There are millions of reasons to head to Canada right now, but my Beloved:
what was once necessary is now a mechanism of privilege.
Leaving is a privilege that can kill — and loving does not let go.
~ Rev. Robin Tanner
Water for Life Presentation - This Thursday at 7 p.m.
All are invited to attend – and bring interested friends – to a presentation about water issues in Michigan on Thursday, November 17, at 7:00 pm at the UU Center. The program, which UUFCM is co-sponsoring, will be presented by the Michigan Citizens for Water Conservation led by Karen Turnbull and will provide us with means by which we can work to preserve Michigan’s fresh water resources. See the flyer.
Tellabration! - This Friday @ 7:30 p.m.
Your minister has been kindly informed by our oh so wise administrative assistant that the congregation may want to be notified of upcoming events where she is appearing. So here it is:
The Mid-Michigan Area Storytellers will be presenting "Tellabration! 2016: A Tapestry of Stories" at the UUFCM this Friday, November 18 at 7:30 p.m. Please join us for an evening of storytelling with Dawn Daniels (guest teller), Eileen DeLorenzo, Jan Drzyzga, Carol Garner, Phil Lewis, Jennifer Pahl- Otto, and Joe Remenar.
$5 Admission at the door. Includes refreshments.
In Worship
This Sunday, November 20, we will celebrate our annual multigenerational Harvest Feast service with the theme “Is There Room at This Table?” Through story and song we will together be introduced to the 2016 UUSC (Unitarian Universalist Service Committee) “Guest at Your Table” social justice initiative titled “Defying Hate.” “Guest at Your Table” (GAYT) is UUSC’s annual intergenerational program to raise support for and awareness about their work to advance human rights around the world. You can read more about the UUSC and this year’s initiative here.
Upcoming Services
November 27: “On Covenant…Activated”
December 4: “What Are We Waiting For?”
Annual Harvest Feast - This Sunday, November 20
We will celebrate our annual Harvest Feast tradition this Sunday, November 20 following the worship service. Our youth will be presenting a musical program during the feast as well as collecting our annual donations to the UUSC Guest at Your Table Program, so please come prepared to generously participate in this ritual of giving as well as receiving the blessings of wonderful food and fellowship.
Harvest Feast Logistics:
While our sign up sheets are filling with offerings, the Harvest Feast Beast fears possible shortages. Specifically, we need servings to feed 12 of:
- Hot Vegetable dishes & Salads
- Dressing/Stuffing
- Appetizers/Finger Foods/Savories
- Relishes & Sauces
- Mashed Potatoes
- 2 dozen dinner rolls
- Assistance with clean up after!
Please call/text/email Laura McBride with your offering and if you need foil pans to bring your food (989-772-5512 or [email protected]). Additionally, please share images of our celebration to use on our website. Pictures can be emailed to [email protected] – thank you!
Dear UUFCM Community -
To those of you who have graciously volunteered to bring food for the Harvest Feast, I wanted to let you know that we have two teen RE helpers who are vegan, and I would like them to be able to attend the Harvest Feast. Therefore, if you are making a dish for the harvest feast and it does not contain any meat, butter, milk (cheese too!), or eggs, could you please label it as vegan, so they know they can eat it? I am bringing vegan mashed potatoes and a salad. However, you could also think about making your veggie/salad/side dish without butter, substituting oil/margarine. If you are bringing rolls/breads, allow people to add their own butter. Also, although most breads are vegan, please look at the list of ingredients and consider buying rolls/bread that have no butter, milk (whey/casein), or eggs and again label them as vegan.
Thank you! I think this gesture will go a long way in making these two teens (and perhaps others) feel welcome.
~ Cynthia Damer
Winter Holiday Worship Schedule – Please Note!
With both Christmas Day and New Year’s Day falling on a Sunday this year, we have decided to hold our worship services those weekends on the Saturday evenings. So...worship will be held on Saturday, December 24 at 7:00 p.m. and Saturday, December 31 at 7:00 p.m. There will be no worship services held on Sunday, December 25 or Sunday, January, 1. The December 24 evening service will be followed by fellowship time including punch and cookies, and the December 31 service will be followed by a New Year’s Eve celebration – details for that event will be available soon.
