eNews for Thursday, March 14

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View this email in your browser eNews for Thursday, March 14 Worship Matters We will gather online via Zoom and in person this Sunday, March 17, to worship with Laura McBride, who will present "Lessons in Transformation." The Zoom call starts at 10:00am for social time, and the service starts at 10:30am.   "This week Laura McBride discusses the role of life transformations. Were they coincidental, intentional, or random? What spurred transformations in your life? What more can we learn about transformation and its impact on our lives? How can we plan for, approach, and even cope with transformations, both welcomed and uninvited? We will explore these questions on March 17th." 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 March 17 - Lessons in Transformation March 24 - Can There be Humor in Religion? March 31 - Easter Sunday March Religious Education Classes March 17 - Hummingbirds and Butterflies  Come learn about our native Michigan butterflies, native hummingbirds, and learn about the power of transformation. How do we evolve and change as time goes by?  March 24 - Peace and Tranquility with Feng Shui We will explore Feng Shui--the arrangement of colors, shapes, and objects in rooms, creating a safe space to feel better physically, emotionally, and spiritually--through creating our own wind chimes. March 31 - Transformation of Self  In this class the kids will be making their own fashion statements, transforming our everyday wear into something personal. The kids will learn how to sew, decorate, dye, and design their own clothing or accessories!  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 Rev. Drew is away on bereavement leave from Thursday, March 14 - Monday, March 18, for his mother's memorial service. There is no new minister's column this week. During Rev. Drew's absence, the minister of the UU Fellowship of Midland, Rev. Eric Severson at 989.631.1162 or [email protected], will be available for any pastoral emergencies. 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 1:00pm - This month: March 24! - 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, March 21, 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 Youth RE Team - Sunday, March 17, at 3:30pm If you are interested in helping any of these teams or committees, please fill out the Volunteer Opportunity Form if you haven’t already. Special Plate Collection this Sunday –  R.I.S.E. (Women’s Aid Service) The special social justice “plate” offering on March 17 is for R.I.S.E. (Women's Aid Service), an agency serving domestic violence and sexual assault survivors in Isabella, Gratiot, and Clare counties. You can donate online to the  Social Justice Fund at our website or checks can be sent to our treasurer made out to UUFCM with “R.I.S.E.” indicated in the memo line. Game Night! - March 18 We meet on 3rd Mondays from 7:00-9:00pm in the UUFCM social hall and have fun with a variety of games decided by consensus. It is a great opportunity to learn new games and meet people with similar interests! Questions? Contact James Scott ([email protected]) at 989.854.0044. Small Group Gatherings for Dessert Recently our Board of Trustees shared the proposed budget for next year. As an opportunity to go deeper into the conversation around our budget, our values, and the role that each of us plays in the Fellowship, you are invited to a dessert gathering with fellow congregants. During the week of March 18, many members of UUFCM are opening their homes to small groups to connect with one another and to envision the best possible future for our Fellowship. What's great about this place? What could be even better? How can we work together to achieve our goals? If you would yet like to sign up for a dessert gathering, contact Cynthia Damer at 989.506.5750. Please see the Stewardship Team with any questions: Drew Frantz, Cynthia Damer, Gisela Moffitt, Amy Voege, Mary Alsager, and Norma Bailey. If you need a ride, contact Jen Prout at 989.400.3130. We Need Your Help It’s that time again! We are scheduled to provide dinners for the homeless shelter guests at St. John’s church on Tuesday, March 19, and Wednesday, March 20. If you are interested in helping, or in getting more information, please contact Joyce Henricks ([email protected]). Soul Matters Small Group Discussion - Thursday, March 21 March Theme: Transformation For anyone who would like to explore the March theme of Transformation more fully, please download this 10-page packet with spiritual practices, readings, songs, videos and more. A small group meets monthly to discuss our individual explorations of the theme. That meeting will be Thursday, March, 21, at 6:30pm. Please contact Rev. Drew if you would like to join us. March Movie Night in Honor of Women's History Month - Saturday, March 23 "Hidden Figures" was named one of the top ten movies in 2016. It roughly covers the story of three African-American women's' pivotal role at NASA with the United States Space Program. John Glenn's historical flight on February 20, 1962, almost had to be canceled when the IBM calculations had flaws. He specifically asked for Katherine Johnson to come in and correct the problem. Join us at the Fellowship Hall on March 23, at 7:00pm. Welcome to UU Orientation - Sunday, March 24 This orientation is geared to newcomers, visitors, and those seeking to learn more about Unitarian Universalism and this UU fellowship. It is offered every month both in person in the fellowship hall and via Zoom. Sessions run approximately an hour and a half. If you are interested in watching an introductory video regarding our faith, please view this YouTube video by Peter Bowden called Unitarian Universalism: You're Uni-What?. For more info or to register for Welcome to UU, contact: Laura McBride at 989.772.5512 or [email protected] Please let Laura know whether you will be attending via Zoom or in-person by the Friday prior to the orientation. Paint and Pizza! – Saturday, April 6 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 2:30 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 - March/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.  This Sunday we are kicking 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 Women’s History and 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 two pages of ideas are below, and we’ll have hard copies available on Sunday.   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! March 2024 - Women's History Month Resources April 2024 - Earth Day/Environmental Issues Resources Twelve Months to a More Climate Conscious You! - March 2024 February tool box point totals can be sent to Jodi Fisher at [email protected]. March's tool kit can be found here. • • • Community News • • • 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]) 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. Copyright © 2023 Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Central Michigan. All rights reserved. Want to change how you receive these emails? You can update your preferences or unsubscribe from this list.