The primary purpose of the Association is to serve the needs of its member congregations, organize new congregations, extend and strengthen Unitarian Universalist institutions and implement its principles.

- UUA Bylaws

 

Sometimes, members of congregations ask what the Unitarian Universalist Association does for individual UU congregations. Here is a brief overview:

 

The UUA provides services to individual congregations in a myriad of ways. For instance, it is through the UUA that interim ministers are trained and credentialed in the specialized work of ministering to a congregation in transition, as I was. Accredited Interim Ministers attend annual seminars put on by the UUA and the UU Interim Minister's Guild for their continuing education. The UUA has made available the curriculum I am currently using weekly for the adult "Building Your Own Theology" seminar, and some of the canvass materials we used in training canvassers for the recent annual pledge drive were produced by the UUA. Many Religious Education curricula we use for children's and adults, as well as materials available for worship, social justice work and other congregational functions are developed and produced by the UUA. Here are some of the other services the UUA provides (a partial list):

• Regional Staff are funded by the UUA to serve as consultants, advocates, and educators in congregations and at regional gatherings

• The UUA and its regional organizations provide for continuing education programs for religious educators

• The UUA provides materials for the managing, growth and development of UU congregations, such as materials on membership, long-range planning and planned giving.

• The UU WORLD magazine, the UUA Directory and the publication of hymnbooks, pamphlets, videos and curricula are produced and made available through the UUA.

• The Transitions Office, regional staff and Transitions Teams in each region assist congregations seeking ministers and ministers seeking positions. (This service of the UUA will be used by this congregation extensively in the next year!)

• At the annual General Assembly of the Association, and at regional and district meetings, the UUA offers workshops and other resources for congregational leaders covering many aspects of congregational life.

We at UUCM are not alone, but are part of a network of over 1000 congregations that make up the Unitarian Universalist Association. Those of us attending this year's General Assembly next month in New Orleans (Norm Davidson, Thomas Ervin, Mary Gilstrap, Geri Randall, DRE Jef Melcher and myself) will again be reminded that we are a part of something much larger than our one wonderful but lone congregation on a lovely hill in Marin. 

Jeffrey Melcher,  M.Div.

dre@uuMarin.org

Upcoming dates link to the UUCM calendar for saving on iCal, Outlook etc.

Game Night - June 2

6:00 PM - 9 PM

Anuual Congregational Meeting - June 4

12:30 - 2:30 PM

Flower Communion - June 11

10:30 - 11:45 AM

End of Year Potluck - June 11

12:00 PM - 2:00 PM

Karen Glickman, A Marin Villages volunteer, will do the pulpit appeal for Marin Villages on May 28.

 

The offering basket will be shared 50/50 with Marin Villages: an alliance of local villages established by geographic area to build community through social and educational events, delivery of volunteer assistance and individual aid in accessing vetted help and service here in Marin.

Each year we put out a call for "Wesley Grants".  The funds for these grants come from the Wesley fund, whose purpose is to provide up to approximately $6,000 each year to be used on enhancement projects.  Individual grants can range from a few hundred dollars up to several thousand dollars.  A written proposal is required, stating the amount, the purpose, and how it enhances our congregation and makes us better able to fulfill our mission.  The proposal should also state who will have ownership of getting the project completed.

 

If you have an idea and would like to submit a request, please submit it in writing to Janette Morrow by June 16.  All proposals will be considered by the Board in the June 29th meeting.  All persons submitting a request will be notified of the decision subsequent to that meeting.

 

In faith,

Dianne

For June 21, the UUCM book club is reading Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi. Two half sisters, Effia and Esi, are born into different villages in eighteenth-century Ghana. Effia is married off to an Englishman and lives in comfort in the palatial rooms of Cape Coast Castle. Unbeknownst to Effia, her sister, Esi, is imprisoned beneath her in the castle's dungeons, sold with thousands of others into the Gold Coast's booming slave trade, and shipped off to America, where her children and grandchildren will be raised in slavery.

One thread of Homegoing follows Effia's descendants through centuries of warfare in Ghana. The other thread follows Esi and her children into America.  Homegoing makes history visceral and captures how the memory of captivity came to be inscribed in the soul of a nation. Generation after generation, Yaa Gyasi's magisterial first novel sets the fate of the individual against the obliterating movements of time. Carol Littrell will lead the discussion. All are welcome.  Please join us in the Clara Barton Room at 7:30 PM.

General Assembly (GA) is the annual meeting of our Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA). Attendees worship, witness, learn, connect, and make policy for the Association through the democratic process. Anyone may attend.

New Orleans, LA  June 21-25.

Due to Joan's "out-of-whack back," UUCM will need a new co-ordinator/

supervisor for this rich and rewarding program project which she has administered

for the last nine years. Contact her for more information. 

Joan Nelson -  415-506-4166  -  c: 415-595-6221