Pacific Western Region (PWR) Board Update

I have spent the last few months as a member of the Pacific Western Region (PWR) Board. This is a new board that grew out of the dissolution of the four western districts during the Pandemic. As we are new, our specific tasks, responsibilities and traditions have not been established.

There are some events coming up to take note of. First we will be holding our first ever PWR business meeting on Thursday, May 29 from 7:00-8:00 pm Pacific Time. Elections will be held, and there will be lots of information. If you would like to attend please let us know! The meeting will be held via Zoom, so there will be no expenses and limited time commitment. Also note there will be a PWR budget town hall in April, stay tuned for more.

Regional assembly will be held next year, please stay tuned for details to come. Think of Regional Assembly (RA) as General Assembly (GA) in miniature, except that it is closer and cheaper, so consider this as an opportunity to learn, enjoy and meet people.

NOTE: We are looking for volunteers (surprise!) to serve on the PWR Board or work on circles (read modern-day committees) to help accomplish our purpose. Click here for a list of our purposes. Please understand that as this is a new organization; much of the work will be establishing what we do and how we do it. Typically this will involve two 90 minute meetings per month, plus preparation time for each meeting. For board members, add business meeting planning plus one weekend retreat per year. If being in on the ground floor sounds exciting, please let us know!

For some more details, take a look here.

—Submitted by David Sheh, PWR Board Member

VUU Assessment

After our report on March 2, the Assessment Committee was asked to post these 2024-25 survey links a final time. if you want to keep them for your records, please copy the links and save them or remember to come back later to The Happenings Archive for them.

This year’s survey response matched average VUU worship attendance with 154 respondents between Oct. 31-Dec. 16, 2024. No participant answered every question. Twenty-seven of 154 chose to answer anonymously.

This is the link to the  2024-25 Congregational Insight Survey results video (26 Min).

This link is to the slides presented to the Board of Trustees and Committee on Shared Ministry in our January report and discussed at the Congregational Conversation on Sunday, March 2, 2025.

So far 50+ of us have viewed one or both of these reports online. It is important to remember that any survey is a snapshot in time; thankfully, VUU has turned several corners since the survey was taken.

Next year’s survey is nearly ready, will start sometime in October 2025 and that survey will be very similar to this one. That similarity will allow comparability of results across time. Rest assured, by then we will have updated a few of the questions for greater clarity.



Thanks,

Nancy Egly, Katie Hurstwicker, and the Assessment Committee

Register Now for the 2025

VUU Prescott Retreat

Dates: Friday–Sunday, April 11–13

Location: Friendly Pines Camp, 

933 E Friendly Pines Rd, Prescott, AZ 85303

The Prescott Retreat is an amazing opportunity to connect with your fellow VUUers in a fun, relaxed, and welcoming environment. It’s a perfect setting to build meaningful relationships, enjoy shared experiences, and deepen your sense of community, all while having a great time.

Register Here. The deadline to register is March 28.

The cost is $160 per person (scholarships available).

Email Megan Kimball with any questions.

New Participant Class

March 22 

Want to learn more about VUU and Unitarian Universalism? Considering joining us? Come to this class and ask all your questions! 

Refreshments provided.  In the VUU Board Room on the education side of campus. RSVP here

Monthly Financial Report

Two items of note: First, our 2025 pledge campaign is entering an active phase in March, so please participate and make your pledge for this calendar year if you can. If you have already pledged, THANK YOU!.

Second, there is an opportunity for financially aware members as we have two openings on the Finance Committee.  Finance is a committee of the Board that meets monthly to review financials, update financial policies and draft a budget for Board and congregational consideration. For more information take a look at the Finance member position description here.

The Finance committee charter can be viewed here. Our meetings are third Thursdays at 5:30pm. If interested contact DeeAnne McClenahan or David Sheh.

The first seven months of the VUU fiscal year are in the books and cash flow is troubling, in spite a couple of months of good pledge income

Pledges are still only 92.2% of budget year to date; we will be watching income closely over the next few months updating our End of Year (EoY) predictions as new data comes in.  

