Good, Good People,

Our country and the world are in a continuing chaotic swirl, and we all want to Do Something! about it. The frustration and sense of urgency is high. And, as I have said a few times now, the chaos is a strategy, the point of which is to scatter the energy for resistance. 

We cannot do everything. And we must do what we can. 

Folks in our church are already responding, expanding our sense of Sanctuary. Several I spoke about Sunday: Immigrant Love, the Environmental Action Team’s upcoming Climate Justice Revival (which still needs organizing help), designating a gender-neutral bathroom – useful to more than the LGBTQ+ community – and supporting women who get their health care at Planned Parenthood. (Please email me directly if you want to help, even if you told me Sunday.)

Together as a faith community, we have agency. There are things that we Can Do.  Each of us can also respond individually, though not alone. There is no dearth of things we can do, groups we can join, protests, and resistance.  Relationship is key here – within our church, with other congregations in the Unitarian Universalist Association, and among our community partners.

Here are a few:

• Tomorrow, Feb. 28, there is a call for an Economic Blackout of retailers who are already dismantling DEI programs. More than an economic strategy to significantly harm them, it is a demonstration of our potential power going forward and solidarity, particularly with the African American community. 
• Here is a link to info about this: Economic Blackout from a group called UU Class Conversations.
• You can also find out about local organizing efforts with Indivisible Ventura Indivisible Ventura, Justice for All Ventura, or Showing Up for Racial Justice, SURG Ventura County .
• You can volunteer with and/or donate to CAUSE,  MICOP, and the  805UndocuFund.

Finally, I implore you to take care of your tender, fierce, and sometimes overwhelmed selves.

The chaos is a strategy to drain your energy and make the resistance less effective. 

With so much love,
Rev. Dana

UUCV Friends,     We successfully hosted the Pacific Southwest Service Area Assembly, sponsored by Camp de Benneville Pines. And we did so with the help of many Energizer bunnies. Camp staff and board members provided so much. This message is about us at UUCV.

Throughout the weekend, visiting attendees continually thanked me, as our congregation’s lay figurehead. I accepted their thanks and pointed out how many elves were involved in making it happen. I take that metaphor from our longtime leader and benefactor Tom Berg’s cheerful admonition that “Little elves are not going to get the work done.” He meant that people needed to pitch in. So many of us elves pitched in to get the work done. To shift back the metaphor, we had a lot of Energizer bunnies.

In fact, so many of us were involved in getting the work done that I have realized that I cannot name them all individually. And that’s a good thing, because so many folks contributed. So, I’ll just name the various task areas involved, and if you know someone who worked on one or more of those tasks, please be sure to thank that person. Our entire professional staff was involved in putting on this event, some from months in advance and behind the scenes. A small group of Building and Grounds volunteers labored in the weeks and days before the event to spiff up our grounds, which were abundant with spring growth – and with the wildflowers we showed off. B & G volunteers also made sure that our indoor infrastructure was working.

Our indoor spaces also received special welcoming attention. While some of us may still think of our sacred spaces as a converted insurance building, many of our visitors commented what a lovely facility we had. This is thanks to those who made sure that we had our best face on in the sanctuary and that our tables and chairs were set up well, in the Sanctuary and in Berg Hall.

We were well fed, kept refreshed, and libated thanks to many UUCV volunteers and donors, and to the efforts of volunteers from Camp and from our sibling congregation Chalice. Our professional and volunteer AV/tech staff did amazing work both for in-house and online attendees. Several of the events are now archived for viewing.

We also acknowledge everyone who helped support music during the weekend, including Don’t Fret, setup and support for the two concerts, and financial and in-person support for the Emma’s Revolution performance. Home hospitality was well coordinated, and several guests stayed in the homes of our generous hosts. Simultaneous with the assembly, we hosted a youth Con (a gathering just for youth). We were glad to have two youth participants light our chalice for Sunday worship.

We finished with a bang-up Sunday service and yet more hospitality that followed, and many of our abundant leftovers went to a homeless shelter. All of our UUCV attendees did a wonderful job of providing our guests a warm welcome. Thank you to everyone!

Onward,
Jim Merrill, he/him
President, UUCV Board of Trustees

So many of us have been on retreats: women’s retreats, choir retreats, men’s retreats, yoga retreats. So want to ask: Are we retreating from something?

Instead let’s look at retreats as sanctuaries, places where we can find solace, creativity, support, and connection. I like to think about women’s retreats a way of deepening and expanding my connection to women.

We live in a larger culture which often divides women against each other. And of course we live in an androcentric culture, which is fearfully becoming even more so. That’s why we need a sanctuary of time and space to reconnect with each other and share the wonderful creativity and wisdom each of us brings to the table. Come let’s celebrate ourselves at a Women’s Retreat on Saturday, June 15th from 9:00 til 5:00 at Susan Franzblau’s home at the Ventura Harbor.

Our team: Kathy Swift, Sally Herman, Susan Franzblau, Vel Linden, and Priscilla Akin, is preparing a home baked goods breakfast, a Middle Eastern vegetarian lunch and other delicacies. We are also preparing workshops on eating and walking meditation, breathwork, zentangles, T’ai chi, and more…We are women teaching and inspiring women. We are limiting the retreat to 20 women so give it some thought. We will have a signup sheet available on Sunday, April 20th after services. Instead of retreating let’s find a safe place, a sanctuary, to reconnect and learn from each other.

 A Message from Jennifer Luce
Congregational Administrator

A MESSAGE FROM LILY RAPPAPORT, ACTING DIRECTOR OF FAMILY MINISTRY  

For many of us the new school year starts soon! The new year represents growth and change; moving to a new classroom, school, or town; more responsibility and maturity. Some of us are excited about new beginnings and some may feel anxious or worried about making the transition. Either way, it is a good opportunity for our congregation to mark a safe and successful year ahead and to embrace our call to learning. 

This Sunday, August 20th, we will celebrate and commemorate a new year of learning. The backpack blessing will offer encouragement and support for all who are embarking on a year of spiritual growth. It is a valuable ritual within a faith family and one that many Unitarian Universalist congregations hold at the beginning of the school year. It is a wonderful way to bless part of our everyday lives, to connect Sunday and the rest of the week, and to lift up learning and growth and to encourage and support learners, no matter the age.

Whether you’re a student in school or a student of life, learning is a part of life no matter your age. All are invited to bring the bag they will carry on their journeys ahead to be blessed and filled with love by our UUCV community. This includes any and all the tools we use, throughout life, to help us learn. So bring your backpack, bookbag, briefcase, purse, laptop bag, lunch bag or anything that represents your return to school, whatever form school might take.

Let’s begin the journey into a new school year surrounded by the loving care and support of our wonderful UUCV community.  See you on Sunday!

Lily Rappaport
Acting Director of Family Ministry