Beacon Weekly News for August 30, 2018

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

Caleb Alexander, Beacon Office Manager

~ Sunday Service, September 2 ~

"Beacon in the Park: Our 32nd Annual Community Gathering"

With Rev. Kevin Lawson

Please make plans to join with us this special morning for our 32nd annual service and picnic in the park. This year we will carry on the tradition of gathering at the Community Ramada within Bushmaster Park just off East Lockett Road at Thomas Street. Follow the signs and look for our bright Beacon Banners! Service is at 10:00am, directly followed by food, fellowship and fun for all ages. See you there!

~ Monthly Touchstone Theme: Vocation ~

Click here to read September's Touchstone Journal.

~ Special Service: Beacon in the Park ~

Service and Potluck Luncheon in the Park

Sunday, September 2, Service Begins at 10:00 am

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.

Plates and flatware will be provided by Beacon along with drinks, iced tea, lemonade and water. Please do bring food dishes to share with all assembled. If you can provide a note card of your dish's ingredients, this is helpful to those with food allergies or concerns. Thank you and see you in the Park!

~ Beacon Building Update ~

Free-Cycle Day at Beacon!

Sunday, September 16, Following Service

We are cleaning out the attic and cottage in preparation for demolition and construction! If you have any items related to your programs or committees, please claim them. We are planning to set out any excess items in the backyard after the service on September 16 for anyone to take home. Anything left over will be put on the curb for large item pick-up for the next day. Some of the items we anticipate putting out for anyone to claim are Christmas decorations, signs, brass track lights (from the sanctuary), possibly some tables and chairs, table decorations from past parties, maybe some excess yard tools, plastic sheeting, and more! Thank you to Kay Johnson and her team for their work inventorying and advising on the cottage and attic!

Theresa deBoer

REI Project Manager

~ Religious Exploration ~

Have you checked out the new Religious Exploration blog? There you'll find:

Details about upcoming programming,
Resources for UU parents
Curriculum related ideas for you to connect with your children

Coming up:

Bring the kids to Bushmaster Park for games, face painting, and food on Sunday September 2, 10:00 am!
Save the Date... Then Go on a Date! Family Night is September 21, 5:00 pm. More details soon!

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

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

~ In This House Yard Signs ~

Paul Beier is offering these signs (16" x 24", plus a wire frame to display it in your front yard) for $5 each (slightly below his cost). To obtain a yard sign at this
discount price, you agree to put it in your front yard or in another visible place under your control (not on city land, nor blocking public rights-of-way, please). If
you need a campaign sign that your HOA cannot call a campaign sign, this is for you. Paul will bring the signs to Bushmaster Park this Sunday and to Beacon on upcoming Sundays.

Sales so far have been brisk - thank you! Thanks also to those persons who paid
$10 for their sign to help subsidize this effort; additional subsidizers are welcome.
Any surplus receipts beyond the actual cost will be donated to Beacon.

Note: Because the signs are releasing volatile compounds, they are not suitable for indoor use.

Paul Beier

Friendly Neighborhood Printer-Man

~ Social Justice Allies (SJA) ~

About Voting...

Plans are well underway for NAIC's two candidate accountability sessions.

The major goals of these sessions are: (1) educate candidates and the audience about NAIC's focus issues-immigration, education, and affordable housing, (2) elicit from each candidate whether he/she supports our priorities, and (3) hear from each candidate--if elected--a willingness to continue to engage in conversation with NAIC about these issues, and (4) instill in all candidates the understanding that NAIC and its member institutions (including Beacon) are a force with which to reckon. All candidates have been invited to participate in their respective sessions.

Specific questions are currently under construction, with leadership from NAIC's incredibly competent (and tough) co-chair Sammie Biter of Federated Community Church. All candidates have been invited and will receive these questions ahead of time and will be informed of their time limits.

Dates for these accountability sessions:

City Council candidates: Monday, September 17, 6:30pm, and
State Legislature candidates: Monday, October 1, 6:30.

