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WHAT'S HAPPENING

at First Parish UU of Scituate

Nov 13 — Nov 20

November Sundays

Nov 1: "Remembrance and Samhain" Remembering and honoring our loved ones who have died. Led by Abby Diamond-Kissiday.

Nov 8: "We Bless This Church" Led by Vicki Davis. Service followed by ice-cream sundaes.

Nov 15: "Who Are These UUs?" Rev. Danielle Di Bona preaching. Christina Laberge, guest musician.

Nov 22: "Justice, Equity, and Interdependence" Social Justice team, leading.

Nov 29: "Gratitude at Thanksgiving" Cathie McGowan leading. The service is followed by a potluck lunch and birthday cake.

10:30 – 11:30 am Service

11:30 – 12:30 pm Coffee Hour

A MONTH FOR GIVING

Call for volunteers!

Baked goods needed for Blue Boat Coffeehouse (Sat, Nov 21)

Cookies, bars, and brownies are best. Drop off baked goods on Saturday 11/21 during setup, between 2:30 – 6 pm

We have a great night of music and community coming up on Saturday Nov 21. An enticing bake table will be a crucial part of generating funds going to the Scituate Food Pantry right before Thanksgiving! Thank you!

November Special Collection

In honor of Native American Heritage Month, donations from FPUU will be given to the Native Land Conservancy (NLC). The NLC is an Indigenous-led organization founded in 2012 to preserve and restore land using Native American cultural knowledge and practices. Based in Mashpee, MA, it was the first Native-run land conservation group east of the Mississippi. Key activities of the NLC:

• Land acquisition and stewardship: The NLC acquires and accepts land donations to hold in fee title or to manage through conservation and cultural respect easements.
• Restoration and land care: Removing invasive species, managing trails, and clearing waterways for spawning fish such as herring.
• Educational initiatives and events: The NLC raises public awareness through a variety of educational programs and events such as cultural workshops that perpetuate traditional skills, an annual fair, and a paid summer fellowship that helps Native American youth enter careers in conservation.

Donate to the Nature Land Conservancy anytime in November using these online options:

• FPUU's donation page (select One Time Gifts, indicate NLC in notations box)
• FPUU’s Venmo account: @FirstParish-Scituate (specify NLC)
• The NLC website donation page

PLEASE CONTINUE to bring in food donations for the Scituate Food Pantry to any Sunday service throughout the year during the Offering. Check the monthly lists here: Food Pantry’s Most Needed and Always Needed lists.



AROUND THE PARISH

ALERT!

The Harvest Community Dinner

scheduled for Saturday 11/14

has been POSTPONED until January

Game Night!

for Adults and Little Ones

Friday, Nov 13 (5:30 – 8:30 pm)

Always a night full of laughter and conversation, Game Night is open to everyone, and pizza will be provided. Bring a friend!

Drop in when you can. The early start allows little ones to have fun before bedtime, and going til 8:30 pm allows for getting caught in traffic. Bringing food or beverages to share is optional.

Two new games were introduced last month:

Garden Guests: Players compete to form a continuous path across a garden board that features beautiful paper cut art (see picture). Will you be cut off or will you cut someone off?

Bananagrams: A race against each other to build your own crossword grid. Who’s going to yell ‘peel’ first?

Other games on hand will be Candy Land, Qwirkle, Mahjong, Scrabble, Cribbage and many more. Please bring your favorite to share. 

The Blue Boat Coffeehouse is a public, welcoming,

alcohol-free performance presented by First Parish UU Church of Scituate MA since 2016. The proceeds from every performance benefit a community non-profit.

A night of song and entertainment with Scituate's own Peter Mundt. Peter is a Berklee College of Music graduate, and a longtime educator in the Scituate school system. He has been a familiar face in the South Shore musical community for over 30 years, playing everything from classic rock to blues, jazz, country, folk and pop tunes.

Please come support First Parish, as well as the Scituate Food Pantry! Invite friends and share on social media — this is always a great night out. Let's pack the house!!

At this time of year, members and friends of the church work on creating goods that are sold at our largest fundraiser, the Snowflake Fair. We sell clothing, toys, food, upcycled creations, jewelry, and more, with a focus on sustainability.

This is a wonderful opportunity for folks, new and old, to celebrate the season, make new friends, and raise money in support of the church’s operating budget. All contributions to the fair — whether they be ideas, your time, items for sale, supplies, or other—are welcome.

Look for signups — there are many ways to help out!

• Donate your homemade fudge or cookies, or a batch of chowder or chili.
• Donate vintage or costume jewelry, knitted goods or other handmade crafts or art. Help us decorate fresh, Vermont-made wreaths.
• Donate food supplies, art supplies or natural materials requested by the Fididdlers.
• Volunteer to organize and staff Kids’ Crafts Room, or a table or activity on the day of the fair, or serve as a Cashier.
• Help publicize the fair.
• Help with set-up and cleanup.
• Deliver our famous, freshest ever, Christmas trees after the fair.

For more information on the Snowflake Fair, please speak to Jean Shildneck, Cathie McGowan, Vicki Davis, Erica Boyle, or Rich Towle. 

