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In observance of the Labor Day holiday, the Church office
will be closed on Monday, September 4th.
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Upcoming Sunday Services, 10:15 a.m.
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Sunday, September 3
"Who Is Your New Minister?" Rev. Florence Caplow
Last May the congregation called Rev. Caplow to be the new minister of UUCUC. If you'd like to hear more about her somewhat unusual life and the winding road that brought her to Central Illinois, she will be sharing a few stories and adventures this Labor Day Sunday. As always, the sermon will be recorded for those who can't make it. The choir will be returning this Sunday!
Sunday, September 10
"Shared Ministry; Shared Life" Rev. Florence Caplow
UUCUC has a new minister, but the ministry of this congregation has been going on for more than 150 years. The root of the word "minister" is "to render service or aid," so it goes far beyond professional ministry. All who are here minister to and serve one another through presence, helping, and caring.This Sunday will be a celebration and honoring of our shared ministry together and the dedication of our Religious Education teachers for the year.
Sunday, September 17
"Will You Harbor Me? The Dance of Host and Guest" Rev. Florence Caplow
In the Japanese tea ceremony, and in many traditional cultures around the world, the roles of host and guest are understood as sacred and interconnected. Giving and receiving happen with every breath we take and in every relationship in our lives. This community is known for its welcome for refugees and immigrants, even at a time of increasing hostility toward both. We will explore the many facets and sacred mysteries of host and guest. Both the adult and children's choir will be singing, and we will have a UU child dedication for Camden Edward Levin.
Sunday, September 24
What Does 'Will You Harbor Me?' Mean to You?", led by Worship Committee
A continuation of consideration of the true meaning of hospitality.
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Message from the Minister
Reverend Florence Caplow, Settled Minister
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Greetings and blessings! And welcome to a new church year. I've only been in Urbana for about two weeks, but I'm happy to be here and I'm settling in well to my office and to my little West Urbana house, which is a lovely walk from the church. You will see some changes in the minister's office - different books on the shelves (a
lot of Buddhist books), a tea kettle to offer tea to guests, and a meeting space. I am envisioning the office as a warm and welcoming place for small meetings and pastoral care. Please stop by and take a look. You can borrow books as well - I'll set up a lending library!
I am excited about this first year of getting to know one another. I will be learning and looking and listening, rather than making big changes this year, but you may see some smaller changes here and there. My style of ministry is very relational, so it's important to me to have all kinds of opportunities to meet and learn about you, and to share who I am with you. Please don't be shy. I'm just getting to know the larger community as well, so if you know of interesting events or wonderful places to visit, I'd love to know about them. Another way to get to know each other is through classes and workshops, starting with a sermon writing workshop in September and a series of meditation classes in the Channing Murray sanctuary in October. I will also have "coffee shop office hours" starting in September - watch the email newsletter for more information.
You have an extraordinary congregation and great leadership. Truly. The spirit of kindness and willingness, intelligence and hard work, is evident everywhere, from your Board to the folks showing up to put together picnic tables on short notice. I saw this from the very beginning of my contact with your search committee, and I am seeing it every day that I'm here. I am honored to be your minister. I hope that I can serve you well and that together we can create an even more vibrant and meaningful community, dedicated to justice, peace, and greater compassion in our lives and the world.
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Religious Education (RE) News
Cindy Wakeland, Director of Religious Education
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I just returned from a short 4 1/2 day vacation. It is nice to sometimes put everything aside, and look around, at the beauty of nature and the world that the Spirit created for us, it is amazing. It gives you a chance to become enveloped into a world of peace. I was in the Blue Ridge Mountains in North Carolina, I could have gazed around and forgot the rest of world for a few more days. But then reality sets back in and it’s back to the real world. Fall is upon us which means, it’s Religious Education (RE) time! Getting ready as new classes begin Sunday, September 10
th
at 10:15 a.m.:
- Securing a final teacher for one class.
- Making sure every child has a yellow registration card filled out.
- Making sure all class supplies are ready.
- Planning a fall RE meeting (you can join us Tuesday, Sept. 12, at 5:30)
- Making final plans for “STAND BY ME”, an All-Church Potluck September 17, after services (11:15 a.m. – 12:45 p.m.) with activities for everyone to share together. You are invited, just bring a dish to share.
