by Kitty Merrill | Nov 1, 2016 | Inreach/Outreach News
“No one has ever become poor by giving.” Anne Frank
Members and pledging friends voted Oct. 2 to determine which Inreach/Outreach organizations will receive our offerings November through February. Of the 12 applicants, four had enough votes to be awarded two Sundays, six were awarded one Sunday, and two received too few votes to be eligible. Results of the vote are posted on the We Care/ We Share bulletin board in Berg Hall.
In late September and early October your generosity helped a soon-to open infant and toddler care center and preschool for homeless children in Ventura; children in our county’s foster care system; a “no kill” animal shelter that rehabilitates and re-homes sick, injured and abused animals, and those folks in our own community who need assistance.
The UUCV Inreach/Outreach fund received $1,132, which is available to help individuals or families in our local community who are in need of support.
We collected $551 for Step Up Ventura, the new nonprofit which will soon offer services for homeless children aged birth through five in Ventura. By providing safe and therapeutic care for these children, trauma they may have experienced will be addressed so that they can develop emotionally, physically and cognitively to be ready to enter school.
The congregation donated $697 to CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocates of Ventura County) to help recruit, screen, train and support community volunteers who become court-appointed special advocates for children in the county’s foster system. In the child’s eyes, the CASA advocate is the person who can be counted on to respond to those most basic needs for reassurance, guidance, comfort, representation and advocacy in times of extreme uncertainty.
SPARC (Santa Paula Animal Rescue Center) received $505 to help provide needed care and medical attention for many of the animals (80%) that arrive at the Center sick, injured or abused. SPARC is home to nearly 2000 homeless animals each year. The Center serves Ventura County and partners with the community by providing resources, outreach education on spay/neutering, and vaccination programs.
Thank you for contributing so generously each Sunday. Anne Escobedo
by Kitty Merrill | Nov 1, 2016 | Justice Actions
Lift Up Your Voice (LUYV) Events
Join us Thursday, November 17, for our third annual Take a Hungry Person to Lunch event in observation of National Hunger and Homelessness Awareness week. Past participants tell us they love getting beyond the stereotypes and fear and, many times, seeing how interesting and talented their lunch partners are.
We’ll start in Berg Hall at 10:30am hearing from Gayle, a woman who taught school before becoming homeless and living in the river bottom for years. We’ll also meet the couple who took her to lunch two years ago — a meeting that ultimately helped Gayle return to housing. We’ll see a brief video of one of our church members telling of her years living on the streets of Ventura.
Then we’ll head over to Ventura’s Plaza Park, where you’ll meet the individual you (and a friend, if you like) will take to lunch. You’ll walk (or drive) to a nearby restaurant and get to know one another over a meal. Please contact Kathy Powell at kathypurpleprincess@gmail.com or 805/910-8860 for further info. and to sign up to be a host.
Also, mark your calendars and plan to join us for our 11th annual Homeless Persons’ Memorial Service on Sunday, December 18 at 3pm in the gazebo at Ventura’s Plaza Park. Details will be in the December newsletter.
by Sue Brinkmeyer
by Kitty Merrill | Nov 1, 2016 | Justice Actions
7PEAT News!
Thanks so much to our congregation for helping the 7th Principle Environmental Action Team (7PEAT) prioritize action areas for the coming year. Your sticki-notes and sign ups in August have now been tallied. Here are the ideas with the top level of response:
- Commit2Respond Shift to a lower Carbon Footprint
Congregational Potlucks/Talks
Sign Ups: Gudrun Eastham, Julie Moore, Maura Raffensberger, Shelah Wilgus, Kappy Paulson, Pam Waldron, Teresa Zdanowich, Sue Brinkmeyer
- Commit2Respond Advance Hands-on Work in our Wider Community
Biodiversity in the City and Citizen Science
Sign Ups: Kappy Paulson, Vanessa Frank, Mark Mendelsohn
- Commit2Respond Grow the Climate Movement
Collaboration with Other Groups
Sign Ups: Gudrun Eastham, Maura Raffensberger, Donna Ingram, Teresa Zdanowich
We’ll share more information about these projects as the teams get going!
If you are interested in working on one of these environmental issues, come to our meetings, the first Sunday of the month at 11:30 in the Conference Room and jump in!
If you want to find out more, email Kitty Merrill at greenkitty@outlook.com, or talk to any of the team members.
If you are feeling called by an issue that isn’t on our list, here are some options:
- When Social Action’s Coordinating Committee has its focus group lunch on Nov. 13, come and talk up your area of interest.
- Gather a couple of allies, and come to the next 7PEAT meeting and we’ll add your project to our list.
- Consider breaking it down into an individual event to show off the idea to others, and see if you can grow it from there.
by Kitty Merrill | Nov 1, 2016 | Building and Grounds
This is what was accomplished on October’s All Church Building and Grounds Work Party:
- A door stop on the storage room for committee and sound equipment was adjusted.
- Bulky trash items in the trash enclosure were made ready to recycle.
- A file cabinet was magically opened and set aside for future donation.
- Earthquake brackets were painted to match the wall behind the new bookcase in the west alcove.
- Fluorescent light tubes in the sanctuary were checked and replaced as needed.
- Placement of three white noise machines was investigated.
- Watered another Australian willow tree.
- Checked Safe Sleep trash (It didn’t need emptying because they are taking care of it themselves.)
- Picked-up trash around the property.
- Removed some dead shrubbery.
- Gave the kitchen a final cleaning before the Auction.
- Swept the ever present pine needles from the parking lot.
Now for the math test for the newsletter. If that is twelve things accomplished. How many people were working for three hours? (Answer is below)
I am worried about the Australian willow trees that are planted around the parking lot. They look so stressed from lack of water or maybe from having their roots over crowded in the planting beds. Does anyone else notice them and their changes? I hope you are all doing rain dances or whatever practice you have that can help them perk up.
These are the people who were working during the work party: Cindy Camalucci, Kassie Erickson, Merle Oberg, Bill Peltola, Mike Sixbey, and Joyce Sattler. During our “Kick-back, socialize and enjoy snacks” part of the day we were talking about what could be accomplished if we could increase the number of people who came out. How many of you remember the “War on Weeds” we had at Terry House?
Once a year, more than a dozen people showed up to get rid of the weeds. Those who couldn’t work in that way brought food. We worked most of the day. We had a motivation: If we didn’t get rid of the weeds, the fire department would charge us to remove them. How can we get that motivation here?
by Linda Pietrzak
by Kitty Merrill | Nov 1, 2016 | Justice Actions
District Assembly, General Assembly, UU-UNO, Oh My!
Registration for District Assembly opens on January 1, 2017; If you are a 9th-12th grade youth interested in attending, register for DA Youth Caucus!
General Assembly Youth Caucus Staff applications open in Nov! If you are a 9th-12th grade youth who is interested in leading Youth Caucus at General Assembly 2017, see www.uua.org/re/youth/events/gacaucus.
The UU-UNO office is currently accepting applications to be an Envoy, a Youth Rep for the UU-UN Office, application information on www.uua.org/international/un/envoys. If you are a 9th-12th grade youth who is interested in global justice please apply!!
Contact Tanner Linden-Akseven (Youth Events Coordinator) at tanakseven@gmail.com for more information about youth opportunities and experiences
