In This Issue:
SUNDAY SERVICES
One Service at 10:30AM 
  • June 2           Annual Rising Up and Flower Communion Service for All Ages
    • This Service celebrates youth who are rising up to Middle School, High School, and graduating High School Seniors. Rev. Thom will share a homily.  The Service culminates in a favorite ritual of the Unitarian Universalist faith--the Flower Communion.  Each person should bring a fresh flower to the Service to contribute to the Communion.  The Service is followed by a reception honoring the Seniors and their families.
  • June 9              Alison Mercer-Smith, Preaching Practicum
    • Death and Cake
       
      What does it mean to have a good death?  There is no one right answer, but it is a question we all need to individually consider for ourselves.  Drawing upon her experience in medical school studying Oncology and Palliative Care, Alison will share lessons she has learned about how to navigate difficult conversations surrounding death and dying.  
    • Alison grew up in Northern New Mexico and went to Pomona College, where she majored in Chemistry and minored in Theatre.  She moved to Chapel Hill in 2015 when she joined the dual-degree MD/PhD program at UNC, where she studies new cancer treatments.  
       
  • June 16            Eric Bannan, Member of The Community Church
    • Seeing The Unseen

      Inspired by the 1st and 7th UU Principles, we will explore our connections to the natural world and how they might inform our interactions with our fellow human beings. 
    • Eric Bannan is a husband, father, songwriter, storyteller, US Coast Guard rescue flight crew veteran,  back country adventure racer and cancer survivor with a Masters in Computer Science.  Eric is also a 2016 graduate of Rev.Thom's Preaching Practicum. 
       
  • June 23            Susan Blanchard, Preaching Practicum
    • On Being a Worshipper
Susan will explore what it means to be a worshipper, including some surprising benefits of coming to church and being part of a supportive community of friends who worship together.
Susan Blanchard has been a Unitarian Universalist for nearly 70 years and an active member and sometimes leader in eight congregations in six different states.  She met her husband, Don, when they were both serving on a church board.  They raised three children together in a blended family.
 
  • June 30            Karen Abbotts, Preaching Practicum
    • In The End There Will Be The Word

      An exploration of language and how our choice of words has a vast effect on how we are perceived and understood (or not).  She shares glimpses of the wisdom imparted to her by her grandfather sprinkled with humor and insights into today's mangling of language in our culture.
      Karen Abbotts is a native of Chapel Hill and a Member of this church.  She had a close relationship with her grandfather, the Reverend Charles M. Jones, first minister of this church, until he died when she was in her late thirties.  She raised her three children here and now lives in Hillsborough with her husband, Bill.
       
MESSAGE FROM THE MINISTER
Each spring, I have the joy of leading a special Spiritual Exploration for Adults class with a small group of church members. The Preaching Practicum, as it is called, is a crash course in how to write and deliver a sermon, and design a worship service. The students take the class, workshop their sermons with each other and with me, and then deliver these sermons during June and July, when I take vacation.
 
This year's Preaching Practicum class has been a joy to lead. Our summer preachers will include: Alison Mercer-Smith, an MD/PhD student who will be preaching about death and dying; Susan Blanchard, who will be preaching about religious community; Karen Abbotts, granddaughter of Charlie Jones, who will be preaching about the importance of language; Amy Glazier, a physics grad student who will be preaching about the spiritual significance of the cosmos; and, Trey Kennedy, who will be preaching on how to live less judgmentally. It has been a joy to work with all of them as they've crafted their sermons.
 
Our Preaching Practicum graduates will be joined in the pulpit this summer by our own Eric Bannan, by my friend and UU minister Rev. Jordinn Nelson Long, and by former Community Church member - and now UU minister - Rev. Jim Magaw.
 
I hope you will come to support and be inspired by your fellow congregants during these summer worship Services!
 