- Thinking in my mind how to answer questions about the world today.
I wanted to share with you some articles written about the recent activities happening around us, they may be of interest to you.
Resources - To help understand what happened:
Teaching Tolerance
Anti-Defamation League
Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor,
The New York Times
Political Research Associates
Facing History
VICE News Tonight on HBO
Ta-Nehisi Coates,
The Atlantic
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The Ministerial Alliance of Champaign-Urbana & Vicinity is hosting an
Anti-Racism Prayer Service on
Thursday, September 7, 2017 at 6:00 p.m. The service will be held at
St. Peter's United Church of Christ, 905 S. Russell St., Champaign, IL 61821. All members of the community are invited to join in praying for an end to racism and for justice and mercy to prevail in our nation. In lieu of an offering, donations of new personal care items for victims of the flooding in Texas will be collected. Please bring any of the following: wide-tooth comb, nail clipper, wrapped bar of bath soap, toothbrush in package, standard size Band-Aids, washcloth, hand towel.
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Sharing Your Story: A Sermon Writing Workshop
Saturday, September 9, 3 - 5 p.m.
Rev. Caplow will be offering a series of three workshops on "The Arts of UU Worship", beginning with a sermon-writing workshop in September. She hopes to bring the UU tradition of lay homilies (short personal sermons) to our Sunday mornings, and more Worship Associate opportunities for involvement with the services. If you enjoy writing, story-telling, and/or speaking, these workshops are for you.
Register here, or if you have questions please email
Rev. Caplow.
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"Talking with my racist Uncle Joe" Workshop. Do you wish you were more prepared to respond to racist (or sexist) comments by friends, relatives, and coworkers? In the incidents that people mentioned during our summer service on racial justice (displayed on the RJI bulletin board in Fellowship Hall), many folks talked of not knowing what to say “in the moment” and later regretting their passivity in the face of prejudice. This is your chance to practice being more active! We invite you to come to one of two interactive workshops (both workshops cover the same topics) in September. The workshops will be led by Amy Felty and will feature small group interactions. Amy is on the Community Coalition's Racial Justice Task Force and has been centrally involved with the “Racial Taboo” films and discussions held in our community over the past several years. She has also attended many of our racial justice films.
This interactive exercise - called "Racist Uncle Joe" - is designed to help us prepare how to respond in a group setting through creativity, compassion, and strategy.
Please sign up for one of these dates: Sunday, Sept. 17, 3:30 - 5:30 p.m. or Friday, Sept. 22, 7 - 9 p.m. Workshops are limited to 16 participants. Sign-up by emailing
Pamela Van Wyk or by signing up at the Social Action table on Sunday. The workshops will be held in Fellowship Hall. These workshops are sponsored by the Racial Justice Initiative.
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Learn meditation practices from the Buddhist tradition. No meditation experience needed. Chairs will be provided, or you can bring your own cushions. Taught by Rev. Florence Caplow, Zen teacher and Unitarian Universalist minister. Attendance at all four classes is recommended but not required,
reserve your spot today!
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The
C-U CROP Walk 2017
will be held on Sunday, October 8. CROP stands for Communities Responding to Overcome Poverty. The walk will be a six mile loop, starting and ending at St. Matthew’s Lutheran Church, 2200 Philo Rd., Urbana. Walkers should be there by 1:30 pm. Our church will again have a team of in the event, walking and collecting donations to alleviate poverty.
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As the vice-chair of the Board of Trustees (BOT) this year, I have been charged with establishing a leadership development program that will be an ongoing program within our congregation. This endeavor will be several fold: reactivate the leadership committee in order to provide guidance and support to our volunteer leaders, identify individuals within our congregation to encourage them to move toward assuming leadership roles, provide training opportunities for our fellowship leaders and develop a leadership mentoring program.
Florence very much supports a shared ministry model which thrives on lay leadership working closely with the minister to strengthen our beloved community, both within our four walls and in the larger community in which we function.
We are looking for individuals who would be interested in serving on a leadership committee. At this point, the first activities will be to evaluate the previous mission statement and then to revise or establish a new mission statement to reflect our new directions. If you are interested, or simply would like more information, please contact either
Julie Laut or
myself.
