Beacon Weekly News for August 9, 2018

Submissions must be in by Wednesday at 4:00 pm to be included in the newsletter.

Caleb Alexander, Beacon Office Manager

~ Sunday Service, August 12 ~

"Being In Community: Or, What I Learned at Summer Camp"

With Music Director Adrianne Anning

Music Director Adrianne Anning will share her recent experience attending the Unitarian Universalist Musicians Network Conference in Portland. The mission of the UUNM is to help establish an aesthetic and spiritual climate to encourage excellence, unity and diversity through music ministry. Let us explore musical methods for creating unity in diversity.

~ Touchstone Theme: Unity & Diversity ~

Click here to read August's Touchstone Journal.

~ Building Expansion Team: REI Pledge Update ~

Holly Taylor is thrilled to report that 100% of those who have pledged toward the capital campaign have affirmed their continuing financial commitment after the congregational adoption of Scheme B at our recent meeting. As has been previously mentioned by President Dora and Rev. Kevin, we did see a few decreases, some increases, and--with gratitude--a few new pledges. We continue to project that we can fund the project without long-term financing.

Theresa deBoer

Project Manager

~ Upcoming Website Update: August 15, 2018 ~

Beginning mid-August, all public and logged in users will see changes to the tabs and lists of menu items. Recent security updates now allow for grouping of public and protected menu items in the same tab. Improvements to navigation are intended to be more intuitive and better accommodate the different devices like phones and notepads. Since March 1 st of this year, the Beacon newsletter has included a weekly request for members and friends to register on the Beacon website. At the end of April, it was announced in the newsletter that access was changed to require registration to see the directory and protected documents. On June 30th, emails were sent to unregistered members and friends to request that they register. Now that everyone has had an opportunity to register, it is time to update the content, add functionality, and improve navigation for the website to take advantage of the added security. Please contact WebMaster@beaconuu.com if you have any questions or need assistance.

Dennis Spurlin
Vice President, Beacon Board of Trustees

~ Religious Exploration ~

I am pleased to announce the new Religious Exploration blog that will be available to you on August 15! Details about upcoming programming, resources for UU parents, and curriculum related ideas for you to connect with your children will be posted regularly. Look in next week's newsletter for a link to the RE blog and more!

Last Sunday we started working with Wisdom from the Hebrew Scriptures. "This program offers multigenerational workshops based on eight stories from the Hebrew scriptures. Some of these stories are well-known and others less so. Some have been told to children inSunday school classes and Hebrew school for generations; others will be unknown even to some adults. Some of those narratives fit well with contemporary Unitarian Universalist values and others are more challenging in both the theology and the values expressed. All of these stories offer wisdom that can help people of all ages growth in spiritual depth and understanding."

On Sunday August 12 we will hear the parable of the prophet Nathan and King David. The lesson is rich with UU principles, but especially our commitment to justice. Read about some background to the story here and how it relates to our beliefs.

OWL (Our Whole Lives) Class Coming this Fall

This curriculum for the K-1st or 5 to 7 year old class provides developmentally appropriate information to support parents in educating children about birth, babies, bodies, relationships and families. Some of the goals of this class are to strengthen and support each child's sense of self and self-esteem, to help children appreciate their bodies as good and beautiful, private and special, and to help children gain understanding and accurate information about human sexuality, reproduction, and gender identification.

If you are interested contact Mary Poore at m8c8p8@aol.com or 928-699-8266.

Correction! RE Committee Meeting on August 26, not August 12

In both the Order of Service and Newsletter the next RE Committee meeting was marked as August 12. In fact, the next RE Committee meeting will be August 26, 8:30 am in Religious Exploration Office. Apologies for any confusion.

Amy Huntereece, Director of RE, re@beaconuu.com

Kay Johnson, RE Committee Chairperson, kayjandbillt@aol.com

~ Social Justice Allies (SJA) ~

Northern Arizona Interfaith Council Meeting

Beacon UU, Thursday, August 8, 6:30 pm

Tonight's the night! Beacon will host NAIC's Flagstaff Cluster meeting tonight and you're invited! Just in case you have missed announcements in recent issues of Beacon's Weekly E-news and in last Sunday's service, here is information about an important NAIC meeting that Beacon is hosting tonight, Thursday evening, August 9, at 6:30.

Representatives of NAIC's member institutions--Beacon, Federated Community Church, Lev Shalom, St. Francis de Asis, Epiphany Episcopal, Living Christ Lutheran Church, and others--will gather at Beacon for (1) updates on NAIC's work on education, immigration, and affordable housing and (2) planning for fall accountability sessions with candidates for City Council and the State Legislature to learn their positions on these priorities.

This is a convenient opportunity for Beacon members, friends, and visitors to learn about NAIC's collaborative social justice work and Beacon's involvement. We hope to see you tonight, Thursday, August 9, 6:30 pm, at Beacon!

Next Regular SJA Meeting

Sunday, August 19 to follow service at about 11:15 am

This meeting's agenda will include Beacon's new Policies and Procedures for Political Activity, an update on several new procedures coming from the Congregational Vitality Team (CVT), and clarification--to the extent that's possible--of the status of efforts to change the County Sheriff's office's practice of holding immigrants (at the conclusion of their jail sentences) for ICE.

