This Week and More at Cedars

The Beacon

A weekly email newsletter from

Cedars Unitarian Universalist Church

Serving Bainbridge Island and Northern Kitsap County

Volume 16 Issue 11/ March 13, 2025

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This Week At Cedars

Sunday Service, March 16

10:00 am

Spiritual Life as an Ecotone

Dr. Jennifer Wilhoit, PhD. D., Guest Speaker

Mike Cox, Worship Associate

This talk will focus on the potent inner/outer landscape: the intersection between who we feel we are internally and how we behave in the world. As areas of confluence in the natural world, ecotones are especially rich in biodiversity. Viewing ecotones as a concept, we can begin to apply their value in human contexts – in particular, to guide us in how we conceive of our spiritual lives and how we enact that out in the world as inextricably interconnected ecological beings in the web of life.

Jennifer J. Wilhoit, Ph.D. is a Spiritual Ecologist, published author, interfaith practitioner, hospice volunteer, and the founder of TEALarbor stories. She compassionately supports people’s creative and healing processes by drawing from nature’s wisdom. Jennifer is a long-time active member of the global compassion, interfaith, and gratitude movements. www.tealarborstories.com

Childcare will be offered during this service. Click HERE for details.

Tuesday, March 16

***Spring Clothing Swap

***12:00- 2:30 pm

***Filipino American Hall

***Please see below for more details

Wednesday, March 19

***Meditation Group

***5:30 - 6:30 pm

***Cedars Center

***Please see below for more details

Saturday, March 22

***Spiritual Odyssey Potluck

***12:00-2:00 pm

***Cedars Center

***Please see below for more details

View detailed calendar here.

Upcoming Service

Sunday Service, March 23

10:00 am

Through the Storm: Finding Light in Life's Changes

Rev. Kate Lore, Guest Minister

Nancy Philip, Worship Associate

We ALL face challenging changes and losses in our lives--whether it be a change in our health, the loss of a loved one, or the evaporation of a dream. And every time we face such changes, we are offered a powerful spiritual choice.

Rev. Kate Lore is a Unitarian Universalist minister known for her work in social justice and community ministry. She has served in various roles, including as a Minister of Social Justice at First Unitarian Church in Portland, Oregon and Senior Minister at Quimper UU Fellowship in Port Townsend, WA. Her ministry often focuses on progressive causes, advocating for marginalized communities and addressing issues like racial justice, LGBTQ+ rights, and immigration. Rev. Lore is also a speaker and writer, frequently sharing insights on the intersection of spirituality and social activism.

Childcare will be offered during this service. Click HERE for details.

News and Announcements

Spiritual Odyssey Potlucks!

At our last gathering on Saturday, February 22, at the Cedars Center, fifteen Cedars members and friends joined Keri Schmit and Rick Blythe via Zoom from Abu Dhabi, U.A.E. to hear about their experiences while living in the Middle East. Our next potluck will be on March 22, from noon to 2:00 pm at the Cedars Center when Rebecca Kim will share her personal spiritual journey. These monthly presentations are informal and are a great way to get to know others at Cedars! Please contact Johanna Munson (johanna.munson7@gmail.com) to indicate your interest in attending.

Ministerial Search Committee Update

The search committee is now reviewing applications as they come in through the system. Our hope is to find a suitable match with a minister later this spring. If you have any questions about the search process, please reach out to one of the search committee members, Herb Hethcote, Jeff Philip, Patricia Erdmann, Liz Motter, Naomi Gary, or Rod Kempkes.

Community Events

Fishline Volunteer Opportunity

Because Fishline is serving more and more families, they have added two Shop & Share Sunday Food Drives each month to make more resources available for Fishline visitors. Our Social Action committee hopes that there are six of us willing to volunteer on Sunday, April 6. Find more information HERE.

Spring Clothing Swap

ReFashion will host the Spring Clothing Swap on March 16 from 12:00 -2:30 pm at Filipino American Hall. You can find more information HERE.

Ongoing Programs

Meditation Group

Join us for meditation practice on Wednesdays from 5:30 to 6:30 pm at the Cedars Center. We will use mindfulness or Vipassana Meditation audio recordings from the Insight Meditation Center in Redwood City. For questions, please contact Sandy Spears at sandy.spears@att.net.

Childcare on Sunday Mornings!

Good news! We're now offering childcare for families with young children during our Sunday services! If you know a family that hasn't been able to attend on Sundays because of a lack of childcare, please tell them about this!

We look forward to welcoming some new faces that otherwise wouldn't be able to be with us on Sunday mornings!

For details about how childcare will be provided, click HERE.

Cedars on Social Media

Cedars now has a podcast! We will be posting our Sunday Services on Spotify HERE, on the Apple Podcast app HERE, on Amazon Music HERE, and on iHeartRadio HERE for easier access to our audio recordings. Our podcast is called “Sunday Mornings at Cedars.”

We are also now on Instagram! Find us HERE.

And as usual, find us on our Church Facebook page HERE and our Community Facebook page HERE.

Be sure to “Like” us and “Follow” us on each one!

You can also still find audio recordings of our Services on our website HERE.

Super Supper and Community Kitchen Sign-Ups

Cedars, in partnership with Kol Shalom as members of the Bainbridge Island Interfaith Council, offers Super Supper dinners on the last Tuesday of each month. We have a regular sign-up for you to use each month to provide various dishes and to assist with setup, serving, and cleanup, so that all in our congregation have a chance to participate. You can find the sign-up for Super Suppers HERE.

Cedars is also committed to leading the preparation and serving of a free meal to anyone in the community every other month through the Suquamish Community Kitchen. These meals require many helping hands to prepare, serve, and clean up. Please consider signing up HERE for one of the team member roles on the upcoming date, Wednesday, May 14.

For more information, contact Mike Cox at 206-799-3725. or toxman57@gmail.com or Rod Kempkes at rdkempkes@gmail.com.

Beacon Article Deadline

The new deadline for submitting content for The Beacon is now Mondays by the end of the day. If you would like to add an article, please send it to the Cedars Office at Office@cedarsuuchurch.org.

Cedars Facebook Conversations

If you're on Facebook, there is a new Facebook group called Cedars UU Church Community Conversations for members and friends to share events, fun stories, etc. Let's keep the coffee hour going all week long! Join the group HERE.

Cedars UU Church is a

Welcoming Congregation

and Green Sanctuary

Our Congregational Mission

Worship with open hearts

Nurture a learning spirit

Serve justice with compassion

Love without judgment

Print the Beacon Newsletter

The Beacon is available to download and print each week. Go to www.cedarsuuchurch.org. The newest issue is available on the Cedars website under News after 12:00 p.m. on Fridays.

Member Directory

Members and Friends can easily search our online Church Directory for contact information. The link is located under the Connection Tab of the Cedars website and here.