The Overlook

Unitarian Universalist Church of Huntsville
3921 Broadmor Rd., Huntsville AL 35810

September 17th, 2015

Vol. 15 Issue 38

In This Issue

Food Basket

UUA Common Read

ATM Each Saturday

Run for the Pink!

Fair Trade

Upcoming Services

This Sunday in RE

Welcoming Diversity

UU KnitWits Meet

Social Justice News

R U a New UU?

UUs Walk with NAMI

Care List

We Can Reach 100!

Please don't forget to bring non-perishable food and hygiene items for the food basket, to be donated to the Huntsville Assistance Program.

Our Goal is 100 Items per Month!
All donations are welcome and appreciated!

UUA Common Read: Just Mercy

The UUA's 2015-2016 Common Read is Just Mercy: A Story of Justice and Redemption. Author Bryan Stevenson advocates for those wrongfully trapped by the U.S. criminal justice system, including poor people, people of color, women, and children. The book speaks to justice, mercy, and compassion, timeless and important concerns for people of faith. A discussion guide for the book will be released in October, but you can order the book now from the UUA Bookstore! For more about this program, see the website.

Awareness Through Movement, Every Saturday!

Everyone is welcome! This Feldenkrais group class is designed to improve self-awareness and mobility. The class will be verbally guided through gentle movement sequences. These new movement patterns will enable you to move with greater ease and fluidity.

This Adult RE class is drop-in, no experience necessary, and will be led by Sally Locklear. Wear comfortable, loose clothing, and bring a bath towel to use as a head support. This Fall's Classes begin on September 12th, and will be held on Saturday mornings at 10:00 a.m. until further notice.

For further information, contact Nancy Finley at finleyn@uah.edu. If you need childcare for this event, please contact Nancy at least a week before the event.

Liz Hurley
Ribbon Run

Join the UUCH Team!

Social Justice Committee reminds us: When you exercise for a good cause, everybody wins!

The Liz Hurley Ribbon Run 5K is Saturday, October 17th at 8:00 a.m. Meet up with other UUCHers at Huntsville Middle School to walk or run to help beat breast cancer!

To join the team, visit lizhurleyribbonrun.org. Click "Register Here" then "Join a Team" then enter "UUCH Ribbon Runners." Or, you can contact Jefflyn Weed or Tonia Betts (256) 882-9891.

This is a fun event--hope to see you there!

Together Again!

coffeecup

Chocolate and coffee...mmmm mmm good! If you are a coffee connoisseur, the Social Justice Committee invites you to visit the coffee table in the Fellowship Hall--where delicious Fair Trade chocolate is sold--to order your Certified Fair Trade and Organic coffee from the Kaffeeklatsch. Provide your name, contact info, type of coffee, grind, and amount you want, and deliveries will be made the following Sunday (unless you arrange otherwise). Should you not make it that next Sunday the coffee will go into the church kitchen's freezer with your name on it. All profits go in support of our Social Justice efforts.

EE Choc Bar

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UUCH Website

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Mid-South District

Upcoming Services

Sunday, September 20th, 2015

"One More Step: An Invitation to Discomfort"

The Reverend Alice Syltie

This year the main holy days in the Jewish and Islamic calendars coincide. While our Jewish neighbors celebrate the Days of Awe, our Islamic neighbors prepare for the Hajj, the annual pilgrimage to the holy city of Mecca. Both calendars offer an opportunity for soul searching, spiritual reflection, and a fresh start.

Unitarian Universalists have long considered September the beginning of the church year. What invitation might we find in the wisdom of these traditions as we look ahead to our next steps?

This service will also include the Dedication of our Religious Education leaders, as well as Board and Council members for this year.

This Sunday in RE

This Sunday Marks the First Day of Fall RE Classes! As always, children and youth will begin the service in the sanctuary, and will go to their classes after the Story for Sharing. The worship service will include a ceremony of dedication for our RE leaders. After church the RE Committee will host an RE Open House and Ice Cream Social with Outdoor Fun. All are invited. Come on out this Sunday to start the new year with old friends and new!

