A Unitarian Universalist Church | 1800 Bell Ave., Des Moines, IA 50315 | P: 515-244-8603
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This Sunday: May 31, 2020
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Blooming: A Flower Communion
(Link active at 9:30 am, service begins at 10 am)
**Please mute your mics before the service begins
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We are one church and together we grow, through joy and sadness. We bring ourselves freely to this community, and we take away those things which help us on our life journey. Flower Communion is a symbol of that relationship and covenant, and we invite all to join us in celebrating our free church. Though we can't share flowers in person this week, we can still join in a blooming community.
We will also be honoring our graduating seniors at this service.
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Also this Sunday:
11:30 am - 12:30 pm: Annual Meeting @ Zoom
8:00 - 9:00 pm: Nightly Social Time @ Zoom
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Joys & Concerns for Sunday should be submitted by noon on Friday.
You may also submit a hand-written joy or concern on Sunday morning.
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Submissions to the Intercom Weekly are due on
Wednesday at noon
. Submissions after the deadline cannot be guaranteed a spot in that week's newsletter.
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Annual Meeting
May 31 @ 11:30 am
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Please attend the Annual Meeting this year on
May 31 at 11:30
. As it will be by Zoom, we are asking everyone to register to attend the meeting. In this way, we can ensure that we have a quorum and only members are available to vote.
You will then receive an email from Rev. Amy with the link for the meeting.
Save this link, as it's the only way to attend the meeting.
If there is more than one member in a household,
each must register individually.
On the day of the Annual Meeting, if you can use separate devices (computer, iPad, smart phone), please do so. This will help with establishing a quorum, AND with voting. If you want to be in the same room, please be sure to turn off the volume on one of the devices to avoid feedback issues. You only need the second device when voting. IF you must have two people on one device, please indicate that in the chat when you log in. You will also use the chat for voting by the second person.
If you have problems getting into the meeting or with any aspects of Zoom during the meeting, you may
text or call Patty Notch at 515-868-6262
for assistance.
If you plan to dial in to the meeting, please let Patty Notch or Sue Huber know by 6:00 p.m. on Saturday, May 30 to receive special instructions for how you can vote and join the conversation.
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Congregational Vote for Faith In Action Partners @ the Annual Meeting
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The document listing the Community Outreach Partner Candidates was omitted from the all-church mailing.
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First Quarter Budget Narrative 2020-21
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During its May 14 meeting the Board of Trustees focused on a variety of subjects.
- Board members discussed whether to present a budget to the congregation at the annual meeting or to present a partial budget with a resolution for congregational vote. The Board adopted a Resolution to present to the congregation at the annual meeting to which a partial year budget would be attached. (The Resolution is included in the Annual Meeting Packet which has been made available to members of the congregation.)
- Board voted to approve the slate of Board candidates for 2020 recommended by the Nominating Committee, including Andrea LeMeuse, Fern Stewart, and Greg Nichols. (We are so pleased these three wonderful members stepped forward to serve!)
- Board President Sue Huber led a discussion of continued planning for the Annual Meeting, including topics such as how votes will be taken in the virtual format, the agenda, the manner in which Faith in Action partners will be selected, nominees for the Unsung UU Award and thanking the team that has been planning the meeting, including: Al Powers, Barb Royal, Patty Notch, Gene McCracken, Rev. Shaw, Bill Brauch, (and Sue herself).
- The Board touched on future plans for a Board Retreat, development of a Strategic Plan, how the Board and church might focus more on the church “Ends” developed a few years ago, and involvement of the Nominating Committee in church leadership development.
- Board member Mike Lauer led a discussion of whether a new advocacy group, Knock and Drop, could use the church Friday afternoons from 4-6 p.m. and from 9-12 on Saturdays to distribute food to immigrants who are food insecure. He explained the group would be careful in light of the pandemic. He noted that, with permission, they distributed over 11.5 tons of chicken in 2.5 hours from our lower parking lot the prior weekend. It was determined that further information was needed in order to decide the question of building use, including checking with the church insurer. Rev. Amy noted that, if the use was approved, they would ask staff to leave the building by 3:00 p.m. on Fridays. (The Board later determined, by exchange of e-mails, to approve Knock and Drop using the building as requested based on information from the church insurer and with church member volunteers present at all times.)
