~ SUNDAYS AT BEACON ~

WE’RE BACK IN THE SANCTUARY FOR WORSHIP! PLEASE JOIN US.

Masks are optional. (Special seating area for mask wearers is available.)

SERVICE FOR SUNDAY, JANUARY 15th, 2023, at 10:00 a.m.

“LOVE IS THE ENDURING FORCE THAT HOLDS US TOGETHER”

ALL ARE WELCOME! You BELONG at Beacon. Spiritually open and intentionally inclusive since 1958.

What does it mean to evolve as a religion in the modern world? This past year, the UUA has drafted Article II, which recasts our long-held Seven Principles and Six Sources as “Purposes and Covenants” such as Justice, Interdependence, and Generosity. The document begins with the words: “Love Is the Enduring Force That Holds Us Together.” For the first time, these overarching values within our progressive denomination include the words “beloved communities.” How might this new framework for Unitarian Universalism support and transform us in our individual spiritual journeys and as a congregation? Rev. Robin Landerman Zucker, preaching with Worship Associate Pia Driessen-Knittle, and music from Austin Shaw and Andrez Alcazar. Social Justice Witness from Deb Harris of the Southside Community Association. 

~ THIS WEEK AT BEACON ~

See details for all events here in the e-news.  

You can keep up with future Beacon events by checking out the Beacon calendar!

MAKING MUSIC AT BEACON

Lift up your voice…It's going to be a fabulous year for music at Beacon! All are welcome to join the choir. And it’s a great way to introduce friends who like to sing to Beacon. 

Choir Rehearsals will be held on TUESDAY nights at 7 p.m. 

Questions? Email our Choir Director Andrez Alcazar. 

BEACON SPOTLIGHT:

SIDE WITH LOVE'S 30 DAYS OF LOVE

Side with Love is offering 30 DAYS OF LOVE from Martin Luther King, Jr. Day (January 16) through Valentine’s Day (February 14).

Each week will feature a spiritual theme overlapping with one of Side With Love’s intersectional justice priorities and includes an array of offerings to help nourish your spirit and give gratitude and affirmation:

WEEK 1 (January 16-22): Interdependence :: Democracy & Electoral Justice

WEEK 2 (January 23-29): Embodiment :: LGBTQIA+, Gender & Reproductive Justice

WEEK 3 (January 30 - February 5): Resilience :: Climate Justice

WEEK 4 (February 6-12): Healing :: Decriminalization

BONUS DAYS (February 13-14): Blessings :: Liberatory Intersections 

Each week’s resources will be published by 12pm ET every Monday.

More information can be found here.

SOCIAL JUSTICE SPOTLIGHT:

BAGS FOR THE HOMELESS PROJECT

Once again we will be collecting items for bags to be given out to the homeless by interested congregants. The last time we did this was very successful. Let’s try to do this again with the emphasis on winter items. 

On February 12th, Rev. Robin will be preaching on homelessness, and we’ll hear a Social Justice Witness from Kelly Wells from Sharon Manor. Following the service would be a wonderful time to assemble bags. 

Items to be considered for bags:

• Gloves/mittens
• Hats
• Socks
• Soft snack
• Toothbrush/toothpaste
• Bar of soap
• Tissue packets
• $1 bills

We don’t want to stuff too much in the bags to make them too heavy. The goal of the bags is for you to hand one out when you see a homeless person. You can say something like “My name is __. What’s your name?” I can tell you from experience that this is appreciated, that someone sees them. 

I have put together a list of resources of shelters and food to include in the bags. 

We will have a box in the lobby for you to deposit items for the bags or just bring them to the service on February 12th, and anyone interested can help assemble bags.

Gini Kelley, Social Justice Allies

BEACON BOOK SALE

There will be an ongoing book sale in the corner of the Social Room until we deplete the supply of books left over from the yard sale. This is part of the yard sale fundraiser. We will be adding a new selection each week, so be sure to browse through and leave a donation for whatever books you’d like!

Thanks,

Dennis

RELIGIOUS EXPLORATION FOR KIDS

THE GOOD, THE BAD, AND THE UGLY (GBU):

RE FOR 5TH GRADE THROUGH HIGH SCHOOL YOUTH

GBU meets remotely on the first and third Sundays of each month.

January 15th, 2023, at 11:15 a.m.: We will welcome in the New Year with the Simpsons, S5 E14: "Lisa vs. Malibu Stacy."  This episode involves exposing corporate gender stereotypes and considers gender identity issues. We look forward to discussing this topic with you!

Beacon Zoom Link:  

Join Zoom Meeting

Please join us by connecting this Zoom link

Meeting ID: 865 1117 5263

Passcode: beacon510

Hope to see everyone soon,

Steph van Belle

Linda Ochi

Dru Monroe

Beacon Religious Education Teaching Team

OUR WHOLE LIVES (OWL) SEXUALITY EDUCATION

REAL WORLD CONVERSATIONS

FOR YOUTH GRADES 7 - 9

SAVE THE DATE: OWL WEEKEND MARCH 3-5, 2023

OWL is a comprehensive course that provides young people with accurate, age-appropriate information and skills to help them lead positive and healthy sexually responsible lives.

