Questions and Answers on UUism

On this Sunday, April 6^th, there will be a brief orientation to Unitarian Universalism in the minister's office after both worship services at 10:30 a.m. and 12:15 p.m. The sessions are informal and designed to answer your questions, whatever they may be. Everyone is welcome, whether you are new to the church or have been attending for a while.

Three-Part Orientation to UUism

Are you new to this church? Have you recently signed the membership book, or are you considering joining? Would you like to learn more about Unitarian Universalism? Axel Gehrmann and the Membership Committee will offer a three­-part orientation at 7:00 p.m. on Wednesdays, April 9^th, 16^th, and 23^rd. 

The sessions focus on individuals’ religious journeys, discuss UU history, beliefs and polity, as well as explore the various groups and activities of this particular church. If you are interested, please sign up using the sheet on the Minister’s Office door, call the church office, or e-­mail Axel at minister@uucuc.org.

Participate in a Coffeehouse

UUs of all ages are invited to perform at the Coffeehouse on Saturday, April 19th at 7:00 p.m. in an informal environment enriched by cookies and desserts! The Social Action Committee would like you to consider a song, dance, instrumental, poem, or other performance that reflects a social justice theme. You could also honor the recently departed folksinger Pete Seeger, who edited the songbook Rise up Singing. “Follow the Drinking Gourd,” “Go Down Moses,” “Cotton Mill Girls,” “The Times They are A’Changing,” anyone? 

Look for sign-up sheets on Sundays between services in Fellowship Hall . Space is limited, so sign up early! For more information, contact Sam Beshers at beshers@illinois.edu or Sarah Wisseman at suwissem@gmail.com.

Strike Up the Band: New Music Committee

The purpose of the recently formed Music Committee is to enhance the musical offerings of our church both during services and during our social gatherings. We will work closely with all three choir directors, the Music Director, and the Worship Committee to identify new kinds of performances and groups that can be formed within our UU community. Contact Sarah Wisseman at suwissem@gmail.edu to contribute ideas or become a member.

One of our ideas is to start a church band. The first step is to identify those of you that currently play or used to play an instrument. Choir Director Matt Sheppard led a band at the UU church in State College and has agreed to help us organize here as well. Instrumentalists of all ages are encouraged to show their interest. Once we know what instruments we have to start, we can begin looking into making further plans. 

Contact Jerry Carden at jcarden@illinois.edu if you want to join the band and/or play at the upcoming April 19^th Coffeehouse.

Update on Two-Year Initiative Proposals

This Saturday, March 15^th is the deadline for submitting ideas to the church-wide two-year social action initiative. So far, we have received three submissions for consideration. I know of a couple others that are pending.

To summarize what we have so far, two focus on the theme of racial justice/mass incarceration, and the other focuses on homelessness. The pending ones I know of address immigration justice and environmental issues.

When all of the ideas have been submitted, they will be shared with the congregation for consideration. When two or more proposals are very similar, we will combine them into one, but will note the number of proposals represented therein.

After a theme is chosen at the May 4^th congregational meeting, a steering committee will be formed to guide the work of the two-year initiative.

We look forward to hearing from you.

Education Justice Project Presentation and Potluck

UUCUC invites you to an evening of dinner and discussion with Mr. Francis Ssuubi, Founder and Executive Director of Wells of Hope Ministries, titled “Harkening the Voice of Children of Incarcerated Parents: The ‘Wells of Hope’ Story.”

This event begins with a potluck dinner in Fellowship Hall at 6:00 p.m. on Monday, March 10th and continues at 7:00 p.m. with a presentation by Mr. Ssuubi. If you plan to attend the potluck, please follow this alphabetical break-down when preparing a dish to share: Last names ending with A-K bring salad or vegetable; L-R bring rice, potatoes, or bread; S-Z bring dessert. Protein will be provided.

This event is co-sponsored by Incarceration in America: Collateral Impacts of Incarceration Focal Point Group (funded by the Graduate College of UIUC), First Mennonite Church of Champaign-Urbana, Urbana-Champaign Friends Meeting, and the Education Justice Project.

