how much this
church community means to us, and consider in what ways we can contribute to its
health and well-being. If each of us thinks creatively, we can do great
things. If asked to serve, please say "yes". But you don't have wait
to be asked... you can consider your talents and offer them.
With love, respect, and
gratitude,
Margaret Hart
CHANGES IN MINISTERS
The Rev. Libbie Stoddard will be retiring in July 2007, but we sincerely hope to
have continued contact with her. May Memorial has called a settled
minister, the Rev, Jean Walstrom. The First Unitarian Society of Ithaca
has called the Rev. David Grimm as their settled minister.
CHOIR TO PRACTICE
Our choir
rehearses Sunday mornings starting at 9:30a.m. On May 12th we will have
our usual second Saturday of every month extended choir rehearsal from 9:30 a.m.
to 12:00 noon. Anyone interested in singing is welcome to join us.
OPENING FOR AN ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANT
- Help treasurer with paying bills, trackinng donations, recording checks
- Pickup mail and sending tax receipts, etcc
- Assist with publicity: newspapers, TV, raadio
- Coordinate calendar and assist newsletterr person
- Other…
$10 per hour at 4 hours per week
If you are interested, please contact Chet Perkins or Winfield Ihlow.
BOARD PRESIDENT'S MESSAGE - Thank you, Thank you, Thank you !
We have much to be thankful for this month. First, we give thanks to all of you who made our auction so successful ($3500+), those who donated merchandise and services, those of you who purchased items, the UU Circle members who helped organize the auction, and Mike Digiovanni who used his computer to keep track of all the donations and purchases.
Next, we
give thanks to all of you who helped out on the Saturday painting project: John
& Pam Landers, Kate Stanton, Bob Haskell, Dan, Cheryl, Corrine, & Chole
Newman, Steve Garlow, Chet Perkins, Winfield Ihlow, and Joe Godfrey for the use
of his 12 ft. ladder. All of the painted rooms look soooo great!
Also a huge thank you goes out to Bob Haskell for spending dozens of hours in
going through our By-Laws and revising them for our future use.
Finally I'd like to thank all of you who served on our many committees, the executive board, and our paid professionals as well. A special thanks to our Associate Minister Libby Stoddard for her many years of service to our church as a minister and religious educator. We wish you well and will gladly welcome you as a guest speaker whenever it works out for you to be with us.
I will be stepping down as president so that I can focus my energy on preparing our home in Parish to sell and moving into another home that is more handicapped accessible (and seeking some weekend employment).
The nominating committee informs me that they are in need of a few good-hearted members to fill vacancies in the following positions: President, Vice-President, Treasurer, Assistant Treasurer, and Recording Secretary. The new Administrative Assistant should help lessen the load on all of these positions. Also, I'll speak with Mary and Marcia of our Organizational Task force, to see if we can divide up the responsibilities of over-seeing the church committees equally between the President and Vice-President. This will help reduce the stress on the President. Please give serious thought to volunteering for one of these positions.
Best wishes to all for a wonderful Spring,
Tim Hart
FYI - Arnie Hook informs me that Tony, the man that's working on repairing our doors, threw out his back and won't be able to start work on them for a while. We may look into having someone else do the work, if he isn't able, in a reasonable amount of time.
NEAR DEATH STUDIES
We are very fortunate to have Dave Bennett, leader of Upstate NY IANDS
(International Association of Near-Death Studies) give a talk about his
near-death experiences on Sunday May 20. Dave's talk will be after our
regular Sunday Morning service and a light lunch will be provided. There
will be a question and answer period after the talk. It will be a talk
that you will never forget!
IANDS was formed in 1978 for the study of near death experiences and there are
approximately 55 local groups world wide and 45 in the USA. Near-death
experiences are becoming more widely accepted. There will be a panel
discussion exploring the nature of near-death experiences and the latest
research at the Unitarian Universalist General Assembly in June.
MEMBERSHIP COMMITTEE
We would like to thank Ellen LaPine, Janie Garlow, Judy and George Tennant,
Sandy Harned , Chris Squires and Nancy Hallock for serving as greeters and /or
hostess at the coffee hour in April. Volunteers are needed for May. See Chet
Perkins if you would like to help. Don't forget to give our guests and new
members a warm welcome to our church and get to know them better during coffee
hour.
COFFEE AND CHAT
Coffee and Chat will be held on May 16th at Paneras' on Rte. 31, Clay. The
women of the church will meet around 9:15 for goodies and conversation.
All women are invited. Men are invited to meet at the same time.
Contact Chet Perkins for further information. Women can contact Nancy
Haskell for information.