Transgender Day of Remembrance Vigil - This Sunday, November 20
In honor of Transgender Day of Remembrance, the UUFCM will hold a vigil of prayer and remembrance this Sunday, November 20 at 6:30 p.m. in the sanctuary. Our minister will facilitate this gathering. For more information about this annual observance, visit this website.
“The Transgender Day of Remembrance seeks to highlight the losses we face due to anti-transgender bigotry and violence. I am no stranger to the need to fight for our rights, and the right to simply exist is first and foremost. With so many seeking to erase transgender people -- sometimes in the most brutal ways possible -- it is vitally important that those we lose are remembered, and that we continue to fight for justice.”;
~ Transgender Day of Remembrance founder Gwendolyn Ann Smith
CAMFED 2016
Last year the Board approved the adoption of CAMFED, an organization committed to helping communities around the world provide education for young women. The program is community-based, with funds provided by CAMFED. They provide a newsletter to sponsors, which keeps us up to date on their activities.
Last year we contributed over $400 to CAMFED – let’s try to do the same this year! Donations should be submitted this Sunday, November 20, by writing a check to UUFCM with a notation that the money is for CAMFED.
Schedule Change!
Ladies who Lunch will meet on the fifth Tuesday of November (11/29) instead of the usual fourth, at Panera, at 11:45.
UUFCM Special Business Meeting - December 4
UUFCM members, please put Sunday, December 4th on your calendars! There will be a special business meeting to learn the recommendation by the board to enroll in the UU Common Endowment Fund. Your voice and vote are needed.
Christmas Outreach - Children's Books
UUFCM is again collecting new or like-new children's books which will be distributed at Christmas Outreach on December 9th and 10th. We especially need books for sixth grade through high school. There will be a box for books in the Fellowship Hall. Financial donations are welcome as well - checks should be made out to Christmas Outreach. Beth Macleod will be collecting both books and checks.
Isabella County Restoration House (ICRH) News
The dates for our partnering with St. John's for the Restoration House are the weeks of January 2, March 5, and April 2. A sign up list for volunteers will be sent out after Thanksgiving. The shelter program started this past Sunday and we are again hosting the Welcome/Intake center. If you are interested in volunteering for the Intake Center, or for helping out with other churches, please contact Joyce Henricks (989-773-4709 or [email protected]).
Save the Date!
Saturday, January 28, 2017 from 9-4 p.m.
UUFCM All-Congregation Retreat! Details available soon…
Help Needed! Got Skills? Keep Reading…
Looking for a way to contribute to our congregation? We have a building manager position that is shared with Terrie Robbie that needs to be filled. This is an important volunteer position for our fellowship as it pertains to maintenance and upkeep of our beautiful building and grounds. We have a handyman who handles those jobs beyond our skills, so don't worry about that! If you have extra time and some basic skills to share, please contact Laura McBride (989.772.5512 or [email protected]) to learn more information and/or plan an orientation to the shared role. Please see the attached description of the position.
A Little Help - Pretty Please!
We still need baby holders for this upcoming year! If you would like to help out, please let Anna VanArsdaleHoot know what Sunday of the month you are available for holding any babies that come to church. You can contact her at [email protected].
All are invited to attend – and bring interested friends – to a presentation about water issues in Michigan on Thursday, November 17, at 7:00 pm at the UU Center. The program, which UUFCM is co-sponsoring, will be presented by the Michigan Citizens for Water Conservation led by Karen Turnbull and will provide us with means by which we can work to preserve Michigan’s fresh water resources. See the flyer.
Tellabration! - This Friday @ 7:30 p.m.
Your minister has been kindly informed by our oh so wise administrative assistant that the congregation may want to be notified of upcoming events where she is appearing. So here it is:
The Mid-Michigan Area Storytellers will be presenting "Tellabration! 2016: A Tapestry of Stories" at the UUFCM this Friday, November 18 at 7:30 p.m. Please join us for an evening of storytelling with Dawn Daniels (guest teller), Eileen DeLorenzo, Jan Drzyzga, Carol Garner, Phil Lewis, Jennifer Pahl- Otto, and Joe Remenar.