Please remember to register your child for the fall and spring Children and Youth Religious Education Program, which begins this Sunday, September 20th. Registration helps us plan for facilities, leadership, and safety needs. It also lets us be in touch with your family with special announcements and RE information. All participants in the RE program (ages infant to 18) should register each year even if you've registered before. For more on this year's RE program, please see the article below.

For more information, contact Erin Reid, our Director of Religious Education (DRE) (256.694.6786 or eereid@hotmail.com ) or Jessica Zelaya, RE Chair (256.322.2210 or asuriai@yahoo.com).

Welcoming Diversity

Our UUCH mission (read at all Board meetings and regularly printed on our Orders of Service) announces our desire to "Let people know 'We are here' and that we welcome diversity." In fact, one goal for our new church building was to be more welcoming to people whose diversity includes physical disability. By some estimates, the disability community represents some 20% of our national population.

Our old building put out of reach an entire floor, making it impossible for those with mobility impairments to reach our downstairs programing (including Children's RE and the kitchen). Our new building is by no means perfect, but a much larger percentage of it is accessible, if not yet wholly welcoming.

As members of the congregation, I call on all of us to share in the steps of welcoming those with different physical abilities. Some steps must wait for financial resources (which we anticipate following the sale of the old building), but some steps just require us to be attentive to one another. In the next few weeks, I'll include specific steps we can take to remain aware of one another and of welcoming those with different physical challenges. Let's work together to make the Beloved Community accessible to us all!

Laurel Bollinger

2015-2016 Board President

Join the KnitWits on September 25th!

UU KnitWits, our socially-conscious needlework group, will be meeting in the Fellowship Hall on Friday, September 25th, from 6-9:00 p.m. Recent projects have been mats for the homeless (crocheted using plastic bags), and more recently, knitting and/or crocheting soft artificial boobies for women who have had breast cancer. Members of this group also produce shawls and blankets for the Care Committee. Everyone is welcome! You don't have to be a needlework aficionado to join us for conversation and camaraderie!

Social Justice News

Thanks to your generous Food Basket donations, we were able to take160 items to the Huntsville Assistance Program for August!

And our Share the Plate donations to Meals on Wheels totaled $919.00!

Your Social Justice Committee is meeting on Sunday morning, September 27th, at 9:30 a.m. Everyone is welcome, and we'll have bagels! For information or questions, please call Tonia Betts at 256.882.9891.

"New UU" Class Starts October 18th

What does it mean to be a Unitarian Universalist? Guided by the UU Tapestry of Faith Curriculum, this three-part series explores important themes in UU congregational life, such as worship, theology, history, covenant, faith development, social justice, and membership. This program focuses on introducing newcomers to Unitarian Universalism, but those who have been at UUCH for a while will also be able to share and connect with others as we explore our own beliefs and how they intersect with the UU tradition. Everyone is welcome!

So mark your calendars now for the Sunday mornings of October 18th, 25th, and November 1st for this chance to learn and share. Meet for coffee or tea at 9:00 a.m.; discussion starts at 9:15. Pam Korb and Bobby Hall will facilitate the discussion. Contact Pam Korb (bradkorb@mindspring.com ) for further info. If you need childcare during these classes, please contact Pam at least a week before the event.

UUs Walking for NAMI

Plans are going forward for the NAMI Huntsville fun walk on September 26th at Lee High School (2500 Meridian Street North). The Betts family, the Millers, Denise Runnels, the Schweinsbergs, and Gail Williams have all signed up to walk, and several of you have pledged donations. Come out and support our walkers and enjoy a full morning of activities!

Mix 96.9 will host a live broadcast and provide music.

9:00 a.m. Check in and warm up.

9:30 a.m. Walk begins on the track.

10:30 a.m. Suzy Friedman conducts a yoga class focused on the benefits of yoga for people with depression and anxiety. Participants should bring their own mats.

9:00 a.m. to noon Visit the Health fair in the gym with displays by local service non-profits.

The National Alliance for the Mentally Ill (NAMI) is the nation's largest grassroots mental health organization dedicated to building better lives for the millions of Americans affected by mental illness by providing education and support programs for affected families.

