Standing on the Side of Love Coffeehouse: UU Church, March 9 at 7p.m.

Come and hear some good music, stories, and other entertainment while you support marriage equality and justice for LGBTQ people, and immigration reform. Do all of this by coming to and helping with the Standing on the Side of Love Coffeehouse on Saturday March 9 at 7 pm in Fellowship Hall. We encourage you to come and perform in the spirit of our theme of social justice, or just in the spirit of socialness. In addition to performers we need helpers who can set up, clean up, and bring desserts. You can sign up by contacting Sandy or Jim Hannum by email (hannum1 at illinois.edu; jwhannum at gmail.com). Childcare will be available at the event, please contact the church at 384-8862 for more information. Or just come and enjoy.

CROP Walk Rally March 7, 7:30 p.m. at UU Church in Urbana

Our church will host a rally for all interested religious groups on March 7 in Fellowship Hall at 7:30 pm. This is basically an informational meeting. If your organization wishes to participate in this important event, you must be present/represented at this informational meeting. If you need more information, please contact the church at 384-8862. The Hunger Initiative Team is happy to announce that the UU Church is the host for this year’s CROP Walk. We were invited to host largely because of the tremendous effort so many of you made last year which enabled us to turn in the third highest donation of all the religious groups in the community that took part in CROP Walk 2012. CROP Hunger Walks are sponsored by Church World Service all over the country. Each walk is organized locally, and involves an interfaith effort throughout the community. Funds that are raised are used to fight hunger both locally and internationally. Founded in 1947, CROP was an acronym for Christian Rural Overseas Program. Its mission was to allow Midwest farms to share their grain with hungry folks in post WW II Europe and Asia. Now the emphasis has shifted somewhat, but the acronym has stuck. Some of the funding still goes overseas to help developing countries obtain seeds, fresh water, and technical expertise. The rest of the funding goes to local agencies that will be designated at the beginning of the campaign. Everyone in the congregation who is interested in participating in the walk will receive a packet of information and forms. Each one will talk to friends and family about the event, and try to collect donations for the cause. The CROP walk will take place on the afternoon of April 14 from 1:30 to around 5pm. Walkers should gather in the sanctuary, then everyone will set off on a 6-mile walk, looping through town and back to the church. We will provide drinks and snacks for the walkers in Fellowship Hall during the afternoon. Watch for more details soon!