A Unitarian Universalist Church | 1800 Bell Ave. Des Moines, IA 50315

P: 515-244-8603

Your Grief is Welcome Here

with Elliott Nassif

Celebrant: Kathryn Sutton

Pianist: Bruce Martin

Musicians: Nick Westphal

Song Leader: Barbara Martin

A/V volunteer: Kent Newman

Pastoral Care: Ellen Taylor

Hospitality Coord: Terry Meek  

Join the live service on Zoom!

Zoom Passcode: Safford

(Please mute your mic before the service begins!)

Joys & Concerns for Sunday should be submitted by noon on Friday.

Click on the Caring Community webpage for the following options:

• Caring Ministry – for temporary assistance, such as meals or rides, or to volunteer 
• Please note: the Caring Ministry phone number is now
• 515-244-8603 ext. 108
• Pastoral Care – for support through a difficult time 

Ellen Taylor is the Pastoral Care Associate available for this service time. Please email pastoralcareteam@ucdsm.org for assistance during the week.

Please note: Children & Youth Faith Formation will not meet

this Sunday, March 12, or next Sunday, March 19.

NEWS THIS WEEK

This section holds events happening this week, as well as articles submitted in the past 7 days. Be sure to continue scrolling to read about other upcoming events, church news, and social justice efforts!g

Pledge Payments

Thank you all for your ongoing support of First Unitarian Church of Des Moines. Our beloved community relies on your continued and consistent financial support.

Last year's 12-month pledge experiment has all of us on different pledge and payment schedules. As we head into this final quarter of the church's fiscal year, please remember to continue making payments on your outstanding pledge.

Our fiscal year ends June 30, 2023. Please help us end the year strong! If you've completed your pledge and are in a position to make an additional gift this year, your church community will be grateful.

We know this is a bit confusing, so please reach out if we can help in any way.

With gratitude,



Alice Stewart, Director of Finance and Administration director@ucdsm.org

Victoria Safford, Minister vsafford@ucdsm.org

Memorial Service Volunteer

from Rev. Victoria Safford

I'm seeking a volunteer to help stream an upcoming memorial service on Zoom (Saturday 22 April at 2 p.m.). This will allow out-of-town family members to attend the service remotely. Minimal Zoom skill required - I'll have the computer set up for you, ready to go. If you can help on this date, or would be willing to help with future services, please let me know!

Rev. Victoria Safford - vsafford@ucdsm.org

Intercom March 31

Thanks to coordination from Victoria and Alice, Staff has been able to plan an Intercom publication for Friday, March 31! Please plan to send Intercom publication items for the March 31 Intercom to communications@ucdsm.org a week early – Wednesday, March 22, at noon. Thank you!

Emily Petty - Communications Coordinator and Alice Stewart, DFA

Trusting Change: a Conversation Series with Rev. Victoria Safford

I invite you to join me this spring for a 5-session conversation on the challenges and possibilities we experience in transition, whether personal, global, or here in the life of the church. We'll read selections from Trusting Change, a new book by UU Minister Karen Hering, engaging in reflection, journaling (if you wish) and discussion about transformations large and small. To gather a cohesive group, I ask that participants commit to attending at least 4 or the 5 sessions, to be held on Zoom on Wednesday evenings from 7:00-8:30 p.m. April 19 and 26, May 17, 24 and 31. You may purchase the book here. Used copies and e-editions are available online. 

To register, send me an email!

Immigration Committee Asks:

Help Us Decide Our Future

The church’s Immigration Committee will meet Sunday to explore rejuvenating its efforts. We hope anyone interested in immigration issues will join us for the discussion.   Although the committee has lost focus, many individuals are still actively involved in immigration issues without any formal committee backup. 

But now, thanks to the Merritts, we have at least one specific opportunity to resume meaningful committee work.

Immigration problems -- both nationally and locally -- have not gone away. And because our church has built good relationships with some local immigrant groups, we may be in a position to help in some ways, as we have in the past.

So I've agreed to act as a temporary chairperson to convene a meeting to discern whether or not there is interest in re-invigorating the committee 

I have reserved Griffin Hall for a meeting at noon this coming Sunday,March 12, right after the Forum, which ends at noon. It will be short, because we have the room for a MAX of one hour. 

-- from Dave Witke

Women's Wednesdays

Wednesday, March 29, 1:30 – 3:00 p.m.

Topics chosen by women, about women, discussed by women.

Meets the last Wednesday of every month from 1:30 – 3:00 p.m. in the Peace Library.

You can find this group and its events on Realm!