My first direction in moving forward with this program is to meet with our tremendous team of volunteer committee chairs. In these one-on-one or small group meetings we will be discussing what these leaders feel is working in our leadership structure, what areas we may want to focus on for improvement, and their input for working within a leadership mentoring model to help new leaders to grow in responsibility.
I am excited about serving our community in this capacity and look forward to meeting with and working with many of you as we move forward in our journey toward an even stronger and more vibrant beloved community.
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Membership Matters
Peggy Patten, Membership Chair
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A BIG thank you to Hospitality Team B
Thanks to Marilyn Ryan & Kathleen Robbins, Hospitality Team Leaders for the month of August (their last month of service as Team Leaders). Thanks to all the Hospitality Team B volunteers who assisted Marilyn & Kathleen each Sunday during the month. August Hospitality Team volunteers will be acknowledged in the eNews in early September.
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Hospitality Team Leaders for 2017-18
Welcome to our 5
new Hospitality Team Leaders for the coming year: Libby Tyler & AJ Herzog (Team B), Karen Folk (Team D), Katie Madigan (Team E), & Trisha Locke (Team F). Thanks to our 5
outgoing Team Leaders: Marilyn Ryan & Kathleen Robbins (B), Sharon Michalove (D), Karla Peterson (E), & Lynn Kelly (F).
And a
big
thank you to the Team Leaders
continuing in the coming year: Jennifer Greene & Jenna Zeidler (A), Cindy Ingold & Sandy Hannum (C), Anne Sharpe (D), Jenny Hunt (E), & Tamara Ducey (F). Our Team Leaders are the reason for our successful Hospitality Team process.
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Be the Face of Sunday Morning: Join a Hospitality Team
Hospitality Teams are in charge of Sunday morning hospitality (e.g. bell ringing, welcoming, ushering, providing decorations and refreshments) for two months during the year. Hospitality Teams are a great way to meet people and serve our congregation in a fun and important way. All members and friends are encouraged to join a Hospitality Team. Each Team has 30-35 members so you do not need to help on every Sunday assigned to your Team.
Stop by the Hub table on Sunday mornings to sign up for a Hospitality Team (or to find out if you are already assigned to a Team). Questions? Contact
Peggy Patten
of the Membership Committee.
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Join us for PATHWAY TO MEMBERSHIP Class!
Sunday, October 1
12 Noon - 2 pm in Children's Chapel
Light lunch will be provided. Child care available upon request.
Please join us for our 1
st
Membership Class with Rev Florence. You’ll learn more about the history and philosophy of the Unitarian Universalist Church. You'll also learn about the governance of UUCUC, activities and opportunities available to our church community, religious education offerings for adults and for children, and about the role you'll be asked to play as a steward of our church. At the completion of this class, you'll be invited to become a member.
For more information and to sign up for the class, contact Membership Coordinator,
Sherry Bohlen
or call her at( 217) 417-1148.
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Everyone’s Birthday Sunday: Sept. 24
We are introducing a new intergenerational mixer activity on September 24 to acknowledge everyone’s birthday on one day. The goal is to help build community between all ages at the start of the Church year. During hospitality time on Sept. 24 all adults & children will be invited to sit at the table with their birthday month to enjoy cake & fellowship with others who share the same birthday month. If you will be at Church on Sept. 24 & have a birthday during the following months—Feb., Apr., May, July, Aug., Oct., or Dec.—we could use you as a table host! Host duties are VERY MINIMAL. If you can help out, please contact Peggy Patten at mspeggypatten@gmail.com Note: The Everyone’s Birthday Sunday will take the place of providing a cake on the 1st Sunday of each month. Rosalyn will continue to publish birthdays each month on the website and noting in the eUniter.
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Book & Magazine Exchanges Resume
The monthly book & magazine exchanges for adults & children will resume in September
usually taking place on the 3
rd Sunday of each month. Because of the RE-sponsored church wide potluck on Sept. 17 (the 3
rd Sunday) we will hold the Book & Magazine Exchange on Sept. 10 (the 2
nd Sunday). Bring in your used (
but in good condition) books & magazines to the designated table in Fellowship Hall on Sept. 10. We ask that you bring no more than 6-8 in a given month. You can donate items without taking any home & vice versa. Remaining books will be donated to the Urbana Free Library or Books 2 Prisoners. Remaining magazines will be recycled. Thanks to Kristi Mercer for continuing to assist with these monthly exchanges.
