Connections Newsletter All the news you need to know to connect, grow, and serve.

Sunday, April 22, 9:15 and 11:15 a.m. All Church Celebration: Earth Day and Flower Communion Earth Day, begun 48 years ago, is now celebrated on April 22 in over 100 countries throughout the world. This year we will share stories, songs, and UUCA’s annual Flower Communion. The Flower Communion Service, originated by the Rev. Norbert F. Capek in Czechoslovakia in 1923, is perhaps the most widely‑celebrated ritual in Unitarian Universalist congregations today. In the spring or early summer, most of our congregations devote a Sunday to this festive participatory service which celebrates both the earth's beauty and humanity's oneness. Its simplicity and universality make it meaningful for us all. Each person brings a flower to contribute at the beginning of the service and receives another flower to take home at the end of the service. All except our youngest children will worship together in the Sanctuary this Sunday, so please bring a flower for each member of your family. Extra flowers will be on hand if you have no access or forget, so don’t let a lack of flowers keep you away. As we remind ourselves to care for the earth, let’s experience the beauty of her bounty together.  Rev. Beth Miller, Temporary Senior Minister, will lead the service. Music includes our Children's Choirs under the direction of Bea Ann Phillips, and the Sanctuary Singers and Chamber Choir under the direction of Mimi Bornstein. Livestream

Share the Plate April 22, 2018: NISGUA and PAG This Sunday the Share the Plate (STP) offering is dedicated to our congregation’s partnership between NISGUA-–the Network in Solidarity with the people of Guatemala--and our own social justice ministry, PAG-- Partners for Arlington and Guatemala. Since 2007, UUCA has sponsored a total of 18 human rights Accompaniers in Guatemala through this partnership. UUCA financially supports these Accompaniers entirely through contributions to the STP offering; 12 months of accompaniment costs $9,300. Seventy percent of the STP offering on Sunday, April 22, plus any checks or one-time online contributions received between April 22-April 28, will be applied to the work of these remarkable young people. Be sure to mark contributions as Share the Plate. Without your generous contributions, UUCA could not be a Sponsoring Community. Read more > Online STP Donation

Share the Plate Update We have had two very successful weeks of Share the Plate! April 8 – The Dream Project - $2,886 collected toward goal of $11,550.  April 15 – Service Never Sleeps - $2,385 collected toward goal of $4950. Remember that 30% of this amount is designated to go toward the UUCA approved operating budget and we have almost met the goal of $37,500. Once we have met this goal we will be sending the entire plate to our partners featured each week.

Church Matters

The highest distinction is service to others - Serve on the Ministerial Search Committee!  The Nominating Committee is currently seeking UUCA members to serve on the Senior Minister Search Committee. The committee will consist of seven members who will be selected by the Nominating Committee, and voted on by the congregation at the June congregational meeting. All candidates should be members of the church in good standing and have made a pledge for the 2018-2019 church fiscal year. This commitment is expected to run June 2018 through June 2019, and is expected to require, on average, four hours per week. The time commitment will be more during the spring when the committee is interviewing candidates and conducting candidating week. A full job description can be found here. How can you share your interest with us or nominate a fellow UUCAer? • Stop by the Nominating Committee table in Fellowship Hall after each service • Reach out directly to one of the committee members • Submit the nomination (yourself or another) at https://tinyurl.com/MSCinterestform  • Email the Nominating Committee at UUCANomCom@gmail.com  The Nominating Committee is interviewing candidates now, so please be in touch soon! In fellowship, Members of the 2017-18 Nominating Committee Bill Turner (Chair), Ben D’Avanzo, James Tsai, Liz Fuchs, and Tina Hinh

Ministry Matters

Ministry Matters: Leadership Without Words By Christin Green, Ministerial Intern This past weekend, I traveled to Akron, Ohio, to co-lead a drumming workshop with a Jewish community. A Rabbi friend and colleague of mine invited me to join her for this workshop that focused on Miriam, the Prophetess from the Hebrew scriptures. There is sparse information in the text about Miriam. We know that she was the sister of Moses and she watched over him as he floated down the Nile to be taken in by Pharaoh's daughter. We know that she later traveled with the Hebrew people and helped Moses to deliver them out of slavery in Egypt. We know that she held a drum (probably similar to a tambourine) in her hand and led all the women in drumming and dancing. She is given the title of a Prophetess in the scriptures, but Rabbinical scholars still argue on why she might be deserving of that title. What I really enjoy about sacred texts is reading between the lines, noticing what is left unsaid, interpreting the holes in the story. When it was time for the Israelites to flee Egypt, they hardly had time to finish baking their bread. How did they have time or forethought to pack their musical instruments? Perhaps Miriam believed that they would have reason to celebrate on the other side of their journey. Perhaps she led the people with a drum in her hand, knowing that words are sometimes inadequate.  Are there other leaders you can think of that didn't necessarily lead with words?

