by Admin | Apr 2, 2018 | Justice Actions
Dear UUCV Community,
Butterflies are among my very favorite things on Earth due to their beauty, grace, ease, but mostly for their reminder about transformation! It fascinates me that the portly caterpillar emerges as a beautiful butterfly. Katie Covey from Soul Matters writes on our theme this month, “Being a people of emergence involves doing all we can, trusting the process and keeping an eye out for unexpected opportunities to emerge.”
Sometimes after the cocoon state of transitions I may see something so far from a butterfly that it’s 20 years before I understand what the lesson was. Often, however, I look back at a circumstance I didn’t like or appreciate at the time but because of what I learned from it I was able to help others and/or become much more resilient – a butterfly afterall! I would never say everything happens for a reason, but I do believe that God or the Universe can use every experience for something beautiful or loving to result.
We hope you enjoyed our Green Easter – which was kind, fun, delicious, and good for the Earth and our bodies! We didn’t hide plastic eggs filled with candy but rather cans of food labeled with a particular spring shape. All children and youth hunted for cans with their team’s label and were all rewarded with a potted flower and special treat! Thanks for bringing your donations in! We donated 172 pounds of food to Project Understanding after the hunt.
“Every blade of grass has its angel that bends over it and whispers ‘Grow, grow.’” ~The Talmud
Emily Carrol, Director of Religious Education
April Events
Sunday, April 1 Easter Canned Food Hunt
Saturday, April 14 • 4pm- 7pm Childcare Co-Op
Saturday, April 21 • 9am- 1pm RE Summit
Sunday, April 22 Earth Day All Generations Service
Sunday, April 29 Children’s Chapel and Quidditch Match
by Admin | Apr 2, 2018 | Building and Grounds
by Linda Pietrzak
There are stealth Building and Grounds volunteers out there. They are people who work around the church without getting much recognition besides their friends. I have been catching them doing many things to make this church building and grounds a better place for us all: Gudrun Eastham seems to spend so much time here that I have been looking for where she hides her bed. She straightens the sanctuary chairs, maintains the bulletin boards, has sewn curtains for the alcoves, and many other jobs I cannot name. Several of the Safe Sleep monitors go the extra step to pick up and empty the trash. Kappy Paulson not only emptied the SS trash but also filled the empty containers with overflow from the previous week. Jennifer Luce, the Office Administrator, called Harrison to pick up ALL the barrels plus any other bagged items. We must always remember the Kitchen Crew not only for our weekly post service sustenance but also many other functions at the church. You, too, can join their ranks. Start easy when you see trash on the ground pick it up, either carry it to a trash can, or take it home with you. We will all thank you for your efforts.
The March Saint Patrick’s Work Party was such a success. It is amazing what 14 people can do. Our focus was on the weeds on the Ralston side of the church. Check out the work that Sherry Anderson, Ruth and George Owens, Kitty Merrill, Joyce Sattler, Merle Oberg, Geoff Dann, and George Naugles did. Mark Mendelsohn removed graffiti from behind the Whale’s Tail Bench. Mike Sixbey whacked the weeds around the trash enclosure, Bill Peltola, Ruth Owens, and Ted Lombard picked up and emptied trash around the property. Joyce Lombard scrubbed the tables in Berg Hall. Linda Pietrzak, Wil Devine, and Phil Wiseman worked on cleaning the gutters and making sure the drainage around the building was working properly.
Please take time to thank all volunteers when you see them. Contact Linda Pietrzak: linda.w.pietrzak@gmail
by Admin | Apr 2, 2018 | Finance Committee
• UUCV has three financial enterprises, not just one. The primary budget is approved at our congregational meeting in June is for most of the programs of the church except Lift Up Your Voice and the Inreach Outreach Fund.
• Pledge payments are the source of revenue for most of our church programs, such as paying employees, and nearly everything else to keep the church humming.
• Our weekly offerings are the source for the Inreach/Outreach donations that go to other nonprofit charities and individuals in need of assistance.
• Lift Up Your Voice is now used primarily for the Park Outreach activities. It originated with grant money and has benefited from Inreach/Outreach offerings.
• You can make one time donations or set up automatic pledge payments at http://www.uuventura.org, by clicking on “Give” on the right side of the masthead area, then, click on the picture of the mouse and following the instructions; or by contacting contact David Smith
by Admin | Apr 2, 2018 | Stewardship Report
Do UU Know?
Kappy Paulson has created a lovely Memorial Book honoring UUCV members who passed away in the past few years. To establish a starting point, it begins with Rev. Dana’s ministry to UUCV. The beginning of the scrapbook lists the names of people who passed away. The intent is to add pages to keep the book current going forward.
Each person who passes away is memorialized with a page in the book. Take time to view the red scrapbook located on the Joys & Sorrow’s table in the church entrance way.
Contact: Maura Raffensperger: Maurapics@gmail.com
by Admin | Mar 22, 2018 | Adult Programs
by Beverly Jordan, Community Life Coordinator
The Adult Programs Coordinating Team (APCT) includes Xenia Young, Carolyn Briggs, Kathleen Wheeler and myself.
If you are interested in facilitating an adult program at the church, contact us for an application. We’d enjoy hearing your ideas! Beverly@uuventura.org. Click here for the current Adult Programs Brochure:
