by Kitty Merrill | Apr 30, 2019 | Between Sundays, News (home)
No one ever joins a church because they want to serve on a committee,” is common wisdom. It is even largely – though not always – true. This is part of why folks who study church dynamics (and there are people who make a living at it) suggest churches move away from forming more committees.
In our very busy, often over-committed (over-committeed?) world, the word feels off-putting, hide-bound, and, well, tedious. Folks in the WWII generation and even the Baby Boomers joined committees and changed the world. Yet many today are more comfortable with shorter-term work that doesn’t necessarily mean meeting on the third Wednesday of every month.
Because of this, UU Ventura is slowly changing titles of the groups that form to help us live out our mission. Though it reflects more than a change in nomenclature, and a few people have expressed confusion about it. So here is a glossary: Committee – a formal group that meets regularly – usually monthly – and likely publishes formal minutes.
The best example for us is the Finance Committee; we definitely need them to meet monthly and their minutes are vital to keeping us all informed and aware of budgets and finance. Team – a group that meets on an as-needed basis. They likely take notes to keep team members on track, though don’t need published minutes. A team’s work is also likely more dynamic, more nimble.
A good example at UU Ventura is the Personnel Team. There are times their work ramps up and they meet regularly, although not necessarily monthly. There are times they do work by email, and times they touch base with each other, the board, or the minister to make sure things are on track. Task Force – a group gathers to complete a task and disbands when the task is done. They may keep notes, though not necessarily minutes. They likely write a report for the board, committee, or team that empowers them.
The Five Year Vision Task Force has five members, so we affectionately call the 5-4-5 Force. It was formed by the board to take the congregation through a mission and vision process. The end result will be a Five Year Vision Plan which will be created by committees and teams and a perhaps a task force or two. The plan will be approved by the board and then by the whole congregation. The 5-4-5 Force will then disband, rest a while on their laurels, likely move on to other church work.
My great hope is that we have a vibrant combination of committees, teams, task forces, affinity groups, and social groups that all actively engage people’s hearts, minds, spirits, and sense of devotion to the congregation and to creating justice in the world. That’s all, With Love, Rev. Dana
by Kitty Merrill | Apr 1, 2019 | Minister, News (home), Services Upcoming
I am writing to you a day after a wonderful Celebration Sunday. There was laughter and spirit and commitment flowing through the sanctuary and Berg Hall. It was a fabulous kick-off to a successful stewardship drive for our 2019-2020 fiscal year. I am so grateful for the multi-faceted generosity of this amazing congregation.
If you have not yet made your pledge for the year, your pledge increases can still be matched by the $30,000 fund which we received (from UUA funds matching legacy gifts from our members).
I am continually amazed that all of us together essentially create this church out of nothing – nothing but goodwill, love, and commitment. You make this church come into being through your service – through your time, talent, and treasure, your wisdom, work, and wealth.
We often talk about all of the volunteer time and work it takes to bring this community into being. Yet this blog post (from Rev. Erin Wathen, a Christian colleague) has a different taking on volunteering that really resonated with me. She says it is essentially impossible to be a volunteer at church.
“You cannot volunteer at your own church, in the same way you cannot babysit your own [children].
Because the church belongs to you in the same way your family does. It’s your own place, your own people. So of course you help take care of it.
Of course you do yard work and make coffee and teach the kids and sing in the choir and whatever all else it is you do for the home and the people you love.
A volunteer, in most cases, is just visiting. A fly-by. [It may be helpful], but it’s not the same as belonging to something. It’s not the same as contributing to something bigger than you, something that’s part of who you are.”
Rev. Erin Wathen
We volunteer, she goes on, for outside organizations in need, “a place that is important to you, but not in a place that belongs to you.”
What we do at our church is serve. “We bring our gifts of love and service to the altar of humanity,” as the famously wise author anonymous tells us. This makes me all the more grateful for all the gifts – of time, talent, and treasure, of love and service – that our dear members and friends bring forth all the time.
We are creating a Beloved Community every day with every breath. It takes all our gifts, our strengths, our foibles, our dreams, our clear heads, our open hearts, our fullest presence.
So thank you, thank you, thank you
Rev. Dana
by Kitty Merrill | Apr 1, 2019 | Justice Actions
I am writing to you a day after a wonderful Celebration Sunday. There was laughter and spirit and commitment flowing through the sanctuary and Berg Hall. It was a fabulous kick-off to a successful stewardship drive for our 2019-2020 fiscal year. I am so grateful for the multi-faceted generosity of this amazing congregation.
If you have not yet made your pledge for the year, your pledge increases can still be matched by the $30,000 fund which we received (from UUA funds matching legacy gifts from our members).
I am continually amazed that all of us together essentially create this church out of nothing – nothing but goodwill, love, and commitment. You make this church come into being through your service – through your time, talent, and treasure, your wisdom, work, and wealth.
We often talk about all of the volunteer time and work it takes to bring this community into being. Yet this blog post (from Rev. Erin Wathen, a Christian colleague) has a different taking on volunteering that really resonated with me. She says it is essentially impossible to be a volunteer at church.
“You cannot volunteer at your own church, in the same way you cannot babysit your own [children].
Because the church belongs to you in the same way your family does. It’s your own place, your own people. So of course you help take care of it.
Of course you do yard work and make coffee and teach the kids and sing in the choir and whatever all else it is you do for the home and the people you love.
