Scattered thunderstorms. Storms may contain strong gusty winds. High 83F. Low 63F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 60%.

Are you feeling appreciative for what you've experienced so far this week? Let's share that gratitude! Show the WCU dining hall staff some love when you pick up your plate. High five a staff person. Tell your workshop presenter what you thought they did really well. Compliment the musicians, cheer for the helpers, thank the AV staff. Gratitude grows when we express it and makes everyone feel happier!

Morning Worship with Adrian Graham We're excited to welcome Adrian Graham, seminarian and communications director at UU Rockville, as our Thursday morning speaker.

Concert Hour Our final Concert Hour performer for 2022 is Lea Morris! “While she often draws comparisons to other female phenoms like Tracy Chapman, Joni Mitchell and Ani DiFranco, Lea’s sound seamlessly blends gospel, jazz, country and R&B into her own style” - SoulFolk. Lea was born in Baltimore to a father who toured the world playing trumpet in the funk band Black Heat and a mother who performed with her siblings in the Jones Family Gospel Singers. Lea was singing on the pulpit of her Baptist church as soon she could speak. When she discovered the acoustic guitar as a teenager, she began teaching herself to play by writing songs. Having shared the stage with luminaries including Odetta, Mavis Staples, Dar Williams and Anthony Hamilton, Lea performs at an array of venues, and has become well known and loved in Unitarian Universalist communities. Visit www.thisislea.com.

Evening Worship: Life Bridges We will recognize the many bridges we cross in our lives, from dedicating our children and bridging our teens, to the many other bridges we've crossed: new relationships, new jobs, new homes, retirement, and new life stages.

Miss a Worship Service or Concert Hour? Watch, like, and subscribe to our SUUSI YouTube Channel. Videos will be easily found until August 31, so watch soon!

Change in Fountain Policy WCU has asked SUUSI to stay out of the fountain completely. No wading or playing is allowed. In previous years, SUUSI people have been injured playing in the fountain. This is the reason for the change in policy. Please respect the decision made by our host campus. The signage doesn't say "stay out of the fountain," but that is still the rule.

Kids Craft Sale at Community Time Bring a blanket to show your wares. Only handmade crafts can be sold. No resell items allowed, please. Bring cash to support our young SUUSI entrepreneurs.

Star Car Drivers Still Needed Sign up sheet on table in the Blue Ridge Conference Center lobby, just outside the entrance to the SUUSI Store. Star Car Riders If you need a Star Car ride to TWOB, please plan on being picked up at 7:30 PM so we can get everyone, including your volunteer Star Car drivers, to the show.

What to Do If You're Feeling Sick At the first sign of any potential Covid-19 symptoms, we are asking all SUUSI participants to take a PCR test ASAP. You can make an appointment at the CVS in Sylva (3.1 miles from campus) or at Harris Urgent Care (3.9 miles from campus). Until you get your results back, please wear a mask at all times and do not attend any in person events. If your result is negative but your symptoms continue, please take a rapid antigen test daily (test can be acquired at the info office) and continue to wear a mask as much as possible. If you get a positive result on either a PCR or rapid antigen test, please call the SUUSI Help Line at 888-SUUSI-22. As always, please send any questions or concerns to Sarah at vaccination@suusi.org!

Who You Gonna Call? The SUUSI Helpline! You haven't stumped our Helpline operators yet, but you're doing a great job of sharing needs and sharing the love. Remember: 888-SUUSI-22 is for voice calls only. If you prefer, you may text 828-538-3041. Thanks for making good use of the Helpline!

Don't Forget Your Mask! SUUSI started out the week with over 1,000 extra masks, and we are now down to about 200! Please try to remember to bring a mask with you before heading out for the day. Disposable masks can be reused until they are dirty or damaged.

UPDATE: Addiction and Recovery Space Hosted meetings in Blue Ridge 230! Today - 10 AM • Today - 5:30 PM • Friday - 2 PM  Beyond meetings, feel free to stop by the room any time for respite and recharge. Recovery materials and reading resources are provided for your support.

Let's Dance! Ballroom Hour+ will be held from 6:30-8 PM in the Reid Gymnasium, beginning with a short dance lesson and continuing with DJed music for your partner-dancing pleasure. We’ll be playing a mix of ballroom, country, swing, and Latin music.   Later on, Serendipity will be open from 10 PM - 1 AM at Hillside Grind, with the costume theme “prom night,” and CACHE will be open from 11-1 in the Blue Ridge Crossover Lounge, with the costume theme “throwback night.”