For more information, email edrumonroe@gmail.com

or visit https://www.beaconuu.com/our-whole-lives-owl/

RELIGIOUS EXPLORATION FOR ADULTS

PATH TO MEMBERSHIP PROGRAM

START DATE HAS BEEN MOVED TO FEBRUARY

REGISTER TODAY!

Are you a newcomer, visitor or current friend

who is considering membership at Beacon? 

We’d love to have you!  

Three Sundays: February 12, March 19, and April 16 from 11:15 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. 

Lunch will be provided. Please register with the office at office@beaconuu.com.

Led by Rev. Robin with guest Beacon leaders. Come and explore your own spiritual journey, your signature strengths and core values, the history and theology of Unitarian Universalism, and all things Beacon UU.

COOPERATIVE BOOK GROUP MISTAKES AND MIRACLES

RESERVE YOUR COPY OF THE BOOK NOW.

START DATE: FEBRUARY 15TH

The Monthly Cooperative Book group, which launched at Beacon in November, continues in February. A Lunch and Linger program…bring a bag lunch. 

With the adoption of the 8th Principle, Beacon enters into a journey to covenant with those who are oppressed and suffer from racism. Adult RE will focus on a study of the book, Mistakes and Miracles, which is a review of how five congregations implemented the 8th Principle. Certain Common Threads are found in the UU congregations, and discussed in the book and can become a starting point for how Beacon can proceed forward. 

The church has ordered 8 books for those who want to participate in a three-session discussion held on alternate Wednesdays beginning on February 15, 2023, from 12:00-1:30 p.m. The books are on their way! If you'd like a book, please register by emailing either Lynda L. Dorweiler, who will lead the discussion, or Paula, Beacon office manager. 

CALLING ALL FACILITATORS! Would you like to lead an Adult Education program? Bring it On! Contact Rev. Robin to discuss your idea and scheduling possibilities.

SHARE YOUR JOYS AND SORROWS - CHIME IN!

One way we can sustain connection is by sharing our personal joys and sorrows. These can be small things or large things that effect your life. These are spoken during service every Sunday, or you can send them to Rev. Robin by Saturday night each week at minister@beaconuu.com to be shared.

JOYS AND SORROWS FROM JANUARY 8TH

Katy shared happy birthday wishes for Eric, Anne, and Angela.

Lise lamented that her old church in San Diego has dwindling membership.

Tom is distraught that his daughter, who is trans, was physically attacked at the airport on her return trip from a recent visit.

Kim shared that she found a person sleeping at the church door on Saturday morning. She is interested in Beacon resuming the bags for the homeless.

AZ END OF LIFE OPTIONS PODCAST: A UNITARIAN PERSPECTIVE

Rev. Robin was recently interviewed on the AZ End of Life Options podcast for the Unitarian Perspective. You can find it here.

CHEAP LUNCH BUNCH

HAS MOVED TO THURSDAY

The next Cheap Lunch Bunch will meet on Thursday, January 19th, 2023, at 11:30 a.m., at Wildflower Bread Company (next to REI off of Butler Ave).  ALL ARE WELCOME! 

Please plan on doing a bag lunch on the first Thursday of each month and then having lunch at a local restaurant on the third Thursday. Doing this at standardized times should make it easier on everyone's calendars, and only doing a restaurant once a month should make it easier on our pockets.

To opine on the time and location of future gatherings and to be included in all the group's emails, please email Anne at wittke.anne@gmail.com. 

JANUARY - MARCH 2023 SHARE THE PLATE PARTNER

Beacon’s community partner for January - March 2023 is

SHARON MANOR

For January-March 2023, Beacon UU will Share the Plate with Sharon Manor operating under Housing Solutions of Northern Arizona. Sharon Manor serves “homeless survivors of domestic violence and their children on their journey out of violence and poverty and into economic independence, safety, health, and self-sufficiency.”

Since 1999, Sharon Manor has served over 1500 homeless women and their children. It does not function as a shelter, but offers housing for up to two years. Programs include trauma-informed comprehensive one-to-one case management, housing, credit counseling, pre-purchase assistance for housing, and foreclosure prevention.

Undesignated contributions to the Sunday service offerings above $300 will be presented to Sharon Manor. Nominations for 501c3 agencies can be made through a form located in the office manager’s office. CAC members are Katy Grant, Susan Patrick and Lynda L. Dorweiler

BEACON'S ENDOWMENT PLAN

The Beacon Endowment Plan, an important step to ensure that Beacon remains a strong and vibrant congregation for years to come, was approved unanimously at a Congregational Meeting on April 24, 2022. For more information about the Endowment Fund, please click here. 

A plaque is now hanging in the Social Hall to honor those who have contributed to the endowment. Your name can be there, too!