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Feeling Connected?
Sherry Bohlen, Membership Coordinator
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At UUCUC, we work hard to offer our Members & Friends varied opportunities to experience that essential sense of connection that every human being seeks.
Some Members & Friends have found the sense of connection that fulfills them through involvement with our Social Action Committee. Others have found it through singing in our Choir…involvement in our Partner Church Committee…or joining others at our Happy Hour Group.
CLICK HERE to review a listing of our currently active groups and committees.
After reviewing what’s currently offered, consider a new group or activity that you’d like to see develop. Then
email me or call me at (217) 417-1148 and let me know your idea. I’ll be happy to help you organize and mobilize others to join in!
Here are a few ideas that I’ve heard bandied about that haven’t come to recent fruition:
Daughters of the Moon Women’s Circle, Yoga Class, Single-Mom’s Support Group, Paddlers Group (for Kayakers and Canoers), Game Night Board Games Group. Do any of these ideas strike a chord, ring a bell or resonate with you? If so, contact me and I’ll work with you to develop another opportunity for our Members & Friends to
feel connected!
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Member Focus
Sherry Bohlen, Membership Coordinator
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Erich Adickes joined UUCUC with his wife Jane, and son Dean, in 1995. They joined in the life of the church whole-heartedly and they spent many happy days in fellowship in the church family. Jane was the driving force for their family to be UU. The church family was the main reason for Jane, Dean and Erich to stay in Urbana and make their life here.
Erich currently serves on Property Committee, Worship Committee, Web Team of Communications Committee, and Interim Chair of Communication Committee. Previously he served on the Membership Committee when he first joined, as well as the Search Committee that found Axel and Elaine Gehrmann. He worked with the current Search Committee in developing the Ministerial Search website which was a tool in their successful search and calling of Reverend Florence.
Erich is currently hosting our friend Bukenya Godfrey, a native Ugandan displaced from his home-country and resettling in our community. Bukenya is feeling at home. Erich is mentoring Bukenya and helping him get more acclimated with life and customs here in C-U.
Erich is self-employed as a photographer and technology coach/consultant, handy-man, and dog sitter.
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Social Action & Racial Justice News
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Choosing Discomfort: being bold, brave, and loving in the struggle for racial justice
The Department of Justice has ordered federal prosecutors to pursue the strongest possible punishments for drug offenses, including mandatory minimum sentences. Our nation is reinvigorating the old-style war on drugs, despite overwhelming evidence of ineffectiveness and clear racial bias against black and Latino populations. Check out the latest
“On the Media” for a historical perspective on how political and media depictions of drug use have fueled hysteria and racial injustice.
This week, we share more
stories of everyday racial prejudice submitted at the July 30th service on racial justice. Over 60 stories have been posted on the Racial Justice Initiative bulletin board in Fellowship Hall. Please stop by and add your own or email it directly to
Tim Livingston.
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Our
September shared offering will be the
Uniting Pride (UP) Center of Champaign County. The UP Center is the only LGBTQ+ resource center in the greater east central Illinois region. It was founded in December 2009 as a multi-service agency, for youth and adults, with a purpose to support and promote human care, education, and community-building activities directed at furthering the well-being and development of the LGBTQ+ community of Champaign County. It serves clients from Champaign County and the surrounding areas through support groups, guest speakers, community events, referrals, and resources.
We also encourage members and friends to march with the UUCUC contingent in
CU’s Annual Pride Parade, held this year on Saturday, September 16th, beginning at 4 pm from the corner of Main & Walnut, downtown Champaign. This year’s Pride Festival theme is Uniting Pride."
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For those looking to help our Houston UU friends and others needing assistance in the wake of Hurricane Harvey: The UUA has set up a
donation page. More locally, 1st UU Church in Houston has its own
donation page (scroll down to "Hurricane Harvey Relief").
Funds given to 1st UU Church are to be split between repairing church water damage and Houston’s Emergency Aid Coalition. Of UUA funds, half will go to at-risk populations served by UU Service Committee partners, and the other half will support UU congregations and members of those congregations most affected by the storm.
