The UUCW Message
April 5, 2016
In This Issue

Current News at UUCW
And Still We Rise

Office Notes and Flyers

 


Office Hours
(Sept 1, 2015 - 
June 30, 2016):
Mon, Tues, Wed: 
9 am - 3 pm
Thursday 9 am - 2 pm
(Closed 2nd Wednesday
Oct - May)

Gmail Users - Please note that if you stop receiving the Message, Nugget, and Weekend Reminder, check your Promotions tab in Gmail. Often, you will find that church emails are in there! Please click  HERE for more information. Please share this information with your fellow congregants if they mention they aren't getting the Message!

PLEASE NOTE: Our trash and recycling is generally picked up once a month. Please be sure to break down all cardboard boxes before putting them in the recycling dumpster so it doesn't fill up too fast!


 

Congregational Mission Statement

"The members and friends of the Unitarian Universalist Church of Worcester covenant to be a congregation of love, hope and justice inspiring people to take on the challenges of a changing world."

  

 

Welcoming Church 

Mission Statement 

The LGBTQI and Allies of the Unitarian Universalist Church of Worcester strives to further the affirmation and celebration of LGBTQI individuals in all aspects of the church community. We also seek to increase the visibility of UUCW as a Welcoming Congregation within the greater community.

 

 

UUCW Covenant

In consonance with the principles and purposes of the Unitarian Universalist Association, we the members and friends of the Unitarian Universalist Church of Worcester covenant to sustain and support a courageous and caring community by:

 

* Bringing our best selves to form a welcoming, loving, and inclusive community of faith;

 

* Creating an atmosphere of celebration and worship in a safe environment;

 

* Providing opportunities where diverse people and points of view are respected and where open-hearted and open-minded discussion of our differences is encouraged;

 

* Treating each other with kindness and respect;

 

* Approaching conflicts with a spirit of humility and with the respectful intent for peaceful resolution;

 

* Engaging in and encouraging spiritual and intellectual growth across the lifespan;

 

* Fostering social justice and positive transformation in our community and in the world at large;

 

* Growing and maintaining the resources necessary to support the missions and ministries of this congregation;

 

* Fostering fellowship and enjoying each other and the unique gifts that each person brings to our community.

Current News at UUCW
AndStillWeRise
 
Tech Committee News: Assistance Needed   
TechComm
The Tech Committee is looking for assistance for several projects:
  1. Sunday Mornings: help with sound and recording of Worship services
  2. Transferring the Sunday morning recordings from mp3 SD Card to the computer and edit audio to post reflections on website
  3. Various computer tasks like updates, maintenance, etc.
Contact Paul Marr if you are interested in helping with any of these projects!

Paul Marr, Tech Committee
Get Your Smiles On!! - All Church Photo, Sunday April 10 
AllChurchPhoto

Please mark your calendars:

Sunday, April 10th is the All-Church Photo.  As per usual, we'll gather on the front lawn at the conclusion of the morning service.  I hope you'll be part of this important record of our community.  Plus, you get to make funny comments about me up on the roof, trying to herd everybody together.  ;-)

UU Women's 14th Annual 
Runaway Weekend in Rockport - April 15 - 18 
WomensWeekend

Why come?
Join us for a weekend of no cooking, no cleaning, no one to take care of but YOURSELF! We hear all the time how important it is to take a respite, however brief, from the daily stresses and responsibilities of everyday life. So take this opportunity and return refreshed, renewed, ready to take on the world again!
 
Who can come?
We are now opening up our runaway weekend to the community. Invite your mother, mother-in-law, daughters, daughters-in-law, sisters, sisters-in-law, aunts, friends and cousins to enjoy Rockport with you.
 
Where is it?
Our Runaway Weekend is at the Linden Tree Inn in Rockport http://lindentreeinn.com/, a 5-minute walk to Front Beach and a 10-minute walk to downtown Rockport. And we have the entire inn to ourselves.
 
What's the cost?
The entire cost for the weekend is $158 for a quad (2 rooms share one bath), $174 for a double or $204 for a single. This includes:
  • Lodging Friday, Saturday and Sunday night
  • Breakfast Saturday, Sunday and Monday morning
  • Dinner on Saturday night
  • Sunday lunch
 
What do you do there?
You get to do whatever you like-you may just want to curl up on your bed and read those books you've been meaning to read.  Or if you love shopping, downtown Rockport is a shoppers' paradise of art galleries, unique boutique shops and consignment shops. Or attend a performance at the beautiful Shalin Liu Center featuring musical performances on a stage opening to a view of the ocean!.  All of this within a short walking distance of the inn!
 