1:30-2 p.m: General meet and greet, catch-up

2 p.m. – 3 p.m: Discussion

This month's topic: "Isms" – choose an "ism" (communism, feminism, etc.) and come discuss it with other women!

The third annual Central Iowa Trans Lives Festival will occur on April 1 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at 1800 Bell Ave. in Des Moines.

It is hosted by First Unitarian Church of Des Moines, an LGBTQ+ Welcoming Congregation. In honor of the International Transgender Day of Visibility, the all-ages festival showcases the creative work of transgender, genderqueer, and non-binary adults and youth from around Iowa.

Work includes visual art and crafts for sale, food trucks and booths, live music, poetry, literature, and dance, drag, and comedy performances. Local nonprofit and community organizations providing support and resources to the trans community will also be on hand.

This event is open to everyone, and admission and parking are free. Security will also be provided so that everyone can experience a safe and fun event.

Decorative Tiles Installed In Kitchen!

Mid-Century Modern, noun: a style of design (as in architecture and furniture) of roughly the 1930s through the mid-1960s characterized especially by clean lines, organic and streamlined forms, and lack of embellishment

Karen Kraemer has led the Kitchen Project’s interior design team this past year; we asked her about their decision to go with MCM in selecting the appearance of our new kitchen. Here is her explanation:

The architecture of our present church building is Mid-Century Modern (MCM). The aesthetics committee's top priority in designing the new kitchen was to stay true to the architectural style of the church. Clean-lined, flat-panel cabinet and drawer fronts with a warm wood appearance, a uniformly white-speckled quartz countertop, and a light aqua-green glass backsplash all combine to give a clean design look consistent with MCM design. The floor tile was chosen for the eye to transition easily from the beautiful colors in the slate hallway floor to similar floor colors in the kitchen. To add a "fun" component to the MCM design of the '40s-'60s, a 4" blue wall tile with a 3D raised elliptical shape was chosen as a surprise element under what will be the island counter overhang. That is what you see in the photo below of the newly tiled wall on the island.

See more information on the Kitchen Project page!

Humanist Update

The Humanist book group meets at noon on the first and third Sunday of each month, both in person at the church (right after the forum) or via Zoom.  The next meeting will be on March 19, when we will discuss chapters 3 and 4 of Finding Darwin's God: A Scientist's Search for Common Ground Between God and Evolution. 

Ordination Service at Cedar Falls

We are warmly invited by the Cedar Valley Unitarian Universalist in Cedar Falls, IA to attend the Ordination of their minister, Emma Peterson, to Unitarian Universalist ministry on Sunday, April 2 at 4:00 p.m. Rev. Victoria Safford will give the sermon.

Submissions to the Intercom Weekly are due on Wednesday at 12 noon. Submissions after the deadline cannot be guaranteed a spot in that week's newsletter.

Want to publicize your church event? We have a form for that!

Visit our "Our Events" page to fill out the form.

Email communications@ucdsm.org with any questions.

mUUvie Night

Saturday, March 11, 7–9 p.m.

Join us to watch and discuss the film Supernova (2020): A couple (Colin Firth and Stanley Tucci) embark on a road trip as dementia starts to take hold of one of them. He decides to take control of his final days.

We're trying something new! We will watch this as a group in a private home and discuss afterward. 



Contact muuvie@ucdsm.org for more information and to RSVP.

Unity Circle March 16

Unity Circle will meet Thursday, March 16, at noon, first with a potluck, then with speaker Jenni Boonjakuakul, founder and CEO of Iowa Bird Rehabilitation. IBR is a wildlife rehabilitation center located in Iowa that provides care for songbirds, waterfowl, gamebirds, shorebirds, and small raptors. It's purpose is to recover, rehabilitate and release wild birds.

Please bring a dish to share, and your own table service and beverage.

Easter Event

from Sacred Bridges CUUPS

Come have fun with Sacred Bridges CUUPs on March 18 at 2 p.m. banishing the chocolate rabbit, dying eggs the natural way, and maybe even finding some eggs!

This is an ALL-ages event, and we encourage you to bring the whole family! We will be meeting in the Mary Stafford room to start.

We hope to see you there!

Fellowship, Food, & FUNds #23 Alert!

Mark your calendars for FFF #23, April 29 & 30, and start thinking about what you might like to offer! Never heard of it? For more info on our biggest fundraiser of the year and community-building series of events, see this link.

To participate, please fill out this form.

Your help is needed! Particularly needed are individuals who enjoy making clever announcements and cover table displays after church during the month of March to promote participation, as coordinator Elaine Imlau, will be out of state most of the month. Please contact her via email at foodfair@ucdsm.org or directly via text or call.