Board meeting minutes are more detailed than these Highlights and are usually available in draft form about three weeks after each Board meeting on the “Connect” drop-down menu on the church website under “Board of Trustees” and “Board Business.” They become official when approved at the next Board meeting.
The next Board meeting will be at 6:00 p.m. on Thursday, June 18 via Zoom. You are all welcome and encouraged to attend online.
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Supporting Our Immigrant Neighbors
by Mike Lauer on behalf of the Board of Trustees and Rev. Amy
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The pandemic has had a terrible impact on many people’s lives. It led us to close our church. It is causing serious illness and many deaths across our state. It has led to economic deterioration, loss of income, and an increase in food insecurity. Some ofus are more affected than others. All of us will be affected before the pandemic ends.
One group that has been severely affected is our immigrant community. Many in the immigrant community are not included in the social safety net. Many were food insecure before the pandemic. Their situation is dire. About ten days ago First Unitarian was approached by a new immigrant-led organization:
Knock and Drop
. Knock and Drop was formed at the beginning of the pandemic by Latinas Unidas Por Un Nuevo Amanecer (L.U.N.A.) and Latinix Immigrants of Iowa: two organizations we have previously partnered with. Knock and Drop assembles boxes of food to give to immigrants in need.
They asked if they could use our church as a staging area to assemble and distribute boxes of food on Friday afternoons (4-6 pm) and Saturday mornings (9-noon).
We as a Board spoke with Rev. Amy, and together we said yes.
Knock and Drop will use the upper parking lot and the Stonewall Conference room for the food distribution. A limited number of volunteers, about 6, will have access to the conference room.
No one else will enter the building. Those receiving food will have appointments to help manage lines and wait times. When they arrive a volunteer will bring them their box of food and they will be on their way. The Knock and Drop volunteers will clean and disinfect all parts of the church they use each time.
We are thrilled to be asked to be a small part of this important ministry. We carefully considered the impacts of opening the church on a limited basis to facilitate this effort. In the end, with assurance that appropriate safety, cleaning, and disinfecting protocols will be used, with staff working from home, and volunteers including Sue Huber, Gene McCracken, and Mike Lauer from the congregation present, we decided to honor our values and in this small way contribute to our community.
Our values: Grow Ethically and Spiritually, Serve Justly, Love Radically.
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Farewell to Bookkeeper, Amy Cox
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Due to circumstances beyond her control, we are sorry to announce the departure of our bookkeeper, Amy Cox, effective this Friday, May 22. Amy had been with First Unitarian since January of 2019.
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Church Grounds Volunteers Needed
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While we are not meeting on our beautiful church grounds for the time being, others are congregating there--namely weeds and litter!
The Grounds Council has accommodated this time of isolation by not maintaining planters this season that need constant watering, and by postponing group work days and using a service to help with the spring cleanup and some of the maintenance. We do have several regular volunteers working on specific areas, and we could use more help. All work is done outdoors with social distancing protocols, and on an individual or small group basis.
You could take a walk through our woods and grounds with a garbage bag (and gloves, of course) to help pick up trash on a regular basis. There are several planted areas that could use some weeding throughout the season on a regular basis. If anyone has a hankering to lead the battle on garlic mustard in the woods, or work on other invasive species, there is always work to be done there. There are big projects like finishing the retaining wall on the west side entrance, and small projects like sweeping out the garden shed.
If you have any time to volunteer on the grounds, please contact Diane Ford,
[email protected].
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Sometimes life presents difficult situations where you just need someone to talk to, to process what is happening, and maybe to share your grief. The Pastoral Care Team, an arm of the church's ministry, is ready to support you during these difficult times. This cadre of four long-term, trained church members is ready to listen and to care.
The Team has covenanted to share your information only among the Team and the minister. (Greater confidentiality requests are respected.)
The Team members, known as Pastoral Care Associates, have worked with those who:
- are sick or dying,
- are care giving,
- have seriously ill family members or friends,
- are losing their memory,
- have family discord,
- experienced trauma,
- struggle with loneliness, mental health issues and addiction.
If you would like pastoral care for yourself or someone else, please speak to the minister or the Pastoral Care Associate on duty by the front desk between services or call an Associate: Barb Glass, Carol Henderson, Ellen Taylor or Ann Mowery. An Associate can also be reached at
[email protected]
.
