UUCSC News and Updates October 15, 2021

UUCSC News and Updates

Weekly on Fridays

Volume II * Issue 19 * October 15, 2021

Unitarian Universalist Congregation of South County, RI

All are welcome!

uusouthcountyri.org

*Staff

* Board of Directors

* Committees

* Calendar

* Members Directory

UUCSC does not presently have a minister. If you are in need of pastoral services please contact any member of the Pastoral Care Committee. Rev. Betty Kornitzer, UUCSC Minister Emerita, is working with the committee and if professional ministerial support is needed, she will be called in. Please do not contact the Minister directly.

This Sunday, October 17, 2021

10:00 AM In-person

"Teamwork"

Order of Service

*Livestream will not be available this Sunday.

Look for the recording on our YouTube channel Sunday afternoon*

Worship

Teamwork

A service planned and presented primarily by the UUCSC Board that emphasizes how the Board team tries to play well with each other, and other teams, in our Beloved Community.

President Elizabeth Donovan, Vice-president Elise Bender, Treasurer Mary Alice Kimball, Clerk Mary Fulton, Director Nancy Dean, Director Bill Rodriguez, Director Charlie Donnelly

Religious Exploration

Working Together

Kids and families are invited to start upstairs this Sunday! The board has prepared a Time for All Ages and then kids will be ushered down to the backyard. Outside we will be starting to talk about covenant, making collages about ourselves, and thinking about how we all fit together to create community.

If you missed last week's service, watch it here! Thawn Harris provided an incredible service of traditional Narragansett stories, music and prayer.

DONATE

Thank you for your generosity!.

It has been many months since the food collection bin in the foyer of UUCSC has been emptied for delivery to Jonnycake.

October 12 was our first delivery in 2021! Now that more people are entering the building please think about bringing a donation for the Jonnycake Center. Canned soup, canned vegetables, canned fruit and cereal are especially sought.

Submitted by Mary Fulton

From the President

Reimagining!

Members of the Board have met recently with staff from the UUA New England Region and with members of Bell St. Chapel in Providence for some very interesting conversations. We have discovered that many organizations are struggling with pandemic changes. Fewer ministers are available to serve congregations; many congregations had ministers resign during the last year; many ministers are retiring or leaving the ministry; everyone is coping with change. As Keith Kron of the Transitions Office of the UUA says, it is time to be inventive and reimagine how things could be.

The congregation at Bell St. Chapel is very small and their need for professional staff is less than ours. If a minister wanted full time employment, might he/she/they minister to both congregations? The possibilities of such a venture are exciting and many; the challenges are also many and perhaps daunting. Let’s focus on the positives. Jointly hiring a minister might help us attract more applicants. Collaborating with another congregation would introduce us to new people, new ways of doing things. Perhaps our social justice groups could work together—one in the city, one in the suburbs. What if the minister delivered the same sermon at each church thus requiring less preparation time that could be spent on something else? What if we sometimes held a joint service. Rest assured these conversations are in the VERY early stages and no decisions have been made.

We have applied for a part time retired minister to help us through the next several months but so far have not heard anything definitive. In preparing for our next step Keith recommends that we give serious thought to what is most important to us in a minister. To that end the board has prepared an online survey that we will ask every member of the congregation to fill out. This survey will also ask some questions about sharing a minister.

Look for the survey in your email soon. Start thinking about what is most important to you at UUCSC. What do you love about Sunday mornings? What do you love about our community? This survey is the beginning of deeper conversations about our future and we want your input! As always, reach out to anyone on the Board if you want to talk more about it.

Dreaming big,

Elizabeth Donovan

Welcome Sara Kaplow...

Sara Kaplow is in the house!

Starting as our UUCSC Congregational Administrator on Tuesday, October 12, she is quickly learning the office procedures and getting to know us.

Sara's regular office hours are:

Tuesday and Thursday 8:00 AM – 1:00 PM

Wednesday 12:00 Noon – 5:30 PM

Friday 10:30 AM – 4:00 PM

uucscri@yahoo.com Office: (401) 783-4170

Read all about Sara HERE.

Learning & Teaching Opportunities!

To: UUCSC Community

From: Barbara Holtzman, Adult Education Chair

As chair of the (renewed) Adult Education Committee, I’d like to invite you to think about and share your wish list for what programs you’d like to participate in – or lead –this year.

Whether it’s something you want to learn. A passion you’d like to share. Or to just be together and have fun. It could be a 1 time event or 4 weeks. In person or via Zoom.

For inspiration, you can look at OLLI’s offerings.

Or consider ideas like:

-Sharing a favorite book or film (which could be watched together or separately)

-A knitting group

-Stress management (which I had offered at the auction)

-Playing games

-Favorite poems/poets

What would you enjoy? What would be helpful? What will make this year richer for you? And by doing it in community, you make the community richer and more vibrant.

This summer, Adria invited me to explore our Jewish identities by reading and studying a book by Rabbi Sachs. I went so much deeper and broader than I would have on my own because of the discussion the writings elicited (and Adria’s brilliance!) Plus I got to know Adria better.

Please fill out this quick questionnaire and return to me by email: BarbaraLHoltzman@gmail.com

Adult Education Questionnaire

What program(s) would you be interested in taking? And for each one,

-Would you be willing to lead it?

- Would you take it only if it was: In person? Via Zoom? Either

-Daytime, Evening, Weekend? Flexible

Would you be comfortable with opening these programs to people in the community (It’s a wonderful way to bring in new energy and possibly new members) or would you prefer to keep it ‘in-house’ to strengthen our current community?

Would you be willing to pay for the workshop/course (maybe $10 -$25, depending on the program and length, probably on a sliding scale), so we could use these programs as a fundraiser for UUCSC?

I will share the results of this survey in an upcoming newsletter. And, in the meantime, if you want to discuss any ideas, please feel free to contact me:

BarbaraLHoltzman@gmail.com or 401-789-0777

Living the 8th Principle

Honoring Indigenous Peoples

Thawn Harris. local storyteller, musician and dancer, shares "cultural pathways" of the Narragansetts at our October 10, 2021 Service with traditional drumming and song.

Watch the service here!

Weaving traditional Narragansett stories into how he sees the world today, Thawn Harris delivers a compelling message of respect for connectedness across time.