A volunteer, in most cases, is just visiting. A fly-by. [It may be helpful], but it’s not the same as belonging to something. It’s not the same as contributing to something bigger than you, something that’s part of who you are.”
Rev. Erin Wathen
We volunteer, she goes on, for outside organizations in need, “a place that is important to you, but not in a place that belongs to you.”
What we do at our church is serve. “We bring our gifts of love and service to the altar of humanity,” as the famously wise author anonymous tells us. This makes me all the more grateful for all the gifts – of time, talent, and treasure, of love and service – that our dear members and friends bring forth all the time.
We are creating a Beloved Community every day with every breath. It takes all our gifts, our strengths, our foibles, our dreams, our clear heads, our open hearts, our fullest presence.
So thank you, thank you, thank you
Rev. Dana
by Kitty Merrill | Apr 1, 2019 | Justice Actions
With three months left in this church year it seems like a good time for a reminder and some thanks. First, coming up on Sunday, June 9 we will hold our Annual Meeting following the church service. We have a “Slate” of candidates for positions on the Board, Leadership Committee, and the Endowment and Memorial Fund Committees to vote upon. We will also be voting to approve our budget for the 2019-2020 church year. Please be sure to save this date. Your participation in the process reflects our living out the 5th Principle: “The right of conscience and the use of the democratic process within our congregations and in society at large.”
The Slate of Candidates will be posted in advance for everyone’s review. Like the other committees and teams that the church has, these positions are filled by volunteers. The difference is that our By-Laws require a vote of the congregation to approve these folks as representatives on our behalf. That’s because the positions on the Slate involve granting our highest level of trust to members who will be looking out for the interests of the UUCV. A big Thank You goes to the Leadership Development Committee for presenting this Slate of Candidates to the congregation.
I have always seen Volunteerism as a spiritual practice, a kind of ministry, that makes a difference in the world or in someone’s life. Here, at the UUCV, no matter what your contribution please know that every effort creates a ripple that inspires. The sharing of one’s time and talent is a gift asked of all members. We do these things because we want to help make the church a better place for all. So, whether you see yourself as one or not, everyone at the UUCV is a leader because you choose to be a positive force for the common good. Amen!
This column is being written before the final results of Celebration Sunday are known. As we close in on creating the budget for 2019-20, committing to the financial support of the church is the last piece that the budget sub-committee needs to complete their work. What I can say about the event is that the sermon by Rev. Greg Ward was deeply meaningful and highlighted the importance of supporting liberal religion in our communities. A special thank you goes to Rev. Dana for bringing it all together, and to Erica Duffy and her team for the wonderful party that followed.
Which brings me to a last word of thanks to you, our members and friends, who support the UUCV with your treasure of a monthly pledge. All of us, with our hopes and our dreams make possible the beloved community that is the Unitarian Universalist Church of Ventura. On behalf of the Board of Trustee’s, for continuing the legacy given to us by those who came before, for sharing today with those who are here now, and for providing to those unknown to us a spiritual beacon, Thank You!
Living in Paradise,
Bryan Buck, UUCV Board President
by Kitty Merrill | Mar 4, 2019 | Justice Actions
On January 27th the Board held a Congregational
Conversation about our finances. It was the first ever mid-year presentation of
a UUCV budget and included a discussion of the beginning baseline for the
2019-2020 budget. There were 94 people in attendance which was fantastic!
We learned some things from the meeting. One is that financial
statements are important, and people want to see them, but that they can be
difficult and confusing to understand. Going forward we will include a
reference sheet as a summary listing the important points of the budget to make
it easier for you to understand our financial picture. Here is what you need to
know if you missed the meeting. It looks like we will have a surplus this year
when we had expected a small deficit. And next year we will have a deficit that
will be less than anticipated. The primary reason is because we no longer have
a Membership Manager with the salary that position required. Even though our
financial picture has improved there may still be some difficult choices to
make to our budget as we continue our progress toward “right sizing” our
church.
We also learned
a lot from the discussion of two “white” papers. There were four we wanted to
talk about. Unfortunately, there was only time to discuss Cost of Living
Adjustments (COLA’s) and Giving Away the Sunday Plate. The other two
covered Pledging and Fundraising and were included in the etree announcement
that everyone received. These were very important conversations. Folks spoke
movingly about the importance of being economically fair to our paid staff.
They spoke of the pride that they have in belonging to a church that gives away
the plate every Sunday. These two topics brought out how strongly we UUs feel
about and identify with being a generous people. AMEN!
Generosity – That’s really important to understand as the above
topics are examples of how we make a difference in the world. It is through
generosity of time, talent, and treasure that we demonstrate our commitment to
building a beloved community. That’s part of being a member of the UUCV.
Ever since
last year when we became aware of our budget challenge I have spoken and
written extensively about what it takes to fund our vision. March 17 is
Celebration Sunday. In this appeal to increase your pledge please consider how
the UUCV has made a difference in your life and in the lives of people you have
met since joining this spiritual community. Think about the places that
generosity has taken us and the places yet to be imagined that we can go.
Then there is Gratitude. Everyone, past and present, all of you
who support this congregation and the ministry that is the Unitarian
Universalist Church of Ventura, deserves recognition and thanks for making our
community a Beacon of Light and Hope. On behalf of the Board of Trustee’s we
thank you, our members and friends, for all for that you do for the UUCV.
Living in Paradise,
Bryan
Buck, UUCV Board President
