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Newsletter - March 25, 2016
Welcome to the Amarillo Unitarian Universalist Fellowship!
Table of Contents
Quick Links
7 UU Principles
Calendar
Men's Brotherhood
Women's Covenant Group
Sermon Library
Calendar


Children's Religious Education Update
Our Children's Religious Education (CRE) program is divided into two groups by age. In CRE, which meets each Sunday at 11 AM, we challenge our children with interactive studies about religion and science. 
The nursery group topics change according to individuals who attend and cannot be listed in advance, but they fall under the curriculum Celebrating Me and My World.


During March , the elementary students will be learning about science.
 
Mar. 27:   Religious Songs: What makes a song religious?

Lesson plans are subject to change, but this is the plan.

Contact: Wes Phillips and Sarah Brown
LAST CHANCE TO DONATE SHOES, etc
Sunday, March 27  is final day of shoes, socks, and feminine hygiene products for Food Not Bombs' drive to assist the homeless.  Bring your donations to the foyer of the Fellowship!

Climate Justice Month
Over the last few months, Unitarian Universalists have been witnessing for climate justice from Paris to the Pacific Northwest to Washington, DC . Now people of faith and conscience have a chance to collectively take the momentum for climate justice to the next level, with the second Climate Justice Month!
From World Water Day (March 22) to Earth Day (April 22), we will build resistance to climate change and add our moral voices to the movement for climate justice, taking action in our families, communities, and congregations or faith groups.

How We Will Take Action
  1. Every week of Climate Justice Month Commit2Respond will showcase a featured resource for inspiration, a featured resource for education, and a featured action.
  2. In Week 1 we will act to advance the rights of frontlines communities by advocating for water rights. In Week 2 we will join the interfaith campaign to shift to a low carbon future and model for world leaders the strong action required from us all. And in Week 4 we will march, teach-in, and advocate for reclaiming our democracy from the likes of Big Oil and the Koch brothers, growing the movement for justice.
  3. On or around Earth Day, we will hold worship services, Earth fairs, advocacy days, and much more, working with community organizations and fellow religious groups to grow the climate justice movement.
What To Do Now
  1. RSVP for Climate Justice Month to receive extra inspiration and resources by email throughout the month. 
Spread the word! Mobilize your congregation, faith group, secular group, family, or other groups you are a part of to take collective action together during Climate Justice Month ( get mobilization resources ).
Just Saying
  "We must change ourselves. We must change ourselves or we will die.  As upsetting as it may sound, many Unitarian Universalist congregations are presently not up to the task of being houses of spiritual transformation, because we have not decided that we want to be houses of transformation.  We want to be houses of comfort and nurture."  --Ian White Maher, "A Transformative Spiritual Relationship with the Divine," in Turning Point: Essays on a New Unitarian Universalism (2016).

Newsletter and Website Submissions
As always, we are eager to publish information regarding committees, boards, Adult RE, CRE, events, and services, but we need your help. The website and Facebook page can be updated daily, but the newsletter cannot. New information needs to be submitted (submissions@uuamarillo.org) by noon Wednesday if you want it to appear in the Friday morning newsletter. If you need an event placed on the website calendar, you may submit that request with description, image (or we can provide one), starting and approximate ending time, specific location, date (or dates for a recurring event), and name of contact person. Help us help you get your message out in a timely manner.

 

PLEASE, EVERYONE CAN MAKE ALL THESE COMMUNICATIONS MORE EFFECTIVE BY READING THEM EACH WEEK--ESPECIALLY THE WEBSITE AND NEWSLETTER!

In addition to the events described in this newsletter, you can find a complete listing by clicking on the   Calendar icon above.

Want more detail? Check both the News and the Events sections of our website, uuamarillo.org
Also on our website, you can learn more about our Fellowship and our faith, Unitarian Universalism.

All events are held at the Fellowship,
4901 Cornell St. , unless otherwise noted.

If you are unsure how to reach any of the individuals named as contacts, please email the
AUUF office or call our Office Administrator, April Myers, at 806.355.9351 and leave a message. She will return your call during her office hours, which are Tuesday - Friday from
9 AM to noon.


