UUCSC News and Updates
Weekly on Fridays
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Unitarian Universalist Congregation of South County, RI
All are welcome!
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UUCSC does not presently have a minister. If you are in need of pastoral services please contact any member of the Pastoral Care Committee. Rev. Betty Kornitzer, UUCSC Minister Emerita, is working with the committee and if professional ministerial support is needed, she will be called in. Please do not contact the Minister directly.
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This Sunday, November 21, 2021 |
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10:00 AM In-person
“A Season of Gratitude: for the Land We Live on; the Family and Friends
we Connect With; and the Acts of Kindness We Give and Receive.”
Though we are "singing from the heart" during services, we are still encouraged to read from our hymnals if we wish. Please pick yours up when you come in, and return it to its shelf when you leave.
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“A Season of Gratitude: for the Land We Live on; the Family and Friends we Connect With; and the Acts of Kindness We Give and Receive.”
Johnette Rodriguez
While acknowledging that this American holiday grew out of myths about the earliest encounters between the Native Americans on this land and the English colonists and while acknowledging that this land we live on was taken by force and by centuries of violent oppression, I think it’s going to be hard to change something that is so ingrained in family traditions. While there are many, many families in this country who don’t celebrate Christmas, they may still consider Thanksgiving as a kind of harvest festival/get-together and a time of sharing gratitude.
Could UUCSC members and friends consider these questions: What in nature makes you the most grateful? Who among your family or friends is your favorite to re-connect with at this time of year? And…what acts of kindness are you most grateful for? I will ask for answers on Sunday; if you won’t be present, you can email me your answers.
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Gratitude Flags
Last year at this time some of us stopped by our closed building and decorated gratitude flags. These flags fluttered in the wind together on the front ramp for many months. They were a beautiful reminder that we are still a loving community even when we are apart and of all we have to be grateful for.
So we are going to add to that line this year! Come decorate a flag this Sunday and let your gratitude fly out into the world.
We will bring supplies around to the front of the building so that any adults who wish to can make a flag after service as well!
Lee Cowan, Director of Religious Education
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Good News!!
I have some very exciting news to share. Rev. Denis Paul has agreed to join us in our spiritual journey at UUCSC. The past three weeks have been very interesting and quite illuminating as we discussed what a ministry could be, what shared ministry could look like, where we are now as a congregation and where we might like to go. Rev. Denis met with the staff, the board, the worship and pastoral care committees and Rev. Betty.
Rev. Denis most recently served at East Shore UU Church in Kirtland, Ohio, outside of Cleveland. After almost a decade there he and his husband decided to relocate to the east coast and they moved to Easton, MA in August. Having been born in CT and receiving a degree from RISD, Rev. Denis has many ties here. His husband is the interim minister at the UU Fellowship of Falmouth, on the Cape. See Rev. Denis’ full resume here.
Bear in mind that a short-term ministerial position like this is usually negotiated by the board with a conversation between the minister and the board chair. The fact that Rev. Denis was eager to learn so much about us and willing to address any reservations that he had speaks volumes about his character in my book. We still have many contract details to work out and I will let you know when those are finalized. Hopefully he will be starting with us on December 1st. BTW his name is pronounced "de-NEE" as in “de knee bone's connected to the thigh bone.”
With much joy, anticipation, and peace in my heart,
Elizabeth
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Jonnycake Center
Hope for the Holidays
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Jonnycake Center is collecting donations of clothing, toys and gift cards to give to local families for the holidays. UUCSC will be collecting donations in the front lobby to help with their effort. Look for the tree decorated with gift tags! Take a gift tag home as a reminder to buy a gift; then bring it to UUCSC unwrapped before Dec. 8th. This is a joint project by RE and the Economic Justice Committee.
Submitted by DRE Lee Cowan and Mary Fulton.
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Become involved at your level of interest and availability.
