The Exodus story includes the image of the formerly enslaved Israelites regretting leaving Egypt. Freedom is hard, even dangerous. Then, they discover life-sustaining abundance, truly beyond their imaginations. What about us in Missouri? How are we doing in the wilderness? Should we be keeping our eyes open for abundance?

Large-print orders of service and hearing assistance devices are available from the greeters on Sunday. We livestream our service; find it at eliotchapel.org. After the stream, a recording will be available there all week. You can also find it directly on our YouTube channel.

If you're worshipping with us on livestream, you can always find a digital order of service, including lyrics to the hymns, on our website. 

At Eliot Chapel, we follow CDC guidelines regarding COVID-19. When St. Louis County is at a Yellow or Medium Level, we will:

Read the letter about the review of our policy and the change in measures in response to a change in levels. You may access the policy document on Eliot Chapel's website for more of the details. 

In August, we will share the offering with Home Sweet Home, an organization that provides donated furniture and household items to clients transitioning out of homelessness. Home Sweet Home believes that establishing a first home stocked with the necessities for everyday life provides a sense of ownership and a source of stability at this crucial time.

Home Sweet Home serves clients who are referred by partner non-profits throughout the St. Louis region, including the Veterans Administration, St. Patrick Center, Women’s Safe House, Criminal Justice Ministry and St. Louis Crisis Nursery, among others. These people come with desperate needs for different reasons and from a variety of backgrounds. Our services are needed most by children, survivors of domestic abuse, veterans, people who are homeless, and ex-offenders looking for a new start. Working with our partners, Home Sweet Home picks up donations of new and gently used furniture and household items and delivers them to clients’ apartments or homes. Learn more at homesweethomestl.org.

Let us be good neighbors. Let us be a generous people. You can give in one of three ways:

Children in kindergarten and older should attend the 10:00 worship service with their family. Activity bags with crayons and UU coloring pages are available at each sanctuary entrance.

The nursery & preschool activity space is OPEN during the service for our youngest UUs who need freedom of movement (nursery & preschool-aged children aged 5 and younger). The nursery and preschool room will remain open during summer services through September 3. Tim Bubb, LaTosha Crayton, and Anna Beck are the staff members on duty.

For more information about activities for children and youth, please contact Scott Stewart at scott@eliotchapel.org.

We keep this tradition of hospitality alive by taking turns hosting. This is a simple task (instructions are available in a binder in the kitchen) and a great way to serve and connect. Please check the SignUpGenius for coffee hour volunteers to sign up to host Coffee Hour on a Sunday morning after the service. If you need help using SignUpGenius, please contact Rebecca Schuder at hospitality@eliotchapel.org and she will help you get signed up.

If there is no host by 3:00 pm on Thursday afternoon, there will be no coffee served on Sunday though we will still gather for social time. Please be respectful of Sunday staff as they have other responsibilities. Thank you to all the volunteers who keep this tradition alive!

Zoom Coffee Hour takes place at 12:30 pm on Sunday. You are invited to "walk down the hall" and come to our Zoom Coffee Hour! We'll take a few minutes to say hello and let people settle in, then we'll say a few words of welcome and briefly review the service that day. We typically really enjoy the wisdom story and discuss how that story reflects on the theme of the sermon. Then we'll create breakout rooms of 5-6 people for conversation and sharing. We love making new friends and the small groups are great for that! In approximately 45 minutes, everyone will return to the big group and we'll say our goodbyes for the week. We usually end shortly after 1:30 pm, but those who wish to can stay a few minutes longer. Please watch your email for "Eliot on Zoom" on Sunday morning which will include a link to join the Zoom Coffee Hour. If you're not on our mailing list, sign up here. We look forward to seeing you!

As we have new staff in the front office scheduling your events and meetings, it is more important than ever to make contact to get on the calendar and to check your entry for accuracy! 

Planning a meeting or event? Start with our Room & Event Request Form! Group leaders, have you set up an area for your group in Realm? You have a secure place to chat and share documents and photos. Contact Debby Lovell to set up your group.

We have been quite busy and want to give you an update to fill you in on our initial efforts on behalf of our search mission. On July 22, our first official gathering as a team, we had a one-day retreat via Zoom with UUA Transitions Program Manager Christine Purcell. She will continue throughout the duration of our search process to provide guidance and to be an experienced resource for this important work. 

Since the retreat, we have devoted many hours to organizing, prioritizing, and initiating the several first steps of our work. At our most recent meeting, we drafted a survey that we will ask you to complete in September. We have put a lot of effort into making it as user-friendly as possible while also providing essential information for all of us in our decision to call our settled minister.

In cooperation with the Leadership Development Committee, we will offer an important three-hour Saturday workshop at Eliot: "Beyond Categorical Thinking." In addition to all congregational leaders, you are invited to participate. The workshop is designed to promote inclusive thinking and help prevent unfair discrimination, and will be led by a UUA minister who will also give us a sermon on the following day. We will confirm the date for this workshop soon.

