A Unitarian Universalist Church | 1800 Bell Ave., Des Moines, IA 50315 | P: 515-244-8603
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This Sunday: June 9, 2019
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This June marks the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall Riots (June 28-29, 1969), a watershed moment for LGBTQ liberation movements in the United States. On this Capital City Pride weekend, join our community as we consider what beauty we find in resistance. As we gather together, may we consider how the fore-runners of the queer and trans liberation movements teach us this.
Special music:
Amy Anderson will sing "The Joke" by Brandi Carlile
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Faith Formation Classes for Pre-K - 5th grade
10 am
See the "Faith Formation" section below in this email for information on this week's classes.
Child care will be available for infants and toddlers (up to age 4) in Room 112
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Joys & Concerns for Sunday should be submitted by noon on Friday.
You may also submit a hand-written joy or concern on Sunday morning.
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Also this Sunday:
11:00am - 12:00pm
Energy & Justice for All @ Peace Conference Room
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Week of June 17 Will Be Short-Staffed
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Due to staff attending the General Assembly and others on vacation, the office will not be opened the usual hours the week of June 17-21. Please call the person you’re coming to see to verify that they are in the office. If you’re just coming to the building, you’ll need your access card.
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Please plan to attend a celebration
for Rev Jen!
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Rev Jen's last service will be July 7th.
After the service, please gather in Channing Hall for refreshments and cake.
We'll officially thank Rev Jen and wish her well in her next ministry.
For more information, please contact a member of the Transition Team: Liz Bredeson, Anne Stamper, Jean Rommes, Heidi Lackmann, or Heidi Levine
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Getting to Church During Road Construction
(Bell Ave is now Closed from Fleur)
(Park Ave will also be Closed from Fleur)
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On Monday, April 1, 2019, crews closed the inside lanes of Fleur Drive in both directions to begin work on the median. Northbound traffic has been moved to the inside lane on the southbound side as crews remove and replace the street.
Crews will also repair the storm sewers and add a new sidewalk and water main.
The entire reconstruction of Fleur Drive from McKinley Avenue to just north of Bell Avenue is scheduled to take 4 to 5 years. Phase 2 of the project, replacing the southbound lanes from Watrous to Bell avenues, is set to begin in the fall of 2020.
Please use an alternate route traveling to the church.
Martin Luther King drive to 7th ave. is a good alternate route.
There are detour signs that take you to Park Ave and down SW 9th
Fleur drive may be periodically closed entirely during the construction.
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MORE Fabulously FUN Food Fair FUNdraiser #20!
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HOSTS:
–
don’t panic if you haven’t received your list of attendees (unless your event is coming up soon) – if it didn’t sell out, I wait to see if there are more signups.
THANK YOU to ALL who donated, bought & bid! There’s a whole lot of good food and great fellowship & fun already
happening!
We’ve still got seats open at some fabulously fun events coming up soon:
#22 - Hotdog Hootenanny.
Outdoor Picnic and Live Music by Jack (additional musicians welcome) Lets Jam (Indoors if it rains). Soft drinks served, but feel free to BYOB. Adults only.
HOST(S):
Lori & Jack Hackett.
Sat,
6/22/2019. 5:30 PM. 6 seats left. $35.
#4 - Backyard BBQ & Kid Carnival.
Join Rev. Erin & her family for a BBQ in their backyard along with some kid carnival activities (geared to children 5 & under) to engage us all.
HOST(S):
Erin Gingrich & Joshua Leshan.
Sat,
6/29/2019. 4:00 PM. 7 seats left. $30/age 12-adult; $15/ages 6-11; under 5 Free
To sign up, please email
royalbl@mac.com
to make sure no one else beat you to it. She'll let you know and, if you get in, will let you know how to pay and will notify the hosts.
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Executive Report for May 2019 and Mission/Vision Report
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May / June Outreach Partner:
Young Women's Resource Center
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Young Women's Resource Center supports, educates, and advocates for young women 10 -21 years old in the Des Moines area.
The Young Women’s Resource Center is a non-profit organization that supports, educates and advocates for young women ages 10-21. Through small groups and individual support, the Young Women’s Resource Center provides programming for all young women, no matter what they may be going through.
GET INVOLVED
Here’s how you can make sure our girls grow up to be great.
It is only with the support of more than 300 volunteers annually that the Young Women’s Resource Center is able to provide quality programming to young women in our community. Come join a dedicated group of individuals and contribute your time and talents at the YWRC. Being a volunteer means you can
truly give back to the community and impact the lives of numerous young women.
When you volunteer at the Young Women’s Resource Center, you are helping to make the lives of girls and young women more successful.
Volunteer opportunities with First Unitarian include:
Both events will be late afternoon/early evening.
Please click links below to sign up.
