Thursday, May 21, 2020
We join together to encourage spiritual growth, 
build a beloved community, and act for peace and justice.
Sunday, May 24, 2020
10:30 a.m. Sunday Service
"Shape the World: Creation Myths & New Perspectives"
-Intern Minister Jen with Rev. Carl as Liturgist
Special music : Danielle Grace & Madison Middleton

online-only & open to all:

Feel free to spread the word about our online Sunday Service to anyone you know who may be interested. We had more than 200 devices logged in last Sunday, and we have room for up to 500 participants in our Zoom Room. (In many cases, more than one person is watching each device, so thank you to everyone joining our online Sunday Services!)

9:00 a.m. Sunday "UU Buddhist Fellowship": (online-only & open to all): zoom link available at frederickuu.org

11:45 a.m. Friendly Forum: "What is Islam?" with Zakir Bengali : zoom link available at frederickuu.org


To discover the growing number of
UUCF activities that are accessible online,
regularly check our UUCF homepage,
which we will keep updated daily
with a rolling list of the
next seven days of online opportunities:
UUCF Online!

The following groups are going online, live-streaming with participants. These activities are online-only & open to all:

Thursday, May 21
7:00 p.m. UU Buddhist Meditation Group  (online-only & open to all). The group listens to or reads from a Buddhist teaching, discusses the teaching, and meditates. No experience or preparation required—come as you are! For more information, or to be added to the weekly group e-mail list, contact Lynn Wagner at  lwagner4@mac.com. Z oom link available at frederickuu.org .   

Friday, May 22
10:00 a.m. Yoga for Advancing Beginners   (online-only & open to all) . The class offers an accessible pace of basic yoga poses appropriate for beginners or anyone looking for a focused, mindful yoga practice. Feel free to contact Irene with any questions at irene.glasse@gmail.com . Suggested Donation to UUCF: $5 per session.   Z oom link available at frederickuu.org .   

11:00 a.m. Guided Meditation with Lynn Wagner. We'll meditate for 30-40 minutes and use remaining time for sharing as needed. Z oom link available at frederickuu.org .   


Monday, May 25
7:30 p.m. Guided Meditation with Lynn. We'll meditate for 30-40 minutes and use remaining time for sharing as needed. Z oom link available at frederickuu.org.   

Tuesday, May 26
10:00 a.m. Yoga for Advancing Beginners   (online-only & open to all) . Feeling stressed? Try yoga! Yoga for Beginners offers an accessible pace of basic yoga poses appropriate for beginners or anyone looking for a focused, mindful yoga practice. Feel free to contact Irene with any questions at irene.glasse@gmail.com . Suggested Donation to UUCF: $5 per session. Z oom link available at frederickuu.org .      

7:30 p.m. Spiritual Practices for a Pandemic with Rev. Carl : Z oom link available at frederickuu.org .   

Wednesday, May 27
12:30 p.m. Lunch Drop-in with Intern Minister Jen : Join us for a time of both individual check-ins and exploring some poetry together for National Poetry Month. Z oom link available at frederickuu.org .    

7:00pm UU Pagan Book Club (every week): Z oom link available at frederickuu.org .   

7:30 p.m. Guided Meditation with Lynn Wagner. We'll meditate for 30-40 minutes and use remaining time for sharing as needed. Z oom link available at frederickuu.org .                         

To discover what UUCF activities are accessible online, regularly check our UUCF homepage at frederickuu.org !

Online-only Opportunities (Open to All)
  • Check the CommUUnity Now Event Hub for online only events happening daily at UU congregations across the country that are open to all.

  • Children, Youth, & Parents: Links for Religious Education Online events available in our R.E. Newsletter: April 2020 Edition

Please contact the office at office@frederickuu.org if your UUCF group would like to go online!
Available Resources for This Time

  • Message from UUA President, Rev. Susan Frederick Gray on self-care & resilience here.

  • Resources for UUCF members & friends during physical distancing, available here. (We're keep this list updated, so check back periodically--and feel free to share with others who may need it.)


