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Congregational
Mission
Statement
We are a Congregation creating a better world by nurturing the heart and expanding the mind.
We provide a safe, caring community where all can freely explore diverse religious thought.
We work for justice and equality with the power of compassion and compassionate power.
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UUCGT Quicklinks
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If you would like to receive our monthly newsletter
the Beacon
please contact
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This Sunday, December 20, 2020 at 10:30 AM
(Begin signing in at 10:00 to visit!)
The Blessing of the Animals
- and the Ruth & Jim Gamble Service Awards!
All Creatures Great & Small, we will bless them all!
And we will honor and thank those whose service to our Congregation
in this (difficult) year has been outstanding!
This Sunday is our (Virtual) Pet Blessing, and we are putting together a slide show so send me your photos as soon as possible, please! You can dress your pet in holiday attire (or not). I bought a reindeer sweater and a hat for Zoey for her photo but haven't attempted a photo yet. It is wonderful to see your faces so think about taking a selfie with your pet and invite your pet to the service and introduce them to each other in breakout rooms!
We will also include a special memorial blessing to honor beloved pets who have passed but have a special place in our hearts. Send your photos ASAP to me at revharrington@mac.com.
The Service is coordinated by Misty Sheehan and led by Rev. Cathy Harrington.
"Cathy's boys: Ishmael (deceased) and Isaac now 15 yrs old"
"Guy 'dog-sitting' with Winston, also 15 years old".
The Order of Service may be accessed HERE.
CLICK ON THE LINK BELOW to join the Service:
The Meeting ID is 879 9782 0177
The December Soul Matters theme is stillness.
Have you ever been stunned into stillness by beauty?
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MINISTERIAL SEARCH TEAM REPORT
We here at UUCGT have been very good this year, Santa.
And it hasn't been easy! We had a country to worry about, and we did our best to protect it while also taking care of ourselves and others during a terrible pandemic. We learned hard lessons about the evils of inequality and the importance of unity. We worked for political candidates at all levels of government who would live up to the standards represented in our 7 UU Principles. We continued feeding the hungry and sheltering the homeless by adapting to limitations of the pandemic. Because we know that a church is not just a building, we learned how to Zoom. Boy, did we ever! So now we are hoping you can fulfill our Christmas wishes, Santa. Our list is short. All we're asking for is a settled minister who will honor our beloved traditions and join and inspire us on our journey to an even brighter future. Oh, just one more thing, Santa. May we please have peace on earth?
Mary, Geoff, Charles, Dusty, Jim, Chris, Jan
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Financial Summary
As of November 30, 2020
(41.7% of fiscal year)
Current Year (2020-2021) Prior Year (2019-2020)
Budgeted Income Received YTD $ 79,615* 29.3% $122,588* 46.6%
Budgeted Expenses Paid YTD $104,120 37.7% $102,734 39.0%
"For Those in Need" YTD $ 3,894 $ 4,491
*Income for 2020-2021 is less than 2019-2020 due to an accounting change that recognized prepaid pledges for 2020-2021 in the 2019-2020 fiscal year. Approximately $32,000 in excess income for 2019-2020 is on the balance sheet in our operating account and can be used to offset future losses, should they occur.
Budgeted income includes the total of all pledged and unpledged donations and miscellaneous income including building rent, etc. "For Those in Need" collections are in addition to Budgeted Income Received and are disbursed quarterly to worthy causes, including Congregational Care, Tuesday Community Lunch and other Community needs outside our congregation. The percentage reflects the portion of the total amount of income or expense budgeted for the fiscal year.
Please note that we have had a significant fall off of current year pledge payments, rental income and "for those in need" contributions during March through November due primarily to the Coronavirus pandemic. We need your help. If you can, send your pledge payments and "for those in need" contributions to the office or contribute on-line at uucgt.org.
If you want more detailed information, you can look at our website, click on Board, then on Board Packet, then on Monthly Comparison. Questions can be directed to your Finance Committee which includes Dusty Culton, Nancy Doughty, Alison Kadlec, Karl Keinath, Mike McDonald, Jim Walworth and Price Watts.
