Join Us for Worship This Sunday!

October 18 at 10 am

Rev. Karen G. Johnston, Senior Minister

Mark Power-Freeman, Worship Associate

Restor(y)ing Eve

With the new ~ and not-at-all-new ~ reports in the media of misogyny and sexual abuse, it’s impossible to not see the threads of patriarchy harming all of us, no matter our gender. What not too long ago was #metoo is now #IAmJaneDoe. Today’s sermon will reclaim the story of Eve. As part of the service, our embodied ritual will focus on breaking the silence and healing from sexual violence. Rev. Karen is in the pulpit.

Join us for worship in person or online. The livestream link will be shared at bit.ly/FUUSBWorship.

Following the service, all are welcome to Coffee Hour in the Community Room.

While at the Meeting House, anyone is welcome to wear a mask. In the spirit of caring for each other, please stay home if you have any cold or flu symptoms. Thank you.

Children & Youth this Sunday

Mo Singletary, Family Programs Assistant

Families will begin the morning together in the Sanctuary. After the Time For All Ages, children & youth will be escorted to Chalice Choice activities on the lower level. Activities will include creative projects inspired by our Earth Teacher of the month and the approach of Samhain!

The nursery will be open throughout the service, providing care for infants & toddlers.

Looking Back to Sunday

You can view a recording of last Sunday's service here.

Children & Youth: Nature Art Last Sunday

In our all-ages outdoor activity last Sunday, children and youth co-created a beautiful swirling piece of art along the back pathway of the Meetinghouse, using natural materials they gathered from the ground! They embraced the ephemeral aspect of the project, knowing that their creations were made from nature and will eventually return to it, mirroring the cycles of change we see all around us during the fall.

Photos from Mark Kuprych & Mo Singletary

Submitted by Eileen Blackwood, FUUSB Board President

Agenda for Upcoming Board Meeting

 The Board’s next regular meeting will be held on Oct. 20 from 4:00 to 6:00 pm in the Parlors. The Zoom link for the meeting will be sent out on the morning of the meeting. 



Tentative Agenda

silent observers welcome in-person as well as via Zoom 

(this agenda is subject to change)

• Welcome/check-In
• Minutes/consent agenda
• Senior Minister's report
• Monthly financial reports
• Special congregational meeting Nov. 8 – process and review of agenda
• Discussion of updating the Society’s Ends
• Discussion of Rev. Karen’s Letter of Agreement in relation to evaluating ministry
• Approve new Life Members
• Stewardship recruiting
• ICE Out Vermont Alliance request

Staff Update

We are happy to announce the hiring of our new Sabbatical Director of Faith Development, Bianka Çimrin (pronounced chim-rin)! She will be filling in for Director of Faith Development, Erika Reif, during the second part of her sabbatical. Bianka will begin on Sunday, Oct 25th and work through February 26th. Below you can read Bianka's bio.

Bianka is thrilled to serve as the Sabbatical Director of Faith Development at the First Unitarian Universalist Society. A survivor of the Bosnian war who moved to Vermont in 1997, Bianka is a proud graduate of Burlington High School, UVM, and Norwich University (Psychology and Organizational Leadership). A former Burlington City Councilor, she has spent her career supporting elders, local startups, and community health initiatives. Bianka lives in Burlington with her family, and in her free time, she loves baking and crafting with driftwood from the beautiful shores of Lake Champlain.

Update with regard to FUUSB resistance to ICE

Rev. Karen G. Johnston, Senior Minister

You might be aware that our Senior Minister, Rev. Karen, participated in a non-violent direct action against ICE on September 4th. Along with 6 other faith leaders, she was arrested. The arraignment, which will establish any formal charges, will be held on Tuesday, October 20th at 8:30am at the Costello Courthouse at 32 Cherry Street in Burlington. You are welcome to attend to show support.

Some of you have asked to see the coverage of a different non-violent action that took place on October 5th, when an interfaith funeral was held for the nearly 100 people who have lost their lives associated with ICE. Many FUUSBers attended and among the dozens of clergy from many traditions, 2 UU ministers (Rev. Karen and Rev. Joan from Montpelier) and 1 UU seminarian participated. Here is a link to coverage by Rachel Maddow on MSNow.

Rev. Karen expresses deep gratitude to lay leaders and staff alike who went the extra mile to host the Convergence space for last week's Week of Action sponsored by a concerned group of Vermonters who would like to see ICE shut down in Vermont. It was powerful to know that our building was being well and fully used in resonance with our mission to seek justice and care for our community.

We Need You to Help Steward this Congregation!!

Christina Fulton, Director of Operations & Finance

The definition of Steward: "A steward is a person who manages, protects, or takes care of property, resources, financial affairs, or a group of people on behalf of someone else." 

Every year, this congregation relies on a team of people, the Stewardship Team, to help collect pledges to support the congregation in the following year. And this year, the congregation needs you to steward.  I know what you're thinking, you're thinking that you can't ask people for money, right? Well, guess what? Members of the Stewardship Team do so much more than ask for money. They help to remind the members and friends of this congregation why they come here, what they want this congregation to do in the next year, and why they love this place and its people.  Once you remind the congregation of these things, the pledges of financial support will follow.