Budget Matters

2018-19 Budget: The Discussions Continue By Tamara Srader , Acting Executive and Chief Administrative Officer As most people know, we are in the midst of budget season. Since this is my third year in presenting a budget to the congregation, I wanted to make sure that we gave ample opportunity for discussion. One policy that we have to follow is to have two open budget meetings. The last two fiscal years we have had exactly that: two open budget meetings. The process goes like this-–two open budget meetings, presentation to the Board for recommendation to the congregation in May, congregational vote in June. What I have learned is that members and friends still said that they didn’t know about the budget. This year we set a different goal--have a series of meetings to inform the congregation of the mystery of the budget process AND talk about the budget. We scheduled six meetings–three in March and three in April. The most people attending any meeting was 34 and the least was 9. I want to thank everyone for participating including a very supportive board of trustees.    The last two meetings held in April had a draft budget for discussion which you can view here. This budget assumes two ministers at midpoint in the UUA salary recommendation range.   As we continue discussions with the Board of Trustees there will be changes made prior to recommendations to the Board for presentation to the congregation in June. Remember that the budget is a road map and is an educated guess--and we will continue to have many more discussions. Keep an eye on Connections as we will be holding a seventh budget meeting to talk about ongoing changes. This meeting will be scheduled in the coming days.   We will be looking for ways to close the gap on this budget and discussions are still taking place. A copy of the full budget is available in the office during normal business hours. Thanks for your continued support! Tamara

Lifespan Religious Education

Wellspring Wednesday Classes Begin THIS WEEK! Come join your UUCA family and friends for fun and informative evenings that fosters lifelong learning and spiritual growth in beloved community. Childcare provided with RSVP. Dates are April 18-May 23. Here's just some of the classes: UU Music Workshop w/ Mimi Bornstein and Christin Green Screenagers: Growing Up in the Digital Age / A Film Screening Prayerful Doodling and Art The U in UUism Complete Wellspring class list with descriptions here. Register here.

Read RE Connect Newsletter

PIP Playdate The Parents of Infants and Preschoolers (PIP) are hosting a playdate this Saturday, April 21 at Lubber Run Park playground in Arlington (a few blocks north of the church), from 3 to 5 p.m. For more information, please contact Claire Propsting, claire.propsting@gmail.com.

Faith in Action

Act for Environmental Justice on Earth Day! Be sure to check out the tables in Fellowship Hall after both services this Sunday, April 22, a.k.a. Earth Day! There will be many organizations there to share opportunities with you/your family to promote environmental justice in big and small ways. Want to table? Contact Elisabeth at egeschiere@uucava.org .

Earth Day with DIG Celebrate Earth Day with an outdoor all church workday! Bring the whole family on Saturday, April 21, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Help divide and plant native plants, pull weeds and spread mulch. Learn how to preserve and protect our space. Bring your own tools and gloves if you have them. Lunch will be provided. Sign up here. Visit the DIG table on April 22 and 29 to learn how to make your space a wildlife sanctuary.  In addition to offering advice and selling booklets on gardening with Virginia natives, we’ll give away FREE native plants and tell you how to grow them at home. If you’re ready to buy native plants for your home garden, click here to learn where plants will be available in the next few weeks. Read more >

Earth Day “Write Here! Write Now!” — Tell U.S. Senators to help coalfield states As part of UU Climate Justice Month, on Earth Day (this Sunday), UUCA will join the UUs for Social Justice’s Write Here! Write Now! letter-writing campaign. UUs across the country will urge our U.S. Senators to support the Reclaim Act to release $1 billion in funds to help coalfield communities transition to a sustainable economy and reclaim land and clean up water resources. UUSJ's Capitol Hill Advocacy Corps will hand-deliver letters on May 8. We are collaborating with UU Ministry for Earth in this nationwide project. Sunday's Write Here, Write Now! is an opportunity to teach children about where our energy comes from. Tables will be set up for families to write letters together and children can draw pictures on their message. Contact Lavona Grow, advocacy@uusj.org or call 703-524-4860.