Board of Trustees Nominations

from Fern Stewart

Are you ready to be part of the future of our church? Are you ready to meet and work with some truly amazing people? Now is the time to express your interest and fill out the Board of Trustees application!

I can say that it has truly helped me meet more members of our fine congregation, understand how our church works, and make a difference. We have a wonderful church community that thrives on volunteers and dedicated staff. We can't do the work, make necessary decisions, and continue to be the face of Unitarian Universalism in Des Moines without you! Each member of the Board brings various talents and knowledge that ensures we become all we can.

Please take a minute to reflect on just how important our church is in your life and what talents you can offer on the Board of Trustees. We will be available after Sunday service to answer any questions you may have.

Service Dog on Site

Do not be surprised if you see Checkers, a 7-month-old service dog in training for the Puppy Jake Foundation, at church with Lisa Houchins. Lisa and her family have been volunteering with Puppy Jake to help train service dogs to be placed with a military veteran with a disability eventually. Service dogs in training need to experience life in public, just as they will someday with a veteran. Currently, Checkers doesn't wear a vest because he is a young puppy, but he is still working when in public. He wears a service dog bandana and uses a service dog leash. If you see him, it would be helpful to treat him like any other service animal. That includes:

• Not petting, feeding, talking to, or otherwise distracting a service dog without permission from the handler. It's helpful for his training just to ignore him.
• Respecting that many handlers don't like to talk about their service dog or the reason they have a service dog due to medical privacy. (However, Lisa is happy to answer questions about Checkers and the Puppy Jake Foundation.)

For more information, feel free to ask Lisa Houchins or visit this site.

Tech Help Available!

from First Unitarian Staff

Do you have questions about your laptop, tablet, or phone? Would you like help setting up your Realm account? Sign up to schedule an appointment with First Unitarian Staff to discuss questions you have regarding your devices!

After you sign up, a Staff member will reach out to you via email to confirm your appointment time. Meetings are also available via Zoom (if issue can be resolved remotely).

Griffin Gallery Artist April

Tanya Lichinsky

Tanya Lichinsky received her education in painting, life drawing, still life, sculpture, and art history from Repin's School of Fine Art in Moldova. Oppressive political conditions in the former Soviet Union pushed her to make the decision to look for a stable life in the United States. She has been drawing and painting since early childhood and has developed unprecedented taste and vision through years of industry and freelance experience. Creation has become a necessity where any medium, be it watercolors, acrylic, oil, or pencil, is utilized. Her muse can be exotic, but it can also be anything from everyday life or even something out of a negative space that looks interesting.

This piece was inspired by Barbados, 40x40 acrylic on canvas.

Go from Powerless to Powerful

from AMOS

Ever wonder how the Skate Park got built? The libraries reopened? The 911 line staffed with therapists, not just police? Money "appeared" for training minority social workers?

AMOS did it (and our church members were heavily involved)! How? With regular people, just like you and me. People with no special skills. Normally powerless. Coming together and building power in the city, the county and the state. AND we're winning! Today we are pushing for a unique affordable housing plan and building alliances to fight for public schools.

There are several opportunities to learn here. Join us if you are curious or passionate--or both. AMOS is moving political mountains. Join the fun! Contact amosevents@ucdsm.org.

Our current partnerships run from September 2022 through August 2023. They were selected by our members at our June 2022 annual meeting. The organizations are:

Hawthorn Hill

Our Champion is Sally Boeckholt

Let's Talk

Our Champion is Ellen Taylor

Rev. Victoria Safford, Transitional Contract Minister

vsafford@ucdsm.org

Office phone: 515-244-8603 ext. 102

Cell: 612- 405-3318

Alice J. Stewart, Director of Finance and Administration

director@ucdsm.org

515-244-8603 ext. 101

Mondays: by appointment

Tuesdays – Thursdays: 9 a.m. – 5 p.m.

Fridays: by appointment

Zoom meetings available upon request

Birch Spick, Faith Formation Coordinator

& Congregational Life Coordinator

FFOffice@ucdsm.org

CLOffice@ucdsm.org

515-244-8603 ext. 106

Off Mondays

Tuesday - Friday: 10 a.m. - 3 p.m.

Emily Petty, Communications Coordinator

communications@ucdsm.org

515-244-8603 ext. 103

Off Mondays

Tuesday-Friday: 11 a.m. - 3 p.m.

To submit an item for the Intercom, email communications@ucdsm.org by Wednesday at noon.

Hannah Notch, Social Media and Executive Support Specialist

hnotch@ucdsm.org

Tuesday - Friday: 1:00 - 5:00 pm

To have an event or meeting added to the church calendar, email Hannah at calendar@ucdsm.org