Circle of Life

 

Our thoughts and wishes go to:  

  

*Anne Leonard, who had knee replacement surgery and is recovering at home. She'd appreciate phone calls.

*Elaine Harris, who also had a knee replacement. She'll be able to check emails before too long.

*Roy Powley, who is battling cancer and is now recovering from pneumonia at Health South. 

 

Please contact Pastor Ron if you know of anyone who needs to be on this list.

 

888-7059

Diary of a Determined Gardener

 

By Alberta Gunther

 

At the moment, things look good. The radishes and lettuce are going to seed. And I had another radish that weighed12 oz. Can you top that?

 

I have three tomato plants and there is one small green tom. I hope it stays small as the plant isn't very big. I haven't planted my okra yet, maybe later this month.

In back I planted two hills of zucchini and two of cukes. I have had very poor luck with cuke plants so went straight to seeds. I also planted some beets and green beans. My earlier beets didn't grow.

 

I'll be out of town from the 19th to 22nd so I will hope that Don keeps the seeds watered. How much damage can happen in four days?

 

Until later.

Long-Range Planning Group

 

Mountain Vista UU needs a few visionary people with some business skills to form a long range planning group, which will gather information and report to the congregation. Its members will serve 2 or 3 year terms.

 

The LRP will select its own leader and determine how to accomplish the following:

• Obtain the information it needs.
• Formulate crucial questions:
• Who do we think we are?
• Where do we think we are going?
• What is our goal?
• What is getting in our way or blocking our progress?
• What can we do today to move us toward that goal?
• Determine critical facts to be considered. Several areas the LRP might look at are:
  • Evaluation of our outreach programs and options on how to increase their effectiveness
  • Increasing connections between congregants and the larger world
  • Assessment of our facilities: potential, options, and timing of necessary changes
• Solicit ideas and explore new possibilities with the congregation.
• Pose possible solutions
• Shape final recommendations to the board, to be voted on by the congregation
• Help build support for the recommendations

The long-range plan that results from the process will be subject to annual review, revision, and extension, overseen by the LRP. The group will raise questions to the board, congregational leadership, and the congregation such as, "Are we meeting our goals? If not, why not?" and "Are our vision and strategies for the future still sound? If not, what changes are needed?"

 

The LRP will be made up of:

1. Board Member (ideally the President)
2. Financial Future Leader
3. Spiritual Temperature Taker
4. "Super Team" Builder
5. Organizational Psychologist
6. Teacher/Counselor
7. Communications Specialist
8. Minister

 

Please speak to a board member or our minister if the LRP interests you.

 

 

Religious Education News

 

Sunday, April 14: Regular RE Classes

RE Fundraiser Lunch after the service

 

Sunday, April 21: Regular RE Classes

 

Sunday, April 28: Regular RE Classes

 

If you know of a child (grades K through 2nd), who might be interested in attending an OWL Session at MVUU this Summer, please let Donna know. The child does not have to belong to MVUU. For more info on the OWL (Our Whole Lives) sexuality curriculum, please visit: http://www.uua.org/re/owl/ 

 

Thank you to everyone who donated goodies for the Easter Egg Hunt!

 

Do you have a skill, talent or some knowledge that you can share with RE Students this summer?

 

Facilities Study Survey Results

 

Recently, the MVUU Board of Trustees authorized the Facilities Study Team to release the results from its survey, including both written and verbal comments made after the four presentations in January. As you will recall, the team's presentation focused on the past, present and future of our facilities and property.

 

The survey taken by attending members and friends asked five basic questions pertaining to our site. Following are the results:

 

            Facilities Survey Results* January 2013

 

Survey                                         Yes                  No

 

1. Do nothing                                    2                  33

 

2. Do minimum upgrades                 30                    9

 

3. Pursue C of O for Bldgs.               20                  19

 

4. Build new on site                          29                  10

 

5. Purchase new property                   7                   28

 

*Numbers may not all coincide because some survey answers were left blank, and thus not counted in totals. Only circled answers were counted. Total surveys were 50.

 

(All verbal and written statements made after the presentations by members and friends have also been documented and are available for review in the administrative office.)

Wednesdays, 9:30 am, Writers' Workshop

Margaret Fleming at 888-7059 or margefleming@earthlink.net.  

 

1st & 3rd Mondays, 6:30 pm, MVUU Growth Group 

 
The group will be discussing It's Not What You Sell, It's What You Stand For: Why Every Extraordinary Business Is Driven By Purpose by Roy M. Spence Jr. and Haley Rushing. See full text in March issue. 

 

Movie Outing April 21

"Quartet," Sunday, April 21 at the Loft, 3233 E. Speedway, time to be determined. We will aim for a late afternoon or early evening performance. This "charming" British film features fading divas who put on a show to save their place of residence. Supper before or after the show at a nearby restaurant. Please sign up to be notified of times, etc. at john.wilcox2008@comcast.net or 531-1413.

Adult Religious Education

 

Wednesday evenings are designated for Adult Religious Education. But some courses are offered at other times. 

  

2nd Wednesday of the month 6:30-8:00 pm: "Race and Ethnicity," facilitated by Chuck Tatum and Ron Phares.

  

4th Wednesday of the month and 2nd Tuesday 7:00-8:30 pm: "Sacred Poetry as Spiritual Practice," facilitated by Bob Wallace and Ron Phares. bob@robertmwallace.com

3rd Sunday of the month, 12:00-1:30: "Touched by Adoption,"  facilitated by Sybelle van Erven 

 

Any of these classes or groups can be joined at any time, once or every month. All adult classes are open to anyone age 14 and older.  Childcare will be provided for any class or meeting, as long as Donna in the MVUU office is notified a week ahead of time.  

