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 Miami Valley
Unitarian Universalist Fellowship
8690 Yankee St. Dayton, OH 45458 937-436-3628 www.mvuuf.org |
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| MVUUF's Forum March, 2018 |
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visit our website
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visit the UUA's website
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Service Topics for February, 2018
Sunday, March 4th, 11:00 AM
Eating the End of the World
The Rev. Dr. Holly Horn
This sermon will explore an eschatology of place with insights from a theology of food. And during Words for All Ages Iris Carter will be on hand with her two therapy dogs. Please join us!
Sunday, March 11th, 11:00 AM
From Gullibility to Cynicism
The Rev. Dr. Holly Horn
The sermon this morning will offer meditations on the miraculous.
Sunday, March 18th, 11:00 AM
The Sacrament of Sweat
The Rev. Dr. Holly Horn
Today's sermon will celebrate the possibilities of dance
in the spiritual life.
Sunday, March 25th, 11:00 AM
Non-Violent Resistance: Countering the Big Lie
MVUUF Member Bob Lewis
What does "nonviolence" have to do with me? And "resistance"?
"Well, that sounds too risky for me!" Please join us this morning
as we uncover the truth behind non-violent resistance.
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March News
IN THE INTERIM
Greetings, friends! I have good news I want to share with you.
I'm pretty sure you all know that we have just recently hired a new Director of Music, Sara Davis, and a new Director of Religious Education, Phillip Green. I hope that many of you have also had a chance to meet and welcome both of them. (There's been a lot of cake at coffee hour the past few weeks!) If not, there will be many more opportunities in the weeks and months ahead.
And I want to thank the members of the Personnel Committee: Bonnie Thompson, Trudy Krisher, and especially Committee Chair Joe Law, with whom I've had the privilege to work for the last three months on filling these positions. Also, many thanks to Barb Weber, who joined us for both interviews.
Now for the good news: not only do we have two new talented and enthusiastic staff members, we have a team! Yes, it's brand new, but we had our first staff meeting last week: Jennie Freiberger, Administrator, and myself along with Sara and Phillip. And as we began our journey together, telling stories of our lives and beginning to share the work of this congregation, there were lots of connections, easy laughter, sparks of creativity. It was exciting!
This new team is off to a good start.
Yours in the faith,
Holly
A MINUTE FOR MUSIC
Composers like Rodgers & Hammerstein were famously asked: "What comes first, the music or the words?" Many people name
Blue Boat Home
as a favorite UU hymn. I think it's because of the lyrics and the modern rhythmic and sea-imagery accompaniment. But this same tune appears three times, with different lyrics, in our gray
Singing The Living Tradition
hymnal: as #140,
Hail the Glorious Golden City
; #166,
Years Are Coming
; and #207,
Earth Was Given as a Garden
. It is a Welsh hymn tune,
Hyfrydol
, composed by Rowland Pritchard in the early 1800s and known to many Protestant Christians as
Come Thou Long Expected Jesus
.
Throughout history, the church appropriated familiar songs that worshippers felt comfortable singing, and overlaid lyrics since most didn't read music and printed hymnals were a luxury. (Think
Greensleeves
with the added nativity text:
What Child Is This
?)
If you're curious, there is a tune index starting on page 661 in our hymnal. Look up
Hymn to Joy
. Whatever Mr. Beethoven thought he had created, we have interpreted it as
Joy, Thou Goddess
and several other songs.
-Sara Davis, MVUUF Director of Music
 INTRODUCING OUR NEW
DIRECTOR
OF RELIGIOUS EDUCATION, PHILLIP GREEN
I just wanted to take a moment to introduce myself, as well as to let everyone know how excited I am to be contributing to the Religious Education program here at MVUUF!
I have been in education, in one form or another, for the past 20 years. Prior to my time here, I was a Religious Coordinator for the Wyoming Department of Corrections, and I still act as a consultant to this agency on religious matters. Prior to that, I was a professor in the Department of Philosophy and Religious Studies at a small liberal arts college in Idaho. I also have chaplaincy training, and have served as a chaplain in both a correctional and hospital setting.
My academic background is in religion. In 2002, I earned my BA in Comparative Religion from the University of Washington. I also acquired an MA and PhD in Religion from the University of Florida (go, Gators!) in 2007 and 2017, respectively. My primary area of academic specialization is early forms of Buddhism in India and Southeast Asia.
I have lived abroad in both Japan and Cambodia, and I still enjoy traveling to new places. I am married to an amazing woman, Jera, who is currently an assistant professor at The Ohio State University. Our daughter, Eva, is 10 years old (soon to be 11). In my spare time, I enjoy spending time with my family, reading, playing board games, hiking, and performing volunteer work.
Please don't hesitate to introduce yourself. I look forward to meeting everyone!