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Family Promise Summer Celebration
& Silent Auction
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Join our church in continuing our support of Family Promise with a fun evening of music, food and fundraising for families experiencing homelessness! We will celebrate the wonderful efforts of volunteers, donors and friends with food, music and a silent auction. There will be a 50/50 raffle (tickets are $5 and you must be present to win.) Tickets are $40 and available for purchase online or by calling (515) 277-7051.
Friday, June 28, 2019
7:00 pm- 9:30 pm
Giovannetti Shelter - 9000 Douglas Ave, Urbandale
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First Unitarian Church at the Capital City Pride Parade!
Sunday, June 9, 11:30 a.m., East Side of the State Capital Building
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Help First Unitarian Church maintain its proud tradition of support of the LGBTQ+ community by marching with your fellow UU's in the Capital City Pride Parade on Sunday, June 9! We invite all church members, both LGBTQ+ and straight/cisgender allies, and including adults, teens, and children, to meet in the parking lot of the Lucas Building at 321 E.12th St. (on the EAST side of the State Capital Building) at 11:30 a.m. The parade starts promptly at 12:00 p.m., so give yourself ample time to get there and park. (PLEASE NOTE: The parade begins ONE HOUR EARLIER than in earlier years!) Parking will be available in the visitor lots just south of East Walnut & E. 12th Streets and also in the Judicial Branch lot at East 12th St. & East Court Ave.
We also invite everyone to again wear your favorite First Unitarian Pride or Standing on the Side of Love t-shirt. (Don't have one yet? Some are available for purchase in self-serve kiosk in the gathering area after services on Sundays.) Some signs will be available for you to carry in the parade if you wish, or you are welcome to stop by the table in the gathering area after services to make your own. We are especially encouraging people to make and bring signs that focus on transgender rights, protecting LGBTQ youth (e.g., stopping bullying & conversion therapy), not using religion to justify discrimination against LGBTQ+ people, and the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall Uprising.
Contact Doug Aupperle at aupperle.douglas(at)gmail(dot)com for more information.
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On June 9
th
, tell Your Senators to Take Action
on Healthcare Costs
Healthcare costs put many Americans at risk because of unaffordable drugs and medical care, and are a major cause of bankruptcy. Healthcare is making headlines so now is the time for UUs to add our voices to the public discussion. The UUA passed a General Resolution in
1992
in support of Universal Health Care! On Sunday, June 9
th
, stop by the UUs for Social Justice's (UUSJ) Write Here! Write Now! table to tell your story and urge your Senators to address healthcare affordability and to support legislation to reduce the cost of prescription drugs. Please join in with other UUs around the country to make sure our voices are heard! UUSJ will deliver our letters on June 11 to our Senators in Washington, DC.
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Hosting Family Promise June 9-16
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Family Promise of Greater Des Moines (FPGD) assists families experiencing homelessness through a network of 14 area faith-based host congregations that provide clean, safe overnight shelter and nutritious meals for a period of one week every 3 months. The host congregations provide each family with a private room for sleeping as well as dinner and food for breakfast and for packing a lunch.
Its First Unitarians turn to host 3 families (up to 14 people) from June 9-16, 2019
(Please note the date change from the first week in July to the second full week in June)
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Journey of Accompaniment: Part 25
Accompaniment Story:
"What do I make of the immigration court?"
by Michael Lauer
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I have trekked to Immigration Court in Omaha three times in the last month. The court is housed in the Department of Homeland Security Building near the eastern edge of the city. Immigration Court is part of the Justice Department but answers to the executive branch.
My experience of the court has left me asking whether the court operates to deliver justice or is its true purpose to carry out the will of the nation’s executive?
I first visited the court accompanying a young woman from Mexico and her 11 year-old-son. She had no lawyer. People with lawyers went first, leaving those without representation to the end. When the lawyers and their clients were done, the judge turned to the last two individuals: to the woman we accompanied and another, dealing with them simultaneously. She noted their names, where they lived, and assigned them each a court date in January 2020.
The judge explained in English what they each needed to do between now and the next court date. Although there was a translator, I doubt that either immigrant was able to comprehend and remember all of the instructions. I couldn’t even keep all the instructions in mind as I listened.
Afterward I asked the judge if the instructions she delivered were available in written form since so much crucial information was delivered so quickly. No she said, they were not, but perhaps they could be transcribed from the tape of the proceedings. She thought it might be a good idea. But I doubt the transcript will be made available. Even if it were available, how would an asylum-seeker find out, let alone access it?
What struck me immediately is that this was business, not justice. The judge was not mean but the people who came before the court were dispatched efficiently. They were treated as cases, not as people deserving of justice. They were objects to be dealt with efficiently.
What do I do with this inhumanity?
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Michael and Karen Lauer have officially been sponsoring an asylum-seeker since November 10, 2018. Asylum-seekers cannot be released from detention without U.S. citizen sponsors. Homeland Security has approved Michael and Karen as sponsors.
