Wednesday, October 5, 2022
This Sunday in Worship

As we celebrate Indigenous People’s Day, Rev. Anne will explore the work of Edgar Villanueva in his book Decolonizing Wealth. This indigenous perspective offers a refreshing new way of bringing new patterns of philanthropy to help where it is needed, to reverse the patterns from generations of colonial trauma, and to help everyone live their best lives and thrive in their cultures. 

In Person & Online


ZOOM LINK


Meeting ID: 946 7374 0010

Passcode: FPLex

Dial in: 646-876-9923


YouTube LINK

Sunday Music

This Sunday, Guest pianist Sarah Hager and bass soloist David Meharry will provide inspiring music for worship this Sunday. David will sing two beautiful art-songs by the English composer Ralph Vaughan Williams: “Whither Must I Wander” and “Let Beauty Awake” (both of which are from the 1904 song collection “Songs of Travel”). Sarah Hager will also play two lovely piano compositions written in 1899 by the Boston-born composer Margaret Ruthven Lang: “Revery, Op. 31” and “Meditation, Op. 26.”

R.E. Plans for Kids & Youth


Kids and youth are invited to join Tony S. and helpers on Sunday, October 9th for R.E. special activities to honor Indigenous Peoples Day. 


Senior Youth Group members will not be meeting during the holiday weekend, and should stay tuned to your emails for programming happening on October 16th. 


Thanks so much to everyone who filled our our Survey and Registration! Congratulations to our lucky raffle winners, Brian, Laura, Vicky, Katie, Nita, and Connie. If you haven't done so yet, we'd really appreciate you taking ten minute to let us know how we can meet your family's unique needs.  

2022-23 R.E. Survey & Registration
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Sorting Party Successful


Many thanks go to the volunteers who worked hard on Tuesday at the Building and Grounds’ ”Sorting Party!" This was the first step taken to restore order after the renovations. Many thanks to the helpers: Dick Fleiss, Jim Gross, Bob Kvaal, Anita Myer, David Myer, Jim Poage, Ben Soule and Pete Tasker.


The boiler room was emptied, cleaned, and prepared for installing a protective enclosure around the new fire suppression system. The contents were then sorted, with tools and maintenance equipment useful to First Parish kept, and extras donated to Habitat for Humanity’s RePlace.


More work parties will be coming up soon, and we hope to see you there for the fun!

 

Toni Tasker 

for the Buildings & Grounds Committee

11th Hour Calling


October 11th, 2022 at 11a.m. on front steps of First Parish


First Parish Climate Action time invites you to be part of the 11th Hour Calling, a national interfaith event that sounds the climate change alarm. This month Bobbie Hodson and Stephen Shick will reflect on listening to indigenous voices to guide our climate change actions. Don Yansen and The First Parish singers will provide music.

October 11 at 4:30 p.m.


Are you a UU Mystic and don’t know it?

with Stephen Shick


ZOOM Meeting ID: 949 8502 2451

PW: 336668


This Tuesday Talk will help you explore and answer this question. UU Transcendentalists boldly answered “yes”. They, as many contemporary UU mystics, found being open to life’s mystery did not contradict science and reason. We’ll discover why our association of congregations (the UUA) affirms and promotes the “direct experience of that transcending mystery and wonder...which moves us to a renewal of the spirit and an openness to the forces that create and uphold life.”

Voices on the Green - October 14, 7:00 PM

What do a high school junior, a practicing physician, a celebrated poet, a retired educator/musician, a life coach and a radio producer share in common? Stories both funny and poignant, focused on the “silver linings” they encountered - often unexpected and surprising.


Lexington’s premier live storytelling and music event, “Voices on the Green,” returns to First Parish in Lexington on Friday, October 14 at 7 PM after a two-year covid-induced absence. High School junior Noor Alnajafe; Composer/Musician/Actor Kemp Harris; radio producer Deborah Lapides; physician Jamie McPhee; educator/life coach Meg Newhouse; and celebrated poet Cammy Thomas will share their Silver Linings experiences…joyful, sad, surprising, uplifting. The evening will also feature the music of Elizabeth Hartmann and Liz Savir, on the “silver linings” theme. Poet Regie O’Hare Gibson hosts the event. Proceeds from the evening will benefit our community partner, WATCH in Waltham.


Beverages and conversation are available before the show and at intermission. Don’t miss “Silver Linings,” at First Parish in Lexington, 7 Harrington Road in Lexington. – Tickets are $10 and $20 and are available NOW on the VOG website. Find out more about VOG after Sunday’s service – visit our table in the Parish Hall!


Click the graphic below to purchase tickets!

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October Peace Walks Schedule


Sunday, Oct. 9th at 6:00 pm -  Rock Meadow , Belmont FULL MOON WALK. Meet in the parking lot a right off Mill St before you reach McLean’s Hospital We’ll walk on the open trails to end up viewing the full moon after sunset.


Wednesday, Oct. 12 at 8:00 -  Lincoln Fields Meet in the parking lot. We’ll walk and listen to the beginning of the morning.


Wednesday, Oct.19 at 9:00 -  Willard Woods. Meet at the entrance on Brent Road. A walk through pine forests, open fields, hills, a pond and a brook.