Our afternoon goals accomplished, we ended our time together enjoying some pizza provided by David Cox and looking forward to the next steps as a team.

We are delighted to announce that Eliot Chapel is participating in Kirkwood’s 62nd year of the Greentree Festival in September! We will have a booth to promote Eliot’s vision and mission, activities and offerings, and liberal faith community. We need volunteers to sign up to help on the planning team, with set up and take down, and to work shifts at the booth throughout the three-day festival. We want people and families to know we UUs do church a bit differently – in a good way – and they should come find out how!

The festival will be held from Friday, September 15 to Sunday, September 17, and attracts more than 30,000 visitors. It is a family-friendly festival featuring a parade, food vendors, live entertainment, arts & crafts booths, contests, and so much more.

Have some fun and help us promote our Eliot community to the larger Kirkwood community . . . and beyond! Please contact Ann Marie Hutson or Carole Glauser at greentree@eliotchapel.org if you want in on the fun. 

Sign up as a family and serve Eliot while having fun together. Encourage your covenant group to sign up together. Sign up with a friend. Sign up yourself and meet and work with someone you don't know. Sign up today – we need you!

Sign-ups are OPEN for Eliot Summer Adventure #3, the third in a series of informal opportunities for Eliot families and children to gather for fellowship and connection during the summer months. These gatherings are planned and hosted by Debbie Eldarrat, Susan van Alstyne, and Kalen Ponche. Debbie is the point-of-contact for this event.

The gathering is at Kirkwood Park on Sunday, August 20 from 11:30-1:30. We will meet by the playground area. The nearest parking lot is off Playground Dr. near the ballfields off of West Adams Ave. Bring a picnic lunch, blanket, and clothes/swimwear for a water battle, if so desired (this is optional). Kids may bring water guns or other “water devices” for this optional activity.

Advance RSVPs are helpful but by no means required.  Please contact Debbie Eldarrat directly to sign up, or if you have any questions, at eliotadventure@eliotchapel.org.

HUGE thanks to Susan van Alstyne, Kalen Ponche, and Deb Eldarrat for initiating and hosting these gatherings.  

Please volunteer to supervise our games at the Meacham Park Backpack Giveaway on Saturday, August 12 – you'll have fun! Volunteers serve from either 11:30-1:30 or 1:30-3:30. If you can help, please email socialjustice@eliotchapel.org and indicate when you are available. This is a great opportunity for families, covenant groups, and you to share our goodwill with the Meacham Park community. Thanks for your help!

The front office will be closed for most of August to give time for the staffing transition. We are still here to help! Please communicate by phone or email. Thank you!

If you'd like to help on the volunteer team for the front office or inother areas that support the staff, you can sign up on SignUpGenius!

For those of you who have donated to our Staff Thank You Fund, we are most grateful. We have extended the date to offer your gift to August 13. You can bring your gift to church on Sunday or donate online. Let us be generous in offering these gifts to our staff most impacted by these changes. Here is how you can contribute:

The Eliot Ride Team provides rides to church and to medical appointments for Eliot members and friends who cannot drive themselves. If you need a ride, email ineedaride@eliotchapel.org with your name, your address, where you need to go, and the date and time needed. We will be in touch to make arrangements. 

The Eliot Meal Train provides meals to Eliot members and friends who need some love and care. For example, we will provide meals for those who have recently lost a loved one or are recovering from medical care. If you would like to request meals or offer to provide meals, please email mealtrain@eliotchapel.org with your contact information and someone will be in touch with you.

At Eliot Chapel, we care for our earth and our building! One way you can express this is by joining the Eliot Recycling Team! This committee is responsible for taking the recycling from Eliot to the Kirkwood Recycling Depository at 350 S. Taylor Avenue each week. Sign up for a week that works for you and plan to grab the recycling after service to drop it off. Thanks for being part of the team!

Providing receptions after a Celebration of Life is another way we care for each other at Eliot Chapel. The Reception Team sets up, serves, and cleans up after these receptions. If you can be available once in a while to help, please email receptions@eliotchapel.org. Your efforts will be appreciated!

Please join Women’s Alliance for our hybrid meeting Tuesday, August 15 at 9:30 am in Adams Hall and on Zoom. After a brief period of conversation and refreshments, we will hear a program by Carol Gavins from the Missouri Botanical Garden speakers bureau. She will tell us about "Colonial Gardens of Colonial America, 1600-1775.” Trish Williams is coordinator. For more information about this meeting, contact womensalliance@eliotchapel.org.

In a recent TV series called The Bear, about chefs and a Chicago family, a character finds himself at a crossroads. When his life seems to have hit a low point and there is much chaos around him, he is given an unexpected opportunity to transform. How might we, in an era of stalemates and chaos, find courage to meet our crossroad? Join us.