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UUCSC Anti-racism Group
Monday, November 22, 2021, 7:00 PM
The UUCSC Anti-Racism Group, facilitated by Penny Hall, meets via Zoom every 2nd and 4th Monday. Cathy Solomon will be summarizing the Marco McWilliams' Teach-in on Critical Race Theory and local historical truths that was sponsored by SURJ and TASK last week. Any member or friend of the congregation is welcome and invited to attend as we work to undo racism in ourselves, our families, schools, communities, and government.
Zoom links are also available on the UUCSC Calendar, which is
Submitted by Penny Hall, Racial Justice
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Share the Plate Report
In person worship services feed our collective spirits in many ways, including our commitment to helping the community. Your generosity to our Share the Plate ministry is appreciated. Thank you.
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In May, June, and July, the UUCSC collected $309.51 in designated donations to AMOR, to which was added $123 from deposits made for a trip to Puerto Rico that did not happen, to bring our total Share the Plate donation to AMOR to $422.51.
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In the Months of August, September and October, the UUCSC collected $674.26 for Habitat for Humanity South County.
Submitted by Barbara Beckwith, Chairperson
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Adult Education and Experience |
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Submissions for this column may be made directly to the newsletter editor or to me. Please include Newsletter Adult Ed in the subject line.
Barbara Holtzman, Chair
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Exploring interdependence as a path to wholeness
in UU theology and practice. Details and registration HERE.
From the UUA Newsletter
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AWAY FROM HOME:
AMERICAN INDIAN BOARDING SCHOOL STORIES
Traveling Museum Exhibition now through Jan 7th, 2022
Tuesday - Saturday | 10AM - 4 PM
(Admission is free, donations are appreciated.)
URI University Club | 95 Upper College Rd | Kingstown, RI
Click HERE for info about parking.
From Tomaquag Museum News
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The film is available for free online viewing at home with family and friends, Now – Dec 2.
Submitted by Betsy Dalton
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Book Discussion Group for Finding the Mother Tree by Suzanne Simard to start in January - facilitated by Larry Kelland. Details about the book and how to join are HERE.
Submitted by Larry Kelland
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An Urgent Call to Action
The South Kingstown Schools BIPOC Advisory Board, which changed its name last May to the Beloved Community Advisory Board, has been meeting for over a year to draft an Anti-Racism, Anti-Discrimination, Anti-Harassment Policy, and the South Kingstown School Committee had given it a “first read” when we were stopped in our tracks by Nicole Solas and her followers. Yes, she who put in 260 requests for information in 3 weeks to the School Department (a nationwide tactic) and got herself on Fox News.
So….School Committee members resigned over threats to their family; Paula Whitford became chair, and recently, she’d been telling us that she wanted to change the language in the policy. On Monday night, she said she’d leave it alone, because she had finally been convinced by letters and conversations with members of our BCAB that no matter what you do to the language, the “Truth-deniers" won’t want the policy to pass. And she’s bringing it to the full School Committee next Tuesday night, November 23rd, 6 p.m., SK High School cafeteria.
So…WE must turn out — everyone you’ve ever known who has stood up for Racial Justice. Plus…it’s so close to Thanksgiving that many of the recent SK grads will be home and we must work hard to turn them out as well.
Get all that Thanksgiving cooking done early and get to that School Committee. PLEASE. This is our chance to prove that South Kingstown can do what Westerly and North Kingstown did — beat back the forces of bigotry and white supremacy and keep TRYING to make a better world for EVERYONE!
Submitted by Johnnie Rodriguez
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Furniture Needed for Afghan Refugees |
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If anyone has furniture to donate to the Afghan refugees, Cappri Emergency Services will arrange to pick up those items that they can use.
If you have a large item that needs a truck, please send a picture of it with your name, address, phone number, and email address to Ascension at CAPPRI Emergency Services <emergencyservices@cappri.org>
Submitted by Barbara Holtzman
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Participants Sought To Reduce Food Waste,
Improve Food Access
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Submitted by Mary Fulton, Economic Justice
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Your search for truth and meaning begins here.
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How to Submit Info to This Newsletter |
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Send announcements and news with Newsletter Item in the subject line to Etta Zasloff, Editor, at zasloff.etta@gmail.com by Tuesday Noon
to assure publication by Friday of that week.
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