A Unitarian Universalist Church | 1800 Bell Ave. Des Moines, IA 50315

P: 515-244-8603

What is Spiritual Growth?

with Rev. Garmon

Our mission is to grow ethically and spiritually. The sermon on Sep. 24th explored some of what ethically growing can be about. This week, we turn to the other part: what does it mean to "grow spiritually"?

Zoom may not be available for this event. Please consider forming a volunteer Team.

Join the live service on Zoom!

Zoom Passcode: Safford

(Please mute your mic before the service begins!)

Joys & Sorrows for Sunday should be submitted by noon on Wednesday.

Visit the Caring Community Webpage for the following options:

• Caring Ministry – for temporary assistance, such as meals or rides, or to volunteer (515-244-8603 ext. 108)
• Pastoral care - for support through a difficult time

Barb Glass is the Pastoral Care Associate available for this service time. Please email pastoralcareteam@ucdsm.org for assistance during the week.

NEWS THIS WEEK

Coffee with the Board

Sunday, October 29th at 8:30 a.m.

Sacred Bridges CUUPS: Samhain

Tuesday, October 31 from 6:30-10:30 p.m.

Join us for Our Annual Samhain Ritual!

Date: October 31st

Time: Gather at 6:30 PM

Ritual: Starts at 7:00 PM

Meet: In Griffin Hall at First Unitarian Church of Des Moines

As the leaves fall and the veil between the worlds thins, we invite you to our annual Samhain ritual to honor our ancestors, celebrate the turning of the Wheel of the Year, and embrace the magick of this sacred time.

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First Unitarian Music & Art Festival

Saturday, November 4th from 5:00-7:30 p.m.

Save the Date for a Fun Fall Festival

Saturday, November 4th from 5:00 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. at the Church

Plan now to attend the First Unitarian Music & Art Festival (FUMAF)

This year's event will include:

• Potluck meal
• Music throughout the evening
• Art Items available for silent and live auction
• Activities for children

We will have a variety of artwork and creative pieces. You are welcome to donate up to three items - paintings, photographs, mixed media, ceramic sculpture, handmade jewelry, weavings, embroidery and other handwork, knit items, woodworking, and everything else you do creatively! The more items we have, the more fun everyone will have. Proceeds support our church!

New this year!

We plan to include children's and youth's artwork in the auction. If you have children or know children in the church, please encourage their parents to consider participating.

We could love to have you join us in planning & hosting this fun evening. Please email fumaf@ucdsm.org with questions and offers to assist! You may also reach out to Liz Bredeson or Heidi Lackmann directly.

Submissions to the Intercom Weekly are due on Wednesday at 12 noon.

Two ways to get your message across: 

1. Submit your Intercom Weekly article to communications@ucdsm.org.
2. Want more of a "boost?" Select from an entire menu of communications using Our Events form! Staff LOVES to receive these forms!

Zoom Help Needed

We are looking for 3-4 people to co-host Sunday services via Zoom. It would be best to have computer skills and a laptop with HDMI.

Please contact Bill Paxson if you have an interest in getting trained.

AVTeam@ucdsm.org

Church Cleaning

Do you appreciate having a clean church?

If so, your help is needed in keeping the building clean. Every Saturday a crew of volunteers cleans the church. We will continue to clean the church until funds are available to hire cleaning staff.

Please sign up to help!

Progressive Voices Concerts

NEW SEASON

Starting October 14, 2023

The Progressive Voices Concert Series is returning for its 13th season at First Unitarian Church!

This season's lineup of nationally and internationally-touring singer-songwriters includes both some past favorites and new faces to our stage:

Jack Williams -- October 14, 2023,  http://www.jackwilliamsmusic.com/

Mean Mary -- November 11, 2023,  http://www.meanmary.com/

Rupert Wates -- December 16, 2023,  http://rupertwatesmusic.com/

Triflemore -- February 17, 2024, http://www.triflemore.com/

The Honey Dewdrops -- April 13, 2024, http://www.thehoneydewdrops.com/

Annie Mack -- May 18, 2024, https://anniemackmusic.com/home

Where/When: All shows start at 7:30 p.m. in the First Unitarian Church auditorium. 

Tickets:

• Single Tickets: $22 Advance /$27 Door
• Season Tickets:4 Shows: $78, 6 Shows $117

Tickets available soon online at www.eventbrite.com. Tickets are also available in person at church after services the four Sundays before each concert.

More information is also available online at www.ucdsm.org/concerts.

Email questions to concerts@ucdsm.org.

Mean Mary:

Progressive Voices Concert

Saturday, November 11th at 7:30 p.m.