UUSJ Webinars Cover Economic Justice and Healthcare  Unitarian Universalists for Justice invite you to join in on these two UU Just Economic Community co-sponsored webinar: Thursday, April 19, 8:00 p.m. ET "What is Health Justice and Inequality?" a webinar with Margaret Flowers, co-founder of PopularResistance.org. The thought of health justice in conjunction with inequality can bring to mind a myriad of issues, from costs of care to access limitations and opportunities. Did the Affordable Care Act “Obamacare” help? Should we protect what we have, or work to improve it? If single-payer is the answer, how do we get it? For the ZOOM link and additional information, click here.

Taste of Islam  Dar Al-Hijrah Islamic Center has invited UUCA and all its interfaith partners to an Open House to celebrate our rich diversity. As their website states, we would be honored and delighted to have you, even if briefly, at our Annual Taste of Islam Open House on April 22. Date: Sunday, April 22, 12 - 5 p.m. Location: Dar Al-Hijrah Islamic Center, 3159 Row St, Falls Church, VOICE Meeting for Millennials Millennials, you’re invited to join Elisabeth Geschiere, UUCA Social Justice Coordinator, and other young adults interested or involved in VOICE (Virginians Organized for Interfaith Community Engagement) at this new monthly meeting to learn more about VOICE, get trained in their effective organizing strategy known as Relational Power, and to meet others who care about social justice. Contact Elisabeth at egeschiere@uucava.org with questions and/or about car-pooling! Date: Thursday, April 19, 7-8:30 p.m. Location: Virginia Theological Seminary

Showing Up For Racial Justice (SURJ) Deep Canvassing It's the first deep canvass action day of 2018! Deep canvassing is a long-term, research-based strategy that SURJ (Showing Up for Justice) is using to invite our neighbors to re-think their support for systemic white supremacy. No canvassing experience necessary, our script and training will guide you as you engage white people in conversations about white supremacy--at their front doors! Give this exciting strategy a try, and practice initiating challenging conversations in a supportive environment. Sign up here to participate. More info on the Facebook event page. Date: Saturday, April 21, 11 a.m. - 5 p.m. Location: All Saints Episcopal, 3421 Franconia Rd., Alexandria

Kids Yoga with the Holistic Moms The Arlington/Alexandria chapter of the Holistic Moms Network meets on the third Thursday of each month at UUCA. Bring your children and join us on Thursday, April 19 from 5:30-7:30 p.m. to learn about and practice Kids Yoga. Yes, it’s possible to connect with your own mind and body and enjoy yoga with your kids at the same time! We’ll be led by children and family yoga teachers Sylvia Cacciato and Dana Cook (also a UUCA member) for a fun practice and some guidance on how to incorporate yoga into daily life. For more information, click here. Date: Thursday, April 19, 5:30-7:30 p.m. Location: Activity Room Peace Camp Golf Fundraiser UUCA's Peace Ministry Team is happy to announce a Golf Charity Fundraiser for our Peace Camp partner, Little Friends for Peace. Proceeds will benefit scholarship campers of community partners, including the two weeks of Peace Camp at UUCA. Golf registration here.  Date: Monday, April 30, Noon Location: Kenwood Golf and Country Club, Bethesda, Maryland

Voices From The Holy Land Film Series The annual Voices from the Holy Land film series features the latest documentaries about the Israel-Palestine conflict. UUCA will be one of five venues throughout the DMV to host the series. The final film featured this Sunday, April 22, 2:30 p.m. is The Field, a documentary that follows the "Roots" project, a first of its kind initiative between Palestinians and Israeli settlers working together towards coexistence and peace through a peoples’ movement developing from the grass roots. Our feature presentation will be followed by a moderated discussion with the audience. Additional details on the film series can be found below. Please email Tracey L. Rogers , tracey.lynnelle@gmail.com , for questions or inquiries. Read More Spring Allyship Workshop Registration Open As part of our congregation's Live the Pledge campaign to end racism, UUCA has partnered with Service Never Sleeps to offer a racial justice Allyship training. Over 100 UUCAers have already taken this training. Now it’s your turn. This workshop will teach you about the causes of racial injustice, how to be an effective ally for marginalized communities of color, and how to actively influence and educate others. This is a natural follow-up to the two-day Live the Pledge to End Racism workshop but is also appropriate for first-timers. More information and sign up here . UUCA contact Alex Ziehm , Alexandraziehm92@gmail.com .