            June 9              Alison Mercer-Smith, Preaching Practicum
            June 16            Eric Bannan, Member of The Community Church 
            June 23            Susan Blanchard, Preaching Practicum
            June 30            Karen Abbotts, Preaching Practicum
            July 7              Amy Glazier, Preaching Practicum
            July 14            Trey Kennedy, Preaching Practicum
            July 21            Rev. Jordinn Nelson Long, UU Society of Fairhaven, MA
            July 28            Rev. Thom Belote
            August 4         Rev. Jim Magaw, UU Church of the South Hills, Pittsburgh, PA

 
 
 
Rev. Thom Belote will be on vacation / study leave from June 5 to June 10 and from June 13 to July 31 with the exception of July 27 and 28. During this time, please do not contact Rev. Thom regarding church business. Rev. Thom may be contacted in case of pastoral emergencies. The Caring Ministry (Mary George, Chair) may be contacted for pastoral concerns.
Message from the Congregational Administrator
 

  Fulfilling Annual Pledges before June 30th Our current fiscal year is ending on June 30th and we have 118 families who have already fulfilled or exceeded their annual pledge for this year. Will you join them? By fulfilling your current year's pledge, you're ensuring our community is able to financially support all the vibrant programming offered over the past year.

If you need any assistance with reviewing your contributions please CLICK HERE to email Dana Lundquist, our Congregational Administrator, or by phone at 919-229-9452. 
 

Message from the Office Assistant
SIGN UP FOR SUMMER 2019 - SPRING 2020 CALENDAR REQUESTS 

Dear Friends, 
Now that many of the all-church functions (All Church Picnic! Fall Auction! Musical! Pageant! And, so much more!)  have been scheduled, we are opening up the Summer/Fall 2019, Winter/Spring 2020 church calendar to the many groups and individuals within our community. The regular church calendar goes from early September to late May, and we'd love to see your group's meetings and other events get on our church calendar! 
If you'd like to hold events, meetings or other get-togethers at the church for any time from now through May 2020, please CLICK HERE to check the church calendar on our website to make sure your preferred day/time/space is available, and then please FILL OUT THIS FORM
Questions? CLICK HERE to contact RACHEL ROSE via email while she's wearing her 
Office Assistant hat.
COMMITTEES & MINISTRIES
ENDOWMENT COMMITTEE
ENDOWMENT COMMITTEE REPORT & REQUEST FOR CONGREGATION'S APPROVAL ON 3 ITEMS
 
The Endowment Committee will give its update at the June 9th Congregational Meeting. We will be requesting approval for several items:

* A grant of $2000 to the Children's Ministry Team for furniture and materials for our early childhood RE program. The preschool's departure has created an immediate need for replacements.

* A grant of $7000 for non-structural items such as furniture, equipment, educational materials, or amenities to support the Building Program. This amount will be set aside until specific needs are submitted to the Endowment Committee.

* Election of two new members to the Endowment Committee - Jeff Blass and Barb Chapman.

At the end of March, our Endowment Fund balance was $202,466. Our fund is managed by the UUA's Common Endowment Fund staff, which is currently focusing on socially responsible investing, including matching congregational gifts to community building organizations.  
 
BUILDING PROJECT
SIGN UPS OPEN FOR JONES BUILDING FIX-UP PROJECT
Everybody is invited to be part of this church-wide endeavor benefiting all of us who either participate directly in church activities (e.g. Adult and Children's Religious Education, fellowship and service gatherings) or enjoy being in a church community where these activities thrive.
Each two-hour shift will have about six volunteers -  experience optional -  with supervision by our experienced Buildings & Grounds team. Each shift will also have a coordinator/communicator role, welcoming volunteers who want to participate, but are not able to actually come during a shift or climb the stairs to the work areas or otherwise participate in the physical tasks of shiftwork (cleaning, patching, painting).
Shifts are scheduled at different times and days each week, from July 1 to August 31. We hope the schedule and job descriptions offer appealing options for everyone to participate. Signups are open in both paper form and on-line via the Building Project webpage

JUSTICE & SERVICE
ECO'S ENVIRONMENTAL CORNER
First Sunday Recyclables

June 2 at the ECO table: Batteries (AAA - D, button, rechargeable), corks (natural and synthetic), tiny bits of metal (paper clips, nails, screws, etc.). 