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- from Renée Russell -
This Sunday we do one of my, to quote Oscar Hammerstein II by way of Julie Andrews, favorite things. We honor our furry family members. I am someone who has always considered my pets to be an integral part of my life and spiritual journey. How would one learn to appreciate a gift of a dead mouse on your pillow if not through learning to accept that gifts come in many, um, forms. I've shared photos of my beloved cat, Finnegan, and our darling dog, Bernie. This week I will happily share one of my favorite songs, Heavenly Day, written by one of my favorite songwriters, Patty Griffin. It is the only love song she has ever written, and she wrote it for her beloved dog. I look forward to seeing all the wonderful animals you call family this Sunday.
Also, I so appreciate all the kind feedback from our service last week. We were treated to so much wonderful music by our own UU musicians. Here are the links to the videos we shared:
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- from Claire Crandell -
Last Sunday our theme was "Listening for the Voices of Angels". This Sunday, December 20th our theme will be "Watching for the Light". Winter is a time for many celebrations of the Light throughout the world. We will hear a story by a surprise reader and look and talk briefly about other cultural celebrations. AND we will do a fun surprise craft project that you could give as a Christmas present to someone. Look forward to seeing many of you, especially those children we haven't seen in a while if you can come. It is so much fun to see others and to say your holiday wishes to others! See you then!
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UUCGT Calendar - Stay Up to Date!
And remember that 2020 will be over soon;
the finish line is in sight...
Sunday Services, meetings and classes are hosted on Zoom until further notice. Note that as of September 30 2020 Zoom requires a passcode and/or an enabled "Waiting Room" for ALL newly scheduled meetings.
To request a Zoom meeting setup and link for your group or committee meeting, please e-mail Guy or call his cell, 231-735-0180
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The entire UUCGT.ORG calendar is HERE.
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Friday, December 18
8:00 PM (sign in beginning at 7:30 to visit!)
Meeting ID: 849 9852 6127
Sunday, December 20
10:30 AM (sign in beginning at 10:00)
Zoom link for Sunday Service
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MEN'S GROUP and THE STATE & BIJOU THEATRES
We all want to see the State Theatre and other local institutions
looking like this again. We might even want to be there!
Well, Mark Gustafson and the Men's Group have this to say about that:
In this time of pain and stress, I was thinking about what Jimmy Carter said 1979. He implied that there was a "malaise" affecting America, a crisis in confidence. And Jimmy didn't know about our present political climate. Well, I feel that crisis now. So what do we do? For one thing we could help the State and Bijou Theatres come back to life. These movie theatres are the heart and soul of downtown Traverse City. They show movies that make us laugh and cry and think. They give us joy! How can we help? We can give money! Our UU Men's group is having a fundraiser starting now and through January to help our theatres survive.
If you would like to participate, please
make your checks out to TCFF
and send them to:
Mark Gustafson
1111 Lake Ridge Drive # 201
Traverse City, Mi. 49684.
ADVENT CALENDAR
Rev. Cathy has shared with me that our beloved Susan Sherman used to hang the UUA Advent Calendar in our building for all to enjoy. There is no way to come see it this year for obvious reasons, but I'm attaching the entire document for you to download, print, cut apart, and hang or peruse to your heart's content. It was created by the Rev. Ralph Yeager Roberts and it is absolutely charming!
It is far too large a file to share via the Flash (or, indeed, almost any e-mail), even with file compression. So if you'd like a copy, please contact Guy in the office and he'll arrange for you to collect a copy from Dropbox or some other file-sharing service!
A "HEADS-UP!": ANYTHING INTENDED FOR NEXT WEEK'S FLASH NOT SUBMITTED BY END-OF-DAY (3:00PM) WEDNESDAY THE 23RD IS UNLIKELY TO BE INCLUDED! TOO MUCH GOING ON ON THURSDAYS TO BE PLAYING CATCH-UP WHEN THE FLASH NEEDS ALREADY TO BE OUT!
WEDNESDAY DINNER MEETINGS
The Wednesday dinner group has tried to stay connected these past months, socially distanced picnicking in the UU parking lot when we could, on ZOOM when it was rainy. We are going to weekly ZOOM now, 5:30 every Wednesday. If you would like to join us, contact Mike and Sandra McDonald for the ZOOM invite. You may bring your glass of wine.
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(True of cats as well.
Don't forget to send in your pet-and-you selfies!)
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The UUCGT building is closed until further notice;
however Guy is still working (remotely) Tuesday-Friday, 9am-3pm.
with any questions or concerns.
Stay up to date on the UUCGT website
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