VIDEO & DISCUSSION GROUP
The Video Discussion Group will meet at the church at 7 p.m. on Friday, May 11.
The group will watch "Bill Moyers Journal: 'Buying the War'." This is
the first program in a new PBS series by Moyers. The 90-minute documentary
explores the role of the press in the lead-up to the invasion of Iraq.
SERVICE AND MERCHANDISE AUCTION
Thank you to everyone that donated to the auction and who purchased items this
year. You have all helped in making the auction a great success with an
income of over three thousand dollars. If you have not paid for your
items yet, I would appreciate it if you would pay for it within the next few
weeks, so that we can determine the profits from the auction and close the books
on the auction. A large portion of the money that is made from the auction
is given directly to the church as a pledge to help pay church expenses.
Some of the funds go to flowers or gifts to those who are homebound or
hospitalized and some goes to charitable donations. If you cannot remember
the amount that you owe or exactly what you bought, please let me know.
Thank You,
Ann Peterson, Secretary-Treasurer UU
Circle
QUESTION BOX SERMON
The Rev. Libbie Stoddard will be leading a "question box" sermon on
May 20. Have you ever wanted to know how (and when) Unitarian Universalist
Ministers get trained? What UU Christians and UU Atheists share? Is
there something else you've always wondered about? Put you questions in
the ??? box on the East Room table by May 13.
COMMUNICATIONS WORKSHOP
Our church is helping to sponsor an exciting workshop at First UU in
Syracuse on Communications. The presenter will be Christy Multer, District
Consultant with expertise in this area. Although originally planned for
May it is now expected to be held in October or November. If you would
like to be part of a team going from Central Square, please contact Margaret
Hart. You can expect to learn information in the areas of media &
public relations, publicity and marketing resources, publicizing our
congregation on a limited budget, and the importance of our website.
SOCIAL JUSTICE COMMITTEE HAPPENINGS
We are establishing a Green Team to help us develop and organize strategies to
adjust some of the operations of our church to ones that have a low impact on
the environment and enhance the connection between our members and nature.
Do you have a personal interest or some knowledge or training in conserving
energy, reduction of waste, socially responsible investing or the reduction of
the use of toxic substances? Are you someone who enjoys sharing knowledge
and information with others and/or increasing your own knowledge in ways to live
that nurture life and that build relationships with others and the earth?
Maybe you have a specific interest in nature, belong to an environmental
organization or have read periodicals and books that you feel offer good
information on environmental sustainability. If any of these things
interest you would you consider giving us a small amount of your time, knowledge
and talent? The greening of our church community will be an ongoing
project involving everyone in the church and lead by a team comprised of people
with many talents and interests. Please contact Nancy Hallock, Janie
Garlow, Ellen LaPine or Ann Peterson if you want to become involved in this fun
and worthwhile endeavor. Go to
LIBBIE'S
BOOK REPORT
13 Women, Karlene Faith, ed.
This is a series of brief autobiographical statements by women in Brazil, the US
and Canada. Most were jailed for drug and theft charges; a few, as a
result of acts of what might be termed civil disobedience. Reflections on
the women's statements are given by Karlene Faith and Ann Near, noting, for
instance, differences in treatment between men and women and length of prison
term. A particular concern for the women has to do with family issues,
especially custody matters for their children. Often the families of
origin are fragmented or scattered, leading to ever-more painful decisions - if
the mother has ever been given a say in the matter. Poverty, race, formal
education all have an effect on the length of prison terms and treatment in the
prisons and treatment in the prisons. The book leaves one with a lot of
questions: obvious ones, about rehabilitation, justice and less obvious, how is
prison life different for those women incarcerated for political reasons?
Who often had time to arrange family affairs, who knew that imprisonment was a
likely event after public disobedience? No answers, much thought.
HERKIMER DIAMONDS & BOOMERANGS
Our Herkimer Diamond trip has been rescheduled for Saturday, May 12. If
you'd like to attend call Tim Hart at 439-2541 for details (same time &
meeting place as before).
A member of our church, Jeff Packard, has offered to make boomerangs for a
couple of lucky church members. Several of us in the church have won
Jeff's wonderful creations in the past and loved them. He custom designs
the boomerang for either long flights or lots of tricks (he can explain this
better than I can) and teaches you how to throw it. Jeff is employed as an
engineer and enjoys creating boomerangs as a hobby. Contact Tim Hart if
you're interested in
owning one of these 2 boomerangs.
THERE IS STILL TIME TO REGISTER FOR St. LAWRENCE DISTRICT MAY 19
CONFERENCE
UU Church of Amherst - Williamsville, NY - 10 am - 4 pm - $10 per person.
