Sunday Service February 9, 2025 at 10:30am 

Social Action Project is TONIGHT!

TONIGHT! 6:30-8:30p in room 5

Our project is for a local animal shelter, C.A.R.E.

We’ll be making scratch pads for cats and tug toys for dogs.

You can donate old t-shirts in the labelled bin by the Giving House in the lobby.

Or bring them on Friday, as well as adult-sized scissors, and a snack to share.

Calling All Campers!

Whether you prefer a cabin to a tent, we want to hear from you!

We’re planning a camping trip for this June!

Fill out the survey: UCE Camping Trip Interest Form

Planning for End of Life - Better Now Than Never

This series of three programs is for adults of all ages to help prepare for the end of life. We don’t know when our time on earth will end, so why not do what we can now to make it easier for our loved ones?

You can participate in any or all of these sessions facilitated by Alison Issen:

February 26th at 7pm: Up Close and Personal: Growth and Opportunity In Facing Our Mortality

March 5th at 7pm: Putting Your Ducks In a Row

March 19th at 7pm: Harvesting the Wisdom of Your Life: Creating an Ethical Will

Register at https://onrealm.org/ucevanston/PublicRegistrations/Event?linkString=YWMwOWYwY2MtNTA0ZC00NmI0LThiZjAtYjI3NTAxMmE5YjJi

Childcare for Sunday Morning Choir Rehearsals!

Beginning February 9 at 8:45am in room 11

Meeting Our Interfaith Neighbors

February 11th at 5:30pm sharp at the Baháʼí House of Worship.

You can arrive earlier to walk around before we participate in the program.

You can register here to be included on future emails.

UPDATES FROM THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Dreaming the Future: Two Big Questions

• What changes do we need to make so that UCE is more accessible in a variety of ways for all?

• How can we foster connections that go beyond our comfort zones at UCE and in the larger community?

The Board of Trustees invites you into conversation on visioning the future for our community around the ideas of accessibility and connection. Not to create a list of tasks to accomplish, but instead to brainstorm large themes and ideas. What do we want UCE to strive for? Where will the future take us?

For those of you who attended the dinner/workshop led by Rev. Sharon Dittmar last summer, the two questions above came out of the Board’s discussion following her visit. In March and April of 2025, the Board will hold four sessions to give everyone an opportunity to weigh in and share their thoughts and feelings about the two big questions stated above.

The Board is seeking a better sense as a whole for what the collective hopes and dreams are for this congregation and community. Our aim is to expand the linkage between the Board and the congregation. It is to build community and discuss large goals.

Look for notices in February for details of when the four sessions will be. Two will be virtual to accommodate those who wish to join the conversation from home. Two will be a larger gathering in the church that will include a short meal, much like the gathering held last summer.

”In my experience the best storytelling is the best organizing…it’s rooted in a truth people have experienced, has some magic in it and something to long for, and a moment of beauty. but it is co-created as it is lived, no one can see the end of it.”

from an essay “Ripe Conditions” by adrienne maree brown.

—Sally Parsons

• PLEASE NOTE: Newsletter submissions should be sent to Newsletter@ucevanston.org by noon on Wednesdays.

• If you're viewing the newsletter in your email inbox, click on "View entire message" at the bottom of the email to read the full newsletter!

SOUPer Bowls Sunday & Pledge Drive Kickoff Event on February 9th -

WE NEED YOU! 

Sign up to set up, clean up, bring food or cook for this event: SignUp.com to Help. And BRING YOUR APPETITE as we gather in GRATITUDE to help raise funds for three local pantries and kickoff the 2025 Pledge Drive. Your pledge supports our Operating Budget which supports our work as a congregation to live our values and mission. Together we strive to make the world whole. 

In addition to a delicious selection of homemade soup lunch for $10.00 per person ($20 maximum per family) attendees may choose a beautiful handmade bowl from which to eat it, ranging in price from $10-$40 each. Meals are accompanied by fruit, cheese, cookies and fresh baked bread donated & served by David the Bread Guy. If you have handmade bowls to contribute/recycle, they may be dropped off in the UCE office or call Maggie Weiss for pick up: 847-571-1385. 

Let’s gather to create community and experience MORE soup and salad, and MORE Love, Peace, Justice, and Hope! We look forward to seeing you!   

 The UCE Food & Shelter Team and Pledge Drive Team

Laissez Les Bons Temps Rouler with the UCE Board of Trustees

Let the Good Times Roll during a vibrant night of celebration, hosted by the UCE Board of Trustees! Join us for an evening filled with lively music and savory delights inspired by the spirit of New Orleans. Be serenaded by the upbeat tunes of Mojo49 that will transport you to the lively streets of the French Quarter. Sip on a delightful sparkling punch and savor a delicious Mardi Gras salad, shrimp or veggie étouffée, and a sweet finale of cake and ice cream. Let the good times roll as we come together for a memorable gathering of fun, food, and camaraderie! Childcare will be provided for your convenience. Friday February 7th, 6-9pm, get your ticket for $60 by clicking here. 

Contact the Serendipity Fundraising Team at auction@ucevanston.org with any questions.

Get ready!!!! Plans are already underway for the 2025 Rummage Sale. As winter winds down and spring cleaning approaches, please set aside items for donating to this year’s sale--and encourage friends and neighbors to do the same!



Key dates to mark on your calendar:

• 2025 Sale Dates: Fri 5/2/25 – Sat 5/3/25
• 2025 Donation Dates: Sun 4/27/25 – Mon 4/28/25
• 2025 Setup Dates: Sun 4/27/25 – Thurs 5/1/25

What items are being accepted?

• We will soon publish the 2025 Donation Tip Sheet.

Questions, comments or suggestions?

• Email rummage@ucevanston.org with questions, comments or suggestions.

