This fall, Theme Circles will be returning, with a few programmatic tweaks based on feedback from last year's participants. Stay tuned for information about fall registration coming soon! Also, we are still seeking a handful of folks to be circle facilitators. Facilitators receive training and meet monthly with the minister for mutual support and development. If you think facilitating might be a good fit for your skills and passion, please contact Rev. Mara directly ( revmara@uusociety.org). And if you have any questions about the program in general, please email us at  themecircles@uusociety.org or call the church office at 802-862-5630. Thanks, and hope you'll consider participating in this shared ministry!

Children in Spirit Play I (preschool - 1st grade) are in for a TREAT! This summer, the wall between the Jordan and Latimer rooms was removed, resulting in a wondrously spacious classroom with space for more children, and varied activities during children's "work time." We are excited! 

It's that time of year again! Parking passes for the Meeting 

House oval are now available for the year October 1, 2016 through September 30, 2017. Sales will be limited to 36 this year due to increased staffing and usage. Passes allowing members to park for up to three hours per day, during the week on an "as available" basis, can be obtained by completing and submitting to me the attached form which is also available in the main office. Passes cost $35 for one vehicle and $60 for two.

During weekday business hours (8:00AM - 5:00PM), the following rules apply:
 

1. If you have a valid and current parking sticker displayed in your vehicle, you may park in the oval on the east side of the building only, whether you are attending Society related  activities or unrelated activities off site.
 

2. There is no parking in any other spot on site whether or not you have purchased a pass. The only exception to this rule is for people who have a valid access tag displayed in their vehicle. In this case, there is an accessible parking spot available adjacent to the north door of the Meeting House.

3. Members without a valid pass must find parking off site during weekday business hours whether or not they are involved with Society activities.

The above regulations need to be adhered to so that spaces are available (on a first come, first served basis) to those who have purchased parking passes. Violators risk being towed!

During all other hours, the following guidelines must be adhered to:

1. On site parking is available to members on a first come, first served basis, regardless of whether they are involved in Society activities or not.

2. Egress/Ingress points from Elmwood Ave. and Clarke St. as well as those locations serving doors, ramps and walkways cannot be blocked by vehicles.

3. There is no parking allowed on the lawns, regardless of the season.

4. There is no overnight parking allowed, unless a request is made to, and approved by the facilities manager prior.

Your understanding of, and cooperation with the above is greatly appreciated.

Thank You!

The more folks tell us where and how they plan to be part of our RE Program, the better we can build class groups which serve kids well!

Thanks for taking a few minutes to complete our 2016-17 RE Registration form. 

I'm so grateful to everyone who's signed up to help teach our kids this year!

Please, if you have a role in Children's RE as a Teacher, Assistant, Storyteller, or Doorkeeper, and haven't yet RSVP'd for the September events we're preparing for you, take a moment to do so! Here's the link.Your response helps us plan materials, food, and childcare. Thank you so much!

Like many faith and educational communities, September marks the start of a new "program year" at First UU. Nowadays, with worship continuing through July and August, September doesn't quite have the same feeling of "re-opening" that it used to in the days when worship stopped and Society operations largely quieted over the summer. Still, the first Sunday after Labor Day marks a new beginning in the cycle of our shared life together, and with September comes the resumption of many of our ministry programs and activities. We often call the Sunday after Labor Day "Ingathering," marking it as a sacred threshold to a new season in the unfolding journey of First UU.

In recent years, Ingathering Sunday has also marked the return to our program year "Two Service Sundays," with worship services and religious education at 9 and 11am. However, this year, we're going to try something a bit different. For three more Sundays after Labor Day (9/11, 9/18, and 9/25), we are going to continue our one service schedule with worship at 10am. This calendar change will allow us to start the new year as we end it in June - with the feeling of being together as one large congregation. On a more practical note, continuing the one-service schedule for a few more Sundays will open up crucial blocks both before and after the service for RE start-up activities (such as teacher trainings and a classroom open house) as well, sending a UU contingent to the Pride Parade (9/11), an all-congregation "Connect with UU Activity Fair" (9/18) and launching the fall Theme Circle session (9/25). You can read more about RE happenings and September plans for children's Sunday activities in Martha Dallas' related article. And we'll be sharing more about Pride, the Activity Fair and Theme Circles in upcoming editions of eNews, so stay tuned! 

On Sunday October 2, we will revert to "Two Service Sundays," which will continue through the weekend prior to Memorial Day. 

Your staff and lay leaders are viewing this as an experiment, so we will be welcoming your feedback about your experience! We will be sharing ways for you to provide that feedback in the weeks ahead. Also, we want to be clear that this change is for September only and is not part of a larger consideration of returning to a one-service model throughout the year. (Our congregation is just too large at this point for a year-round one-service model!). If this experiment goes well and we find it enhances our ministry and start-up, we may continue this revised calendar in future years. 

So to summarize:

September 11, 18 and 25, 2016 - Worship and RE Programming at 10am

October 2, 2016 through May 21, 2017 - Worship and RE Programming at 9am and 11am

If you have any immediate questions, please feel free to speak with Rev. Mara! And we look forward to seeing you at Ingathering!

We need help between 9:50 am and ~ 11:45 am.  Please call Susan Alden with questions and to volunteer, at 863 - 6585 or  sbalden@burlingtontelecom.net