Fididdlers is for any age or gender or ability! Please consider joining or recruiting anyone who enjoys being a maker, or who could use the company of kindred spirits to keep mind and hands busy.

The First Parish Soupmakers

Alternative Tuesday afternoons

Next meeting: Nov 17, 1 pm

Anyone can join us to make soup. See you in the kitchen!

— Claire Sherman

In collaboration with Holly Hill Farm's "Farm to Food Pantry" program, our Soupmakers team cooks up gallons of nutritious, delicious soups every couple of weeks that get delivered to our neighbors in the community via the Scituate Food Pantry — currently upwards of 300 families.

Acting Out Together

Friday, Nov 20

6:30 - 8:30 pm

All who want to read can read; all who want to listen can do so. Please contact Lin to be added to the planning emails.

"Hi everyone! We have two plays that we have final acts to finish: "The Night Thoreau Spent in Jail" and "Liberation." I will bring both sets of scripts to the meeting and ask y'all to decide on which to read! I have a nice one-act play lined up for our December meeting: Thornton Wilder's "The Long Christmas Dinner." I'm trying to find other good one-act plays for us to read in the future. Suggestions?"

— Lin Haire-Sargeant (781-635-0476) and Claire Sherman

The ministry of Acting Out Together is to build understanding and community by reading plays of social, ethical, and spiritual consequence. Reading the dramas out loud lets us literally give voice to characters in the midst of their lives' most intense changes and conflicts; it puts us square in their place. 

SOCIAL JUSTICE TEAM

Welcoming Days of Observance

Building and sustaining an inclusive community is part of our ongoing work for justice and equity, and a core part of who we are as UUs. We honor the full diversity of individuals as a spiritual gift. As an accredited Welcoming Congregation, we continually work to affirm our congregation’s commitment to radical inclusion.

Vigil and Community Gathering

Fri, Nov. 20 (7:00 pm)

Quincy Center

United First Parish UU Church, 1306 Hancock St.

Vigil on Hancock-Adams Common

United First Parish Church is holding a service of collective mourning, remembrance, and resilience, to honor those lost, and hold those who remain. 

Afterwards, all are welcome to a reception in the parish hall for connection and resource-sharing. We have attended in the past and it is a very moving event!

Street parking is available.

Mass Transgender Political Coalition

Advocacy 101 Miniseries

Media Literacy

Wednesday, November 18 (7 - 8 pm)

Online via Zoom



Disinformation, misinformation, fake news, and other questionable narratives have harmed the trans community for years. In this Trans Leadership Academy webinar, you’ll learn important media literacy skills to help push back against misconceptions about trans people and identify reliable news sources. 

This event is free of charge.

CARING TEAM

If you know of anyone who may need a little extra care, please reach out to the Caring Committee. It may read 'committee' but it’s community! Thank you to everyone for your efforts to help one another at church, in your neighborhood, and the world neighborhood.

Thank you.

— Diane Jordan

FELLOWSHIP:

Gratitude Potluck Lunch

Sun, Nov. 29 (11:30 am)

Our next Potluck will follow the "Gratitude at Thanksgiving" service. With it being the Sunday after Thanksgiving, you may still have leftovers you might want to bring. Food does not have to be based on a ‘traditional’ Thanksgiving meal — everything is welcomed and appreciated.

Coffee Hour contributions

November families H–L

Contributing to the Coffee Hour table is part of the ministry of caring for each other! Lin Haire-Sargeant organizes teams to manage contributions of coffee-hour treats.

Households (by first letter of last name) are invited to host throughout the year:

Team A - C --- September and February

Team D - G --- October and March

Team H - L --- November and April

Team M - P --- December and May

Team R - W --- January and June

COMMUNITY CONNECTIONS

 Indivisible Scituate

Indivisible Scituate is a grassroots group committed to protecting democracy and advancing equity. As part of Indivisible, we bring neighbors together to advocate for fair policies and civic engagement.



—Jenn Mackey, Mary Ann Perry

UU RESOURCES

Indigenous Solidarity November Gathering Nov. 19 (7 pm)

on Zoom

Traditionally, Indigenous people in the Americas did not have prisons, rather the whole community responded to violations of community norms, seeking renewal instead of revenge. This conversation will probe the vision of Abolition.

Boston Immigration Justice Accompaniment Network

When I Needed a Neighbor: 

Music, Dance, Poetry to support BIJAN

Saturday, December 5 (3 pm)

Old South Church (UCC)

645 Boylston St., Boston

Join UU Mass Action for an afternoon of music, dance, and poetry. This performance features many UUs, including from the UU Mass Action board! Admission is free and there is no registration necessary. Organizers will collect a free-will offering during the event to benefit BIJAN. 

UU the Vote engages people in voter registration, issue education, get-out-the-vote drives, voter protection, state leadership development, and more. 

In 2026 they shifted from election-year organizing to year-round movement-building work toward building a truly inclusive democracy.

Bookmark their website!

Side With Love is the justice-oriented action center for the UUA.

Bookmark their website!