Geoff Duke, Woody Fulton, Mary Beth McNulty, with Rev. Patricia Hart
"Sharing a Land Acknowledgement Is a Start"
Every week in the worship service, we acknowledge that this land on which we live and work and worship does not “belong” to us. It is more truthful to say that we share stewardship of this place with the indigenous people who lived here long before European settlers arrived, and assumed everything was available for them to take and use. Is it enough to acknowledge the truth? What else are we called to do, as people of faith?
The Choir will sing this Sunday!
Join us for worship in person in the Sanctuary, or online. The livestream link and order of service will be shared at bit.ly/FUUSBWorship, or visit our YouTube channel. While inside the Meeting House, masks are strongly encouraged.
Following the service, all are welcome to Coffee Hour in the Community Room.
Children & Youth This Sunday!
Erika Reif, Director of Lifespan Faith Development
Sunday, March 12
Families will begin in the Sanctuary together. Following the Reflection for All Ages, children and their teachers will make their way down to the lower level to their class groups. Those in 5th-8th grade are invited to explore neighboring faiths while becoming more grounded in our own, in Crossing Paths (Reeb Room). Kids in kindergarten through 4th grade will explore their place in the universe through story, ritual, and play in Spirit Play (Jordan-Latimer Room), and children preschool and younger will engage in free play in the Nursery. Classes run from roughly 10:20-11:20.
Spring Sing: A Celebration of First UU!
Saturday, March 11 - 3 p.m. in the Sanctuary
It may still be snowing, but some of us already have a touch of Spring Fever. If that sounds like you, come celebrate!
You’re invited to spend an afternoon at FUUSB with friends (old & new) and hear some fabulous music. We have a lot to celebrate:
3 years ago the pandemic arrived, and everything changed… yet FUUSB is strong, growing, more welcoming than ever!
The ministerial search is going well… in a couple of months, we hope to welcome a new senior minister!
Members and friends are making pledges for 2023-24… in a few weeks, another successful stewardship season will be done!
Everyone is welcome to this musical extravaganza… featuring (among others) Tom Cleary, James Stewart, David Ruffin, Sam Whitesell, Stephen Rainville, George Voland, Linda Patterson, Herb Schroeder, Amelia, Kira, plus the amazing FUUSB Choir!
There’s no charge for being there, or for watching online (available THAT DAY ONLY). Find the livestream link here or at uusociety.org. Bring your friends!
We’re hoping some of us will feel inspired by the music and the company to make a one-time gift… or a first-time pledge… or increase a financial commitment for next year.
But what matters most is getting together and having fun. Rev. Tricia Hart and Stephen Rainville will be our Hosts. Don’t miss it!
Stewardship Update!
Christina Fulton, Director of Operations & Finance
We'd like to thank everyone who has completed a pledge for the 2023/24 fiscal year. Receiving those pledges makes the job of creating a budget for the next year so much easier! As of this writing, we've received 59 pledges for a total of $159,000, which is awesome for sure. But to meet our budget, we'll need pledge income of around $500,000 or more.
The cost of living is putting the squeeze on everyone, including FUUSB. Last year the cost of living was 5.9% and this year it's 8.7%. In addition to keeping our staff payroll in line with the cost of living, we are expecting increases in everything: utilities, snow removal, health insurance, property insurance, and cleaning supplies. These are not the things that inspire people to give, but they are the things that allow us to be here on Sundays and to do all the amazing work we do to fulfill our mission.
If you haven't looked at your pledge in a while, please take a look and see if you can make an increase to help us keep up with our increasing expenses. And don't forget to come on Saturday, March 11 at 3 p.m. to the Spring Sing! A time for fun, laughter, celebration, and great music!
Daylight saving time begins at 2 a.m. this Sunday, March 12. Remember to set your clocks forward one hour on Saturday night!
Second Sunday Circle
Sharing Circles Coordinating Team
Grab your coffee and meet at 11:30 a.m. to discuss the Sermon, Readings, and Benediction as a small group. Gail Beck will facilitate. Looking forward to seeing you! The next monthly meeting, on March 12, will be in the Parlors, or join us by Zoom at this link: bit.ly/3Db6Hb9 (meeting ID: 875 4572 7264, passcode: 849701).
Share Your Gratitude - Video for Rev. Tricia
Kameron McConnell
Special opportunity on Sunday, March 12 to express gratitude for Rev. Tricia! Directly following the service, Sara and Memphis Everest will be recording video footage of willing participants - a video montage to be shared following Rev. Tricia's last sermon. Stop by to take part - filming will take no more than 5 minutes. Come to the upstairs landing outside the Susan B. Anthony Room before heading to coffee hour. All are welcome!