We need YOU to join the Stewardship Team! Please come to our first planning meeting on Sunday, November 1st, at 11:30 a.m. We need people with many different skills; everything from writing to party planning to public speaking. But don't worry, whatever skills you bring, we will welcome you!

Thank you!!

Imara Jones' Ware Lecture -

screening here at FUUSB

The Building Democracy Team & The Welcoming Congregation Renewal Project (of the Radical Welcoming Team)

Join us for Imara Jones’ Lecture, lunch and discussion on 10/18

Come to the Parlors, directly after the service on 10/18. We’ll view the UUA video of Imara Jones’ 2025 General Assembly Ware Lecture while we have tea/coffee and eat lunch (provided) and then discuss the lecture in small groups.  

Imara Jones explains how scapegoating trans people is a central tactic in a long term strategy developed by Christian Nationalists to win elections. It was employed successfully in 2024, is being used again in the midterms, and will reappear in 2028. We’ll watch this lecture together to understand how this divisive disinformation campaign is used to manipulate voters and we’ll discuss what we learn and how to go forward. 

Imara Jones is an American political journalist and transgender activist. She has won awards for her broadcast and print journalism and is the creator of TransLash Media. 

Questions & Answers about the Apartheid-Free Communities Pledge

Palestine Solidarity Team

Join our Question and Answer sessions about how our congregation can endorse the Apartheid-Free Communities pledge (AFC), led by FUUSB’s Palestinian Solidarity Team. We will begin with the UUA's 2024 Action of Immediate Witness (AIW): “Solidarity with Palestinians,” which calls on all UU congregations to “sign, amplify, and carry out” the Apartheid-Free Communities pledge. Then, in the UU spirit of seeking truth and holding hard conversations with love and accountability, we will have a pair-share activity. All questions and answers are welcome. 

Learn why Palestinian solidarity has been a UU issue for over 50 years, and what it means to join others globally in working to end all support to Israel’s apartheid regime, settler colonialism, and military occupation. 

Join us on: 10/25, 7-8 pm, online; 11/1, 11:30 am-12:30 pm, at FUUSB; 11/6, 12:15-1:30 pm, at FUUSB. RSVPs helpful: PalestineSolidarity@uusociety.org 

Visit our table after the service in the Community Room to pick up printed copies of the AFC pledge, the AIW, our new Q&A document about endorsing the pledge at FUUSB, and a Q&A developed for UU Congregations by Unitarian Universalists for Justice in the Middle East. (Pali Answers is a great place to ask your questions.) This video celebrates UU endorsers. 

Is Israel an Apartheid State?:

An Evening With Mousa Ishaq + Book Group 

Palestine Solidarity Team

The FUUSB Palestine Solidarity Team is honored to present a talk by Palestinian-Vermonter Mousa Ishaq on Oct. 28 from 7-8:30 pm in the society’s Community Room. Mousa will weave his personal connection to Palestine into a presentation on the question: Is Israel an Apartheid State? Save the date and invite a friend. 

Mousa was born on the West Bank, and his family still has property there. He is the chair of the Burlington-Bethlehem-Arad Sister City Program and has been active in it since its creation in 1991. He is a member of Ascension Lutheran Church, in South Burlington, which has a sister congregation relationship with the Christmas Lutheran Church in Bethlehem, Palestine. 

Additionally, we are hosting a book group discussion on Nov. 4, 7-8:30 pm, online and at FUUSB, on Perfect Victims and the Politics of Appeal by Mohammed El-Kurd. It was a New York Times Best Seller, a USA Today bestseller, and a national indie bestseller, as well as winner of the 2025 Palestine Book Award. Copies of this book are available at deep discount when we table after upcoming services, or email us  PalestineSolidiarity@uusociety.org. See this review.   

Game Night is One Week Away!

Mo Singletary, Family Programs Assistant

Mark your calendars for Our Multigenerational Game Night on Friday, October 23rd (5:30-8pm)!

We’ll have lots of games at the ready, but feel free to bring one that you want to play. In the past we've done jigsaw puzzles, Apples to Apples, Hues & Cues, Rumikub, Azul, group card games, Pictionary, and more. Generally, there are several things happening at once and that’s part of the fun! Come with a group of friends and the intention to play a particular game, or just see what’s going. Bring your kids and play together, or let them join childcare staff while you try a game with an older crowd. Make it what you want!

We'll have a "no-stress" potluck, so you can wow us with your culinary skills or pick up a loaf of bread and a tub of hummus from the store. The point is to have fun together and not go hungry! All are welcome to join for a little bit or stay the whole time, just come ready to make new friends and reconnect with the old!

Faith Development Registration

Mo Singletary, Family Programs Assistant

A reminder for families with children & youth: Please register for the 2026-27 program year at this link!