NBARC Invitation for HIAS Refugee Shabbat

Date: Saturday, Feb 15

Time: appx 1:00 - 2:15pm

Location: Temple Beth Zion (TBZ) Brookline

1566 Beacon street, Brookline

Occasion: HIAS Refugee Shabbat

As part of the annual HIAS Refugee Shabbat, the Newton Brookline Asylum Resettlement Coalition (NBARC) will host a panel discussion on Keeping our Local Immigrant Communities Safe moderated by Jen Klein, Director of the Immigration Impact Unit at the Committee for Public Counsel Services. Panelists will include Aimee Mayer-Salins, Managing Appeals Attorney at Amica Center for Human Rights, and Marjean Perot, Vice President of Refugee and Immigration Services at Catholic Charities Boston. Other panelists to be announced. Information and resources will be provided. Panelists will reflect on the current situation both nationally and in the Boston area, and how you can help. Please join us!

TBZ also welcomes everyone to attend services and kiddush lunch before the panel discussion as well! TBZ is located at 1566 Beacon St., Brookline, and there is usually plenty of street parking available. Saturday morning services begin at 10 AM, although the central portion of the service starts at 10:30

Bystander Training at First Parish in Wayland

March 9, 2025, 12-2:30pm

First Parish in Wayland is offering an Active Bystander Training on Sunday, March 9th, from 12-2:30. Courtesy of a grant, there is a nominal fee of $10, which may be waived, if needed. We have 60 spaces and this is open to anyone in your congregations or communities. 

We hope this will offer an option for those who are feeling the need to "do something" right now. Register here.

Save and Share These Recommended Vaccinations

The CDC site showing the recommended vaccinations for children has been taken down. If you or folks you know have small children, please download this photo and share it with them.

New Land Acknowledgement for FUUSN Passed by Board of Trustees

At its January 28, 2025 Board of Trustees meeting, the Board passed a land acknowledgement for FUUSN to use as appropriate in worship or community events. This statement was modified from one prepared by local indigenous leaders for the city of Newton's MLK Day ceremony.

FUUSN acknowledges that Newton, Massachusetts is on the traditional homelands of the Eastern Woodland Indigenous Peoples. The indigenous Nations that belong to this land are known as the Aquinnah Wampanoag, Mashpee Wampanoag, Herring Pond Wampanoag, Stockbridge Munsee, NIPMUC Tribe, and all Massachusetts Tribes.  

At FUUSN, we respect and recognize it is a privilege to be living on these lands. We acknowledge the trauma experienced over centuries by the Indigenous peoples that live on these lands and who continue to face injustice. We honor with gratitude those peoples who have stewarded this land through the generations and their ongoing contributions to the region. We also acknowledge that these lands are sacred to generations yet to be born. We will continue to create and build healthy relations with the Indigenous Peoples of these lands. We thank all Indigenous Peoples.

We hope you will use this land acknowledgement at community meetings or events. 

Donations Needed for Rosie's Place

The FUUSN Housing Crisis Committee, organized and headed by FUUSN youth Skye Larson and Emily Riordon, is sponsoring a drive on behalf of Rosie’s Place. We will be collecting donations of items needed by the unhoused women who are Rosie’s Place clients. Please help us provide this small bit of comfort to these women.

The items they are requesting include:

• Personal care items in SMALL (travel) or REGULAR sizes, such as  
• Toothpaste, Toothbrush, Floss
• Deodorant, Soap, Body Wash
• Lip Balm, Face Cream, Hand Lotion
• Shampoo, Conditioner
• Hand Sanitizer, Wipes
• Personal care items – same as above, but FULL-SIZE; and in addition:
• Disposable shaving razors
• Hairbrushes, picks, and combs
• Elastic hair ties

Starting Sunday, February 2nd continuing for 2-3 Sundays, there will be two boxes set out for collection, one in the narthex and one in the parking lot vestibule. Please bring your donations on Sunday (or any time) and leave them in one of the two boxes.

Thank you for helping us offer comfort and dignity to Rosie’s Place clients.

Will you serve as a FUUSN delegate to the General Assembly this year?

We have 7 spots for delegates. Please reach out to RoseAnn Murray if you are interested:  



What: General Assembly on-line or in-person

When: June 18-22, 2025

Where: Baltimore, MD

More information: https://www.uua.org/ga/registration

New Signs Coming to FUUSN

The ad hoc signage committee is delighted to unveil the first of its changes to the external signs at FUUSN - our newly designed triptych. Thank you to all the members of the committee -- Rev. Debra, Laurel Hollman, Denise Joseph, Nathan Persampieri, Gayle Smalley, and especially Marc Kaufman for making our ideas a reality. We will be unveiling additional plans to improve our signage soon. Stay tuned.

