Rev. Patricia Hart,
Erika Reif, and
James Stewart
Christmas Eve Candlelight Services
4 p.m. - All are welcome to this family-centered service, featuring a No Rehearsal Nativity Pageant and candlelighting.
6 p.m. and 8 p.m. - Traditional Christmas Eve services for all ages, ending in candlelight. Come celebrate the beauty of Christmas through stories, scripture and music both traditional and new.
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Sunday, December 29
at 10 a.m.
Worship Associate:
Doug Facey
"What Now?"
Saleemul Huq, a climate scientist, recently said, "Well, I think the year 2019 will, in hindsight, be seen as the tipping point, when human-induced climate change became reality." The climate crisis we are in appears to be turning into climate collapse. How will we face this? Guest minister Rev. Jane Dwinell will share some ideas.
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Visit the publication
archives on our website!
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Join Us for Worship This Sunday!
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Sunday, December 22 at 10 a.m.
Worship Leaders:
Erika Reif, Director of Lifespan Faith Development and
Rev. Patricia Hart, Developmental Senior Minister
Worship Associate:
Cheryl Herrick
Multigenerational Winter Solstice Service
Running beneath most winter holidays is the recognition of light and dark and the Earth's movement. The longest night, the return of light - this rhythm affects us deeply, and many cultures celebrate the turning point with story, song, and ritual. Join us for a multigenerational Winter Solstice Service.
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Christmas Eve Ushers/Candlelighters
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 Christina Fulton, Director of Operations & Finance
We are still looking for five people to be Ushers/Candle Lighters for the 4 p.m. service on Christmas Eve. If you are interested in serving this way, please
click here to sign up.
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| Christmas Breakfast |
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 Lynn Douglas
It's that time of year: sign up for our annual Christmas Breakfast. To read more about it, click here for recycled musings.
To sign up for food or volunteering,
click here
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| FUUSB Offices Closed for the Holidays |
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The Society offices will be closed from Tuesday, December 24 through Thursday, January 2
, so that staff members can celebrate the holidays with their families. We will reopen the offices on Monday, January 6.
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Love & Justice Vigil Holiday Schedule Changes
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 Zoe Hart
A hearty band of First UUers has been holding Love & Justice vigils every Wednesday without fail for over two and a half years now. On bright sunny summer days and in the dark of winter by candlelight. We have decided to allow ourselves a slight schedule change this holiday season. Next week's vigil will be held
Thursday, December 26 at 5:15 p.m. and the following week's vigil will be held
Thursday, January 2 at 5:15 p.m. Starting Wednesday, January 8 we will resume our usual Wednesday 5:15 schedule. Come join us!
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| Volunteers for Highlight Burlington |
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 David McFeeters, Facilities Manager
The First UU Society is pleased to be a Highlight Burlington event site this New Year's Eve,
Tuesday, December 31. Events at the Meeting House are beginning at 4:00 p.m., which is later than previous years.
We are again recruiting volunteers to help with this event. Each volunteer will receive a Highlight bracelet that can be used to attend events across Burlington before or after their shift. Because of the later starting time, we will only be in need of six volunteers, three for an early shift from 3:15 to 6:15 p.m. and three for a longer evening shift from 6:45 to 10:45 p.m.
There is a volunteer sign-up sheet on the bulletin board in the Meeting House. Please contact David McFeeters,
[email protected]
, 802-862-5630, ext. 23, with questions or to put your name on the list. Those who sign up can pick up their Highlight bracelets starting at 12:00 p.m. on Tuesday, December 31, at the Meeting House office.
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Help with the Yuuth Group Lasagna Dinner
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The Society Yuuth Group needs some lasagna. If you can help us out, we would like it by New Year's Eve, when we will have the Lasagna Dinner.
- We need vegan, vegetarian, and gluten-free lasagna, please. And also some regular meat lasagna.
- It can be homemade or bought from the store.
- If you want you can drop it off in the fridge a few days before.
- There is no standard size, so you can make them big or small.
- Plus we need some baked goods. Either single serving or something that can be cut into portions.
- Sign up to bring something here on signup.com (you won't need to make an account) or on the bulletin board outside of the Parlors.
The money from this Lasagna Dinner is for our Yuuth group's service trip and some of our activities, like going to GA (General Assembly, a UU event in Rhode Island this year).
Thank you for your awesome help and support!
Go to
this link for more IMPORTANT information!!!!!
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Save the Date - Climate Justice Meeting
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 Jud Lawrie
A Climate Justice Team at First UU has been proposed. This meeting will discuss the climate emergency facing us, the concept of climate justice, and the proposal to form a Climate Justice Team.