CHARLES M. JONES PEACE & JUSTICE COMMITTEE
AL: MY BROTHER DOCUMENTARY SCREENING
The Triangle branch of WILPF, the Poor People's Campaign and The Charles M. Jones Peace & Justice Committee are sponsoring a showing of the civil rights documentary, AL: MY BROTHER on Monday, June 10 at 7 pm at the Chelsea Theater in Chapel Hill.
Directed by Cash Michaels, Al: My Brother chronicles white civil rights activist and attorney Alan McSurely's lifetime struggle against white supremacy and racism. An inspiring and educational film, Al: My Brother encourages people of all ages and races to unite and work towards justice. Also featuring The Community Church Member, Margaret Herring, and her impact in the movement - see her in this movie trailer!
There will be a Q&A session with Mr. McSurely, Mr. Michaels, and Ms. Herring, moderated by Co-Director of the Julius L. Chambers Center for Civil Rights, Mark Dorosin, after the screening.
Tickets are $10 for Chelsea Theater members or $12 for general public. 50% of proceeds benefit Triangle WILPF and 50% the Poor People's Campaign. Doors open at 6 pm.

SHARE THE PLATE
June 9 Share The Plate: Movement to End Racism and Islamophobia
 
Movement to End Racism and Islamophobia (MERI) is a network which stands and acts together against all forms of Islamophobia and racism. A North Carolina-based organization formed in 2015, MERI's work includes organizing workshops and teach-ins to educate on Islamophobia and anti-racism, cultural transformation, challenging local cases of Islamophobia, and mobilizing grassroots campaigns against the people and institutions who are spreading hatred against all those who are marginalized. Come out on June 9 to hear how you can get involved and support the work MERI is doing in the community. Click HERE for more information about MERI.
June 16 Share The Plate: Club Nova Club Nova is an intentional, caring community serving Orange County and comprised of members (clients served) living with severe mental illness. Staff work together to directly address risks and improve health, education, housing, economic stability, and quality of life . Members return to employment and education, maintain homes, obtain quality healthcare, avert crises, and build meaningful and lasting relationships. Club Nova saves and changes lives as the risks of suicide, re-hospitalization, homelessness, and incarceration diminish dramatically with membership. This not only helps members, but reduces societal costs greatly.

Club Nova is at maximum capacity and has been in the same facility since opening in 1987. An expanded facility will allow us to increase our positive impact on people living with serious mental illness, as well as the broader community. CLICK HERE for more information about Club Nova.

ECO SHARE THE PLATE THANKS ECO would like to thank the congregation for their very generous donations, totaling $2097.72, to our April 21 Share the Plate for NC Warn's Clean Path 2025. Clean Path 2025 is an engineer-designed strategy to replace half of NC's electricity supply with solar energy, efficiency, and battery storage by 2030, and all of it by 2050, while saving money over Duke Energy's plan and creating thousands of jobs. The entire STP amount will go directly to help fund local project(s) in Orange, Durham, or Chatham County. Thank you! 

LEARNING & FELLOWSHIP
FLAMING CHALICES
Come join us, to play, or just watch and cheer, as the Flaming Chalices softball team plays in the Chapel Hill summer softball church league.

All games are played Sunday afternoons -- between 1 pm and 5 pm -- at Homestead Park in Chapel Hill (Homestead Rd. off MLK Boulevard).