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Fabulously Fun Food Fair FUNdraiser 2020: Living in the Mystery
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Thanks to the
36
households who have contributed
$5,246.00
to the All Church Pay It Forward Post Pandemic Party, our alternate Fabulously Fun Food Fair Fundraiser for 2020. Our goal is to raise $15,000 for programs and activities for this year’s budget. You too can join the party whenever it will happen and help us reach our goal. Tickets on sale through June 15th.
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The Humanist book group is meeting by Zoom immediately after the church service on the first and third Sunday of each month. We are having a good turnout, but would love to have more people join us. Join us on June 7 and 21 as we finish up The Founding Myth, Why Christian Nationalism Is Un-American by Andrew Seidel. Send a note to
[email protected]
if you need an invite with the Zoom meeting info, or if you have a favorite book that you would like to share.
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Center for Social Ministry Program:
Beyond the Book
Thursday, June 18 @ 7 pm
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Beyond the Book is a new Center for Social Ministry program designed to highlight both the important works of social justice literature and those who work to live them out! Each session will be two hours in length, with the first hour a discussion of the selected book, and the second hour being a presentation, and question and answer session, by a Des Moines community member who is actively engaged in the featured social justice work.
The first
Beyond the Book
is taking place online,
Thursday, June 18, 2020, from 7 - 9 pm.
The book we are reading is,
Heartland: A Memoir of Working Hard and Being Broke in the Richest Country on the Earth, by Sarah Smarsh
. Our speaker is Julie Fugenschuh, Executive Director at
Project Iowa
, offering programming that leads people from all walks of life though a process of self-exploration to find, or rediscover, their purpose, assisting them in finding a fulfilling, stable career.
The program is free of charge, but a free will donation will be taken, with monies collected being divided between the Center for Social Ministry and the featured speaker's organization. Participants are responsible for acquiring, and reading, their own book before the session.
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If you'd like to set up a regular (weekly or monthly) contribution to our social justice activities,
click here
and enter the dollar amount for "Donation."
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May/June Outreach Partner
Al Exito
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Al Éxito is a catalyst for the empowerment of Iowa’s Latinx Youth!
Al Éxito's mission
is to provide programming that builds the leadership potential of Latinx youth through college preparation, career development, civic engagement, family support, and celebration of culture. Afterschool groups, tutoring, mentoring and community events are the primary tools for their mission work. Although located here in Des Moines, Al Exito programs are in 8 Iowa communities!
Al Exito expressed a desire for a longer term partnership last year. We have been working with them throughout the year. Please consider contributing financially during these two months. To donate,
click here
and select the “Donation” option. Half of your donation goes to our church’s social justice outreach; the other half goes to our Outreach Partner.
Volunteer Opportunities? Unfortunately, the virus has dramatically limited our ability to offer any at this time.
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Apartment Set-Up for Briana
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The asylum seeker we are sponsoring is preparing to move into her own apartment on July 1. In preparation for the that, we will begin collecting donations for her apartment set-up.
Morgan Dredge will be storing the items until she moves into the apartment. If you have items to donate, they can be dropped off at her house or mailed to her. See the list of needed items and sign up using the link below. Please contact Morgan at
[email protected] to make arrangements to drop off larger items, or if you have any questions.
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Online services call for an online giving solution. We can’t physically ‘pass the basket,’ but the money is needed now, more than ever. Instead of waiting until Sunday, please go online now and set up a one-time or an on-going contribution to “Donation/Basket.” Fifty percent of these contributions go to our ongoing budgeted Community Outreach Partners (AMOS, DMARC, Family Promise, & Interfaith Alliance of Iowa). The other 50% goes to our Faith in Action Partners.
Click here to give now.
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The Poor People’s Campaign, led by Rev. William Barber and Rev. Liz Theoharris, will be gathering online on June 20, 2020 at 10:00 a.m. from across the country and world to launch the implementation of the Poor People’s Campaign on the Moral Agenda. Together we will be demanding that both major political parties address the impact of their distorted moral narrative, and current policies and practices that continue to foster systemic racism, poverty, ecological devastation, and the war economy.
Go to
www.june2020.org
to join the digital movement and help spread the word in our congregation, and in your community networks. This movement draws on the legacy and work of Dr. Martin Luther King, which the UUA endorsed at our 1968 General Assembly and again partnered with in the 40 days of Fusion Action Rev. Barber and Rev. Theoharris kicked off in 2018. As the crisis of poverty, and the effects of COVID – 19 continue to become more apparent, now is the time for Unitarian Universalists to join in uniting our country from the bottom up, and across the middle as together we challenge the interlocking injustices of systemic racism, poverty, ecological devastation, and the war economy.