Or get into your car for a short drive to Halibut Point State Park or to Gloucester (more shops, restaurants, and beaches). Some of the places we've enjoyed visiting on previous runaways have been the Paper House, Wolf Hollow, Newburyport, Salisbury Beach State Park and Plum Island.
 
What's the best thing about Runaway Weekend?
So many things!  Escaping, time alone, being with friends, meeting new people, enjoying activities and leisurely conversations with like-minded women, discovering new treasures on the North Shore, the list goes on.....
 
If this interests you, send a check made out to Linden Tree Inn to hold your spot. Also include any food preferences/allergies you may have.

Mail to: Ruth Silver 
71 Angell Brook Drive
West Boylston, MA 01583 :

We Hope you'll join us. If you have any questions or comments, email Claire Breyton cbreyton@gmail.com.

Cosmology
Please CLICK HERE to download and print this flyer
Annual Passover Seder - April 23, 6 pm
Seder
Save the Date for our Annual Passover Seder - more details coming soon!
 
2016 Annual UUCW Yard Sale - June 11! YardSale 

The date for this year's Yard Sale has been chosen - it will be on Saturday, June 11.  If you are interested in working either on set up or on that day, please let me know.  And, for all, please start setting aside all your goodies that you would like to give away this year - my goal is to make even more than the $7000 we pulled in last year.  More to follow...

Visit Our New Improved Website! NewWebsite

If you haven't seen it already, please visit www.uucworcester.org to view the new and improved UUCW website.  Thanks to a host of volunteer website junkies (Rachel Peckar, Cris Heffernan, Vickie Cox Lanyon, Betty Jenewin, Anna Bediako) working with our Office Administrator, Jennifer Landry and Aaron, we have launched and continue to develop our new website as a core component in our evolving strategic communications plan.  Forthcoming upgrades will include a members-only section, interactive adult faith development opportunities, and weekly communications that are more integrated with web content.  We welcome your feedback, which can be submitted through the "contact us" link on homepage.

Touchstone Monthly Theme - 
 
 
April Theme - Mindfulness
April 5 - 11 TchstnQuotes
 


April 5: "In this moment, there is plenty of time. In this moment, you are precisely as you should be. In this moment, there is infinite possibility."   Victoria Moran
 
April 6: "Life is a dance. Mindfulness is witnessing that dance."   Amit Ray
 
April 7: "Mindfulness is simply being aware of what is happening right now without wishing it were different; enjoying the pleasant without holding on when it changes (which it will); being with the unpleasant without fearing it will always be this way (which it won't)."   James Baraz
 
April 8: "Don't let a day go by without asking who you are... each time you let a new ingredient to enter your awareness."   Deepak Chopra
 
April 9: "Meditation and mindfulness are tools for working with the mind, but where they have led me is to a blossoming of the heart."   Narissa Doumani
 
April 10: "It stands to reason that anyone who learns to live well will die well. The skills are the same: being present in the moment, and humble, and brave, and keeping a sense of humor."   Victoria Moran
 
April 11:"Start living right here, in each present moment. When we stop dwelling on the past or worrying about the future, we're open to rich sources of information we've been missing out on-information that can keep us out of the downward spiral and poised for a richer life."   Mark Williams
Religious Education News
RE News For April 3, 2016
RENews 

Dear Families,

Thanks Jenny Delgizzi and Kim Napoleone for the fun experience of Mystery Pals!! The Big Reveal was last Sunday and pals had a great time connecting face to face!
 
 
Sunday April 10-  10am - All Church Photo After Service!!
Everyone proceed to pick up your children and then head  directly to the front lawn for our annual All Church Photo!   Then, come back in and enjoy coffee hour in fellowship hall.
 
10 am -  All children begin in the service and will be dismissed to classes following the children's Change for Change collection.
 
 11:45 am - 12:45 pm - COMING OF AGE  Parent and student info session in lounge.  Please feel free to bring a coffee and a snack and join us for this important meeting about the COA class of 2016/17.  If you have a child that will be in grades 7 and 8 in September of 2016, your child is eligible for our Coming of Age experience.  Please come to find out more about it .
 
