BLESSING OF THE ANIMALS

Sunday, October 2, 2022 at 10:30 am

Dear First U Friends, 

This Sunday we celebrate the Feast Day of St. Francis of Assisi and hold our Blessing of the Animals service. You are welcome to bring your animal friends into our Sanctuary for this service, (if your non-human animal friends feel like coming to church that is), as well as stuffed animals, photos, and mementos of your favorite animals. During the service, which will be a little shorter than usual, we will honor the animals that enrich our lives, expand our hearts, and support our ecosystems. Following the service I will offer blessings on individual animals in the Peace Garden. 

Friends, with all the heavy news of late - the devastation in Florida from Hurricane Ian where many of our family members and friends live, and the heart-wrenching outcome in the search for Theo Ferrara that’s left our youth and local community reeling - I had second thoughts about offering the Blessing of the Animals this week. I wondered if we needed something more solemn, more still, more serious. But then I read in the Press Herald that one of the first lines of support to arrive on scene at Freeport High School following the tragic news about Theo was a pack of therapy dogs and their handlers. 

In times such as these, it is important to bring animals near. They are, for many of us - perhaps most of us - one of our greatest sources of love, belonging, and comfort we know. Animals calm us, they awe us, they get us out of the house, they get us out of our heads. Many animals will lie next to us as we cry and play with us when we want to have fun. No matter our mood or the events of our day, birds keep singing outside our windows, reminding us of the ever presence of life, beauty, harmony around us. Animals are truly one of our first lines of support when we need it. 

Friends, I invite you and a beloved animal friend to join me this Sunday and honor our sorrow and our great love, honor the deep connection we have to each other in good times and tragic times, honor the web of life that we share with all life, and bless all the animals of this precious living earth. 

Yours in the web,

Hillary 

HEARTS AND HANDS

What is Hearts and Hands? Formerly known as Caring Connections, Hearts and Hands is... just us! People who are willing to help fellow congregants in times of need, with rides, meals, child care, furniture moving, etc. If you need short-term help, let us know and we’ll set up the helpers via sign-ups. 

How does it work? You can contact Rev. Hillary, Gwen Matthews, Sarah Witte, or Ruth White. (Emails below) We will ask you questions like how many meals, or weeks, and about any food preferences. Then helpers will sign up, get reminders, and deliver food or show up to give rides or help as planned. YAY!

Also: if you would like to be on the list of on-call helpers, please send a note to Sarah or fill out and drop the form (from the Sunday Order of Worship) in the collection plate. Please know that you can volunteer to help when it works for you, and take a pass on other calls. Thank you, friends. Together we share and by this we live! 

In peace and friendship, 

and on behalf of Hearts and Hands

Rev. Hillary Collins Gilpatrick: FirstUMinister@gmail.com

Gwen Matthews: gwenatfirstu@gmail.com

Sarah Witte: sarahcoffinwitte@gmail.com

Ruth White: rwhite7@maine.rr.com 

SAVE THE DATE: MINI HOLIDAY FAIR

Saturday, December 3

Save the date for a mini holiday fair to be held on the first Saturday of December. What we will feature this year will be frozen soups, (no hot soup luncheon), Joy's jams, and a bake table with cookies, pies, candy. We will also do a craft table with knit, crochet, sewn, and wood materials. If you have questions in advance, please contact Dorothy McAloney (dmcaloney48@gmail.com) or Janice Tooker (janicetooker44@gmail.com). 

OCTOBER RE CALENDAR

Above is our Religious Exploration calendar for the month of October. If you have questions about programs, please email Gwen at gwenatfirstu@gmail.com.

PEACE PLAY FOR LITTLES

Peace Play for Littles happens on the 1st & 3rd Thursdays of each month, 10:15 - 10:45 am. It is a mixture of stories, rhymes, songs, and play for little ones (0—4 years old) and their parents, grandparents, or caregivers that introduce and encourage the values of justice, inclusivity, kindness, and caring for our planet. Learn more about peace play happening at First Universalist this fall. Contact Gwen at gwenatfirstu@gmail.com with any questions.

UU THE VOTE MANE 2022

• UU Belfast is holding a UUtheVoteME service this coming Sunday at 10am! If you would like to attend, please join via Zoom.
• The League of Women Voters of Maine has lots of volunteer opportunities coming up. You can canvass in the Neighbor to Neighbor program or attend a training to be a non-partisan election observer on October 18th, or October 27th. There are lots of ways to support democracy on their Events Calendar!
• Another way to find opportunities to volunteer on a national level? Check out UU the Vote National’s Find an Event page! Put in your zip code, and nationwide opportunities will pop up that you can participate in. These events won’t be taking place in Maine (for Maine-based opportunities check out the above opportunities with League of Women Voters), but there are lots of chances to phone bank, write postcards, GoTV via text and more!
• One of our favorite partner organizations is The Center for Common Good in Georgia. Volunteer to write postcards in their campaign to connect with under-represented voters in key districts across the country!
• Finally, check out UUtheVoteMe’s calendar of events which includes all the above actions and more!