The Accessibility and Inclusion Task Force recognizes an unmet need for people with disabilities who wish to participate in buffet gatherings in Fellowship Hall.  For instance, it may be difficult for people who are uncomfortable in crowds to participate or for those who use a cane, walker, or wheelchair to navigate Fellowship Hall with a plate of food and/or beverage in hand. To meet that need during our Vespers Tea this year, the Task Force decorated the classroom closest to Fellowship Hall and provided platters of food and beverages. Judy Savage and several youth graciously volunteered to run between the classroom and Fellowship Hall to offer assistance as needed. We had hoped to make this accommodation known to everyone before the event and would like to know if this is something you would like to see us do in the future. Please offer your feedback to any member of the Accessibility and Inclusion Task Force: Dianne Mann (Chair), Susan Crossley, Jan Cutman, Beau Rivers, Judy Savage, Sharon Templeman, or Joan Webster. 

Please come join in this unique exercise program that is designed to help bring the body, mind and spirit into harmony. We will also be exploring nonverbal communication with others through movement. Please wear loose comfortable clothing.  Any questions call Joe Zawielski at 508 826 3194   

Following up on the excellent reception of the video "The Wilderness Journey" about the challenges associated with the black empowerment movement within the Unitarian Universalist Association, UUCW will host the three-part PBS documentary series "Race: The Power of an Illusion"** that explores where the idea of "race" comes from.  Join us in this important series of videos and discussion with members and friends of UUCW and the wider community as we strive toward a more just society

The series will air at the following times and dates:

 7:00 - 9:00 pm  April 1st  -  Episode 1: The Difference Between Us -  "examines how recent scientific discoveries have toppled the concept of biological race. The program follows a dozen diverse students who sequence and compare their own DNA. They discover, to their surprise, that their closest genetic matches are as likely to be with people from other "races" as their own. The episode helps us understand why it doesn't make scientific or genetic sense to sort people into biological races, as it dismantles our most basic myths about race, including natural superiority and inferiority."*

 7:00 - 9:00 pm  April 15th - Episode 2: The Story We Tell - "uncovers the roots of the race concept, including the 19th-century science that legitimated it and the hold it has gained over our minds. It's an eye-opening tale of how America's need to defend slavery in the face of a radical new belief in freedom and equality led to a full-blown ideology of white supremacy. Noting the experience of Cherokee Indians, the U.S. war against Mexico and annexation of the Philippines, the film shows how definitions of race excluded from humanity not only Black people, but anyone who stood in the way of American expansion. The program traces the transformation of tentative suspicions about difference into a "common-sense" wisdom that people used to explain everything from individual behavior to the fate of whole societies, an idea of race that persists to this day."*

 7:00 - 9:00 pm  April 29th - Episode 3: The House We Live In -  "focuses not on individual behaviors and attitudes, but on how our institutions shape and create race, giving different groups vastly unequal life chances. Who defines race? In the early 20th century, the courts were called upon to determine who was white, employing contradictory logic to maintain the color line. After World War II, government policies and subsidies helped create segregated suburbs where Italians, Jews and other not-quite-white European ethnics were able to reap the full advantages of whiteness. The episode reveals some of the ordinary social institutions that quietly channel wealth and opportunity, so that white people benefit from a racist system without personally being racist. It concludes by looking at why we can't just get rid of race."*

This series is open to anyone interested in exploring the issue of race and racism in a safe environment in where diverse people and points of view are respected and where open-hearted and open-minded discussion of our differences is encouraged.

Light refreshments will be provided. For more information on this program please contact Beau Rivers (brivers@uucworcester.org) or Rev. Aaron Payson (minister@uucworcester.org). 

*From the discussion guide published with the video series. 

**Produced by California Newsreel, in association with the Independent Television Service (ITVS) 2003. Major funding was provided by the Ford Foundation and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting Diversity Fund. Additional funding was provided by the Annie E. Casey Foundation, the John D. and  Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, Lida and Alejandro Zaffaroni, Akonadi Foundation, the Wallace Alexander Gerbode Foundation, and Nu Lambda Trust.

Please CLICK HERE to download or print a flyer for this discussion series.

Chuck and Mud will be performing in Fellowship Hall on Saturday, April 18th, from 2:00 - 3:30 p.m. It's time for the children, and the child in all of us, to enjoy some great tunes, move with the music and have some fun!  Bring your friends, their friends and children! 

 

All proceeds to benefit UUCW's general funds.  Any questions, contact:  Dianne Mann at djmann@charter.net or (508) 963-0183

Click here to download this flyer!

 

Dianne Mann

 

I would like to congratulate the high school Youth Group on their fabulous service this past Sunday.  I can't wait until all children in the RE program get the opportunity to be a part of an experience like building worship together and executing an uplifting service for their congregation.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sunday, March 22

 

10 am -  All Children begin in the sanctuary. and will be dismissed following the children's coin and food collection.

 

11:45 am - SPROUT - There will be a SPROUT meeting in Meeting Room 1 at 11:45 am. Childcare will be available if you RSVP to Bill Derr by Thursday 3/19.

 

11:45 am - 2 pm - COA Mentor/Teen Sunday. The Journey. Lounge & Fellowship Hall.

   

6 - 8:30 pm:  Youth Group - special guest. Get Real Teen Council.

Robin Caracciolo, 

Director of Religious Education 

Please note that we have begun our Annual Flu Prevention Program at UUCW.   The current precautions include: 

1. The availability of waterless hand sanitizer at each entrance to the church and in each religious education classroom.  We ask that all those entering and exiting our facility use this resource.
2. The posting of cautions for those experiencing flu-like symptoms.  The cautions currently ask that if you are experiencing flu-like symptoms (a temperature above 99 degrees, and/or a persistent cough, headache, or intestinal discomfort) to please refrain from entering the church.

/ 508-853-1942) if you are experiencing flu-like symptoms so that we can help care for you personally.  If you are eligible for and it is recommended that you have an annual flu vaccine, we strongly encourage you to get one. Thank you for helping protect those most vulnerable among us!