• Location: First Unitarian Church Auditorium
• Questions: concerts@ucdsm.org

Music Video: "Another Barefoot Day" 

• Single Tickets: $22 Advance, $27 Door
• Season Tickets: 4 Shows for $78, 6 Shows for $117
• Available online at Eventbrite (https://pvconcerts.eventbrite.com/) or Sunday at church after services the 4 Sundays before each show.

Nashville-based “Mean Mary” James has been performing since she was a small child, even learning to read music before she learned to read books. Now her decades multi-genre music spanning 18 albums showcases an incredible vocal range and mastery of 11 instruments that will be sure wow you. More about Mean Mary at https://www.meanmary.com/

A limited number of complimentary tickets for this concert are available for those otherwise unable to afford to attend. Please speak confidentially with our minister, Meredith Garmon, to obtain them.

 For a full list of upcoming meetings and events, please visit our church calendar.

Highlights from the October Board Meeting

Highlights from the October Board Meeting: The Ad-Hoc Committee on the Budget proposed a series of revised budget line-items to the Board. Included in the proposal is restoration of funding for social justice partners (i.e. AMOS), a provision of custodial services, restoration of the music budget and more. Next steps are being taken to adopt the revisions.

Secondly: First Unitarian is seeking a part-time AV position to provide reliable AV service on Sunday mornings (including Forum) and building rentals.

Please join us for coffee with the Board on Sunday, October 29th at 8:30 a.m. (in-person). Our next Board meeting is November 16, 2023 at 6:00 p.m. (in-person and on Zoom).

Community Ministry and Minister at Our Congregation

One Earth Conservation

Community Ministers are Unitarian Universalist ministers whose primary ministry is outside of the congregation, although they are affiliated with a congregation. It’s a two-way street where the minister supports the congregation’s mission and the congregation supports the minister’s specific work in the community. This work can be chaplaincy, counseling, community organizing, or work with nonprofits, (to name just a few). Our congregation now has a community minister, the Rev. Dr. LoraKim Joyner. She is a wildlife veterinarian, Unitarian Universalist minister, Certified Trainer in Nonviolent Communication, and Co-director of One Earth Conservation. She travels a great deal to the many projects her organization oversees currently in 7 Central and South American countries, and spends time writing and fulfilling leadership rolls wherever parrots and people interconnect. Currently the Board is refining a covenant with her and we hope to develop a formal policy for Community Ministry in the future. As the spouse of our Interim Ministers, Rev. Meredith Garmon, her time with us is limited to under two years, so she and UCDSM hope to make the best of our time together.

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Holiday Flowers

Our Faith In Action partners are Iowa Trans Mutual Aid Fund and The Freestore. If you would like to donate to Faith in Action partners, please donate directly to them through the links provided.

If you would like to donate to the Freestore, click here.

If you would like to donate to the Iowa Trans Mutual Aid Fund, click here. 

In addition to providing monetary donations for our Faith in Action partners, one of the goals of this committee is to improve relationships through volunteer events that support the organizations. We will announce events that church members can be involved with in the coming months.

Freestore

Our Champion is Mike Smith

Iowa Trans Mutual Aid Fund

Our Champion is Doug Aupperle

Rev. Meredith Garmon, Interim Minister

mgarmon@ucdsm.org

515-244-8603 ext. 102

cell: 352-682-8492

Alice J. Stewart, Director of Finance & Administration

director@ucdsm.org

515-244-8603 ext. 101

Mondays: by appointment

Tuesdays – Thursdays: 9 a.m. – 5 p.m.

Fridays: by appointment

Zoom meetings available upon request

Birch Spick, Faith Formation Coordinator

& Congregational Life Coordinator

FFOffice@ucdsm.org

CLOffice@ucdsm.org

515-244-8603 ext. 103

Off Mondays

Tuesday - Friday: 10 a.m. - 3 p.m.

Hannah Notch, Office Manager & Childcare Coordinator

hnotch@ucdsm.org

515-244-8603 ext. 107

Tuesday - Friday: 1:00 - 5:00 pm

To have an event or meeting added to the church calendar, email Hannah at calendar@ucdsm.org

Faithyna Leonard, Communications & Rental Coordinator

fleonard@ucdsm.org

515-244-8603 ext. 106

Available by appointment only

Intercom Weekly Submissions

Deadline: Wednesday @ 12 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. (JPG or PNG files are preferred.) Note: images that violate copyright laws will be rejected.

• The Intercom Weekly is sent out to our mailing list on Friday at 12:00 p.m.

• 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 @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.)

Please email communications@ucdsm.org to submit your information.