To help with Sunday morning hospitality, click here.

Abbreviated information about upcoming events that are

further than two weeks out.

• FUUNd Donations Accepted - Now through Jan 5 Donate here
• AZCEND Foodbank with Rev. Sarah - Nov 25, Dec 13 Sign Up
• New Participant Classes - Dec 7, Mar 22, Jun 7 RSVP here
• EastVUU Holiday Party - Dec 12
• FLP Event - Dec 13
• Senior High Winter Camp at de Benneville - Dec 28 - Jan 1 Register here
• Ethics for Unitarian Universalists - begins Jan 8 Sign Up
• New Participant Meal - Feb 1, Apr 5 RSVP here
• FUUNd Auction - Feb 2 - 16
• VIP Leaders Retreat - Feb 1
• VUU Camping Retreat - Apr 11-13 at Friendly Pines Camp in Prescott

Are you new to VUU or returning after being away a long time?  

Come to our new participant class on December 7 from 9:30a-2:30p in the VUU Board room or attend concurrently online. Join us for an introductory session to learn more about Unitarian Universalism, VUU, and getting engaged in our community. Bring your questions! We'll invite you to bring some refreshments to share if you choose. Materials and other information will be emailed ahead of the class. This class is available in person and online - RSVP here. If you need to attend via zoom, let us know! We'll meet in the Office building adjacent to the education classrooms, in the VUU board room. If you need childcare, please let us know two weeks in advance so we can make arrangements. Let us know what else you need!

Living Love Through the Practice of….Presence (December theme)

Explore the monthly themes in a monthly discussion group…drop in as you are interested and able!  Beginning on December 8 after service from 12-1p in the Flex Room (room off the Sanctuary). Anyone welcome. Rev. Sarah or another leader will introduce the topic with a short reading and then invite folks to share and learn together. Sometimes we’ll watch a short video, listen to a song, or engage in an activity related to the theme.  

-Rev. Sarah Oglesby-Dunegan



Acts of Kindness

Have you done some acts of Kindness this month? As part of our monthly theme of repair, we spent last week learning how kindness can be a way to make repairs in our world. We started with our congregation! 

The children installed a Kindness Display in the foyer of the sanctuary and invited adults to choose an act of kindness from the display, perform it and make a difference! 

Didn’t get to play? No worries. The display will be up one more week for you to take part.

Transgender Day of Remembrance

My family and Linda Stenholm represented VUU at the Transgender Day of Remembrance last week. The shoes reference trans folks who were killed over the last year. Rev. Sarah

Donate Now to the 2025 Let’s Have FUUNd Together Auction

The annual auction is a longstanding tradition at VUU. From its humble beginnings as the Heart and Hand Auction to our Let’s Have FUUNd Together online extravaganza, the auction has been VUU’s premier FUUN and FUUNd raiser for over 40 years! The 2025 auction will open on February 2nd. Between now and January 5, DONATE one of the wonderful events, dinners, parties, handmade treasures, tasty treats, and services that will make up this year’s auction catalog. To donate online, use this link, or visit the FUUNd table on the patio in November and December. Find out how you can get in on the FUUNd! Contact us here with questions or for more info.

VUU Congregational Survey

We are entering the holiday season!  As a VUU community, we have opportunities for impacts we can’t know. We can help shape those impacts by looking beyond current circumstance and sharing deeply of our experiences, dreams and visions for VUU. To do so, please Complete the survey here. Email the assessment team if you have issues. We want to make this effort much more than worth your time! As of Tuesday, 95 of you had responded; if that's you, please talk it up! We are aiming for 200 participants.

Thank you,

Nancy Egly and Your VUU Assessment Committee

EastVUU Holiday Party

December 12, 6p

All are welcome to join potluck and holiday fun at Barbara Peter’s home in Leisure World, 2114 Capri Dr., Mesa, AZ 85206. Bring your favorite potluck dish to share. Also bring a cheap “white elephant” gift—something used or useless, just for fun! Bring a sweater if you’d like to enjoy the firepit and smores. All are welcome!

Looking for Talent!

Are you a singer or musician? Are you interested in singing or playing an instrument with an ensemble for Sunday services? Contact Lynn DeMuth or Noell Hyman. A small steering committee has been working with Rev. Sarah to plan music while our Music Director has been on sick leave.

Caring Neighbors Coordinator Needed

There is one neighborhood that is still in need of a Coordinator: Phoenix (not including Ahwatukee). This Neighborhood includes approximately 24 households that are spread across 14 zip codes: 85003, 85004, 85008, 85012, 85014, 85016, 85018, 85020, 85024, 85028, 85039, 85040, 85042, 85043.

If you are someone who enjoys connecting willing helpers to congregants in need, please contact either Joyce Donahue by email or call 480-221-6837, or Nancy Wittenberg by email or call 480-283-4725 for more information. Thank you!

Empathy Circle

Would you like to get a dose of connection and practice your empathy skills?  An empathy circle is a simple but powerful way for people to connect through structured dialogue and active listening in small groups.  You don’t need any special skills or training to be involved.

Sunday, November 24

Optional check-in 12:45pm

Circle starts at 1:00 and ends at 2:45pm

Facilitated by Teri McGovern-Nintzel in the Sanctuary

Topic: What are some of your favorite ways to connect with nature? (or whatever is alive in you)

Includes 15 minutes of somatic practices to help us connect to our social engagement systems at 1:00. Then we will follow the empathy dialogue practice taught by The Empathy Center in Santa Barbara. 

This Empathy Circle can hold 8 participants. Please contact Teri here if you are interested in attending or learning to help facilitate circles that can hold more participants together. 

Page Turners Book Club Meeting

The Page Turners Book Club is open to all members, visitors, and friends of VUU who enjoy reading and discussing a variety of books. The next meeting is Thursday, November 21 at 7:00 pm. We will meet at the home of Johnnie Godfrey in Tempe (near Baseline Rd. and the 101).  The book is The Wager: A Tale of Shipwreck, Mutiny and Murder, by David Grass.

From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Killers of the Flower Moon, a page-turning story of shipwreck, survival, and savagery, culminating in a court martial that reveals a shocking truth. The powerful narrative reveals the deeper meaning of the events on the Wager, showing that it was not only the captain and crew who ended up on trial, but the very idea of empire.

For the meeting address or questions, please contact Johnnie at 480-231-8381 or send an email here.

Partners in Education (PIE)

You can make a big difference for the kids at Adams Elementary School in Mesa by making a financial contribution to Mesa Public Schools, while receiving a tax credit equal to your gift (up to $200 for single filers/$400 jointly). Pick up a contribution form that designates Adams School from the PIE table at VUU on Sunday or follow these instructions to donate. Search for “8002” or “GENERAL-ECA”. Look for Adams Elementary and add amount to cart, then check out. When you file your tax return, deduct an equal amount from taxes due. Thanks so much on behalf of the kids and teachers!

New I-HELP Coordinating Team

This is a program where VUU works with the non-profit AZCEND to offer temporary shelter (with a meal) a few times a month in our sanctuary, and once a month serving dinner and making lunches for the day. This has been a heavy lift, and we are now moving to a model that doesn’t require the same person to be there every week! If you would like to sign up to help once a month or more with this team, please contact Rev. Sarah or Adrienne O’Donnell. It's a fun way to help our neighbors in need and to meet new people. Our next date to provide the meal and lunches is November 25. Sign up here!