---Phillip Green, MVUUF Director of Religious Education
THE SERVICE AUCTION IS SATURDAY, MARCH 10th!
The mysteries are almost solved and the 2018 Service Auction is almost here! The case is closed on The Mystery of the Missing Auction Items. If you want to glance at the digital catalog,
click HERE
. For the events calendar, click HERE
.
Printed versions of the Live Auction and the calendar will be available at the Service Auction. A few full catalogs will be available this Sunday, March 4th.
There are many things left to do for the Service Auction (next weekend!) and we need the help of volunteers to make it a success. Please chip in and sign up to volunteer HERE or in person in the Gathering Space after service this Sunday. Choose from taking a shift at the bar, in the kitchen, helping out with Children's Activities, set up, or bringing food and more. There are plenty of options to choose from and we encourage you to sign up for a couple, if you can.
This Sunday we'll also be accepting UU Bucks and Children's Auction donations as well as selling basket Raffle Tickets. Visit the table in the Gathering Space after services or send me an e-mail at:
[email protected]
for more information.
---Kristen Beireis, 2018 Service Auction Organizer
NEWS FROM THE MSC
Ah, Spring! It's still early, but each day more and more daffodil and crocus leaves are peeking out from the ground. Birds seem to sing a little louder. Some of us are thumbing through seed catalogs, planning this year's veggie and flower gardens. Others are just glad for a break in the cold weather, snow and ice. And of course, there's spring cleaning.
Spring cleaning is already underway at MVUUF! On Sunday, February 18 some of us were able to stick around after service to jump start cleaning, dusting and tidying. Thank you so very much to those who gave part of their afternoon to spruce up the Gathering Space, Sanctuary and Kitchen! Thanks also to Operations Representative David Dickey, who coordinated having the floor cleaned, stripped and waxed the weekend of February 24 and 25. It looks better than ever!
Each of us has a role to play in the upkeep of our building and grounds. If you have ever smiled at Jennie's collection of thriving plants in the office, put your mug in the dishwasher after Coffee Hour, admired the native plants in our outdoor beds, rejoiced that the bathrooms are fully functional (thanks David!), swept up after an event, easily found serving utensils in our organized and labeled kitchen (hooray for Kitchen Witches!), noticed how tidy and kid-friendly our YRE classrooms are, taken home a laundry load of used tablecloths and dish towels, put trash and recycling in the bins, or cleaned up leftover flowers and greenery in the entryway, you know how many hands it takes to keep this place at its best. When we all pitch in, even in small ways, it adds up!
Our facility is our congregational home. It's where we do so much of the work that makes us who we are. It's familiar and comfortable and also a communal space that belongs to every one of us. Our facility makes a first and lasting impression on visitors too, and we never know who might step through our doors next.
Spring is also the season of pre-candidating! As the Ministerial Search Committee meets with pre-candidates, inching closer to Candidating Week, please take a moment to admire our beautiful spiritual home and remember that we're all in this together.
---Eileen Simon, Ministerial Search Team Member
PROGRAM COUNCIL'S UNSUNG HERO FOR
FEBRUARY, 2018
 The Program Council is happy to honor Steve Steel for our monthly Unsung Hero recognition. Although Steve is a relatively new member, he has already volunteered for MVUUF in a wide variety of ways!
To name a few, he has been active with the Social Action Committee working at the Wesley Community Center, and taking charge of the Giving Tree this past Christmas. He serves meals at St. Vincent's, he helped to build the playground, and he is just generally willing to show up and pitch in!
We depend upon generous volunteers like Steve and we are very fortunate he picked MVUUF to be his faith community. Please thank and congratulate him when you see him!
SANCTUARY TASK FORCE
 The next meeting of the Sanctuary Task Force will be held on Sunday, March 11th, 12:30 PM in the Sanctuary at MVUUF. ALL are welcome to attend; please contact:
PLANNED SAFETY AND SECURITY ENHANCEMENTS
 Questions and concerns are invited regarding the security camera system to be installed towards the end of March at the Fellowship by member Dave Dickey, the Operations Representative and IT support volunteer. The camera system has been purchased and is ready for installation; the system includes three cameras and a hard drive for recording.
Camera #1 is planned to be installed at the end of the RE hallway (by the mailboxes) to observe the classroom hallway. This is intended to improve child safety and physical security for the classroom areas. In addition to safety enhancement for children and adults, it will serve to monitor personal property as well (note: theft of a volunteer's personal property has happened in the past).
Camera #2 is planned to be installed outside the RE hallway to monitor the parking lot entrance, part of the parking lot, and the playground area. This camera is intended to improve awareness of who and what is in the parking lot, as well as monitor the playground area for inappropriate use that may lead to damage (note: the playground has been damaged before by renters).