Lots of Great Music Tonight at Cabaret We begin with the Guest Room – lots of surprises there! Also performing are Greg Greenway, Derek and Ginger, the J Sounds, Tina Borror, the Melodica Mommas, and wrapping up the night is the SCHOOL of ROCK. Exciting night!

Performer's Circle Enjoy our SUUSI musicians, but don’t want to stay up for Cabaret? Performers' Circle meets from 2-4 PM in Coulter Recital Hall, the same location as morning worship. Today's event features Friction Farm, Amy Carol Webb, and Greg Greenway. Register for workshop 215 - the cost is just $3!

Get the Lowdown on EVs Want to talk about electric vehicles? Whether you are on your third EV or thinking about going electric with your car, all are welcome to meet up at the tables outside of the Starbucks at the dining hall at 4:30 PM today during Community Time. Bring your questions and someone will probably have an answer! For more, email Charles Gerena at charlesgerena@yahoo.com.

Thursday's TWOB Clue Here is the final TWOB clue! In tomorrow’s NUUS, we will reveal the theme: While we know there are beautiful forests all around us, you will need to be at Bardo (or on Zoom) at 8 PM if you want to see TWOB. Email your guesses to twob@suusi.org.

Missing Something? The SUUSI Lost & Found is in Balsam 230, the SUUSI Office. Note: Age group programs such as Youth, Middlers, and Teens may have their own Lost & Found areas.

Reminder No alcohol of any kind may be stored in the common kitchens and fridges. WCU has expressed particular concern about SUUSI not following substance-use policies on campus, including this one. Protect our relationship with our host campus by keeping your drinks in your room.

Celebrating Mindy Simmons Come celebrate the life of our beloved Mindy Simmons in the SUUSI Store today at 4:15 PM with a Sing-Along led by Lisa Bohn, Joanna Lovell, Janette Muir, Ginger Long & Shirley Meir. We do have a few of Mindy’s remaining CDs for sale, as well as copies of her very first recording – a 45 record produced in the early 90s! All monies from the sale of these products are being donated to SUUSIships in Mindy’s honor.

Need a Jump? SUUSI folks have sometimes returned to their vehicles to find that the vehicle's battery is dead. Alexis Jones (336.280.8927) always brings jumper cables to SUUSI and is happy to help out. 

SUUSI Board Election

New Polling Procedures  Thursday is Election Day at SUUSI! This year, we will be handling the election differently from how it’s been done in the past. We'll be electing two adult members and one youth representative to the Board of Trustees. Adult participants aged 18+ will vote for an adult candidate. Participants aged 6-17 will vote for a youth candidate.   Youth will vote during their program hours, on paper ballots. Teens will vote in their dorm in the afternoon, on paper ballots. Adults will vote electronically via SOLIS, the SUUSI Online Information System.   To cast your vote, sign in to Solis.SUUSI.org after voting opens at 7 AM on Thursday and before the polls close at 7 PM on Thursday. During these hours, when you log in to SOLIS, you’ll see a link for the SUUSI Virtual Polling Place. Click there to vote. (Alternatively, you can go to Solis.SUUSI.org/vote.) You will only be able to vote for one person. The two candidates with the most votes will be our new Board members.

Candidates Cynthia (Cindy) Landrum for SUUSI Board This is my ninth SUUSI, counting the virtual ones, which I definitely count, as I was so personally grateful for them. I and my family, which consists of Peter Morrison (helping out at Pair-a-Dice this year) and teen/twob-er Caty Landrum Larkin (I'm shamelessly using their popularity to gain your votes), have been coming to SUUSI regularly since 2012 (if you're doing the math, yes we had to miss two years). I'm a married, cisgender (but questioning this), white woman learning to claim her fat body as beautiful and work for fat liberation for herself in addition to working for justice and liberation for all other people, which has been a life-long calling.   I'm running for your SUUSI board because this community has given me a lot – SUUSI has returned to me my love of board games, empowered my voice, embraced my art, and given me new friends. I've done a lot of odd jobs in these 9 years of SUUSI – I've participated in the Artisans' Bazaar as an artisan, led workshops, led worship services, been minister of the day, and helped out at Pair-a-Dice. But I feel it's time to give back more and deepen my SUUSI commitment. I've been impressed by the work our board has been doing on covenant and accountability, as well as the hard work of guiding us through this liminal time, and I want to see that direction continued and to contribute to it.   In addition to over twenty years of congregational board experience as the ex-officio minister, my board experience consists of a year on the Mid-America Region of the UUA Board, as they transitioned from districts to region, and several years on the board of a community non-profit for children and families. I have additional leadership experience as President and Arrangements Coordinator of the Unitarian Universalist Ministers Association (UUMA) Heartland Chapter, Vice President of UUMA Clara Barton Chapter, and on the UUMA's Nominating Committee and CENTER Committee, which does the work of organizing the UUMA's Institute, our largest continuing education conference for ministers, as well as work with nonprofits and justice organizations. I've always believed in giving back to the larger movement of Unitarian Universalism as part of my work as a minister, and I include SUUSI in that category. But right now the only one of those extra commitments I'm doing is the UUMA Nom Com, which is only a few hours per month, so it's good timing for me to add on some additional responsibilities for SUUSI!   Thank you for considering me, and much gratitude for all who are working so hard this year to make this SUUSI not just possible, but powerful.