Sunday, January 12,
11:30 a.m.-12:15 p.m. (after the service)
Please mark your calendar and plan to join us. If you have any questions, contact Jud Lawrie at
[email protected]
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"
There is no Planet B"
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The Joy of Sharing Stories - Spirit Play
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The Faith Development program needs assistance to replace one of our volunteers. This person needs no formal training but should have a love of story and a desire to deepen their faith in service to young children ages preK to first grade. The commitment is (5) five Sundays, January 2020 to early March. Spirit Play is a Montessori-based approach to faith formation based on story and ritual, play and creativity that gives children the tools to make meaning of their lives within the container of Unitarian Universalism. It is deeply engaging and fun!
Please contact Erika Reif at
[email protected]
or 802-862-5630, ext. 28.
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| 8th Grade OWL Request |
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he UU 8th Grade Owl Program is hoping to find an outgoing pregnant person to speak to the class on Sunday, February 2, coming in about 9:45 a.m. to meet the facilitators and answering questions for about a half hour. The person would have to be comfortable with being vulnerable, a little silly, and honest even with intimate details. Some women have brought their partners along to answer questions with them.
This is a great opportunity to help educate young learners about this stage of life. Please contact Erika Reif at
[email protected]
or 802-862-5630, ext. 28.
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Membership Directory Update
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 Christina Fulton, Director of Operations & Finance
For those of you who have been using the "Church Life" app on your smartphone for the Membership Directory and the Society Calendar, please be aware that you may still continue to use that app for the next couple of months. When we begin to have you activate your new Realm account in the new year, we will give you the name of the new app to download onto your smartphone so that you may continue to access the member directory and your personal contribution information. And you can always check the Society calendar on our website
at this link.
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Season's Greetings from the Stewardship Team!
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 Nancy Knox
We wish you all a restorative holiday season. As the year comes to a close, we encourage you to take this opportunity in a season of generosity to bring your pledge commitment current, if you haven't done so and are able to at this time. The FUUSB fiscal year is about half over, so in theory, our pledges should be about half fulfilled. We are so grateful for our fellow UUs, for this support, and also for our amazing and dedicated staff, whose work is supported by our pledge income. THANK YOU!
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Thinking About Welcoming
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 Zoe Hart
I don't know about you, but I've been enjoying the return to one service - all of us together again. And I like the feel of the sanctuary being more full - the feel of a thriving, bustling community. But I also know that a full sanctuary may feel daunting for someone visiting for the first time and looking for a place to sit. So one thing I've started to do is always move as far into my pew as I can, leaving what I hope is an open and welcoming space beside me.
At a recent meeting of ushers and welcome ambassadors, we brainstormed ideas for helping visitors feel more welcome and I picked up two other ideas that I'm trying. One is sitting in the balcony. If more of us regulars use the balcony, the pews on the main floor will be more open and welcoming to newcomers. And the other place that is more full is the parking lot! So I've started parking on the street along Clarke Street or in the parking lot across Elmwood Avenue, hopefully making it easier for a visitor to find a place to park.
What ideas do you have for making newcomers feel more welcome?
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Socially Responsible Santa
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Christina Fulton, Director of Operations
Thank you to everyone who contributed to the Socially Responsible Santa fund this year! We collected nearly $2,800 and will be able to help 24 individuals/families. This elf couldn't have made it happen without the help of two very special elves. A big shout out to Ann Kalinoski and Ellen Wollensack for all your help and support!
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FUUSB Board Meeting Minutes
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Leandre Waldo, Board Secretary
The Board Meeting Minutes from the November 19, 2019 meeting have been posted on the website. You can access them by clicking
here
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| New Database Update |
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 Christina Fulton, Director of Operations & Finance
Beginning in January, everyone will have the opportunity to activate their profile in our new database software, Realm. When you activate your profile, you will also need to re-enter your online giving information (if you are already giving with automatic payments). If you are not already giving with automatic payments, this will be the perfect time to start! Watch the eNews in January for more information.
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What Is a QCD?
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Christina Fulton, Director of Operations & Finance
A
qualified charitable distribution (QCD) is a distribution from an IRA made directly to an eligible charity (FUUSB), bypassing the owner of the account. Owners of individual retirement accounts who are at least age 70 1/2 can contribute some or all of their IRAs to charity. But why would you want to do that after making contributions for years in anticipation of the day when you would retire? Because it can be advantageous from a tax perspective in a few ways.
You can read more about it at:
https://www.irs.gov/retirement-plans/retirement-plans-faqs-regarding-iras-distributions-withdrawals
So basically, this is a way to pay your pledge directly from your IRA and not pay taxes on that distribution. Contact your financial advisor if you think this might be a good option for you!
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| Holiday eNews Schedule |
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Please note that due to the upcoming holidays, there will be no eNews on
December 26 or
January 2.
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