Become a Part of Mission: Possible!

Mission Possible! Pledge Drive Kick-off Party takes place on Saturday, March 1st at 7:00pm in the Parish Hall (see Save the Date below). Volunteer to help set up, bring snacks or more. Volunteer: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0949ABA729ABFAC07-54648769-fuusn#/lunteer/)

Email the Pledge team with questions.

Become part of possible as we reach our annual fund drive goal.

Honor a Loved One, Anniversary, or Something Special by Decorating the Chancel

The Chancel in the front of the Sanctuary is decorated for each Sunday service by either the Chancel Art Committee or a member of the FUUSN community with support from the committee. Decorating is creative and fun and there is a wide range of options for flowers and decor that you can purchase or arrange with help from one of the committee members.

Please consider signing up for one or more weeks. This is a gift to the whole community and a beautiful way to honor someone or something meaningful to you. Your contribution will be acknowledged with a message or note that you can write for the order of service for that week.

You can find the sign-up sheet on the bulletin board opposite the FUUSN office or as part of the Sunday Services Roles signup (look for Chancel Decoration).

Call for Summer Services

Summer Sunday services at FUUSN are lay-led and informal, taking place in the Parish Hall and via Zoom. Please let us know if you have:

• Feedback about summer services
• An idea for a summer service that you would like to lead (perhaps to share a personal journey, explore an issue, share some music, consider a favorite thinker)
• An idea about a service that you hope others might lead  

Send ideas and feedback to Curt Lamb or call 617-895-8208.

Food & Plastic: Hearing the Cry of the Earth with Professor Philip Landrigan, MD

February, 6, 2025, 7:30-9pm

Our Lady Help of Christians’ Lower Hall

The Sacred Heart and Our Lady Help of Christians Collaborative Creation Care Team invites you to hear from a global environmental health expert, Professor Philip J. Landrigan, MD, Director of the Program for Global Public Health and the Common Good at Boston College. From 2021 to 2023, Dr. Landrigan chaired the Minderoo-Monaco Commission on Plastics and Human Health, which studied plastics’ impacts on human health and helped shape recommendations for the UN Global Plastics Treaty. Learn More

Parents' Night Out

Friday, February 7, 6-9pm

Member Services and the RE Committee have worked together to offer Parents free childcare for ages 6mo. through 5th grade (6th and 7th graders become helpers) at FUUSN once a month between December and May, starting on December 13.  Reserve space for your kids today and plan that date night (RSVP required)!

Social Action Speaker Lunch: Communities for Restorative Justice - Yael Yaaloz

Sunday, February 9, 2025 at 12pm

“Restorative justice is a process to involve those with a stake in an offense. To collectively identify and address harms, needs and obligations, to heal and put things right."

Everyone is invited for our monthly free lunch after coffee hour in the Alliance Room. Yael Yaaloz will speak about her work as Program Director at Communities for Restorative Justice. Yael works with perpetrators and the community including police officials to keep people out of prison and at the same time begin to heal the hurt cause.

Yael Yaaloz, Program Director at C4RJ, completed her studies in Conflict Resolution and Coexistence as well as a Non-Profit MBA at the Heller School for Social Policy and Management. She is passionate about restorative practice and uses her experience in leadership and peacebuilding to uplift the work of restorative justice moving us toward rehabilitation and away from incarceration.

RSVP so we know how much soup to prepare.  Volunteer to help set up, clean up and prepare lunch.

UU Plant-Based Eating Club Small Group Potluck

Sunday, February 9, 2025 at 6pm

On Sunday, February 9, at 6pm, the UU Plant-Based Eating Club is hosting small-group potluck dinners in members' homes. Participants will enjoy a variety of plant-based foods, share recipe ideas, and discuss topics relating to plant-based eating. Any items brought to the potluck should be free of animal products, including eggs, cheese, dairy and honey. Newcomers are welcome, and recipe assistance will be provided upon request. For further details and to RSVP, go to this Signup Genius page. Please note that small-group potlucks are for Plant-Based Eating Club members only; if you are not a member and would like to join, or are not sure if you are a member, please send an email to UU-Plant-Based-contact-us@googlegroups.com.

Alternative Coffee Hour

Sunday, February 16, 2025, 11:40am

Are you looking for a different way to experience coffee hour? After you grab your coffee, feel free to join a small group (7 or 8) of fellow FUUSNites to discuss topics arising from the service. Just come to the Member Services table and you will be assigned to a group and meeting room at random.