Beginning in mid-March, the rummage sale planning committee will sponsor an informational table on Sundays at the back of the sanctuary. Likewise, we will post announcements to this newsletter.

Thank you for your past support of the sale. We look forward to your participation once again!

Hospitality Team Opportunities!

First impressions, and initial experiences, count! When guests walk through our doors and are greeted by a friendly face, given help finding a seat on a busy Sunday, and chatted with after service or served beverages and treats with a smile, they feel valued and often return.

Help UCE build and strengthen our community. Greet members and visitors to let each person know we’re happy to see them!

There are several teams to lend a hand to the UCE Hospitality Program:

Greeters Hospitality Team – If you enjoy making others feel comfortable or appreciate how you were welcomed to UCE and would like to provide that for another, this is the team for you. There are four different roles each Sunday, and the schedule is totally flexible! Sign up in advance, or pick up a spot at the last minute. Your choice!

Kitchen Hospitality Team – If you enjoy your time in the kitchen or find satisfaction in providing food and beverages to show you care, this team is for you. There are 2-3 volunteers needed each Sunday.

Money Counters Hospitality Team – If you like ushering during the service or counting the offertory funds after the service or if you prefer a role where you don’t have to talk with a lot of people, this team is for you.

For information or to sign up for ANY of these opportunities, reach out to Carolyn Laughlin at REALM or CarolynBLaughlin at gmail dot com

UCE Young Adult Group

Third Friday Faith Formation & Game Nights

Our next gathering is February 21st, 7-9pm



The Young Adult Group at UCE is a group for young adults (18-35) interested in exploring spiritual deepening in community. We meet on every 3rd Friday from 7-9pm in Room 3 to discuss monthly Soul Matters themes, check in with each other, eat snacks, and play games.

Contact Kiley Korey (kileyekorey at gmail dot com), Kevin Barrow (kbarrow13 at gmail dot com) or Kathy Underwood (kunderwood at ucevanston dot org) with any questions.

Want some support for achieving your Environmental goals?

Join the UCE Green Team after service, 12-1pm on Sunday Feb. 23 in room 3. We will be planning how to publicize and celebrate the new solar panels coming this year to our roof. 

Join us in person or online at this link and you can also help us plan how to achieve the goal of carbon neutrality by 2050. 

UCE has a gardening team for our grounds, a forest preserve work team, a vegetable garden team, a wonderful recycling/compost program, a Bike the Ridge team, an emissions reduction task force and connections to numerous green organizations. There are so many ways to help UCE set and achieve our environmental goals. (You can also join these teams on REALM!)

UCE Has a New Renter:

Inspire Through Flowers



Stop by UCE on a Wednesday morning or early afternoon and you'll notice something in the air. It's the smell of repurposed flowers being lovingly arranged into beautiful bouquets by dozens of volunteers. The UCE staff is so pleased to share that we have a new renter, Inspire Through Flowers, an all volunteer not-for-profit using our space every Wednesday between 10 am - 2pm to create bouquets they later deliver to service organizations in the area - schools, hospitals, nursing homes, fire departments, shelters and food pantries and more. They always leave several bouquets for the staff and fill the place with a lovely sense of purpose and joy. Since Inspire Through Flowers began in January 2020, they (including their Wheeling team) have delivered 31,000 bouquets, bringing a little lift to those who really need it! They are always looking for suggestions of worthy service organizations to deliver to in our area, so pass those ideas along to the staff or stop by on a Wednesday to poke your head into Room 3 and say hello!

Our Shared Offering Program is one of the ways that we live into our mission statement "for a world made whole." Each Sunday, the funds collected during our worship service either via text donations or in the collection bowls (and not otherwise designated for a pledge or something else) are shared equally between our operating budget and the current Shared Offering Recipient.



The current Shared Offering Recipient is the Community Renewal Society which is a faith-based, community organizing and public policy organization that works with congregations in and around Chicago to address issues of racism and poverty.

Come expand your understanding of what it means to be trans and nonbinary, learn how to tell fact from fiction, and find out how to help create safety for trans people and their families in this moment. No matter who you are or how much or how little you know about gender diversity, this interactive and informative workshop will expand your mind, open your heart, and give all of us the tools we need to deepen our welcome and care for people of all genders in our community.

Click here to register.

The next meeting of the UCE Fiction Book Group

is February 21st by ZOOM, 7-8pm

using our Recurring Zoom link

February 21:  Geraldine Brooks, Horse 

Based on the remarkable true story of the record-breaking thoroughbred Lexington, Horse is a novel of art and science, love and obsession, and our unfinished reckoning with racism. Spanning a century and a half, the story begins with an enslaved groom named Jarret and a bay foal who forge a bond of understanding that will carry the horse to record-setting victories across the South. 

UCE Nonfiction Book Group

The group will meet on Zoom at 2 p.m. on Sunday, February 23rd using our recurring ZOOM link.

The nonfiction group will discuss Survival of the Friendliest: Understanding Our Origins and Rediscovering Our Common Humanity by Brian Hare and Vanessa Woods.

The authors, a professor of evolutionary anthropology and a research scientist at the Center for Cognitive Neuroscience at Duke University, posit that what makes us evolutionarily fit is not physical strength, tactical brilliance and aggression but a remarkable kind of friendliness. An ability to coordinate and communicate with others has allowed Homo sapiens to thrive and to achieve cultural and technical marvels. But the same traits that make us tolerant can also make us cruel when we feel threatened by outsiders.

In March, our group will discuss Road to Freedom: Economics and the Good Society by Joseph Stiglitz.

ONGOING EVENTS:

(Click on the images to read more)

Unitarian Church of Evanston

1330 Ridge Ave. Evanston, IL 60201

847-864-1330