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Sunday Worship - 9:30 and 11 AM
March 27, 2016
Keralee Clay speaks on Waiting is a Sacred Act. "So much of our life is spent waiting - in checkout lines, on email replies, for delayed planes. As our congregation starts the 'wait' for a new settled minister, let's reflect on how waiting can turn from an annoyance or inconvenience to a sacred act."


April 3, 2016
Rev. Addae  speaks on Betwixt and Between. In the late 20th century, the concept of liminal time was developed. Now is the time to explore the many ways this congregation can spend time betwixt and between. 
April 10, 2016
Rev. Addae speaks on Stewards of the Earth.  On April 22 the forty-sixth Earth Day will be celebrated. How do those of us living in the Western World share resources with the other ninety percent of the earth's population?

Upcoming Events:
Adult Religious Education

Please join us at 10 AM each Sunday.

We are rotating three subjects. Each covers a different aspect of Adult Religious Education. All are welcome. No advance reading is necessary and no test will be given.

Mar. 27: To be decided between lecture #2 of My Favorite Universe or a trial of a different replacement.

Contact: John Gay
Nothing Much Buddhist Covenant Group
Monday, March 28, 7:30 PM
The Nothing Much Buddhist Covenant Group has selected as its reading Dr. Mark Epstein's Going to Pieces Without Falling Apart: A Buddhist Perspective on Wholeness.  This national bestseller explores the similarities between Buddhist or Zen meditation techniques and those used in psychotherapy.  We shall be discussing Chapter 8:  Relief at the March 28 meeting at the Fellowship.  Be thinking of another title for future study. 
 
Contact: Tony Tackitt

Fiction Book Group 

Tuesday, March 29,  7 PM   
Laura McBride's We Are Called to Rise uses multiple points of view to carry five well-meaning characters toward a crucial moment of choice in the aftermath of a troubled soldier's angry response to a child's letter of support. Time to start reading!
 
Contact: Dick Moseley

34th Annual Golden Nail Awards Gala
Thursday, April 7, 2016 at the Amarillo Civic Center Complex Grand Plaza Ballroom
6:30 pm Cash Bar - 7:15 pm Dinner & Awards Ceremony - $65 a person. 

RSVP to Neal Nossaman (806-433-1392) by March 29.
Our own Rev. Addae will be giving the invocation at this event.  Let's welcome her to the community by filling a table or two with our friendly faces.  

Amarillo Literacy Book Drive

April 3 - 17    
NOTICE THE CHANGE OF DATES 

New updates on the Children's Book Drive, city-wide and at AUUF, have been posted under Children's Book Drive on our website.  T ake a look!!
 
Contact: Linda Jackson

Annual Congregational Meeting
Sunday, April 3, immediately following the 11 AM service
It's Spring and we know what that means! It's time for the annual congregational meeting. The main purpose of this meeting is to approve the incoming Board of Trustees that has been nominated by the Leadership Development Committee and to approve the upcoming operating budget. This year, there is also a by-law amendment and an out-of-budget expenditure to vote upon. All current members are encouraged to attend and cast your vote.
Here is the agenda with more details including a PDF of the proposed budget as compared to the current year budget.
 
If you are unable to attend this meeting, but would like to cast an absentee ballot, please send an email to April at office@uuamarillo.org and vote on any or all of the four items on the agenda no later than April 1.   If you have questions and are unable to attend the meeting, please see a member of the current Board of Trustees.
 
Thank you for exercising our UU 5th Principle - "The right of conscience and the use of the democratic process in our congregations and in society at large."
 
Thanks,
Keralee Clay

CASA 101
Tuesday, April 5 from 5:30 to 6:30 PM, 112 SW 8th, Suite 101
CASA 101 is an informational session on the origin, purpose and need for CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocate) advocacy.  This one hour session is open to anyone interested in the CASA program and wants to know more about the role CASA advocates play in the legal system.  CASA 101 is free of charge, and drinks and snacks will be provided. Amarillo Area CASA is the voice for children who've been abused or neglected by empowering our community to volunteer as advocates for them in the court system. The court appointed special advocate has become the eyes and ears of the court, bringing information that may not otherwise reach the court.

Seating is limited - please complete the form
here to reserve your seat today!
 