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Summer Services Recap
Beth A. Cobb, Assistant for Services
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About Our Time in Fellowship Hall... I had many thank you notes to send out this summer and should not fill the eUniter with a long and wonderful list of volunteers. For this issue, though, I would like to remind everyone that you can contribute to a worship service in many ways besides writing a sermon. We had people who designed artwork for our Orders of Service, suggested topics, brought poems, requested hymns, played one or more pieces of music, sang in a quartet, played in the UU Band, shared deeply of their personal experiences, read part of the opening, chalice lighting, closing words, and added other pieces to our worship. This summer was particularly rewarding for me because so many times several voices joined together in one morning’s service. THANK YOU, THANK YOU, EVERYONE!
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Joys and Sorrows
Christing Cahill - Two joys! I helped daughter Emi Gennis move from Pittsburg, KS to Columbus, OH to start her new job as Professor of Comics & Narrative Practice. My daugter Colleen Cahill got engaged on Saturday 8/26!
Cynthia Hoyle - Concern for my friends in South Texas who are trying to survive the hurricane/storm. Some are currently waiting to be rescued as the flood water is rising around them.
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Happiest of Birthdays to those who celebrate in September!
Check out our
website for a complete list of celebrated birthdays.
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Church Calendar
For the most up-to-date calendar information, visit our
website
under
events
.
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Sunday, September 3
Choir Rehearsal
| 9:00 am | Sanctuary
Partner Church Meeting | 9:00 am | Library
Worship Service | 10:15 am | Sanctuary
Child Care | 10:15 am | Room #3
Adult Discussion Group | 11:30 am | Library
Monday, September 4
The church office is closed in observance of the Labor Day holiday.
Tuesday, September 5
Personnel Committee Meeting | 5:30 pm | Library
Worship Committee Meeting | 7:00 pm | Library
Wednesday, September 6
OOS & eNews content submittals are due by noon to the office administrator.
CrUUners Rehearsal | 6:00 pm | Sanctuary
Adult Choir Rehearsal | 7:00 pm | Sanctuary
(Moms Demand Action) | 7:30 pm | Fellowship Hall
Thursday, September 7
(Many Paths: an Agnostic AA) | 6:00 pm | Room #1
Finance Committee Meeting | 7:00 pm | Fellowship Hall
Worship Committee Meeting | 7:00 pm | Fellowship Hall
Saturday, September 9
(Many Paths: an Agnostic AA) | 4:30 pm | Room #1
Sunday, September 10
Choir Rehearsal | 9:00 am | Sanctuary
RE Classes Start
| 10:15 am | RE Classrooms
Child Care | 10:15 am | Room #3
Fellowship Hour
| Immediately following service | Sanctuary
Book & Magazine Exchange
| 11:15 am | Fellowship Hall
Adult Discussion Group | 11:30 am | Library
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Upcoming Publications - Mark Your Calendars!
October Uniter: Thursday, September 28.
Content Deadline for the October Uniter: Wednesday, September 20 at Noon.
Next eNews: Thursday, August 3rd.
Deadline for content: Wednesday, August 2nd at Noon.
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Please send your content via email. Send one email per announcement per publication.
If you would like your announcment to be in multiple weeks, make sure you send a new email for each date. All submissions should include your name and contact information within your email. All submissions may be edited for clarity or shortened for space.
Order of Service Deadline – Every Wednesday Noon
We welcome announcements, save the dates, and other important information you would like to share with the congregation. Please keep submissions to
50 words or less
.
eNews is the church's weekly electronic update.
The eNews is a great way to announce upcoming important dates (please keep at 10 days out), briefly update the congregation on a committee’s new project, or other happenings within the church or church supported functions. Space is limited, therefore keep submissions conscise. Please note there will
not
be an eNews the week the eUniter is sent out.
For content deadlines, see above.
eUniter is a monthly eNewsletter.
The eUniter is sent out at the end of the month for the next months focus. It is
used to communicate church-related activities, classes, and news about members and friends. The week the eUniter is sent out, there will not be an eNews. For content deadlines, see above.
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Our Staff
Matthew Gladden, Accompanist
Stephanie Cobb, Kitchen Help
Mary Foltz, Childcare Coordinator
Aaron Hlavatovich, Interim Weekday Custodian
Tom McDermott, Interim Sunday Custodian
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