Here is a brief biography of the featured speaker:

Mr. Francis Ssuubi is the Founder and the Executive Director of Wells of Hope Ministries, a non-governmental organization that provides effective and compassionate programs for prisoners and their families in Uganda, with great attention being given to children with parents on death row. He has advocated and spoken on the rights of children of prisoners in Belgium, USA, Spain, the United Kingdom, and Switzerland, at the UN. His talk explores the vulnerabilities and stigmas of children of the incarcerated and presents a model of practice for their care and support, with particular attention to the needs of girls and women. Developed within an African context, he will argue that the Wells of Hope model has wide applicability.

STEWARDSHIP MATTERS

Thanks and a Gentle Reminder

Once again, we can celebrate the ways in which we are deepening our community and spiritual connections. An 11.5% increase in your donations is necessary to fund the Strategic Plan you worked so hard to develop and which you approved at our Annual Meeting last spring. Your Stewardship Team has wonderful news… Early returns indicate your ideas are being supported with your dollars. As of February 26^th, we have 44 pledges, with an average individual/family increase of 11.1%. Many thanks and congratulations!

And now for the gentle reminder: By mid-March, our Finance Committee members need to know how much money we have pledged so they can develop our budget for next year, send it to the BOT for their April meeting, and have it ready to present to you for approval at our Annual Meeting on Sunday, May 4^th. Whew!

So, here is our collective challenge. In order to meet our goals, 44 pledges, or 50, or even 100 are not enough. We need support from our entire congregation, and that means you. Pledges were due February 28^th.  If you have not sent us your pledge, please mail it or bring it to the church as soon as possible. If you are able to give the amount you donated this year, or increase it to help accomplish our goals, or even if you need to give less because circumstances have changed… all will be welcome. It is the commitment to our church home that is important.

If you have not been contacted or if you have not received your pledge packet, please contact Mona Shannon by phone at 217-649-5049 or via e-mail at mona4shannon@gmail.com

Thank you for supporting our church home.

– Kathleen Holden and Kathleen Robbins, 

Co-chairs Stewardship Team

On Our Upcoming Guest Speaker

On Sunday, March 23^rd, the church will welcome Rev. Martin Woulfe, who will deliver a sermon titled “The Spirituality of Carl Sagan”

Rev. Martin Woulfe was raised in South Holland, Illinois and graduated from Loras College in Dubuque, Iowa in 1982. Raised as a Roman Catholic, he discovered UUism in 1987 when he first attended the First Unitarian Society of Chicago. While in seminary, Martin worked at Columbus/Maryville, an emergency service shelter for abused and neglected youth.

Martin served for two years as the Interim Minister at the UU Community Church in Park Forest, Illinois; the members there ordained him in March 2003. Afterwards, he accepted a call from the Abraham Lincoln UU Congregation in Springfield, where he has served as their first full time minister for nearly eleven years. 

Shared Offering for March: Channing-Murray Foundation and Red Herring Vegetarian Restaurant

Half the cash collection and all designated checks from the collection each Sunday in March will be shared by Channing-Murray Foundation and Red Herring Vegetarian Restaurant (a program of CMF).

Channing-Murray Foundation (CMF) is the Unitarian-Universalist Campus Center at the University of Illinois. CMF is known throughout the campus community for its good music, great food, and the opportunity to engage in nonjudgmental spiritual exploration. The UU Young Adult Group meets on Tuesdays and Wednesdays for a shared meal and discussion of topics of interest to young adults. Sunday services take place in the chapel during the university academic year. In addition, writing, dance and arts workshops flourish, and the chapel hosts a wide array of justice oriented community forums, concerts, poetry slams, and student theatrical productions. CMF hosts social justice films and forums each semester which are co-sponsored by the UU Social Action Committee.

The Red Herring Vegetarian Restaurant (RHVR) has been serving the Urbana-Champaign community for over 30 years and serves all vegan food. It was started by the Channing-Murray Foundation as a way to put Unitarian-Universalist principles into action. RHVR is non-profit, so all the money made goes back into making the restaurant better for their cooks and customers, and to keeping their prices accessible for those trying to live a healthy vegetarian/vegan lifestyle. Cooperatively run, the Herring serves lunch five days a week from 11:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. RHVR is committed to providing healthier lunch alternatives by cooking from scratch and using local ingredients whenever possible. RHVR also hosts International Vegan Fusion Dinners every week on Wednesday evenings from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m., featuring food from a different country each week.