• Warm socks (men's/women's all sizes)
• Underwear (men's/women's all sizes)
• Toiletries (travel size shampoo/conditioner, soap, toothpaste, toothbrushes)
• Menstrual products (pads, tampons)
• Cough drops
• Can openers (manual, small)

 

The Pre-Candidating Stage

 

Over the past few weeks the Ministerial Search Committee (MSC) has been deeply engaged in Pre-candidating Weekends. Following the well-established process developed by the UUA Ministerial Transitions Office, we previously conducted video interviews with all qualified candidates that applied to our church. From that pool we selected the three candidates that we believed most closely matched the mission and goals of our church, and we invited each of them for separate weekends of in-depth interviews. We spent an entire weekend in face-to-face interviews with each of the three candidates, including watching them preach in a neutral pulpit. These interviews were deep and insightful, covering areas of UU theology, administrative skills, pastoral care abilities, social justice activities, preaching styles, conflict management, internal community building, interfaith engagement, and many more of the important facets of ministry.

 

The Discernment Stage

 

We now enter the "Discernment Stage" of the search, when the MSC spends time reviewing all information, re-reading materials, comparing notes, and engaging in the sacred and powerful work of consensus-building to prepare a ranked list of ministerial candidates to send to the UUA Ministerial Transitions Office. During the last week in March, the UUA will match the rankings of our church with candidates' choices of placement, and we will invite a single candidate to our church for "Candidating Week."

 

Candidating Week

 

Candidating Week is on the calendar for April 25 to May 3  and will be the opportunity for the congregation to meet the ministerial candidate. It will run 9 days, from Saturday through Sunday, and the candidate will lead worship services on both Sundays. The schedule will also include opportunities for the congregation to interact with and get to know the candidate. At the end of the week, we will hold a congregational members' meeting after the worship service on May 3  to determine if the candidate will be our next settled minister. The members of our congregation will make the final decision on calling a minister.

 

Submitted by the Ministerial Search Committee

Submitted by the UUCH Chili Fest Organizers

UUCH Board Report

February 25, 2020

The UUCH Board conducted its regular monthly meeting on February 25, 2020.

 

The Board proposed and approved a motion for the Nominating Committee to establish a Stewardship Committee and Personnel Committee, with two pilot members/co-chairs on each committee to start. The goal is for these committees to be staffed by the beginning for the 2020-21 church year.

The Board created and approved a motion to approve a draft budget summary, proposed by the Finance Committee, to go into this year's Annual Budget Drive (ABD) packets. The draft budget approved by the Board also incorporated some budget-neutral changes to personnel line items, which will raise our professional staff salaries to be more in line with Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA) guidelines for mid-sized churches.

The Board approved some sections of the in-progress, revised UUCH Policies & Procedures Manual. Additional section reviews and approvals will occur at the March Board meeting.

The next Board meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, March 24.

Submitted by the Board

 

Submitted by the Adult Religious Education and Membership Committees

Did you know UUCH is a Fair Share Congregation? As part of our membership in the Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA) and our commitment to supporting Unitarian Universalism beyond our own backyard, our church (like many others) contributes to the UUA's Annual Program Fund (APF). This is considered an important responsibility of UU congregations to invest in and strengthen the presence of Unitarian Universalism. Each congregation is requested to give a specific amount to the UUA APF each year. This amount is based on each congregation's annual operating costs.

UUCH has historically been a "Fair Share Congregation" -- one that contributes the amount fully requested by the UUA each year. During our move from the old church building to our new home on Broadmor Road, though, we did not contribute at Fair Share level for a couple of years because we had financial burdens that were greater than usual. However, since we have sold the old church building and paid off the mortgage on our new church building, we have returned to Fair Share status and are proud to be a Fair Share Congregation!

Submitted by the Board

During February and March, we will share half the Sunday offering each week with Habitat for Humanity of Madison County!

 

Habitat for Humanity of Madison County is an ecumenical, grassroots, Christian housing ministry that seeks to eliminate poverty housing from our community and make decent shelter a matter of conscience and action. The need for affordable housing in Huntsville and Madison County is great. Of the families in our area who make less than $48,000 a year, 42% of them pay 50% or more of their gross income for housing. This is a statistic that needs to change. Only a few organizations are working to solve this problem -- Habitat for Humanity of Madison County is one of the largest and most effective. We are all better off when our community has better homes for our families.

 

Submitted by the Social Justice Committee