“The way you spend Christmas is far more important than how much.”
~ Henry David Thoreau
CUUPS (Covenant of UU Pagans) Yule Celebration
Please join us to celebrate Winter Solstice on Saturday, December 21st. We gather at 6:30
p.m., hold the ritual promptly at 7:00 p.m., and our potluck takes place between 7:30 and 8:00
p.m. Please bring a dish to pass and/or a dessert to share.
Sunday Worship: Celebrating Miracles and Carols
Our Sunday morning service on December 22nd will be a carol sing (you pick 'em & we'll sing 'em!) with a lighthearted story about miracles presented in many voices by our Readers' Theater group. “Miracles are like pimples, because once you start looking for them you find more than you ever dreamed you'd see . . .” writes Lemony Snicket.
Christmas Eve Multigenerational Candlelight Service
We will gather at 4:30 on Christmas Eve, Tuesday, December 24 to celebrate the return of the light and the birth of hope. The service will feature our Youthful Noise choir as well as our Joyful Noise choir, plus Beth on the cello and Rev. Joe on the banjo. And, of course, we will light candles!
Looking ahead at the Sunday morning worship schedule:
Dec 29: Burning Bowl service, led by Ricky Courlander
Jan 5: Contending with Dissonance, led by Rev. Joe Cleveland
Jan 12: A Visit to the Border, led by Rev. Joe Cleveland
Jan 19: A service on justice, led by one of our Worship Teams
Jan 26: Fragility Is Life, led by Rev. Joe Cleveland
Youthful Noise!
Youthful Noise Choir will be performing Christmas carols for the next two services. Please, if your holiday plans permit, have children attend both the Sunday, December 22nd service at 10:30 a.m. as well as the Candlelight Christmas Eve service on December 24th at 4:30 p.m. Thank you!
Mentions from the Maven (Laura McBride)...
Major thanks to the following elves who set up, and/or cleaned up the Holiday Tea last Sunday! They are: Janis Shinn, Gisela Moffit, Hank Zeneiwcz, Mary Alsager, Betty Clason, Ashley Rae. Mrs. Claus sends major thanks to Linda and Cynthia Damer, Norma Bailey, Erika Courlander, and Gisela Moffit for providing our beautiful centerpieces, and to dear Annette for sharing her beautiful teapots! In addition, the treats were tasty and clearly “made with love” as my friend Julio says.
Stay tuned for news of our first Coffeehouse of 2014. It will include youth! It will be a family friendly event and we hope our talented youth will participate in it, too. Crankypants is thinking about late January. What say you UUFCM friends and members?
Christmas Outreach
A heartfelt thanks to all who helped, whether with monetary contributions, donations, time sorting or helping with distribution. Your efforts are much appreciated!
RE Thanks You!
A special thanks is expressed to Tom Trenkamp for his volunteer work with UUFCM middle level students throughout the last year and a half. His investment of time, energy and love in our youth has been a valued contribution. We are all very grateful.
More thanks goes out to all of the volunteers who have helped make our new Passion Sundays such a success: Christian Columbini (mandolin/music), Mary Alsager (yoga), Vicki Chessin (medicine/health), Cynthia Damer (genetics), and Jim Dealing (skiing). It's fun to have your input!
Guest at Your Table
On Sunday, November 24, we kicked off our congregation's annual celebration of the tradition of Guest at Your Table, a Unitarian Universalist Service Committee program to advance human rights and social justice in the United States and around the world.
We are asking that each person or family take a Guest at Your Table box, put it on the table where they eat their meals, each day talk about one of the pictures or stories and then put their extra change in the box. On January 5, we will collect all the boxes, count the money, and then send it to the UUSC to fund their efforts.
Our Whole Lives
We are going to offer two age group series this winter, grades K-3 and grades 4-7. The required parent meeting for both groups will be on Sunday, January 5, from 2-4 p.m. at the Fellowship. Both groups will meet on Sundays, January 12-March 2. The grades K-3 group, led by Laura McBride, will meet in place of the regular RE program, and the grades 4-7 group, led by Mary Alsager and Norma Bailey, will meet from 6:30-8:00 p.m.
Much more information will be provided at the required parent meeting. However, if you are interested and/or wish more information, please contact Laura McBride (989-772-5512 or [email protected]) for the grades K-3 program, or Norma Bailey (989-560-3952 or [email protected]) for the grades 4-7 program.
“People are like stained glass windows. They sparkle and shine when the sun is out, but when the darkness sets in, their true beauty is revealed only if there is a light from within.”
~ Elisabeth Kubler-Ross
is Tuesday at 5 p.m. Please send all submissions to [email protected]
Important Contacts
Have a suggestion? a problem? a question? We can help!
Building Manager: Tina Christy (989.506.2985; [email protected])
Caring Committee: Mary Alsager (989.773.2595; [email protected])
Children’s RE Committee: Bill Tinsley (989.488.8505; [email protected])
Hospitality: Norma Bailey (989.560.3952; [email protected]),
Laura McBride (989.772.5512; [email protected])
Membership: Gisela Moffit (989.772.1602; [email protected])
Social Action: Norma Bailey (989.560.3952; [email protected])
Social Fun: Laura McBride (989.772.5512; [email protected])
Stewardship: Grace Rollins (989.772.1204; [email protected])
Transition Team: Norma Bailey (989.560.3952; [email protected])
Worship Team: Vicki Chessin (989.463.3076; [email protected])