Rev. Patricia Hart and Rev. David Ruffin with Betsy Ferries
“Bridging Together”
This Sunday is Bridging Sunday, and we invite you to please join us for the return of this special annual tradition back to the Meeting House! We will be honoring graduating high school seniors within our community, and ritually celebrating this significant transition in their lives. As we welcome them into community, anew, as young adults, we also have the chance to remember how we are all, always, traversing bridges into new futures. What does it mean to bridge into a life of bridging? And what is the difference when we are bridging together?
Join us for worship in person in the Sanctuary, or online. The livestream link and order of service will be shared at bit.ly/FUUSBWorship, or visit our YouTube channel.
After the service, all are welcome to Coffee Hour, either outside in front of the Meeting House or in the Community Room, depending on weather.
While at the Meeting House, anyone is welcome to wear a mask. In the spirit of caring for each other, please stay home if you have any cold or flu symptoms. Thank you.
Children & Youth This Sunday!
Erika Reif, Director of Lifespan Faith Development
Sunday, May 21
Families will begin in the Sanctuary together, taking part in the Bridging Ceremony for high school seniors. Children will be invited to leave for slightly abbreviated classes halfway through the service: Nursery for Preschool and younger, Funday with games and crafts for K-4th, and Crossing Paths for 5th-8th.
Meet the Budget:
A Conversation with Your Board
Hope Baker-Carr, Board President
The Board of Trustees will be holding its last open Conversation this Sunday, May 21 at 11:30 a.m. in the Parlors. The focus of this meeting will be the recommended budget for the upcoming fiscal year which begins on July 1. This is the budget that will be voted on at the Annual Meeting on June 12. Christina Fulton, members of the Finance Team, and members of the Board will be there to explain and answer your questions about it. If time permits, the Board will welcome questions on other topics as well. Please join us.
W3: UU History Workshop - Final Session
Rev. Peter Newport
Sunday, May 21, 12:30-2:00 p.m.
In 1897 Paul Gauguin, during his sojourn in Tahiti, painted a huge piece called Where did we come from? What are we? Where are we going? There’s also a hymn by that name in our hymn book. We sing it with some regularity. It has always puzzled me how we seem to enjoy its wan existential message, the more so since we do know where we come from, biologically, historically and theologically anyway; we are just careless with that memory, preferring instead a salutary narrative that hides more than it reveals.
Sessions one and two addressed the questions "Where did we come from?" and "Where are we going?" Join us for:
Session 3, Where Where Are We Going? We will be joined by Rev. Tricia as we learn how Unitarianism got to this continent; The First Great Awakening; the Antinomians and the Armenians; the 1805 Unitarian Controversy; and the formation of the American Unitarian Association in 1827.
Please find the full listing, registration and Zoom link here.
Celebrate Rev. Tricia on Sunday, June 11!
Jonathan Sands, Transition Team
Join us in a celebration of Rev. Tricia’s ministry on Sunday, June 11, at 11:15 a.m. in the Sanctuary. The celebration will follow her final worship service as our Developmental Senior Minister. There will be songs, tributes, gifts, videos, and messages from special guests, as we give thanks for Rev. Tricia and her ministry. Childcare will be available during this time.
The celebration will culminate in a potluck picnic lunch on the front lawn, starting at 12:30 p.m. (In case of rain, the picnic will move to the Community Room.) Please click this link to sign up to bring something yummy for the potluck.
You are also invited to contribute to a special memory book for Rev. Tricia, by submitting a plain 4”x5” card (available in the Parlors or use one of your own) and dropping it in box in the Parlors or mailing it to FUUSB. (Please see the instructions on the requested format.)
We look forward to celebrating with you on June 11!
FUUSB's Memorial Day Holiday Schedule
Sunday, May 28 - Online Worship Service
Join us for a special online worship service on May 28 at 10 a.m.! The service will be pre-recorded and we will not have in-person worship, to help everyone avoid the traffic and street closings during the Vermont City Marathon in Burlington. The video link and order of service will be shared on our website at bit.ly/FUUSBWorship, or visit our YouTube channel.
Monday, May 29 - Memorial Day Holiday
In observance of the holiday, FUUSB offices will be closed on May 29.
Online Joys & Sorrows Form
If you would like to share a joy or sorrow, we invite you to fill out our online Joys & Sorrows form, available at this link, and in each week's eNews.
We expect the Joys & Sorrows book to return in the fall.
Joys & Sorrows are shared in Sunday worship services as much as possible. Since our live-streamed services are available publicly on the FUUSB YouTube channel, we will not read full names or personal details.
Thank you!
In Memoriam
Christina Fulton, Director of Operations & Finance
It is with great sorrow we share the passing of Gale Holden. Gale was the Property Manager at FUUSB and lived in Clarke Street House for over 20 years. Gale practiced Radical Welcoming at FUUSB long before the term was heard of. She welcomed everyone to the building and grounds, made sure people who needed food had it, and encouraged everyone to use our grounds as their park.
Gale taught me so much about how to care for our building. She made sure that I knew how to reset the boilers, where to find the many hidden treasures in our building, how to run the dishwasher, etc. You name it, she knew how to do it. When I started, the entire Society calendar was kept in Gale's head, and she welcomed every group when they came to the building. At night, she'd walk over from her home at Clarke Street in her pj's to lock up the building.
Gale was also an excellent example of taking care of yourself. She took me golfing with her on Friday mornings. No keeping score, that made it not fun, she said. And after golf, we went out for breakfast at the Grand Isle Ferry. Gale would give you the shirt off her back if you needed it, without hesitation.
Gale Holden, age 82, of Burlington, Vermont, passed away on May 6, 2023, peacefully with her family by her side. Gale resided at Burlington Health and Rehab. A full obituary and service arrangements will be shared at a later date.
Upcoming Worship Services
May 28 at 10 am
Memorial Day
Online Worship Service
Rev. Patricia Hart
Special pre-recorded service! We will not have in-person worship, so everyone can avoid the marathon's street closings.