Becoming a CASA means you are:
  • Willing to commit at least one year of your time
  • Able to effectively communicate orally and in writing
  • Able to pass an extensive criminal and CPS history background check
  • Undergo 30 hours of initial training and 12 hours of continuing education each year
  • Willing to volunteer on average 10 - 12 hours per month
  • Over the age of 21
Process of becoming an Advocate:
  • Fill out the volunteer application here
  • Pre-training interview 
  • Complete 30 hour volunteer training
  • Complete 2 hours of court observation 
 
Contact: Jim Taylor (a CASA volunteer)

What Is The Point?
July 24-29, 2016
The Point is a customizable Unitarian Universalist retreat for all ages.
Imagine five days of UU covenant and community in a resort-like setting on the shores of Fort Gibson Lake in Oklahoma. The Point offers personal growth, faith renewal, learning opportunities, spiritual practices, community worship, music, excellent cuisine, sustainable practices, social gatherings (dance, movie night, talent show), outdoor activities, programming for all ages and interests, and an engaging theme speaker. Each day begins and ends with worship, but how you spend your day is completely up to you!  Register here .

Read and Learn  
Guy Finley.  The Seeker, The Search, The Sacred:  Journey to the Greatness Within.  (2011)

Founder and director of Life of Learning Foundation and author of more than forty books and audio albums, Finley shares his collection of observations from a wide variety of traditions on the nature of spiritual life.  The inner journey he explores reveals the wisdom, truth, and essence of love, the divine residing within each of us.  As a collection of quotable passages organized in each third of the book in chronological order, the book demonstrates that all traditions share a common innate lesson-the answers reside within us already. 

Recommendation level
 
In the Community
Community Egg Hunt

Saturday, March 26, 10 AM at Sleepy Hollow Park
Everyone is welcome to participate in this FREE family event sponsored by Coulter Road Baptist Church.  



The Pirates of Penzance - Amarillo Opera
Saturday, April 2, 2016 at 7:30 PM; Sunday, April 3 at 2:30 PM
Globe-News Center for Performing Arts
Boy meets girl. Girl's father disapproves. Boy overcomes obstacle and sways girl's father. Everyone lives happily ever after... or do they? The boy is Frederic, the pirate apprentice. The girl is Mabel, the Major-General's daughter. The obstacle is the apprenticeship Frederic is under obligation to see to fruition on his twenty-first birthday. The plot thickens when Frederic finds out he was born on February 29th of leap year and therefore isn't turning twenty-one after all! Gilbert & Sullivan deliver comedic punchline after punchline in this much-loved and much-performed operetta. Tickets from $20 to $95 ( see seat location for price ).


Community Relations Committee
Saturday, April 2, 10-11 AM  
Conference Room in the basement of the Eagle Forum, 112 SW 8th Ave.
The topic for the meeting will be "The American Jury" and Tim Newsom, past president of the Amarillo Chapter of the American Board of Trial Advocates and Past President of the Amarillo Area Bar Association, will present the information.  Tim's presentation discusses the 7th Amendment right to jury trial in civil cases and the presentation covers the background on the right to jury trial, a couple of recent cases, and how juries protect fundamental rights enjoyed by all Americans such as freedom of speech and the right to bear arms. 
 
The mission of this committee is to cultivate and maintain respect and understanding for all people through education and dialogue, and the vision is to eliminate bias, bigotry, and prejudice.  The meeting is open to anyone interested in attending. 
 
For more information, contact Myrna Raffkind ( 806) 355-4733.  

FASO's 2015-2016 10th Anniversary Season, Final Concert
Sunday, April 10, 7:30 PM 
at St. Andrew's Episcopal Church
Internationally famed concert organist Thomas Trotter, Britain's most widely admired musician, performs the final concert of the season.  The excellence of his musicianship is reflected internationally in his musical partnerships.  He performs as soloist with, amongst many others, the conductors Sir Simon Rattle, Bernard Haitnik, Riccardo Chailly, and Sir Charles Mackerras.  He has performed in Berlin's "Philharmonie," the "Gewandhaus" in Leipzig, the "Concertgebouw" in Amsterdam, the "Musikverein" and the "Konzerthaus" in Vienna and London's Royal Festival Hall.   Individual tickets are $30 and available online .

Amarillo Unitarian Universalist Fellowship
4901 Cornell St.
Amarillo, TX  79109
806.355.9351

 

 

 

 uuamarillo.org