Saturday, Oct. 29 at 1:00 -  Crooked Pond in Boxford. We’ll meet at FP and travel together. This area circles a small pond with pileated woodpeckers , has a beaver dam, steep pathways, and gives one the impression of being in deep woods. This walk is longer than an hour, so please let me know if you are coming.


If the weather is not good for walking I’ll send a cancellation the night before. Otherwise just show up for the walk. The plan is that each time you walk you put aside a small amount and give it to the Peace Institute in May. Each time we met there will be a brief discussion about the history and importance of the Lewis Brown Peace Institute in Boston that we can hold while we walk in nature with friends.


Thanks you for your participation,


Bobbie Hodson

LoVA Fair


Greetings all,


Sunday September 25th's filtered light and lovely breeze created a perfect day for our LoVA Fair!! Thank you all for your contributions of engaging information, beautiful table displays, delicious nibbles and lots of smiles and greetings. Your energy and enthusiasm filled our tents and hearts and Living Our Values got a big boost from your participation!


We want to thank the representatives from the following committees:

Caring Community, Soul Matters, Memorial Garden, Building & Grounds, Religious Education, Adult Programming, Preserving our Democracy, Building Bridges, Racial Justice (8th Principle Implementation, UU Urban Ministry, Legislative/Education), Climate Action Team, Finance, Small Group Potlucks, Music, Members and Friends, FP Board, Committee on Leadership & Service, Voices on the Green. Thanks to Stephen Schick for hosting Zoom.


Wooohoooo what a crowd!!! If you didn’t have a chance to get to the LoVA Fair and you are interested in any of these committees, you can find the contacts for each committee on the FPLex members website under "FPLex Staff and Committee Directory."


We would like to call out special thanks to Scott Abrahamson and McKenna O'Hare Gibson for preparing and setting up the space, Caroline Kvaal for the painting our lovely sign, Lee Brami for allowing us to repurpose her baby shower balloons, and David Rose for his determination in locating flagstone and rocks to keep our sign from sailing off on the wind!!!


Finally, congratulations to Ruth Hopkinson who was the lucky winner of the gift certificate to the Maxima Gift Shop in Lexington center.


Let’s go get active! 😊


Mia & Sabine

We’re gearing up for the November 8th election!


Join us in getting out the vote!


Sunday, October 9th

Sunday, October 16th

in the Common Room after Sunday Service


The Democracy team is sponsoring a community letter writing event aimed at prospective voters. Our letters will go to people who don’t usually vote—a segment of the electorate that is crucial to November’s election. The letters, envelopes, and stamps are provided. Our task is to address the envelope, write one sentence on why voting is important, and sign your name. That’s it.


The letters and addresses come from VoteForward, an organization active in elections since 2017. Vote Forward has researched the impact of its efforts and found them to be important. Check out its website for more details (www.votefwd.org) Contact Debbie Armstrong or Marty Kvaal for more information. COME JOIN US and HELP PRESERVE OUR DEMOCRACY with A FEW MINUTES of YOUR TIME!

Among Our Own


First Parish mourns the loss of our beloved member, Lee Ostrander, Ph.D., who parted this life on September 21. Lee was the Associate Professor Emeritus in biomedical Engineering at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. When he and his wife Vicky joined First Parish, he soon became interested in improving our connections, and helped to organize our new FPLex Chat list. If you missed his Tuesday Talk last February, click here.


We will hold Vicky and their daughter, Mandy, in our hearts as they navigate life without Lee, and we will always honor him as a brilliant and compassionate Unitarian Universalist.

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FPLex Kitchen to Reopen with YOUR Help


Do you like your food and drink coming from a clean kitchen? If so, will you help us get the kitchen and kitchenette back into sanitary condition? We are looking for a couple of folks for a couple of hours on Friday and Saturday mornings: October 7 and 8, from 10 -12 noon.

We will be washing all the stuff in the kitchen: china, glassware, silverware, pots, utensils, and the shelves they sit on. Two people, working with us, is what we’re looking for. All cleaning products to be provided. A sense of humor is welcome. Please contact Amy Breiting or Marty Kvaal (two members of your Ad Hoc Temporary Kitchen Committee)to arrange a shift so the kitchen isn’t too crowded.

From our administrator...


Members and Friends,


My fall schedule involves working Monday through Thursday in the office with available office hours from 9:00 - 3:00. Fridays are generally a remote working day for me, but messages are received and replies given promptly.


If you need to see me, it is appreciated if you check in with me before just dropping by the church. Often I have other meetings or tasks scheduled, and I would like to be able to give my full attention to any parishioner who needs me.


Thank you!

From choir rehearsals to Soul Matters, Building Bridges to Meditation Group and all of the other wonderful ways to get involved here at First Parish, please check the church calendar.

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Tech Corner


There have been recent complaints from members and friends about the parish website not appearing correctly in their web browser. This happened on church computers as well. In all reported cases, Macs were used with the Safari browser.


Mac OS had a recent major security threat. The Mac OS and the Safari browser itself need to be updated. Once updated, the site and associated files should be viewable once again. For assistance, call Scott our church administrator.

Submissions for The Weekly Update are due by the end of day, Mondays. To submit an article or information for consideration, please use this form.

Office: (781) 862-8200 | www.FPLex.org

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