Peace Camp – Share your talent and art/craft supplies  Little Friends for Peace has begun plans for this year's Peace Camp. And we are now collecting art supplies and recruiting volunteers.  Arts and crafts. Bring you donations to the Peace Camp table in Fellowship Hall between services on April 29. We can use:  • Paper Towel and Toilet paper rolls  • Shoe boxes - all sizes  • Puppets  • Poster board  • Drawing paper  • Stuffed animals • Markers/crayons  • Carpet squares • Plastic salad and fruit containers with tops  • Other craft materials Share your talent/gifts by demonstrating to campers how you have been a Peacemaker, perhaps through Music, Storytelling, Peace Corp volunteer, Dance, Art Project, Singing, Nature project, or Animal Care.  For details, contact MJ Park, mjpeace@gmail.com, or 240-838-4549.

African American Book Sharing Circle Ida: A Sword Among Lions Ida B. Wells crusaded against lynching in the 1890s while she also was a journalist, newspaper editor, suffragist, teacher, sociologist, feminist, and one of the founders of the NAACP in the early 20th century. Have you ever heard of her? Probably not, so our Sharing Circle is exploring Ida Wells' contributions and life during Reconstruction and Jim Crow America. Paula Giddings' biography Ida: A Sword Among Lions chronicles Ida B. Wells’ life as well as the culture and history of the times she lived.  Read more > Date: Friday, April 20, 7:30 p.m. Location: Welcome Room Buckingham Cooks Cooks from the Buckingham community will be selling savory Latino fare after services on Sunday. No time to eat? They’ll provide carry out. Income from sales will go to a charity which benefits immigrants.

Music Ministry

It's not too late to join! Voices United Community Chorus We’ve only had two rehearsals! This Saturday’s rehearsal is from 6 to 8 p.m. at UUCA. (Rehearsal times vary but most are from 3 to 5 p.m.) We extended the last registration date so now people are welcome to join the choir as late as May 5! For details and to sign up, click here.

Mark your calendar: April 29 UUCA hosts The Arlington Chorale Summer Daze Concert

Congregational Life

Young Adult Divine Reading Group The Divine Reading Group is a Young Adults Group which treats secular short stories as though they were sacred texts. The belief behind the strategies is that personal truth and meaning can come from a wide variety of sources. This group is ideal for those who love reading and discussion. It is also a place where deep and meaningful introspection occurs, friendships are made, and the very nature of religion is explored.The reading is chapters 5-6 of A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle. Questions? Contact Elisabeth Geschiere, egeschiere@uucava.org. Date: Thursday, April 19, 7-9 p.m. Location: Youth Room Young Adult Brunch The Young Adults meet for brunch every other Sunday after the second service! Ages 18-35 and their families are welcome to come and get to know other young adults over a good meal. This Sunday we’re having an Earth-themed Potluck Brunch ! Date: Sunday, April 22, 12:30-3:00 p.m. Location: Outside on North Patio next to Sanctuary, weather-willing! (Back up: Youth Room)

Beer, Pizza, and Questions About the Universe Folks between the ages of 21 and 35 are welcome to join the Young Adults for beer, pizza, and questions about the universe every other Tuesday. The event is BYOB--bring your own beer, but the pizza will be provided. We discuss topics ranging from politics, to science, to philosophy. Every time the topic is different but the discussion is always interesting. Date: Tuesday, April 24, 7–9 p.m. Location: Fellowship Hall Event Host and Building Safety Training Those who lead groups at UUCA, who plan and/or host meetings or events, or who are interested in volunteering to do so, are invited to join Facility Manager, Paul Kearney, and Administrative and Events Coordinator, Annie Parker for a special training Sunday, May 6, after second service. Interested parties can grab a cup of coffee and convene in the Boardroom by 12:30. The session will last for approximately an hour and a half and will touch on health, safety, security, and emergency policies and procedures. The session will also include an orientation to building features and an overview of expectations and responsibilities of coordinators or hosts. Date: Sunday, May 6, 12:30 p.m. Location: Board Room

Wheel of Life

Zane Alexander Brosseau was welcomed to the world by parents Caitlin and Alex Brosseau and big sister Norah on January 19, 2018. He has started attending Sunday services and can’t wait to join his big sister for RE one day soon.

NEW newsletter deadline: Connections deadline for submissions is EACH Monday at noon with publication on Wednesday. See below on how to submit an announcement.

How to submit an announcement to UUCA's Connections newsletter:   Deadline is noon each Wednesday. Please put "Connections" or "newsletter" in the subject box. Send announcement (150 words or fewer) in body of email or Word doc attachment. Images and attachments accepted, though no guarantee of publishing Send announcements to pubasst@uucava.org. Questions about Connections? Contact MaryAnn@uucava.org.

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Unitarian Universalist Church of Arlington, VA 4444 Arlington Blvd Arlington, Virginia Call: (703) 892-2565 Email: uuca@uucava.org ‌ ‌