Income is under budget, the current EoY projection of $30K shortfall in pledge income is concerning. Cash on hand has dropped, as there was another withdrawal from savings to cover January expenses. We may not have enough cash on hand to cover expenses if pledges remain below budget, so if you need to get caught up, now is a great time to do so!

Most expenses are under budget, except salaries which we have increased due to inflationary pressures. We have seen this in RE, tech booth, and cleaning services. Currently we think expenses overall will be at or near our expense budget for EoY.

ALSO, it should be noted we will need to balance our FY 2025-26 budget, this will require substantial pledge increases to fund operations next year. So please play your part in our Pledge campaign!

The full FA report can be found at: Analyst Reports - Google Drive

submitted by David Sheh, Financial Analyst

Save the Date! Read with Rev. Sarah

March 26, 7-8:15 pm

Authentic Selves: Celebrating Trans and Nonbinary People and Their Families is the UUA Common Read this year.  This volume includes photos which are also part of a a traveling exhibit.  Jozeppi Morelli, one of the people featured in the book, frequently accompanies the exhibit at public events led by congregations and other organizations interested in learning about and growing support for trans and nonbinary people.  Currently a resident of the Phoenix metro, he is working with Rev. Sarah on programs related to this read.

EastVUU Dinner Social

Thursday, March 13, 6:00 pm

Mama Mia! Join us on the patio of Pacino’s Italian Restaurant, 2831 N. Power Rd., #104, Mesa, AZ 85215 (NE Corner of Power & McDowell).

Save the date: EastVUU Online, March 27, 6pm.

—Submitted by Janice Miller

This Sunday! Parents and Pastries



Sunday, March 9, at 9:30 am

Want to meet other parents? Do your kids want to play with their Sunday friends? Got ideas to share about faith formation programming with VUU staff?

Drop in to Parents and Pastries on Sunday, March 9 anytime between 9:30 and 10:15 am. We’ll start out in Rooms 1&2 and eventually end up on the playground if the weather is nice.

RSVP here

Connect at VUU!

Discover lasting friendships and shared passions on our Fellowship site.

Let's connect, share, and grow together at VUU!

Page Turners Book Club

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 March 20 at 7:00 PM. We meet at the home of Johnnie Godfrey in Tempe (near Baseline Rd. and the 101).  The book is From Here to Eternity – Traveling the World to Find the Good Death by Caitlin Doughty.

Fascinated by our pervasive fear of dead bodies, mortician Caitlin Doughty embarks on a global expedition to discover how other cultures care for the dead. From Zoroastrian sky burials to wish-granting Bolivian skulls, she investigates the world’s funerary customs and expands our sense of what it means to treat the dead with dignity.

For the meeting address or questions, please contact Johnnie at 480-231-8381 or email:  agmonahan@gmail.com.

Documentary Screening

Fifty people attended our screening of the documentary “Fault Lines: Inside the Housing Crisis” hosted by the VUU VIP core team. The discussion afterwards with panelists Dan Klocke of Gorman Development, Chandler Council member Jane Poston, and Substack writer Kevin Erdman was robust and informative. Special thanks to Mark Foote, Garry Cantley, Paul Reed, Eileen Garces and Todd Sirrine for helping make the event a success.

Next Steps

YIGBY Lives! AZ House Bill 2191 passed out of the Appropriations

Committee by a vote of 11-5-2 last Monday. There is still a lot of work to get the

“Yes! In God’s Backyard” bill passed and signed into law, and we will need your

help. Stay tuned for how you can best support VIP’s organizing to encourage

development of affordable housing on under utilized property owned by

religious institutions.

VIP Delegates Assembly. Wednesday, April 23, 6:30pm. Location TBD. A great way to show your support for Valley Interfaith Project and to find out more about how organizing for the common good works. Contact the VUU VIP Core Team at vip@vuu.org for more information.

Photo below is VUU members attending the VIP Research Action Training at Dayspring Arcadia UMC in Phoenix on February 18.