eNews for Thursday, April 4

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View this email in your browser eNews for Thursday, April 4 Worship Matters We will gather online via Zoom and in person this Sunday, April 7, to worship with Rev, Drew Frantz, who will present "Interdependence." The Zoom call starts at 10:00am for social time, and the service starts at 10:30am.   "In the newly articulated expression of Unitarian Universalist values, Interdependence is named as one of six core values that all emanate from Love. Specifically, our UU values state: 'We covenant to protect Earth and all beings from exploitation. We will create and nurture sustainable relationships of care and respect, mutuality and justice. We will work to repair harm and damaged relationships.' There are three distinct ideas about Interdependence here, relating to the natural world and to human society. Let’s explore this together on Sunday." Zoom Invitation for Sunday Service: Join Zoom Meeting Meeting ID: 402489218 One tap mobile +16468769923,,402489218# Phone - audio only +1 646 876 9923 Upcoming Services April 7 - Interdependence April 14 - Stewardship April 21 - Multigenerational Earth Day April 28 - Poetry Service April Youth Religious Education Classes April 7 - Mural Coloring The UU kids will be making a mural together of the Circle of Life and how all of us are interconnected. They will also be learning a song, "The More We Get Together," and learning ASL signs for some of the lyrics.   April 14 - Interdependent Balloon Bop/Fingertip Hula Hoop These fun games will teach the kids teamwork and communication skills. Come bounce around with us!  April 21 - Multigenerational Earth Day Service  In celebration of Earth Day, children and adults will all be together for Sunday worship hour. We will sing songs, tell stories, play games, and more! April 28 - Earth Day Outdoors The UU kids will be planting pollinator seeds for their garden, as well as placing their birdhouses and feeders out for our furry friends! If you dig it, come get dirty with us! If you happen to miss being in worship, please check out Sunday Services on our website for sermon video and/or text. 2023 and prior year sermon video and/or text are located under Sermon Archives. Minister’s Column I was on spring break last week, and my study book for the week was Nothing Gold Can Stay…the colors of grief by Mark Belletini. Still dealing with my mother’s recent death, this book was a good choice for me to continue my grieving work. It has a series of short chapters such as Grief and Ritual, Grief and Theology, Grief and Life, and Grief and Anger. Each chapter is the author’s reflection on experiences of grieving in his personal life and in his life as a minister. Read the column here. Upcoming Events Most meetings and events are hybrid (in-person/Zoom). Please contact the event or meeting leader if you are not sure. Event and meeting details and links can be found on the UUFCM Calendar. - Welcome to UU Orientation - Last Sundays at 12:30pm - UUFCM Men’s Group - 1st Mondays at 7pm on Zoom - Game Night - 3rd Mondays at 7pm - Central Michigan Sangha - Tuesdays at 6:45pm - UU Discussion Group - Wednesdays at 10am - Choir Rehearsal - Wednesdays at 7pm - Drawing Workshop - 2nd and 4th Tuesdays at 10am - First Friday Potluck - First Fridays at 6:30pm - Movie Night - 4th Saturdays at 7pm - Monthly Soul Matters Small Group Discussion - Thursday, April 25, at 6:30pm All members and friends are welcome to attend our UUFCM Board meeting as well as the various team meetings that occur monthly. If you are interested in attending any specific team meeting, please contact the team leader for information. Team Meetings Building Team - Monday, April 8, at 6:00pm Social Justice Team - Monday, April 8, at 7:00pm Worship Team - Tuesday, April 9, at 7:00pm If you are interested in helping any of these teams or committees, please fill out the Volunteer Opportunity Form if you haven’t already. Stewardship Campaign Our stewardship campaign is in full swing! You should have received your stewardship packets by now with explanations and directions about how to make your pledge as well as explain our interesting incentives -  incentives to turn in your pledge form early, increase your pledge amount, and/or pledge for the first time! There is also a new volunteer form to let us know ways in which you would like to share your time and talents. Please be sure to read the materials right away and take action by April 21. If you have questions, contact anyone on the Stewardship Committee – Mary Alsager, Norma Bailey, Cynthia Damer,  Drew Frantz, Gisela Moffit, and Amy Voege. First Friday Potluck – This Friday! Please join us in the UUFCM Fellowship Hall at 6:30pm (doors open at 6:15pm) for food, conversation, and games! Coffee, hot tea, and water will be provided. If you are able, please bring a dish to pass. Paint and Pizza! – This Saturday! Once again, UUFCM will paint and have a banner hung in the Mt. Pleasant downtown area this year. Please join us in a paint and pizza party on Saturday, April 6 at 2:30pm in the Fellowship Hall to paint our banner. Children and adults are welcome, but do wear paint clothes! See Norma Bailey ([email protected]) or Darlene Ritchie ([email protected]) for more information. Save the Date! - Saturday, April 27 We’ll have our annual spring clean-up on Saturday, April 27, 10:00 am - noon. Some inside and lots of outside work will need many hands! Please put the date on your calendar! Setting Intentions - April This year, your Social Justice Coordinating Team (SJCT) is asking each of us individually to set an intention – and follow through! – to involve ourselves more and/or to learn more about our neighbors and issues. We kicked off our third “season” for March and April, commemorating Women’s History Month and Earth Day/Environmental issues. As a team, we’ve researched books, children’s books, movies, organizations, podcasts, etc., about Earth Day/Environment so that you would have a variety of intentions to choose from – read a book, watch a movie, peruse a website, for example. Our pages of ideas are below, and we have hard copies available.   