Game dates for this season are:
June 2, 9, 16, 23, 30; July 14, 21, 28; August 4, 11, 18, 24, 25

New players, male or female, age 13 and over, are welcome.
Questions? email Manager Nils Brubaker, or call 919-428-9573. CLICK HERE for more info about the Flaming Chalices!
COMMUNITY CLICKERS
Come join the Community Clickers as we use needles and yarn to create comfort and warmth for our community. Our projects are made with 7" x 9" knitted and crocheted blocks of washable acrylic, #4 worsted weight yarn. Our ongoing projects include making 18-block shawls for UNC Hospice (the one shown was made during the Day of Service), baby hats for the American Heart Association, and individual projects for our first-ever C3HUU Holiday Bazaar table! Join us on June 5th from 2-4 pm in the Commons and on Monday, June 17 from 7-9 pm in the Straley Room. We generally spend some time working on a group project, and then click and chat, but some attendees click and chat the entire time! Can't knit or crochet? Come learn! Donate finished blocks and/or yarn in our box in the Commons.      Contact us for more information.
 
WOMENCIRCLE
 
 
WOMENCIRCLE: NIA MOVING TO HEALING The WomenCircle invites you to join us for Nia Moving to Healing with Robin Poer on June 22, from 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 noon in the Community Building. Nia uses 52 movements for body awareness and flexibility and helps us keep moving despite aches and pains. Moves include those standing, sitting and on the floor, but all can be done in a chair. Wear comfortable clothes and bring a water bottle, and a yoga mat if you have one. Coordinators: Joann Haggerty and Joan O'Brien.



NONFICTION READERS
 
 
NONFICTION BOOK DISCUSSION FOR JUNE  
 
On Saturday, June 15, at 10:30 in the Kirby Room, the Nonfiction Readers will discuss Fascism: A Warning, by Madeleine Albright. Written by the first woman to serve as Secretary of State, the book is an examination of the history of fascism and how it still shapes today's world. Albright defines a fascist as someone who claims to speak for the whole nation or a group, is unconcerned with the rights of others, and will use violence and other means necessary to achieve their personal goals. Jeff Blass will be leading our discussion. The Readers meet on the third Saturday of each month. New members and drop-ins are welcome. Click here to contact the group.
 
OUTDOOR CONNECTIONS
Please join the Outdoor Connections group for a weekend on the lovely and gentle Virginia Creeper rail-trail, June 21-23. We are traveling to Damascus, VA, to stay in a rental house for 2 nights and rent bicycles to ride on the trail. We can be driven with the bikes and dropped off uphill, for a gentle downhill ramble. We can go for a 2-3 hour ride, or ride all day! Bring your own bike, if you prefer. Cost will be approximately $150 per person, for 2 nights, bike rental, and transportation. We will plan to carpool to/from Damascus, starting Friday evening and returning Sunday midday. Please CLICK HERE to RSVP with Becky Wilkes by June 5th.

2019 FALL AUCTION
 Yes, the Fall Auction (Saturday, October 19) is a fundraiser that contributes to the annual operating budget, but it is oh-so-much more! It is a community builder! We all make new connections when we share meals or attend events together - like this year's Bluegrass and BBQ (see picture), deliver foods or plants that were purchased for future delivery, or provide services for each other. It is never too early to start planning your auction donations and fabulous finger foods for munching on while bidding! Visit the auction website to get ideas from previous years, or to check on what you bought and sold last year (under My Statement, after you log on using your phone number and the last four digits of the number as your PIN). The 2019 website will go live in July. For more information and to volunteer to help, contact Don and Susan Blanchard.
JULY/AUGUST COMBINED NEWSLETTER SUBMISSIONS ARE DUE BY JUNE 16
PLEASE CLICK HERE TO SUBMIT ARTICLES
 
The C3HUU Board wants to hear from you! Click here to share with us your thoughts, comments, concerns, and questions. Click here to learn more about the Board, including viewing the Board and Congregational Meeting minutes.  
 
If you would like to learn more about joining the Community Church of Chapel Hill, please contact our Membership Director, Rachel Rose, by calling the office (919) 942-2050, emailing c3hmembership@gmail.com, or find her at one of our Sunday services. Whether you are brand new or a longtime attendee, and whatever your beliefs or background, we welcome you to our community of friendship and ideals.