General Announcements

Beware Email Scams! There is another round of scam emails hitting hundreds of UU congregations. The most important warning we can give you is that UUCF Staff members will  never  ask you to send money directly in a one-on-one way.  Any email, text, or phone call making such an ask is fake. Our financial policies require that all donations go through official channels: the offering basket, the mail, or the "Give" page of our website, so that they are accounted for by our Treasurer and Bookkeeper. Hackers are getting more sophisticated every day. The best defense is to pause and look for warning signs before responding to any unsolicited email, especially if something feels "off" or "weird" about the message. For more information, here's a website the UUA put together about how to avoid phishing scams and other fake email gambits:  uua.org/leadership/library/scammer-pandemic

As the 2020 election draws near, the UU Living Legacy Project is offering a monthly online series focused on voting rights. In these sessions, we'll be exploring what we can learn from the Voting Rights Movement of the 1950s and 60s to apply to challenges we face today in these unprecedented times. We'll be meeting the last Tuesday of every month until Election Day 2020! ​All programs are at 7:30 pm Eastern. Programs are 60 minutes long followed by an informal discussion time. More details or to register:  uulivinglegacy.org/votingrights.html
Community News
Frederick Health is accepting hand-made mask covers and
isolation gowns

Frederick Health Hospital (FHH) is accepting hand-made isolation gowns. Ready-to-sew gown kits (containing instructions and fabric to make 5 gowns) are available for pick-up at the Development Office. The kits are in a basket by the front door. The kits do go quickly, but they are replenished frequently. You may email  donate@fmh.org  to confirm that we have kits available when you arrive.

We hold you and your loved ones in steady, strong prayers during the time of COVID-19.  In this spirit, we have come together as an ad hoc group of Indigenous people and allies, to urge the Bureau of Prisons to recognize our shared humanity – and take appropriate actions . You may know that Indigenous people are incarcerated in federal prisons at a rate 38% higher than the national average. Very recently, we lost Andrea Circle Bear, a Cheyenne River Lakota mother, to COVID-19, shortly after she gave birth in a federal prison.
We are concerned – and sometimes deeply frightened – for our loved ones’ well being during this pandemic. The Bureau of Prisons (BOP) has been uncoordinated and unresponsive to this public health crisis. Their policies aren’t adequate, and they don’t adequately follow the policies they do have. While some states and localities have begun to respond to the COVID-19 crisis in prisons, the federal system lags behind. 
One group member, who wishes to remain anonymous for her brother’s protection, shares, “The judge recommended a medical facility for my brother due to his age and many medical issues. He is a veteran, and his medical needs haven't been adhered to, especially during this virus epidemic!” 
Our loved ones in prison tell us that Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) is only available sporadically – and that the structures themselves are ill-equipped for proper isolation. Sometimes, people who are sick with COVID-19 are held in bleak solitary confinement, because no other provisions are possible in overcrowded facilities. Prison staff are so concerned about prison conditions and the effects on their workplace safety, many have filed lawsuits and complaints.
As Olive Bias, another member of our group has said, “Prisons notoriously engage in systemic medical neglect of inmates. Petitions and suits filed in court to address grievances or release can take months if not years to process. COVID-19 has simply compounded these harsh realities. The bureaucracy is deadly.”
Please join us in contacting your Members of Congress, and urge them to demand that the Bureau of Prisons follow its own policies and adopt better ones – releasing people who have less than one year remaining on their sentences and ensuring humane and safe conditions for those left behind in prison.  
With your attention and your action, we have hope for the well-being of our loved ones – and for the world we long to create together.
With gratitude,
Karen Van Fossan, UU minister
Olive Bias, civil rights paralegal
Ruth Buffalo, North Dakota representative
Sandra Freeman, civil rights attorney
Anonymous group members, family of the incarcerated
Love Resists is a joint campaign by the Unitarian Universalist Association and the Unitarian Universalist Service Committee.
www.loveresists.org
RSVP Here to receive zoom link.
Free training for a new job category
"Contract Tracing" is a new job that will be offered soon in many states - part of a strategy to limit the spread of Coronavirus. There is now a free online training course to learn the skills needed: New Johns Hopkins Course to Train Coronavirus Contact Tracers.  https://hub.jhu.edu/2020/05/11/free-contact-tracing-course-johns-hopkins/
Announcements for our weekly e-newsletter are due no later than Wednesday noon. Please keep your announcement 50 words or less. If you have a graphic for the group or organization, please include that as well. Email to: office@frederickuu.org