Your UUCH Social Justice Committee encourages you to get involved in this cause! If you are interested in participating on the UUCH team as a walker or a sponsor, see Eleanor Schweinsberg at church Sunday or contact her through the church directory. For additional information, go to http://www.namihuntsville.org/#!walks/c13q6

A New Year in Children and Youth Religious Education

If you haven't done so already, please register children and youth for this year's program. Paper registration is available at the church, or you can register online at https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/WS8LDNP

Our RE age-based groups for this year are:

Nursery (ages infant to 3, staffed by experienced childcare providers--THIS YEAR introducing a new UU activity station for 2- & 3-year-olds led by our own RE chair, Jessica Zelaya!);
Peace (ages 4/Pre-K to grade1);
Justice (grades 2-4);
Searchers (grades 5-6); and
Transformers (grades 7-12).

There are many children and youth transitioning rooms this year, which is VERY exciting!

This year's theme is "Heart Talk." Heart Talk for Kids is a Unitarian Universalist program created by Debbie Berkana and Veronica Lassen based on Marshall Rosenberg's model of Compassionate (Nonviolent) Communication. Children and youth, and people of all ages, are given concepts and tools to grow in our ability to communicate with each other in empathy--to understand and see our common humanity, and from that deep understanding and caring, find mutually satisfying ways of being together. Lessons are highly interactive with games, crafts, music, and more!

Continuing this year, the RE Committee will host an RE Welcome Area in the foyer as families enter. Visitors will be greeted and receive information about the program and the activities for the day. Returning children and youth will check in, pick up their name tags, and also get a big, warm welcome to church. We encourage your family to stop at the table on your way in!

Welcome back, and welcome for the first time! We are so pleased for your presence in the UUCH Children and Youth RE Program. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact our Director of Religious Education, Erin Reid, (eereid@hotmail.com)

or RE Chair, Jessica Zelaya (asuriai@yahoo.com).

Care List

At our Circle of Candles on Sunday, September 13th, candles were lit for:

LaDawn Edwards, a candle of Sorrow: "Sorrow for the African Refugee Crisis. I want my country, which welcomed my immigrant ancestors, to continue that great tradition today."

Kathy Fisher, a candle of Concern: "Please hold my brother-in-law David in your thoughts and prayers as he recovers from his second hip replacement."

Eleanor Schweinsberg, a candle of Sorrow: "I am saddened by the physical death of my nephew John Barnabic last week. This was a result of brain damage caused by encephalitis contracted 44 years ago at the age of 22. Although my family has been grieving ever since, it does not make his death any easier."

If you have pastoral care needs, please contact the

Reverend Alice Syltie at revaluu@aol.com. Barbara Hitt is Chair of the Care Committee, and may be reached at home, (256) 881.2531; on her cell, (256) 348.5845; or by email at bghitt1@comcast.net.

UUCH 15-16 Board Members

President: Laurel Bollinger

Vice-President: Angel Hundley

Secretary: Ed Bernstein

Treasurer: Jerome Belcher

Trustees: Millicent Simmons, John Fox, & Denise Runnels

Do you have an Agenda Item for the Board?

The Board respectfully requests that all agenda items for the meeting be submitted to Board President Laurel Bollinger, no later than one week prior to the meeting, i.e. the Tuesday before. You may leave a copy of your request in her Mailbox at the church office, or contact her at UUCHBoardPresident@uuch.org.

The next UUCH Board Meeting will be held Tuesday, September 22nd, 2015 at 6:30 p.m. Thanks for your cooperation!

From the Overlook is a publication of

The Unitarian Universalist Church,

3921 Broadmor Rd. Huntsville, AL 35810

Minister: The Reverend Alice Syltie

Board President: Laurel Bollinger

Editorial Board: Laurel Bollinger, Kathy Heath

Newsletter deadlines are each Monday at midnight!
Please send submissions to news collator Deedee Moore at uuch@uuch.org.

Admin. Office Hours: 10:00a.m. to 4:00p.m. Mon-Tue-Thu-Fri.

For Wednesday access, please call in advance.

Office phone: 256.534-0508, email: uuch@uuch.org.

Minister's email: revaluu@aol.com.

Web: www.uuch.org

Sunday Services are held 10:45 a.m. to 12:00 noon;

Children's Religious Education held concurrently.

Nursery available for age 3 years and under.

For further info on any event, call the church office:
256. 534-0508.