Nina Harrington
Spring Time in Vermont, this year’s UU online auction, is up and running. We encourage everyone to go to the website (auctria.events/FUUSBSpringAuction2023) and enter an event, outing, get-together or gift certificate that will help build community and push us toward our goal of $12,000, the budgeted amount for fundraising. Also, this year we plan to celebrate together after Sunday’s service on April 30 with a live event including food, music, raffles and loads of fundraising fun! Email [email protected] with any questions.
Conversation with Your Board of Trustees
Next Sunday, March 19
Hope Baker-Carr, Board President
Another “Conversation with Your Board of Trustees” will be offered next Sunday, March 19, at 11:30 a.m. in the Parlors. The format will be slightly different this time. After we introduce ourselves, the board will make a short 10-15 minute presentation on the role of the board at FUUSB and some of the work that we have done in the last year. This will be followed by a question and answer and/or sharing time. We are particularly interested in YOUR thoughts about your experience at FUUSB. All members and friends of our Society are invited to attend!
Jubilee 3 Anti-Racism Training 3/24-3/26
Zoe Hart
Please join members of the Racial Justice and Radical Welcoming teams at an upcoming Jubilee 3 anti-racism training offered by Paula Cole Jones, co-author of our recently adopted 8th Principle. "Do you wish to deepen your understanding of how race and ethnicity play out in our institutions and our daily lives? Are you ready to take a leading role to nurture a multicultural future in the face of opposing cultural currents? Come Join Us for this Life-Changing Weekend!"
This 2-1/2 day online program will take place March 24-26, Friday evening, all day Saturday, and Sunday afternoon. The cost is $170 and the Racial Justice Team is offering it with a sliding scale of $0 to $170. You let us know what you're comfortable paying and we'll make up the difference. If you can join us, please do two things. 1) Go to our FUUSB sign-up form so we know you're attending and how much you'd like to pay, and 2) go to Jubilee Three Anti-Racism Training March 2023 to register. Any questions - email [email protected].
Game Night
Erika Reif, Director of Lifespan Faith Development
Saturday, March 25, 4:30-7:30 p.m. - Community Room
All ages are invited to play, eat, and be together!
We have lots of games at the ready, but feel free to bring the one you want to play. There are generally several things happening at once. It's okay to come with a group of friends and the intention to play a particular game. You can bring children and play with them or have them play with childcare staff while you try out a game with an older crowd. Make it what you want!
We'll have a "no-stress" potluck; you can wow us with your culinary skills or pick up a loaf of bread and a tub of hummus from the market. The point is to have fun together and not go hungry. We'll have coffee and tea available, plates and utensils.
Come for a little bit or stay the whole time. Come ready to make new friends and reconnect with the old!
From the Nominating Team
Looking for other ways to serve FUUSB? The Nominating Team is looking for you.
We are looking for two people willing to serve on the Board, an Assistant Treasurer, and three people to join the Nominating Team.
The Board meets once a month and sub-committees meet once a month or as needed. These are big sky positions for someone who enjoys charting the future of the Society. This next round of appointees will work with the new minister as well. Three-year term.
If you are good with numbers or finance, we need an Assistant Treasurer. The term is through the end of 2024 and then be to be Treasurer for two years.
And finally, we ideally need three people willing to serve on the Nominating Team. The Nominating Team is a broad spectrum of members, trying to solicit interest in our By-Laws mandated positions. Members of this committee serve for three years. Their knowledge about members is useful for eliciting candidates for these positions. The committee meets for 3-4 months, twice a month with 1-2 hours of work between meetings.
Please email me or call 343-6967 if you are interested in any of these positions.
Chip Patullo
Do You Have a Financial/Accounting Background?
Zoe Hart, Treasurer
The Finance Team is seeking FUUSB members or friends with a background in finance and/or accounting. We are planning to have a financial review of our finance systems and are looking for individuals who might be willing and able to assist us, either in planning for and arranging this review or in actually doing the review. If you have the background and skills to help with this effort or know someone who does, we'd love to hear from you. Email us at [email protected]. Thank you!
Our Society Is a Fragrance-Free Zone
Sarah Forbes
In consideration of those who are sensitive to the chemicals in fragrances, our Society has been declared a fragrance-free zone. Please refrain from wearing perfumes or cologne, using fragrant flowers, smelly hand sanitizers and air fresheners. The chemicals in these items can affect anyone at any time, causing incapacitating and even disabling illness.