Snacks will be provided. All are welcome!

Roz Clark

SJA Journalist

~ Volunteer Opportunity ~


Image Credit: KNAU

Flagstaff Family Food Kitchen Service Day

Wednesday, August 29, 2018, 3:30 pm

1903 North 2nd Street

We're seeking Beaconites and friends to lend a hand at the Flagstaff Family Food Kitchen in Sunnyside for our monthly service day. Please contact me if you are interested. Thank you!

Sue Strobel, strobelsue@gmail.com

~ Building & Grounds Committee ~

Mark Your Calendars: Next B&G Workday

Saturday, September 1, 2018 - 9:00 am to 12:00 pm

~ Community Action Committee ~

Beacon's community partner for August 2018 is the Hozhoni Foundation. The Hozhoni Foundation is a leading provider of services and advocacy for people with disabilities. Residential, Vocational and Educational services are provided to assist individuals in achieving their maximum potential. Ultimately every person with emotional, physical, or developmental disabilities has not only the opportunity but the right to experience life to its fullest.

Undesignated contributions to this month's Sunday service offerings above $300 (which goes to Beacon's operational budget) will be presented to Hozhoni Foundation.

Lynda Dorweiler

Community Action Committee Chair

~ Upcoming Events ~

Service and Potluck Luncheon in the Park

Sunday, September 2, 2018 - Labor Day Weekend
All Members and Friends are invited to this annual gathering for Food, Fun and Fellowship. This year the Worship Associates and the Board of Trustees have selected to gather during Labor Day weekend. We have reserved the Community Ramada at Bushmaster Park, where we have gathered the past two years. See you in the Park!

~ Joys & Concerns ~

lore shared a joy and a concern: Joy for his new job opportunity in Bullhead City, and sorrow as he will be moving from Flagstaff and the Beacon community. He will be back to visit regularly.

Kelsey V. shared the sorrow for the death of her grandmother in Texas this past week. She and Kat were unable to attend the funeral held Saturday August 4th.

Kelsey also shared the joy of her recent marriage to Kat Wiltsee, they were married by Rev. Kevin in Sedona two weeks ago.

Nancy P. shared the joy of she and Dick's recent trip and visit to get to meet and hold Dick's two new great grandchildren. Love all around.

Carleton S. acknowledged the message shared today for community unity, that the REI Campaign has been emotional for all involved, let's love one another, and work together to improve our congregation for all to participate joyfully.

~ Beacon Calendar ~

NAIC Meeting Thursday, August 9 6:30 pm	Core Leadership Council Wednesday, August 15 5:15 pm
SoulCollage: Companion Suit Saturday, August 11 8:30 am	Choir Practice Thursday, August 16 7:00 pm
Worship & Religious Exploration Sunday, August 12 10:00 am	Flagstaff Folk Project Friday, August 17 7:15 pm
Leadership Success Planning Team Sunday, August 12 11:30 am	Eckankar Information Session Saturday, August 18 9:00 am
Committee on Shared Ministry Monday, August 13 5:15 pm	Worship & Religious Exploration Sunday, August 19 10:00 am
Eckankar: Sound of Soul Monday, August 13 6:00 pm	Social Justice Allies Meeting Sunday, August 19 11:15 am
Yoga Practice Tuesday, August 14 11:00 am & 5:00 pm	Yoga Practice Tuesday, August 21 11:00 am & 5:00 pm
QiGong Tuesday, August 14 6:30 pm	QiGong Tuesday, August 21 6:30 pm

For the full calendar of events at Beacon, you can find that on our website!

If you would like to submit a calendar event, send an email to office@beaconuu.com . With all requests, please indicate the following: proposed start and end time of the event, the space/room preferred, and a rough group size. On the occasion of a cancellation or rescheduling of an event, please let the office know in a timely fashion to ensure that your event is correctly represented in the newsletter and order of service. Thank you!

~ Beacon Office Hours ~

Minister,

Rev. Kevin Lawson

Tues: 11:00 am - 4:00 pm
Wed: 11:00 am - 4:00 pm
Thurs: 9:00 am - 12:00 pm

Or by appointment

Director of RE,

Amy Huntereece

Sun: 8:30 am - 1:00 pm

Tues: 1:00 pm - 5:00 pm

Or by appointment

Office Manager,

Caleb Alexander

Wed: 9:00 am - 4:00 pm

Thurs: 9:00 am - 2:00 pm

Fri: 9:00 am - 12:00 pm

Or by appointment

Office Phone (928) 779-4492

~ Beacon Political Activity: Policies and Procedures ~

On June 27, 2018, Beacon's Board of Trustees unanimously approved (1) Policies for Political Activity and (2) Procedures for Political Activity for Beacon UU Congregation. Policies are adapted from the UUA publication, The Real Rules: Congregations and the IRS Guidelines on Advocacy, Lobbying and Election . If you wish to read any of the content, the document is available in full, simply click here.

~ Beacon Google Group ~

you are not on Beacon's exclusive Google group, you are missing out on an important communications link within our congregation. It is useful for spreading information about something going on in Flagstaff, informing others of social action activities, offering an item for sale or to give away, sharing enthusiasm about a book or movie, requesting information or recommendations -- and more! It's simple to sign up! Email Caleb, our Office Manager, at office@beaconuu.com.