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If you'd like to set up a regular (weekly or monthly) contribution to our social justice activities,
click here
and enter the dollar amount for "Social Justice Outreach."
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The Iowa Sanctuary Movement Needs Your Help.
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The Iowa Sanctuary Movement (ISM), Des Moines Cluster, continues to offer financial support to six asylum seekers in the Des Moines area. ISM needs $7,000 to meet the needs of these asylum seekers from July–December 2019. To donate to the Asylum-Seeker Support Fund, go to the First Unitarian website (
www.ucdsm.org
) or send a check to First Unitarian Church with “asylum-seekers” in the memo line.
ISM currently supports—
- Two families from El Salvador who will relocate in July to New York, where a group called Families Belong Together is ready to receive and support them. They will receive pro bono legal representation in their asylum claims, which will offer them a greater chance of success. The ISM has enough funds to support these families through the end of June.
- Two asylum-seeking women from Central America whom Mike and Karen Lauer formally sponsor; they provide funds for housing, spending money, clothing, and other miscellaneous expenses. ISM offers financial support of about $1,000 per month for includes utilities, groceries, bus passes, medical care and prescriptions. Donations are needed to help with these expenses.
To maintain this level of support through December of this year, the ISM Des Moines cluster needs to raise a minimum of $7,000.(Roughly $1,000 per month plus $990 for two work permits).
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Interfaith Conversation about
the Film
Emanuel
.
Trinity las Americas is hosting a conversation on Emanuel, the new documentary about the domestic terror attack on Mother Emanuel AME Church in Charleston, SC.
See the film at 7 pm June 17 or June 19
(these are the only times)
at a theatre near you
.
The conversation is 6:30 pm Thursday, June 20 at Trinity las Americas,
1548 8th St in Des Moines.
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Humanist Book Study Group Summer Schedule
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We will meet at the new time of 11 A.M. June 16th, 2019 in Rm. 103. Gwen Harvey will lead discussion on the Humanist article, "As the Christian Church Crumbles, Is Humanism Ready to Step Up? author Dale McGowan, and available online via "The Humanist," Sept./Oct 2018 , publication.
Tom Harvey, current President of Humanist Society of Iowa; 515.822.5713
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Sacred Bridges CUUPs
monthly business meeting
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Sacred Bridges CUUPs monthly business meetings move to the 2nd Sunday, 6:30-8 pm, in the Peace Conference Room.
However
, the June 9 meeting will be in the Mary Safford area because our church community hosts Family Promise families that week..Possible agenda items include: June Meet N Greet Picnic, Community Outreach, and SB Symposium planning begins!
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Nonviolent Communication Workshop
with Rev. Erin June 19th 5:30-7
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Come learn about, and then practice, compassionate communication.
We’ll focus on speaking in ways we're more likely to be heard and
try out a conflict resolution model.
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June Artist of the Month:
Coming of Age Students
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Mary Kelly will host lunch at Louie's Wine Dive, SE corner of 42nd and University on Tuesday, June 11, at 12:15.
We hope to see you there!
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June Unity Circle
Thursday, June 20
12:30 p.m.
The Machine Shed
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A big thank you to Jeff Craig and Al Powers, along with Chris Jorgensen for the installation of our new tankless water heater downstairs. This new water heater ensures that the portable shower has all the hot water it needs when set up and in use by Family Promise or if we ever have someone in sanctuary.
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THIS WEEK in Faith Formation
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Registration is now open for Summer Faith Formation
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Pre-K - Grade 5
Sundays, May 26 thru September 1, 10 am only
Join teachers Sam and Naomi for Picture Book stories and learning based on our UU principles and sources. Classes will end their mornings together (weather permitting) outside on our playgrounds and trails.
Older children are encouraged to attend the service
Child care will be available to infants and toddlers (up to age 4)
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Young Religious Unitarian Universalists (YRUU) is First Unitarian's high school youth group. All youth in grades 9 - 12 are invited to join us!
Please join us for the July 7th get together.
Welcome New YRUU Youth and send off our Seniors!
Stay tuned for more details
High School Youth Group is on break for the summer
and will regroup in the fall.
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Wednesday Night Programming will return in September 2019. Have a great summer!
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More Upcoming Meetings & Events
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If you wish to schedule a meeting or event,
We do not list rentals, closed groups and committee meetings in this email.
For a FULL list of upcoming meetings and events, click on:
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For Sunday, June 9 events please see top section of this email. Events from the Announcements section above are NOT repeated below.
June 11 | Alzheimer’s Support Group @ Channing Hall, RE Gathering Space 12:00pm - 1:30pm
June 17 | Small Group Ministry @ Scottish Rite Park 10:00am - 12:00pm
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When you buy from amazon.com, use
this link and a % of the sale is donated to First Unitarian.
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