Our service video will be available at 10:00 am at eliotchapel.org and will remain there all week. You can also find it directly on Eliot Chapel's YouTube channel.

Every Sunday, Eliot Chapel shares half of the offertory with an organization in the community whose work reflects our shared values. This is one way that we care for our community and our neighbors. We are very pleased that May’s recipient is Metropolitan Congregations United.

Our goal for May is to raise a total of $1300, with half going to MCU and half to Eliot Chapel’s many life-sustaining ministries. Let us be good neighbors. Let us be a generous people.

Here’s how you can give:

Eliot children and families are invited to gather at 9:15 am via Zoom for connection and community. This week’s session, co-hosted by Heather Flick, Noel Burke, Tim Bubb, and adult lay leaders, explores Families, Stories, and Interconnection. Activities include Meditation with Bear and Butterfly and a Family Show & Tell opportunity. Zoom links will be distributed to registered families by email on Friday, May 14.

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

Vigil for Hope & Healing – 5:00 pm via Zoom & on Facebook

Many groups at Eliot are meeting despite the distance between us all. Check with your group leader or get involved with a new group! Find contact information in our Getting Involved booklet.

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 Christie Lee to set up your group.

Please remember Rev. Krista Taves and her partner Laurie Mecham. Laurie had surgery on her neck Wednesday, May 12 at St. Luke's Des Peres Hospital. Thank you to everyone who has offered to provide a meal through Meal Train. It is very helpful and much appreciated. Rev. Krista will be away May 12 - 23.  

Christie Lee's surgery has been postponed until May 26. Please continue to keep her in your thoughts and prayers.

Eliot Chapel will hold its annual congregational meeting on Sunday, May 16, 2021 at 12:30 pm via Zoom. Please plan to join the meeting 15 minutes in advance so that we can admit everyone to the meeting, establish a quorum, and start the meeting in a timely fashion. If you know of Eliot members and friends who may wish to attend the Annual Meeting but may not have access to this message, please help to get this information to them. A link to the meeting as well as dial-in instructions were sent by email to Eliot members and friends on May 12. You will receive the link again on Sunday morning with the Eliot on Zoom email. If you have questions about the meeting, you may send an email to Board Chair Brian Krippner at boardchair@eliotchapel.org prior to the meeting.

Once a year, the Unitarian Universalist Association, our national body, holds its General Assembly. Usually we meet in a convention center in a major city. This year it will be held online. GA is like a big family reunion with so much celebration. There is amazing worship, more workshops than you can imagine, and our annual business meeting. As a democratic denomination, every congregation sends delegates to represent us at the business meeting. If you would like to be a delegate for General Assembly, let us know! Email Rev. Krista at ktaves@eliotchapel.org by May 31. Because General Assembly is virtual, the registration fee is much less and there are generous scholarships if the fee is prohibitive. You just have to ask. 

General Assembly (GA) is the annual meeting of our Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA). Participants worship, witness, learn, connect, and make policy for the Association through democratic process. Anyone may attend. The UUA Board of Trustees has passed a resolution making the 2021 UUA General Assembly – held June 23-27– a 100% virtual event. And this year, the Ware Lecture will feature Stacey Abrams & Desmond Meade! Find details here.

The Eliot Social Justice in Action Steering Committee welcomes nominations before June 30 for Shared Plate for the 2021-2022 church year. Shared Plate is Eliot’s program to divide Sunday offering and designated online gifts with community organizations that align with our mission. Additional criteria for nominees and nomination form can be found here. 

The First Unitarian Church of St. Louis seeks an acting RE Coordinator to administer in-person Religious Education programming from June 1 to December 31. The Coordinator would work with the RE Committee and RE volunteers to plan and offer COVID-safe programming during the summer and fall of 2021 while the congregation conducts a search for a permanent religious educator. The person in this role may apply for the permanent position. First Unitarian STL has 228 adult members and a regular enrollment of 39 children and youth. Virtual RE enrollment is 22 children and youth. For more information and how to apply, please see the job posting.

Our COVID team is here for you. If you are quarantining and need support having groceries and prescriptions picked up, please email pastoralcare@eliotchapel.org with your contact information. 

In an email letter to members and friends, Rev. Barbara outlined "How We Do Church Now" as Eliot Chapel suspended face-to-face meetings. As a guiding document, it was always open to changes as we found out what worked and what didn't in our response to this extraordinary situation. You can find this document on our website now. We will keep it updated as things change. We'll also try to let you know here of any changes. Changes to RE information were made this week.

All staff are working from home. The building and grounds are closed for general use. A staff person is checking on the building and grounds periodically throughout the week for any facilities or maintenance issues. If you need assistance or have any questions, please email the appropriate staff person.

The Women's Alliance of Eliot Chapel will meet on Tuesday, May 18 at 9:30 am via Zoom. Eliot member and violinist Dr. Flo Reaves will discuss important dates in music history. All Eliot women are welcome to participate. Contact womensalliance@eliotchapel.org for information.

If you are unable to join in on Zoom, head over to the Eliot Unitarian Chapel Facebook page and you’ll be able to join us there. See you then!

Interested in immigration? Worried about the unhoused? Curious about how your teens can support their community? Come to “Community of Hope” on Tuesday, May 18 at 7:00 pm via Zoom. Welcome Neighbor STL will update us on its recent merger of three refugee and immigrant-focused projects:

We will learn about immigrant and refugee needs in St. Louis and about WNSTL’s new, dynamic melding of projects. During a Q&A period, we will reflect on what their mission means for our individual, and congregational, spiritual growth. Please register for “Community of Hope” on REALM here to receive Zoom instructions or watch for the Eliot on Zoom email on Sunday. Please come!

Revs. Barbara and Krista invite you to a weekly Lunch with the Minister every Thursday at 12:30 pm. Bring your lunch or just bring yourself! Depending on the size of the group, we will hang out together in the main room or go into breakout groups. The link to join this Zoom meeting will be in the weekly Eliot on Zoom email. Check it out and get together!

Mark your calendars for the Immigration Justice Team meeting! We will finalize our project plans and develop implementation strategies. Email immigration@eliotchapel.org, check TWAE next week, or consult Eliot on Zoom for information on accessing the meeting. Y’all come!