Ivy Breivogel for SUUSI Board I’ve been coming to SUUSI for 18 years now and am an active YA. I am heavily involved in leadership at The Mountain Retreat and Learning Center, serving most recently as Camp Director this summer and CON Coordinator for several years. I’ve also been involved in leadership through the Young Adult Ministry Network, Soul Matters and other UUA programs, and in my home UU congregation in Raleigh, NC, growing up. I have a BA in Sociology and Anthropology from Warren Wilson College and am currently pursuing an MA in Higher Education at Elon University. I’m passionate about Interfaith and Religious Life work and hope to serve as university staff in that capacity. I love SUUSI, and I’m excited to help make this community even better for the future!

Scarlett Gibson for SUUSI Board Hello! My name is Scarlett Gibson, and I am a 16 year old this year at SUUSI. This is my 6th SUUSI, and my first year in the teen dorm. SUUSI has been a place where I have made incredible connections and learned so much from those around me. Unfortunately being one of few POC at SUUSI, I have experienced micro aggressions at SUUSI that have impacted how I feel around my peers. If elected onto the SUUSI board as the Youth Rep, I will strive to speak up for minorities and represent a voice that can help make SUUSI a more diverse environment. No youth at SUUSI should have to deal with micro aggressions or feel alone like I did especially when you are trying to make friends. As SUUSI continues we will become a more open, forgiving, and sacred community. I hope you will vote for me (Scarlett Gibson) as your SUUSI Youth Board Representative!

Serendipity Drink Tickets Both alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages are available for purchase at Serendipity, located at the Hillside Grind. However, you cannot pay cash on-site for a drink. You will need to pay for your beverages with drink tickets, which can be purchased at the following locations only: SUUSI Bookstore- daily, from 9:30 AM - 6:30 PM Artisan’s Bazaar-9:30 AM - 5:30 PM Bardo Performing Arts Center lobby during Concert Hour, Monday through Thursday from 8-9 PM, and immediately following TWOB on Friday evening.

Each drink ticket costs $2, and beverages are priced at a given number of drink tickets: Non-alcoholic beverages, (1) ticket (equivalent of $2) Bud Light, Stella Artois or similar, (1) ticket  Craft beer or wine, (2) tickets  Mixed drinks, (3) tickets

Nature NUUS

The Nature Staff have a lost and found area in Blue Ridge 102 Lounge for items left behind in a van or car. If you are missing something, please take a look - we've had a pair of shoes for days! We are grateful to everyone adventuring on and building community within our nature trips. You are bringing even more joy than we expected!

Nature Haiku Campfire songs at night, marshmallow gooey delight – Ghost stories from real life!

Thursday Schedule

8-8:30 AM: Group Meditation, Blue Ridge 203 9-9:45 AM: Morning worship with Adrian Graham, Coulter Recital Hall 9:30 AM - 6:30 PM: SUUSI Store open, Blue Ridge Center 9:30 AM - 5:30 PM: Artisans' Bazaar open, Blue Ridge Center 1-2 PM: Mindy Simmons Music Sing-Along with Lisa Bohn, Joanna Lovell, Janette Muir, Ginger Long & Shirley Meir 4-6 PM: Community Time - Kids Craft Sale, Central Plaza 4:15-5:15 PM: Friction Farm singing and signing in the SUUSI Store 5:15-6:15 PM: Lara Herscovitch singing and signing in the SUUSI Store 6:30-8 PM: Ballroom Hour+, Reid gym 7-9 PM: Middler Dance, Hillside Grind 7-7:45 PM: Evening Worship - Life Bridges Service, Bardo Arts Center 8-9 PM: Concert Hour with Lea Morris, Bardo Arts Center 9-11:30 PM: Cabaret, Bardo Arts Center 10 PM - 1 AM: Serendipity (theme: prom night), Hillside Grind 1-3:30 AM: CACHE (theme: throwback night), Blue Ridge Crossover Lounge No BBQUUSI tonight

Need help? Call 888-SUUSI-22 any time!

As always, find the latest information about SUUSI at suusi.org