Who can be affected by these chemicals?
People with: Multiple Chemical Sensitivity (MCS), migraines, Asthma, pregnant women and developing children, COPD or other breathing disorders, Emphysema, allergies, sinus headaches, Autoimmune Disorders (MS, Lupus and others), ADHD, Autism, respiratory infections or frequent colds, Fibromyalgia, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, and formerly healthy people who've been exposed to too many chemicals. Even You!
Thank you for caring for your fellow UU's!
From the Ministerial Search Team
Tom Hyde
We continue to welcome ministerial candidates to Burlington for in-person interviews. Along with the interviews, this time continues to be full of discernment, by us and by the ministers.
In late March, we will make our formal offer to one final settled minister candidate to present to the congregation. This is hard, because the applicants we have interviewed are all excellent and also quite different. We will remember the qualities you specified during our listening sessions, but in the end will have to add our own judgement as we work to reach consensus.
It's our pleasure to talk to you about the process and give you any news we can. Email us at [email protected], or look for our blue name-tags at coffee hour.
Still Hiring!
Christina Fulton, Director of Operations & Finance
We are still in search of a new Facilities Manager. If you know of anyone who might be interested in this position, please share this link to our website with them: job description, or encourage them to email Christina at [email protected]. It's a wonderfully challenging job, working with great people, with a generous salary and benefits!
UU Spruce-Up!
You may notice a few changes over the next few months. There is a group working to spruce up the UU to be ready for our new Minister. Over the years - just like at any place where people "live," things have been added, have collected in corners and been hung on walls that are now disparate, outdated or out of step with our current values and goals.
Rather than just making changes for change sake, the team is working to understand what's really important to our Society, how spaces are used and what works and doesn't work. The updates will spring from these insights and inform our decisions. We have and will be talking to some of you or your teams to gain insight. We have heard that our Society: strives to be radically welcoming to people from all walks of life, all ages, races and orientations, wants to reflect our UU values, be forward thinking, and to celebrate our Burlington UU history.
To be clear, these are not major updates! The biggest changes will be seen in the front and side vestibules - our main welcoming sites. All of the work will be done by fellow UU's, and you may be asked to volunteer your talents or you may see requests for help in an upcoming eNews. Please help if you can! Thank you.
Christina Fulton, Director of Operations & Finance
During this time while we are down a staff member and a few of us are sharing our work time between the Meeting House and home, we will not have set office hours. If you need to be in the Meeting House, please schedule your time with Mary or with the staff member you plan to meet with. If you stop by on a whim, ring the doorbell! Hopefully, a staff person will be in the building and can help you out. Thank you so much for your patience.
Farewell from JUMP Director Wanda Hines
Farewell: Saying goodbye is never easy
Dear Community and Friends,
After a decade of heartfelt work to help further JUMP, the Joint Urban Ministry Project's mission, I am saddened to announce that I will be departing from the role as Director of JUMP Friday March 10th.
With careful consideration, I have decided to resign to dedicate myself to family obligations out of state after the loss of two beloved family members, one our family matriarch which I am now called to step into the role. While welcoming the responsibility, I look forward to renewed purpose, the refreshing serenity, pursuit of personal interest, independently developing my career further and embracing the joy, joy, joy of knowing I’m right where I’m supposed to be.
Working for JUMP has been a meaningful experience, and I am grateful to have played a key leadership role for a decade.
Also, I am saddened, as my co-worker Mary Carter will be departing to concentrate on personal and family needs as her health declines, on Friday March 10th as well...
Steps to End Domestic Violence is looking for sponsors for our gala and in-kind donations for our raffle. This will be a coming together of many community agencies to celebrate a new beginning and increased connection with the community. Anyone interested can contact Gail Beck for in-kind donation forms, more information on the event, and sponsorship openings.
Need at Feeding Chittenden
Hello FUUSBers -
I volunteer at the Feeding Chittenden facility on North Winooski Ave. We are in need of supplies to support a growing number of participants who have deliveries taken to their homes. These participants are not able to come to the Feeding Chittenden facility, so they are dependent on items that we have on hand at the time of the delivery.
Feeding Chittenden is asking for non-food donations, like personal care items, to have in stock to give in addition to the food we provide. Here is a list of the items needed. The items can be dropped off at Feeding Chittenden's facility. Thank you for your consideration.