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Help Keep Mental Health Care
Funded in Iowa
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In early June, the Iowa Legislature will reconvene to pass the budget for 2021. Members of the AMOS Children's Mental Health Team have been working to keep the need for mental health care in front of the legislators during the COVID-19 forced break. We've met with the Governor's office, the Department of Human Services and the Department of Public Health. We've contacted all the Legislative leadership in a letter signed by Rev. Amy and over 40 other clergy from around the state. We've put lawmakers on notice that MENTAL HEALTH MATTERS, and that we are looking to them to make sure this critical care doesn't get short-changed in the coming year.
What do we need from you?
CALL your Iowa Senator and Representative NOW! If you can’t call, then email, but calling is better. Identify yourself as a constituent, provide your complete name and address, and thank them for passing 2019's HF-690 - the bill to establish a children’s mental health care system for Iowa. If you or a family member has been impacted by a mental health disorder, please share your story.
Request these four items:
- No cuts to mental health current funding
- Remove Regions' restrictions on dollars spent for mental health - this is the limit placed by the state on counties to levy the needed taxes for Mental Health services they are mandated to provide.
- Extend the cutoff for telemedicine coverage and payment parity which is set to end at the end of May. This coverage and payment parity (equal rate for telemedicine care as face-to-face care) put in place due to COVID-19 will be needed going forward
- Encourage them to require insurance companies to expand telemedicine coverage and payment parity to match the Medicaid system
Please call right away! When the Legislature reconvenes, their decisions on funding will already be made.
Thank you from the AMOS Children's Mental Health Team and AMOS @ First Unitarian Core Team
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RAYGUN T-Shirts to Benefit
Iowa Sanctuary Movement
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The Iowa Sanctuary Movement (
https://iowasanctuary.org/
) has partnered with RAYGUN to bring you a wonderful t-shirt that also raises urgently needed funds for asylum seekers in Iowa. Here's how it will work! You place an order via
this form
, pay in advance using one of the three options listed below and then mid to late June we will deliver the shirt to your home.
Cost per shirt is $20 ($11 is a donation towards Iowa Sanctuary Movement!)
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More Upcoming Meetings & Events
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If you wish to add your virtual event to our calendar,
We do not list rentals, closed groups and committee meetings in this email.
For a FULL list of upcoming meetings and events, click on:
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Every Night | Nightly Zoom Chat & Hangout @
Zoom, 8:00 - 9:00 pm
May 29 | "Everything You Wanted to Know About the Bible but were Afraid to Ask" @
Zoom
, 6:00 - 8:30 pm
June 1 | Monday Night Pagan Social @ Zoom, 7:00 - 8:00 pm
June 4 | Board of Trustees Informal Gathering @
Zoom, 6:00 - 7:00 pm
June 6 | "Everything You Wanted to Know About the Bible but were Afraid to Ask" @
Zoom
, 6:00 - 8:30 pm
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Intercom Weekly Submissions
Deadline: Wednesday @ noon
- In the body of an email, please include a title, relevant dates and times, contact information, and a brief description of your event or announcement.
- Please proofread your article before submitting (or ask a trusted friend to proofread if you need help!) We try to check every article, but we still miss things.
- An image can help make your article stand out! Please feel free to attach an image to your email. (Word or PDF attachments are discouraged.)
- The Intercom Weekly is sent out to our mailing list on Friday at 7:00 am.
- The deadline is Wednesday at noon. Submissions after the deadline cannot be guaranteed a spot in that week's newsletter.
- We run announcements for no more than three consecutive weeks, so please plan accordingly.
- Per church policy, we do not share private email addresses or phone numbers in our communications. We will set up an official looking @ucdsm.org email address for you as the contact person for your group which will automatically forward to your private email, so you won't have to do anything special to view it. (Please allow a few extra days for us to set up the email when you submit your announcement.)
Website and Facebook
Public events are automatically shared to our website, our public Facebook page, and our private Facebook group. All other events and announcements are shared at the discretion of our Communications Coordinator. Please let us know if you would like your event shared or not shared to those three sites.
We've created a single email
[email protected] to have your event added to
both the calendar and the newsletter.
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When you buy from amazon.com, use
this link
and a % of the sale is donated to First Unitarian.
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