We encourage each of you to make an intention and then, preferably, make it public by writing it on our Intention Posters in the Fellowship Hall. Throughout this “season,” we will hopefully be able to share what each of us is accomplishing to meet our intention! Please join in our efforts! April 2024 - Earth Day/Environmental Issues Resources Twelve Months to a More Climate Conscious You! - April 2024 Just a friendly reminder to get your March points to Jodi Fisher at [email protected]. Due to vacations, there will be a short delay in getting the April tool kit out. Youth Religious Education - March 2024 Kids in our Youth Religious Education program completed the month of exploring Transformation with creating stuffed animals. Everyone had fun learning to sew! We also an Easter egg hunt. • • • Community News • • • April Earth Month Activities Central Sustainability, a registered student organization on CMU’s campus, has planned multiple events throughout the month to celebrate and strengthen sustainability on campus and in the community. See the flyer below and newsletter to find out about the various activities. Central Michigan International Film Festival The Central Michigan International Film Festival runs this week, Wednesday-Sunday, April 3-7, and there are a number of films which address climate and our interdependence with nature such as “Common Ground” and “Troubled Waters.”  See https://cmfilmfest.com/ for the full schedule. Dial for Democracy Join Voters Not Politician's "Dial for Democracy" List! Activists across the political spectrum can all agree that picking up the phone and calling your elected officials is the most effective way to make your voice heard. In fact, many elected officials and their staff members have stated that a phone call from a constituent holds more weight than an email, tweet, or a fax. By joining VNP's "Dial for Democracy" list, you will receive exclusive alerts when it's time to call your lawmakers on legislation or decisions that impact Michigan's democracy. These alerts will contain info and tips to help you have an easy and productive call to your local lawmaker! If you aren't receiving exclusive Dial for Democracy alerts yet, sign up here. You'll receive alerts when critical legislation is introduced along with your state legislators' contact information and a script to use during your call. Poverty Simulation - Friday, April 5 CMU is holding a poverty simulation, dispelling common misunderstandings around the difficulties our impoverished families face while navigating everyday life. The hands-on interactive simulation will be held on Friday, April 5, 9:00am – 12:00pm in the French Auditorium in the EHS Building on campus. You can register with the QR code in the flyer. Become an Election Worker If you are interested in becoming an election worker in the Mt. Pleasant area, fill out the application and submit it to the appropriate location.  At this time, the City of Mt. Pleasant has enough election workers, but Union Township and the surrounding townships do not.  See Norma Bailey for further information ([email protected]). Free COVID Tests  Get free at-⁠home COVID-⁠19 tests this fall on COVIDTests.gov Every home in the U.S. is eligible to order an additional 4 free at-⁠home tests beginning November 20. If you did not order tests this fall, you may place two orders for a total of 8 tests. Your order of COVID tests is completely free – you won’t even pay for shipping. You can order your test kits HERE. Donate Now! The Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Central Michigan is funded solely by its members and friends. ​ For your convenience, you can make a donation electronically with the button below, or via the GivePlus Church App. Please consider the option of offsetting the cost to the Fellowship for providing the convenience of making an online donation. If you prefer not to donate electronically, you may also write a check payable to UUFCM and send it to: UUFCM, P.O. Box 41, Mt. Pleasant, MI 48804-0041 Got News? The deadline for submissions to the Order of Service Insert and the UUFCM weekly eNews is Tuesday at 5:00 p.m. Please send all submissions to [email protected]. Drew’s Contact Information Please contact Drew via email, phone, or text. [email protected]  Phone/text: 440-935-0129​ Office Hours (in person and/or Zoom):    Tuesdays 10am-noon   Wednesdays 1-3pm and 8-9pm Office Hours Zoom Link UUFCM Board of Trustees for 2023-2024 President: Cynthia Damer (989.506.5750; [email protected]) President-Elect: Aaron Jones (989.501.0672; [email protected]) Treasurer: Terrie Robbie (989.400.2495; [email protected]) Secretary: Laurie Meadows (989.317.8299; [email protected]) Trustee: Victoria Sladek (989.506.7039; [email protected]) Trustee: Monica Jean (616.443.8782; [email protected]) Trustee: Mary Alsagar (989.330.2226; [email protected]) Team and Committee Leaders Adult Religious Education Team - Jodi Fisher Building, Grounds & Safety Team - Norma Bailey Caring Committee - Laura McBride Communications Coordinating Team  Fellowship Life Coordinating Team - Gisela Moffit   Membership - Laura McBride   Welcome & Hospitality - Gisela Moffit   Social Fun - Jen Prout Social Justice Coordinating Team - Norma Bailey Worship Team - Drew Frantz Youth Religious Education (RE) Team - Norma Bailey We are a religious community guided by love, transforming our lives and our world. 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