In August, we're sharing our offering with Kirkwood Area Every Child Promise (KAEChP).

Learn more about KAEChP.

Here’s how you can give:

Children ages birth-7th grade can be registered here.

Youth in 8th-12th grade can be registered here.

If you have any questions about registration, please contact Scott Stewart at scott@eliotchapel.org.

At 11:30 am on Sunday, you are invited to “walk down the hall” and come to our Zoom Coffee Hour! We’ll take about 10 minutes or so to gather and let people settle in. We'll say a few words of welcome and then create break-out rooms – random groupings of 5 or 6 people. Everyone will likely make a new friend at Eliot from this exercise! You’ll have the chance to introduce yourself and then share your answers to a few questions, like “How has this week been for you?” and “What feelings has it brought up for you?” Each person has about 5 minutes to speak; you are welcome to pass if you like. In half an hour, everyone will return to the big group and we’ll say our goodbyes for the week. Please watch your email for "Eliot on Zoom" which will include a link to join the Zoom coffee hour. If you're not on our mailing list, sign up here.

Vigil for Hope & Healing – 6:00 pm in front of Eliot

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 Richard and Dianne Wagner and their family. Richard's mother Audrey Wagner passed away at the age of 94 on August 5, 2021. A small memorial will be held on August 31.

Please remember the Mani family. Mory Mani's brother, Moji Mani, died in Isfahan, Iran, on August 8, 2021. He was 63. He contracted the coronavirus while visiting his daughter in the hospital to celebrate the birth of her firstborn. The vaccine is not available to the masses in Iran, and so he was not able to be vaccinated. The Mani family now joins the 700,000+ others who mourn the loss of someone they loved – and who loved the world, and contributed to it, as long as he could.

Eliot takes considerable pride in how hard we work to keep children, youth, and the entire Chapel community as safe as possible. All Eliot members and friends are encouraged to familiarize themselves with the updated 2021-22 Safe Congregation Policy. The most recently updated version was finalized in July 2021. The policy is reviewed annually for updates and additions.

Please join us in celebrating our staff!

Thank you! We appreciate all you do to enrich our Eliot community!

Eliot's Ride Team is there for those unable to drive who may need a ride to Sunday services, a medical appointment, or another service. This is a simple way to care for each other. All drivers will need to provide a copy of their drivers license and insurance card for a driving check. Drivers can request that those you provide rides for are vaccinated. We ask that both driver and passenger are masked. Your safety and security are important. If this might be the volunteer opportunity for you, email ktaves@eliotchapel.org. 

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. There were no changes 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.

All are welcome; wearing a mask is required as is maintaining the 6-foot social distancing guideline. Please remember that the building is not open so there are no available restrooms. 

The Grief Group, led by Rev. Krista Taves, meets every other Thursday on Zoom from 6:30 to 8:00 pm. The next meeting will be Thursday, September 2. This is an open group for anyone who is grieving and needs a place to talk and connect. People in this group are in various stages of grief, from very recent to years later, so be prepared for a wide range and strength of emotions and thoughts. We strive to hold each person in their own unique experience of grief. From August to March, we will be reading Holding Space: On Loving, Dying and Letting Go by Amy Wright Glenn, a Unitarian Universalist hospital chaplain, birth doula, and Kripalu Yoga teacher; each session will be devoted to a chapter and guiding questions provided ahead of time to shape our conversation. The book is available on Amazon. If the cost is prohibitive to attending, please contact Rev. Krista at ktaves@eliotchapel.org. You may join the class at any time. Each session is self-standing. Contact Rev. Krista to be added to the reminder email.  

Everything is always in constant flux but these days feel particularly challenging, as change seems to unfold at such a frantic pace. Today’s service, using the powerful concepts of Earthseed from the novel Parable of the Sower by the late author Octavia Butler, invites us to find meaning and maybe even hope when we embrace change as holy.