 

Sybelle van Erven. UUSybelle@gmail.com (520) 471-3557  

Welcome Our Newest New Members

 

Sharon Jones-Christie

 

Sharon was born in Chicago, raised in Kansas City, and moved to Austin, Texas, as a young adult, where she continued her college education at the University of Texas-Austin. She ultimately completed her undergraduate degree in Sociology at the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs, where she became involved with the Bijou peace community in the '80s and '90s.

 

Sharon's religious experiences are multi-faceted, including being raised Catholic as a young person. During her first marriage, her husband, Bill Holder, was a conscientious objector to the Vietnam War and, as a couple, they became pacifists within the Quaker religion. After about ten years, she became a United Methodist and, for a short interval, was employed by the All Souls Unitarian Church in Colorado Springs as the Religious Education Director.

 

Sharon lived for a while in Austin, Grand Forks, Tucson, Globe, and Phoenix during her first marriage while Bill pursued a career in education. Sharon and Bill's first child, Jennifer, was born in Tucson in 1975. She is a graduate of the U of A and lives in Tucson with her husband, Dean, and their two red-headed children, Will, age 9, and Tori, age 2. Before moving to Colorado Springs from Phoenix in 1980, Sharon divorced and married Richard Christie. Sharon and Richard have a son, Rick, born in Phoenix in 1980. Rick now lives in Chicago with his wife and their newborn son, Michael. Sharon also has a granddaughter, Kimberley, age 16, who is Rick's daughter.

 

Sharon and Richard, a quadriplegic, moved to Tucson from Colorado Springs in 2004, to be near Jennifer and her family. Richard died in 2009 after a prolonged illness related to Spinal Muscular Atrophy.  

 

Sharon feels that a common thread in her religious life has been being a protester in relation to religious hierarchy and war. She has a strong belief in Christianity, prayer, equality, and the pursuit of the truth. Her persistent interests are reading and learning, libraries, singing in chorus and choirs, and walking and hiking with her dogs.

New Members: Barbara and Robert Seyfried

 

Barb and Bob Seyfried are snowbirds from Evanston, Illinois, where they have been members of the Unitarian Church of Evanston for more than 25 years. They purchased a second home in Oro Valley nine years ago and have been attending MVUU ever since during their visits to Arizona. For the last four years, they have been able to spend the entire winter in the sunny south and have attended MVUU on a more consistent basis.  

 

Barb Seyfried has had a career in accounting, but her true passion is being an artist. Barb currently works with clay, preferring to sculpt from live models. She recently had her favorite piece cast in bronze. Barb, who loves nature and the outdoors, is an avid photographer; she sells her creations at art shows and stores in Evanston. Barb enjoys traveling, gardening, bicycling, reading, and playing Mah Jongg. Barb and Bob have recently traveled to Spain, Portugal, and Russia. They especially enjoy river cruises, and have sailed the Danube, Nile, Yangtze, and Volga Rivers.

 

Bob Seyfried is a traffic engineer, who taught continuing education training courses for Northwestern University for more than 30 years before retiring four years ago. He remains active in the profession and continues to serve as an adjunct instructor, as well as to provide consulting services. In his spare time, Bob enjoys golf, bicycling, hiking, and reading, and traveling with Barb.  

 

Barb and Bob, who both grew up in Chicago, met on a cross-country ski trip. They have been married for 37 years and have two sons. Jonathan lives in Santa Fe and teaches history in a charter school, and Brian lives in the Chicago area and works as an immigration lawyer. Brian is married to his high-school sweetheart, Sheila, and they have a 20-month-old daughter, Mackenzie. Barb and Bob enjoy sitting for Mackenzie two days a week during the portion of the year they live in Evanston.  

 

Barb and Bob are looking forward to becoming more active in MVUU as they meet and get to know the congregation better during their stays in Tucson.  

 

Samar Adi

It's difficult to write this without coming off and sounding like I'm boasting, but I'm blessed to have lived the life I've had.  There's been sorrows and hardships, but I have an amazing and supportive family, a career I enjoy (when I'm not complaining about the paperwork), and friends who have allowed me to share their lives.  

 

I've had the opportunity to travel many areas in the world and the States, and I love the diversity of thought and religions that exist.  My early years were spent in an area of the world where religion is very tied into everyday life; growing up I attended schools where the majority of the students were Muslim and Hindu, and it taught me early on that there rarely are absolutes in life.  A love of reading helped to develop my character as did the belief that learning is a life-long process.  

 

I've been a UU since 2004 and, although I took a few years to focus on other things, am ready to continue down the path of spiritual growth. I truly look forward to becoming a part of Mountain Vista UU and am appreciative of the warm welcome I've had so far.  Cheers! 

Volunteers of the Month

 

Gary and Beth Kern

 

Gary and Beth have been members of our congregation for years. They are the kind of people who work quietly behind the scenes and can always be relied on.

 

Gary has been involved in a number of pledge drives as the person who crunches the numbers, and he's very good at it. He's also served on the Endowment Committee and other finance-related committees and task forces.

 

Beth is someone who practices pastoral care officially and unofficially. She was the friend closest to Frances Pearson before she died, and she has also been a visitor to other members who were sick or dying. Her calm and sympathetic personality is perfect for this.

 

Both Gary and Beth are musical and have been faithful choir members for years. We value their presence and their contributions to the congregation.

 

In spite of our large archive of members' photos, we couldn't find any of Gary and Beth. It just shows how modest they are and how unused to being in the limelight. Perhaps we can get a photo in time for the next issue.