1. If you shop at all at Fry's grocery, you can either sign up for your own VIP account (identifying Beacon UUC FE392 as your beneficiary) or use the church phone number (928-779-4492) to get any available discounts AND earn some money for Beacon. Currently, there are 8 households signed up, and Beacon earned $15.30 for this quarter.

If you want to take advantage of Fry's gasoline discounts, you'll want your own VIP account. You can create or edit an existing individual account at www.frysfood.com/account/create/ (Alt ID is typically your phone number.) Within your account settings, just click on Community Rewards and search for FE392 (Flagstaff's Beacon UU) to set Beacon as your beneficiary.

2. If you shop on Amazon, please use "Amazon Smile" and choose Beacon Unitarian Universalist Congregation (do not abbreviate UU) as your recipient. We will receive a 0.5% for every purchase and that can add up! Remember that you have to start each shopping session at smile.amazon.com for us to receive the donation. 

3. You can order from any of the over 2,300 stores listed under iGive with a portion of your purchase being donated to Beacon. iGive.com also has coupons you can use for additional savings. After creating your own account with a user name and password, select settings and "my cause" and type in Beacon Unitarian Universalist Congregation (do not abbreviate UU). 

4. Basha's has a special debit card that you can charge up before shopping, and a portion of what goes through the debit card gets donated to Beacon because that card is tied to Beacon. Ask Anne Wittke for further information.

Have other ideas for our income incubator? Please leave them on a card in the bin in the lobby, or send them to Rev. Robin. 

ACTIVATE AT BEACON WITH SOCIAL JUSTICE ALLIES!

The Social Justice Allies meet on the second Monday of each month at 5:30 p.m. via Zoom to discuss issues and actions. If you wish to join them, contact the convener Paul Beier.

8TH PRINCIPLE

On November 20, 2022, Beacon UU Congregation proudly adopted the 8th Principle. Further information about the 8th Principle can be found here.

UU DAY AT THE LEGISLATURE 2023

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 20TH, 2023, AT 9AM

AT THE ARIZONA STATE CAPITOL

Save the date for this year's annual UU Day at the Legislature, at the Arizona State Capitol, which has traditionally included lobby training, guest speakers, a capitol tour, and appointments to speak with your legislators.

~ Beacon Connections ~

Volunteer At Flagstaff Food Center With Beacon!

VOLUNTEERS ARE NEEDED FOR

JANUARY 25TH.

The Flagstaff Family Food Center utilizes small groups of volunteers for their dinner service. Beacon is looking for a group of five (5) to seven (7) volunteers for the 4th & 5th Wednesdays of every month, from 3 p.m. - 6 p.m. The dinner service is at the FFFC Kitchen (1903 N 2nd Street) and is a hybrid operation with To-Go meals and Dine-in service.

Beacon's next volunteer date is Wednesday, January 25th from 3:00-6:00 p.m.  If dinnertime service does not interest you, please consider helping with prep from 10 a.m. until noon or pitching in at the warehouse on Huntington.

Volunteer Safety: Volunteers are required to wear a mask, closed-toe shoes, and long pants; regularly wash or sanitize their hands; and practice six feet of social distancing whenever possible. Gloves for food preparation and distribution will be provided at the kitchen to each volunteer. Plexiglass has been installed at the walk-up window as a safeguard against COVID-19. The center has enhanced cleaning protocols.

Sue Strobel is organizing monthly teams of Beacon UU volunteers. If you're interested in volunteering for the above dates, please contact Sue right away at (928) 522-3284 (cell) or (928) 526-5156 (home).

More FFFC volunteer opportunities can be found here.

SAWUURA, THE ARIZONA UU CAMP

SAWUURA is a sanctuary, and we welcome all. We are hoping to increase youth involvement.

Find us at www.sawuura.org and like us at SAWUURA Friends on Facebook.

Thank you,

Eb Eberlein

Caretaker and campground host

Becoming S.A.G.E. – Spiritual Activists for the Earth

Arizona Interfaith Power and Light has a series called “Becoming S.A.G.E. – Spirited Activists Greening the Earth," in which they interview the Sages among us who are living out AZIPL’s mission to mobilize people of faith and conscience to care for our common home and work for climate justice. To view the Becoming S.A.G.E. interviews via YouTube, click here. Learn more about AZIPL at https://www.azipl.org/

~ BEACON OFFICE HOURS AND CONTACTS~

Office Phone (928) 779-4492

Office Manager,

Paula Czernicki

she/her/hers

Mon: 10:00 am - 3:00 pm

Wed: 10:00 am - 3:00 pm

Thurs: 10:00 am - 3:00 pm

Office@beaconuu.com

~ UNITARIAN UNIVERSALIST SEVEN PRINCIPLES ~

Unitarian Universalist congregations affirm and promote seven Principles, which we hold as strong values and moral guides. We live out these Principles within a "living tradition" of wisdom and spirituality, drawn from sources as diverse as science, poetry, scripture, and personal experience. Learn more at beaconuu.com!

Contribute to Beacon's Weekly News

In order to be included in the next newsletter, submissions need to be emailed to office@beaconuu.com by 2 p.m. on Wednesday. Thank you!