$5 Admission at the door. Includes refreshments.
In Worship
This Sunday, November 20, we will celebrate our annual multigenerational Harvest Feast service with the theme “Is There Room at This Table?” Through story and song we will together be introduced to the 2016 UUSC (Unitarian Universalist Service Committee) “Guest at Your Table” social justice initiative titled “Defying Hate.” “Guest at Your Table” (GAYT) is UUSC’s annual intergenerational program to raise support for and awareness about their work to advance human rights around the world. You can read more about the UUSC and this year’s initiative here.
Upcoming Services
November 27: “On Covenant…Activated”
December 4: “What Are We Waiting For?”
Annual Harvest Feast - This Sunday, November 20
We will celebrate our annual Harvest Feast tradition this Sunday, November 20 following the worship service. Our youth will be presenting a musical program during the feast as well as collecting our annual donations to the UUSC Guest at Your Table Program, so please come prepared to generously participate in this ritual of giving as well as receiving the blessings of wonderful food and fellowship.
Harvest Feast Logistics:
While our sign up sheets are filling with offerings, the Harvest Feast Beast fears possible shortages. Specifically, we need servings to feed 12 of:
- Hot Vegetable dishes & Salads
- Dressing/Stuffing
- Appetizers/Finger Foods/Savories
- Relishes & Sauces
- Mashed Potatoes
- 2 dozen dinner rolls
- Assistance with clean up after!
Please call/text/email Laura McBride with your offering and if you need foil pans to bring your food (989-772-5512 or [email protected]). Additionally, please share images of our celebration to use on our website. Pictures can be emailed to [email protected] – thank you!
Dear UUFCM Community -
To those of you who have graciously volunteered to bring food for the Harvest Feast, I wanted to let you know that we have two teen RE helpers who are vegan, and I would like them to be able to attend the Harvest Feast. Therefore, if you are making a dish for the harvest feast and it does not contain any meat, butter, milk (cheese too!), or eggs, could you please label it as vegan, so they know they can eat it? I am bringing vegan mashed potatoes and a salad. However, you could also think about making your veggie/salad/side dish without butter, substituting oil/margarine. If you are bringing rolls/breads, allow people to add their own butter. Also, although most breads are vegan, please look at the list of ingredients and consider buying rolls/bread that have no butter, milk (whey/casein), or eggs and again label them as vegan.
Thank you! I think this gesture will go a long way in making these two teens (and perhaps others) feel welcome.
~ Cynthia Damer
Winter Holiday Worship Schedule – Please Note!
With both Christmas Day and New Year’s Day falling on a Sunday this year, we have decided to hold our worship services those weekends on the Saturday evenings. So...worship will be held on Saturday, December 24 at 7:00 p.m. and Saturday, December 31 at 7:00 p.m. There will be no worship services held on Sunday, December 25 or Sunday, January, 1. The December 24 evening service will be followed by fellowship time including punch and cookies, and the December 31 service will be followed by a New Year’s Eve celebration – details for that event will be available soon.
Transgender Day of Remembrance Vigil - This Sunday, November 20
In honor of Transgender Day of Remembrance, the UUFCM will hold a vigil of prayer and remembrance this Sunday, November 20 at 6:30 p.m. in the sanctuary. Our minister will facilitate this gathering. For more information about this annual observance, visit this website.
“The Transgender Day of Remembrance seeks to highlight the losses we face due to anti-transgender bigotry and violence. I am no stranger to the need to fight for our rights, and the right to simply exist is first and foremost. With so many seeking to erase transgender people -- sometimes in the most brutal ways possible -- it is vitally important that those we lose are remembered, and that we continue to fight for justice.”;
~ Transgender Day of Remembrance founder Gwendolyn Ann Smith
CAMFED 2016
Last year the Board approved the adoption of CAMFED, an organization committed to helping communities around the world provide education for young women. The program is community-based, with funds provided by CAMFED. They provide a newsletter to sponsors, which keeps us up to date on their activities.