 
6-8 pm-  Youth Group

  
Robin Mitzcavitch, Director of Religious Education
Mystery Pal Big Reveal!!
Sunday April 3 following the Service!!
MysteryPals
 
Dear Mystery Pals - After the service, pick up your coffee and a snack in fellowship hall and bring to lounge .  By 11:25 we will begin revealing  the Mystery Pals to each other~!  We will also have a special cake  and small activity for Pals to do together!!    Can't wait to see you!

Sunday News
 
HosT Coffee Hour NewsHosT
     
The HosT coffee hour team thank all the many church teams, groups, and committees who have signed up to HosT coffee hour this year!   
 
HosT (Hospitality Task Force) will provide the fair trade coffee, tea, water and juice.  (HosT depends on coffee hour donations to keep supplies in stock....your donations during any coffee hour are gladly accepted!)
 
Would you like to be involved with the HosT Team?  Let us know!!
 
 Groups on deck for HosT-ing:
April 10Linda Miller, Doris Horgan, Mary Plummer, Pauline Courchesne
April 17UUCW Green Team
April 24Stewardship Committee
May 1Religious Education Committee
May 8UUCW Men's Group

Ongoing Meetings OngoingMtgs
Join us Wednesday, April 6 at Noon for Lunch with the Minister.  Bring a bag lunch and something to share if you desire. We'll have coffee and a place set for you in the lounge.  Come join the conversation and camaraderie!  No reservation necessary! 

Please join us after Lunch With The Minister on April 6 for our Afternoon Book Club. We are reading Necessary Lies by Diane Chamberlain. Discussion will be April 6th around 1:15pm, after the Minister's Luncheon. 

The Men's Group meets monthly to share a meal and conversation.The group's members strive to build trust and close friendship with one another. Our next gathering will be in Fellowship Hall on Friday, 04/08/16 at 7 pm. All who consider themselves male are welcome. Food will be brought from a local restaurant and all those who wish to eat can split the cost of the meal. Please bring your favorite ...Click to read more

Please join the Evening Book Club on Wednesday, April 13th at 7:00 in the Lounge to discuss Elisabeth Hyde's (2010) book, In the Heart of the Canyon. Book Description From the author of The Abortionist's Daughter, a gripping new novel about a rafting trip through the Grand Canyon that changes the lives of everyone on board. Meet Peter, twenty-seven, single, and looking for a quick hookup; Evelyn, a fifty-year-old Harvard...Click to read more

The Hooks and Needles Group meets on alternating Mondays at noon (February 15, and 29, March 14, 28, etc.)   in a classroom.  Bring your projects - knitting, crochet, cross stitch, quilting, to work on.  Or if you wish to do a prayer shawl or lap robe, we have yarn and patterns available. Want to learn a needlecraft?  We will be happy to teach you.

One of the exciting parts of the new Touchstones Ministry Themes program is the launching of Touchstones Small Group Ministry Groups.  These groups will meet regularly throughout the year to discuss the monthly themes published in the Touchstones Journal.  If you are interested in being part of a Touchstones Group, and/or becoming a leader/co-leader of one of our groups, please take a moment to fill out our short survey HERE.
 
Reminder about Fundraising! Fundraising 

Please keep in mind that one of our fundraising programs is the two bins across the street in our parking lot for books and clothing.  We actually make very good money from this endeavor!  So, as you're doing your fall cleaning or whatever, please take a minute to fill the bins as well as you can!


Community News & Classifieds CommNews

Greater Worcester Humanists - Linda Miller, Co-Chair, GWH Steering Committee
CREATING CHANGE THROUGH HUMANISM
 
The next meeting of Greater Worcester Humanists will be on Tuesday, April 12th, at 7:00 in Fellowship Hall of the UU Church.  Social time at 6:30.  All are welcome.
 
Our speaker will be American Humanist Association Executive Director Roy Speckhardt who will give a talk and book signing for his new book Creating Change Through Humanism just published by Humanist Press.  Speckhardt will explore the modern state of humanism and how our forward- thinking outlook, with its emphasis on critical thinking and self-reflection, can be at the forefront of pressing social issues.


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Contact Information

Phone:

508-853-1942

Email:

office@uucworcester.org

Fax:

508-853-2065 

Website:

www.uucworcester.org

 

Emergency Phone:

508-853-1942 

ext. 108

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