Camera #3 is planned to be installed outside the main entrance to monitor the front doors, part of the playground, and part of the parking lot. This is intended to improve physical security and personal safety for the building's main entrance.
Signals from the cameras will be sent to a hard drive planned to be installed in the electrical room (off the Office area). At this time, I'm not sure if there is an expiration time on images. However, when the drive fills up, old images will be erased. If we can set an expiration time, the Board will evaluate and set one with the objective of protecting the privacy of the Fellowship. Only authorized users with up-to-date passwords will have access to the images. Passwords will be changed on a regular schedule or more frequently should the need arise. Users with access will include staff, the minister, the Board president, the Program Council chair, and the Operations Rep. In addition to creating and storing images, the system has the option to live-steam, an option that we may or may not want to use; live-streaming allows users to view a camera image on personal mobile devices. This would allow staff to check the parking lot before leaving the Office area. Further, monitoring of the RE hallway for safety will be more effective with live-streaming than with retrospective review.
Please forward questions, concerns, and comments to:
---Dave Dickey, Operations Rep. and IT Support Volunteer
CHALICE NIGHT COMING THIS MONTH
 Bring your favorite board game to play with friends & family on Friday, March 16th, 7:00 PM at the Fellowship. Make sure to bring something yummy to share (as this is also a potluck), and because it's the day before St. Patrick's Day, green beverages will also be available! This is an all-ages event; childcare will be available for the little ones (
please make sure to contact Adrienne Clark at
[email protected]
if you will be needing childcare
).
There will also be an exchange area if you have games that you don't play any longer and want to release to a good home. So don't miss the fun...plan to be there!
BIBLE STUDY: THE GOSPEL OF MARK
Did you know that MVUUF has a Bible Study group? It's true! They meet every second Sunday of the month, at 9:30 AM, in class room #4 at the Fellowship.
Why not join them? New members are welcome at any time.
 DAYTIME BOOK CLUB
The next gathering of this well-read group will take place on Wednesday, March 21st, 10:30 AM in the Library, and they'll discuss
The Kite Runner
by Khaled Hosseini. All are welcome to join them!
Choices for future meetings are:
April 18th---
The Tea Girl of Hummingbird Lane
by Lisa See
May 16th---
The Last Ballad
by Wiley Cash
SMART CHOICES BIRTHDAY LUNCH
Members & friends of MVUUF (that identify as women) are invited to join this fun-loving group as they celebrate birthdays on Thursday, March 8th, 11:30 AM, at MCL Cafeteria, in Kettering. Please RSVP to Allie Petersen at:
[email protected].
ST. VINCENT DE PAUL LUNCH
Please join us in providing food and/or serving for our long-standing second Saturday lunch ministry for women and families staying at Dayton's St. Vincent Shelter. For the February 10th lunch we will continue our fall/winter chili menu. You can sign-up for food donations and/or serving on the clipboard in the Gathering Space, or you can contact Lynn Buffington at [email protected] or call or text (937) 657-0426. You can also check on what is needed at Sign Up Genius (no need to log in unless you also want to sign up through Genius).
If you would like more information regarding volunteering, please take one of the info flyers near the sign-up sheet. Thanks to everyone who pitched in providing food and/or serving the February meal! We served 107!!! That included 57 in the women's group at 11:00 AM and 50 in the family group at noon, with 24 children. And thanks to those who provided extras to our menu (sliced roast turkey, hard boiled eggs, heart-shaped cookie brownies and paper valentines)!
March 10th menu
: Our needs include hearty chili, fresh fruit salad or fresh fruit, chili toppings (shredded cheese and sour cream), green salad, orange juice, and dishes made with fresh vegetables (anything from a hot vegetable dish to carrots & celery sticks). We need several donations of most items, with each donation serving 15-20 people. Please bring all items---heated if applicable---to the side "donation" entrance at 120 West Apple Street in Dayton (St. Vincent de Paul Gateway Shelter for Women and Families) by 10:45 a.m. Thanks to the many who have already signed up for March!
FAIR TRADE COFFEE SALE!
Remember to place your order for Fair Trade coffee on the first Sunday of the month (this month it's on
March
4th
)
!
Coffee will be ready to be picked up on or after the third Sunday of the month (this month, March
18th
)
.
There are many varieties and bean grinds to choose from, including several that are organic!
Contact
Lynn Buffington
at:
DON'T FORGET!
Y
ou can keep up-to-date with all the happenings at MVUUF by viewing the Fellowship's calendar online, from a link to our website
HERE
The calendar is updated daily, so it's always the place to check and see what's going on!
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We are a liberal religious community that embraces diversity and respects the inherent worth and dignity of every person. ALL are welcome here, no matter their race, sex, sexual/affectional orientation, gender expression, or ability. Please visit us on Sunday mornings at 11 a.m. for our worship service--- we'd love to see you! |
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