Dinners for 7

February 22, 2025 at 6pm

Dinners for 7 is a great opportunity to socialize with a small group at a member's home. Everyone brings an assigned dish, and the host provides the main dish.

Sign up to host or to attend a dinner.

Any questions, please email Lynne Karlson.

FUUSN Musicians Concert

Sunday, February 23, 2025, 2-4pm

Come and hear the wonderful musicians of the First Unitarian Universalist Society in concert on Sunday, February 23, 2025 at 2pm in the FUUSN Sanctuary. This concert is a fundraiser for the UU Urban Ministry. You’ll hear classical chamber music by pianist Paul Antonucci, cellist Debra Minard, and guitarist Bob MacWilliams. Of course, the intrepid FUUSN Band will be rocking the house. Enjoy the fantastic array of musical styles and moods: a cappella singing, classical works, bluegrass tunes, jazz and more. And we’ll continue our tradition of Cookies at Intermission!

The concert is free and open to the public. Donations will be gratefully accepted for the UU Urban Ministry.

Mission: Possible! Pledge Drive Kick-off Party

Saturday, March 1, 2025, 7pm, Parish Hall

Join us for an extravaganza of musical talent, organized and produced by the intrepid Anne Watson Born! Rumor has it that Rev. Joel will perform – don't miss it!

This year, rather than many small house parties, we are gathering as one fantastic community at a large after-dinner party to kick off our Annual Pledge Drive and showcase the tremendous creativity and talent our community offers. Our music program is just one of the truly extraordinary features of FUUSN that deserve our support, so sit back and enjoy the show as you snack on hors d'oeuvres and desserts created by your fellow FUUSNites. Beer, wine, and soft drinks will be served.

Visit the website for more information!

We need volunteers to make this event a success!

Sign up to volunteer. Bring dessert or help at the event!

Do I need to RSVP?

RSVP here. Suggested but not required.

Become part of possible as we reach our giving goal!

Over 60s Event: How to Tell a True Personal Story

Sunday, March 2, 2025, 11:45am-1:45pm

Telling true personal stories is sharing what it is like to be human. We connect - tellers and listeners - because true heartfelt stories, whether joyful, poignant, or funny, illuminate how we are really all the same. Crafting a personal story can also be a powerful way to find meaning in your life.

Introduction to Storytelling: Open to all!!

On Zoom and in-person attendees in the Alliance Room (zoom link to be posted later).

• A brief introduction on how to craft a true personal story (think the Moth Radio Hour)
• The essential components, techniques for engaging an audience, and the flow of a good tale. Q&A as time permits.
• In conjunction with this workshop, we are inviting a limited number to tell a story for the FUUSN congregation at a March 30th storytelling event on the theme “Lessons From Our Lives.”
• Time permitting at the March 2 workshop, those storytellers are invited to bring a kernel (1 min max) of a story on the event theme to get some guidance from Linda in crafting your story.
• Limit around 6 story tellers for the planned storytelling event on March 30th.
• If you’re interested in telling a story to the congregation on March 30th, please send an email to Judy Friedman by February 22nd.

Your Presenter/Teacher: Linda Grosser is a storyteller, teacher, and producer. Her passion for storytelling began after careers in academia and the corporate world. She is an award-winning storyteller and has told stories at The Moth, Club Passim, and GBH "Stories from The Stage", to name a few. She loves photography, travel, being with family and friends, and doing (almost) anything outdoors. Linda lives in Arlington, MA. Check out her photos on Instagram @LindaTakesPix. 

We hope to see you on March 2, 2025, 11:45 – 1:45 pm! A light lunch will be served at 11:30 am. Alliance Room.

Eleuthera Trio Concert at FUUSN

Saturday, March 8, 2025, 3pm

The Eleuthera Trio, a Boston area-based piano trio (Lois Shapiro, piano, Francine Trester, violin & Julie Reimann, cello), will perform at 3pm on Saturday March 8th, 2025, at First Unitarian Universalist Society in Newton. The concert benefits the PKD Foundation, a nonprofit organization dedicated to finding treatments and a cure for polycystic kidney disease (PKD), a genetic disorder that results in kidney failure requiring transplant for survival. This concert is in memory of Trio member Lois Shapiro's brother Paul Steven Shapiro (1947-1981), who died from PKD. We hope you will join us for an afternoon of music and community.

Tickets and Details - The program includes the Poulenc Trio, Mozart Kegelstatt Trio, and Dvorak Dumky Trio. Admission is free, although donations to the PKD Foundation are gratefully accepted and can be made to reserve tickets online or at the door.