Both events will be in the social hall of Federated Community Church West Aspen Street. Our goal is to have 25 folks from Beacon at each session. Please sign up with an SJA representative beginning Sunday, September 9, after the service.

The City of Flagstaff is bringing its Commission on Diversity Awareness (CDA) back to life, and Beacon's Dee Wegwert is a now a member of that group! In an effort to determine the focus of the CDA, Dee invites us to share our thoughts in either or both of these ways: (1) complete this survey and/or (2) participate in a public forum Thursday, September 20 at City Hall. Questions? Contact Dee at (928) 660-8815 or wegwert.az@gmail.com.

The next SJA meeting will be Sunday, September 16, following the service. Beacon members, friends, and visitors are welcome.

In community,

Roz Clark, SJA Journalist

~ Sign Up Time for Circle Suppers ~

Break bread with a few other Beaconites

How it works:

Any Member or Friend of Beacon signs up (with your partner and family, if you wish) by Sunday September 30. You are signing up to participate in 3-5 potluck suppers (or brunches or whatever) from October to April. Each Supper is held in the home of one member of the Circle; nobody hosts more than 1 Supper. Hosting is not required, so you can sign up even if your home too small to host 8 people.
Paul Beier assembles participants into "Circles" of 6-8 adults (plus kids in kid-tolerant groups), notifies you of the Circle to which you have been assigned, and assigns one person to be the Ringleader of each Circle.
The Ringleader of each Circle works with Circle to set the date for the first Supper at the Ringleader's home. At each Supper, the Circle selects a date & host for the next Supper. Continue until all hosts have held events.

A Beacon tradition for 30 years
By Sunday, September 30, use this link to a short online form that will require you to provide your name, email, phone number, and the names of other adults and names and ages of kids who will participate with you. The form will also ask if your home can accommodate babies (36 months) and kids (3 years and older), and will allow you to provide other information, such as "my house is too small for me to host" or other concerns; OR...

Find the clipboard (probably carried by Paul) at a Sunday service during September and fill out the information by hand. If you can't remember if you already signed up for Circle Suppers, just sign up - I will find the duplicates.

Paul Beier

Circle Supper Coordinator

~ Building & Grounds Committee ~

This Saturday: Building & Grounds Workday!

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

~ Community Action Committee ~

Northland Family Help Center's mission is to provide safe haven, advocacy, counseling, and education to promote and restore healthy relationships.

NFHC's Domestic Violence Shelter provides safe shelter, crisis intervention, advocacy, counseling, and life skills training to those affected.
NFHC's Youth Shelter offers shelter and respite care, family reunification, case managements, and life skills training.
Overview Northland Family Help Center provides out-patient professional counseling services free of charge for eligible individuals.
NFHC's Legal advocacy personnel provide training and advocacy to women fleeing intimate violence.

Lynda Dorweiler

Community Action Committee Chair

~ Upcoming Events ~

Celebration of Life: Ed Kurtz

Sunday, September 23, 2:00 pm at Beacon

From his obituary in the AZ Daily Sun, "Ed joined the Beacon UU Congregation, and served on the Board of Trustees, from 1990-1994."

Beacon Community Auction

Saturday, November 3, at Aspen Valley Golf Club

Support your community and nab great prizes with our Slumber Party Auction!

~ Beacon Calendar ~

Choir Practice Thursday, August 30 7:00 pm	Choir Practice Thursday, September 6 7:00 pm
Building & Grounds Work Day Saturday, September 1 9:00 am	Soul Collage: Counsel Suit Saturday, September 8 9:00 am
Service: Worship in the Park! Sunday, September 2 at 10:00 am Bushmaster Park, Community Ramada	Worship & Religious Exploration Sunday, September 9 10:00 am
Yoga Practice Tuesday, September 4 11:00 am & 5:00 pm	Newcomer Orientation Sunday, September 9 11:30 am
QiGong Tuesday, September 4 6:30 pm	Leadership Succession Team Sunday, September 9 11:15 am
Worship Associates Wednesday, September 5 5:30 pm	Committee on Shared Ministry Monday, September 10 5:15 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.