Last year we contributed over $400 to CAMFED – let’s try to do the same this year! Donations should be submitted this Sunday, November 20, by writing a check to UUFCM with a notation that the money is for CAMFED.
Schedule Change!
Ladies who Lunch will meet on the fifth Tuesday of November (11/29) instead of the usual fourth, at Panera, at 11:45.
UUFCM Special Business Meeting - December 4
UUFCM members, please put Sunday, December 4th on your calendars! There will be a special business meeting to learn the recommendation by the board to enroll in the UU Common Endowment Fund. Your voice and vote are needed.
Christmas Outreach - Children's Books
UUFCM is again collecting new or like-new children's books which will be distributed at Christmas Outreach on December 9th and 10th. We especially need books for sixth grade through high school. There will be a box for books in the Fellowship Hall. Financial donations are welcome as well - checks should be made out to Christmas Outreach. Beth Macleod will be collecting both books and checks.
Isabella County Restoration House (ICRH) News
The dates for our partnering with St. John's for the Restoration House are the weeks of January 2, March 5, and April 2. A sign up list for volunteers will be sent out after Thanksgiving. The shelter program started this past Sunday and we are again hosting the Welcome/Intake center. If you are interested in volunteering for the Intake Center, or for helping out with other churches, please contact Joyce Henricks (989-773-4709 or [email protected]).
Save the Date!
Saturday, January 28, 2017 from 9-4 p.m.
UUFCM All-Congregation Retreat! Details available soon…
Help Needed! Got Skills? Keep Reading…
Looking for a way to contribute to our congregation? We have a building manager position that is shared with Terrie Robbie that needs to be filled. This is an important volunteer position for our fellowship as it pertains to maintenance and upkeep of our beautiful building and grounds. We have a handyman who handles those jobs beyond our skills, so don't worry about that! If you have extra time and some basic skills to share, please contact Laura McBride (989.772.5512 or [email protected]) to learn more information and/or plan an orientation to the shared role. Please see the attached description of the position.
A Little Help - Pretty Please!
We still need baby holders for this upcoming year! If you would like to help out, please let Anna VanArsdaleHoot know what Sunday of the month you are available for holding any babies that come to church. You can contact her at [email protected].
| • • • Community News • • • Native American Heritage Month at CMU Events throughout the month of November. For complete information, download the flyer. |  |
The defense against shame, guilt, and mourning leads to emotional emptiness in the individual and, in consequence, to psychological and political immobility, to a lack of ideas and imagination in society.
~ Margarete Mitscherlich-Neilson, The Problem of Loss and Mourning
Got News?
The deadline for submissions to the Order of Service Insert and the UUFCM weekly e-News is
Tuesday at 5:00 p.m. Please send all submissions to [email protected].
UUFCM Board of Trustees for 2016-2017
President: Laura McBride (989.772.5512; [email protected])
Past-President: Annette Pratt (989.400.0173; [email protected])
President Elect: Norma Bailey (989.560.3952; [email protected] )
Treasurer: Chris Bailey (989.775.8257; [email protected])
Co-Treasurer: Ricky Courlander (989.772.4457; [email protected])
Secretary: Vicki Chessin (989.560.4614; [email protected])
Trustee: Scott Daigle (989.506.5750; [email protected])
Trustee: Janis Shinn (989.400.3724; [email protected])
Trustee: Brigitte Bechtold (989.954.1123; [email protected])
The deadline for submissions to the Order of Service Insert and the UUFCM weekly e-News is
Tuesday at 5:00 p.m. Please send all submissions to [email protected].
UUFCM Board of Trustees for 2016-2017
President: Laura McBride (989.772.5512; [email protected])
Past-President: Annette Pratt (989.400.0173; [email protected])
President Elect: Norma Bailey (989.560.3952; [email protected] )
Treasurer: Chris Bailey (989.775.8257; [email protected])
Co-Treasurer: Ricky Courlander (989.772.4457; [email protected])
Secretary: Vicki Chessin (989.560.4614; [email protected])
Trustee: Scott Daigle (989.506.5750; [email protected])
Trustee: Janis Shinn (989.400.3724; [email protected])
Trustee: Brigitte Bechtold (989.954.1123; [email protected])
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