Managing Risk in Our Congregations: Keeping Children and Youth Safe-A workshop
for religious educators, ministers and other congregational leaders.
Services from the Saint Lawrence District Office and Staff are made possible only because congregations in our district make fair share contributions to the Saint Lawrence District and the UUA Annual Program Fund. Thank you for your generosity!
CHALICE LIGHTERS SUNDAY
Each year we designate one Sunday in May to call attention to the St. Lawrence
UU District's Chalice Lighters program. This program was established in
1989 to support Unitarian Universalism by financially assisting congregations in
their growth or development. Since then more than thirty churches have
been helped in such projects as establishing or improving meeting spaces, and
financing intern, extension, or part-time ministry and RE leadership. We
received over $6000 in Chalice Lighter funds when we became handicapped
accessible a few years ago.
How does this happen? A Chalice Lighter is a special person who believes
in Unitarian Universalism and agrees to respond with a pledged donation when the
"call" comes. The call goes out after a congregation has made a
specific proposal to the district growth committee, and that proposal has been
approved. There are usually two requests during a fiscal year and all
donations go to the congregations for which the call is made.
There are now over 700 Chalice Lighters in the District. As each of these
send in their pledge in response to a call the "light glows brighter".
We thank the 23 Chalice Lighters in our congregation, and we invite others to
join us in helping "UUism" grow.
Brochures with registration forms are available at church, or contact me at
668-6719 or at
Mary Perkins, Chalice Lighter Ambassador
ANNUAL CONGREGATIONAL MEETING
Our annual Congregational Meeting will be held immediately after the service on June 3. All members are encouraged to attend to hear reports on what has happened during the previous year and to participate in the democratic process as we elect new Board officers and discuss other important church business.
SCREENING AND PANEL DISCUSSION OF THE MOVIE THE GROUND TRUTH
On
Thursday, May 31 there will be a screening of the movie, The Ground Truth at the
Palace Theater. It will be followed by a panel discussion lead by Charlie
Richardson and Nancy Lessin, Co-Founders of Military Families Speak Out (MFSO)
and Kevin and Joyce Lucey, parents of Cpl. Jeffery Lucey whose story is featured
in the film. It is free and open to the public. Sponsored by our Social
Justice Committee and MFSO.
Hear and witness the lives of our soldiers in this penetrating film. The
ground conflict is only a prelude to even more challenging battles they face
when they return home. The Ground Truth is one of only 15 films on the
short list for the 2007 Academy Awards. For more information on this
important and moving film go to www.thegroundtruth.net.
NEWSLETTER DEADLINE
Don't forget to send your articles for the June newsletter to Janie Garlow
before noon on June 2 at
Tuesdays:
*6:45 p.m. Chanting & Meditation (except May 8)
Wednesdays: * 6:47 p.m. Men's Group
May 10: *6:00 Planning Meeting for screening of The Ground Truth
May 11: *7:00 Video & Discussion Group
*9:30 a.m. Extended Choir rehearsal. *4:30 p.m. Roast Beef Supper.
May 12: *Herkimer Diamond Trip. *Noon - Chicken BBQ
May 13: *Happy Mother's Day! *9:30 a.m. Choir Practice. *10:30
a.m. Worship service and pulpit exchange, Rev. Martha Munson of FUSS, *11:00
Religious Education.
May 16: *9:15 a.m. Coffee and Chat.
May 17: *Lifeline health screening by appointment at the church.
May 18: *6:00 p.m. Social Justice Committee Meeting.
May 19: *Roast Beef Dinner
May 20: *9:00 a.m. RE Committee Meeting. * 9:30 a.m.
Choir Practice. *10:30 a.m.
Worship service, Rev. Libbie Stoddard. *11:30
Presentation from Dave Bennett of IANDS.
May 27: * 9:30 a.m. Choir Practice. *10:30 a.m. Worship service, Rev.
Libbie Stoddard. *11:00 a.m. Religious Education.
May 31: * Screening and Panel Discussion of The Ground Truth at the Palace
Theater
June 2: *10:00 a.m. - noon. Adult Religious Education, Rev. Libbie
Stoddard & Ann Peterson, UU Principals and Purposes, *Noon - Newsletter
Deadline. *Benefit golf tournament for Godfrey Scholarship, Joe Godfrey
June 3 *9:30 a.m. Choir Practice. *10:30 a.m. Worship service,
Rev. Margaret Hart. *11:00 a.m. Religious Education.*11:30 Annual Congregational
Meeting.
June 24: *Flower Communion