Here’s what’s coming up in our congregational life—opportunities to connect, learn, and participate in the weeks ahead

Sunday Service

May 10, 2026 at 10:30 am 

Children and youth will go to their faith formation programs after joys and sorrows

This Sunday…

 Childcare (0-3 years) is available in room 11 from 8:45a-12:15p. 

Chalice Children (pre/k/1) in room 9 – the children will be hearing the story, Seven Silly Eaters, and making Mother’s Day cards.

Heads, Hearts, and Hands (2nd-5th) in room 8 – the young people will explore how curiosity can lead to diversity and then will vote on ideas for this summer’s programming.

Youth Group (6th-9th) in room 10 – the youth will explore our UU Value of Pluralism through the eyes of Barbie and Ken in the movie directed by UU Greta Gerwig.

Faith Formation Registration

Please register your young person, ages 1-18 here.

Hi, Friends,

I’m so proud of the atmosphere we created for last week’s Rummage Sale. The photo of me was taken by Martha Holman on a day during set-up. There is always something more to move around during Rummage Sale week!

In addition to our fundraising goal, the Rummage Sale has four goals, which I am pleased to say we lived into well this year:

· Reduce environmental impact by encouraging reuse. Our volunteers spent a lot of time figuring out where to donate unsold items so they did not end up in a landfill.

· Build UCE’s community by participating in structed opportunities for connection. UCE members, friends, and visitors who volunteered met new people, learned about our congregation, and had fun.

· Build connections with and serve the broader community. Folks from our neighborhood and from other faith communities volunteered with us and shoppers enjoyed their experience, including a few who told volunteers they would check us out on a Sunday morning. Plus, connections were made with the organizations we collaborated with to make sure unsold items found homes.

· Support UCE’s mission to nurture the human spirit for a world made whole. From lunching together and encouraging each other to take a walk to offering free whistles and Black Lives Matter buttons in baskets in the lobby, we did a good job of embodying both our care for each other and our care for the world.

Thank you to everyone who participated in this year’s Rummage Sale!

I will be taking a long vacation from May 18 – June 2 to travel with high school friends through Portugal and the United Kingdom. One of those friends texted me last week about the Banksy statue which appeared overnight in Waterloo Place in London. NPR described the statue as depicting “a man in a suit hoisting a large flag. The flag's cloth covers the man's face, however, and his proud march appears to be courting disaster, as he steps off the plinth with no ground beneath him.” Art, in all its mediums, has the power to remind us to be present and encourage us to be engaged for a better future.

Before I leave on vacation, we will be having our Annual Meeting on Sunday, May 17. We will be voting on whether or not to change our name from the “Unitarian Church of Evanston” to the “Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Evanston.” If you are a voting member, you were sent an email with the meeting materials on April 17. We have 433 voting members and we need a quorum of 20% in order to proceed with the meeting. I hope you are planning to attend.

Hats Off to Rummage Sale 2026



Our hats are off to the collective volunteer effort that went into making our Rummage Sale a success! Kudos to our Rummage Sale Co-Chairs, Jenny Walsh and Gillian Lawrence, and our Rummage Sale Publicity Co-leads, Carla Williams and Kera Beskin.

We also want to thank all the volunteers who showed up at any time from April 26-May 2. For those of you on the schedule, your name will appear below once, even though many of you spent time in several areas. For those of you who showed up to help and weren’t on the schedule, we needed your assistance and were grateful that you showed up to help!

The Ordination of Dr. Emma Farrell

You are cordially invited to the ordination of our Ministerial Intern, Dr. Emma Farrell, at Unity Temple on June 13, 2:30pm. We would love to see you there! Please RSVP here. 

Mr. Needahug (our Rummage Sale mascot) receives one last hug before settling into his annual hibernation.

The 2026 UCE Rummage Sale was a huge success meeting all four of the goals! Supporting our mission, reducing environmental impact, and building strong connections, both within and outside of UCE, were just some of the treasured outcomes of this year’s sale. And…

In the process, we raised over $30,000!



We wouldn’t have been so successful if it were not for those who contributed as donors, volunteer workers, bakers, soup makers, schleppers, and shoppers. A BIG THANK YOU to all who helped out in one (or more) of these ways! Likewise, a big thank you to UCE staff for their support and extra effort.

We couldn’t have done it without ALL of you! 

Thank you!!!

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Friday, May 8th:

• Mo Better Blues Concert, 6-8:30pm, Sanctuary
• Family Friday, Linne Woods, 6:30-8:30pm

Saturday, May 9th:

• Virtual Pilates, 9:30am, via Zoom
• Beginner Tai Chi, 9:45-10:45am, Room 6
• Intermediate Tai Chi, 11-12pm, Room 6
• Social Change Now Common Read, 2-3:30pm, Room 6 and Zoom

Sunday, May 10th:

• UCE Choir Rehearsal, 9-10:10am, Sanctuary
• Chris Isley Cancer Support Group, 9-10:15am, Room 6 & Zoom
• Green Team Meeting, 9:15-10:15am, Room 3 and Zoom
• Worship Service, 10:30am, Sanctuary
• Kinship Time, 11:30am-12:30pm, Back of the Sanctuary

Monday, May 11th:

• UCE Addictions and Recovery, 6:45-7:45am, via Zoom

Tuesday, May 12th:

• UU Network Team, 11am-12pm, via Zoom
• Membership Team, 12:30-1:30pm, Room 2
• Women's Circle of Friends, 1-2:30pm, via Zoom
• Emissions Reduction Task Force, 2:30-3:30pm, via Zoom
• Responding to the Anti-Trans Movement, 7-8:30pm, Room 3 and Zoom

Wednesday, May 13th:

• Yoga, 9:30-10:30am, via Google Meet
• Staff Meeting, 11:00am, Room 2
• THAT Covenant Group, 7-9pm, via Zoom
• Confronting Islamophobia, 7-8:30pm, Room 3

Thursday, May 14th:

• Beacons of Light, 5-5:30pm, Dempster and Ridge
• Meditation Group, 5:30-6:30pm, via Zoom
• Choir Rehearsal, 7-9pm, Room 6

Child Dedication June 7



If you are a member of UCE and would like to participate in our child dedication ceremony, please contact Kathy or Rev. Eileen. This ceremony is for children and youth of any age and will be held during the worship service.

Blues, Beloved Community & A Little Boogie



What happens when soulful blues meet beloved community? A joyful night at UCE!

Join us on Friday, May, 8 from 6:00–8:30 p.m., as we welcome Alicia Hempfling and the MO Blues Band to the UCE Sanctuary. With smooth blues grooves and rock ’n’ roll favorites, the MO Blues Band brings music that moves both feet and spirit. Whether you dance, sway, or simply listen, this is a night to relax, connect, and celebrate the joy of being together. Enjoy tasty snacks and beverages including alcohol-free and regular beer and wine, friendly faces, and a welcoming atmosphere for all ages. Best of all, your participation supports the work of UCE—turning a fun night out into an act of community care.

$12 in advance / $15 at the door / Kids are free. Click here for more info & tickets. Bring a friend, bring your dancing shoes (or not!), and come be part of a night where music, generosity, and community harmony take center stage.

Congregation-wide Common Read

May 9 from 2:00-3:30 pm

Using the 10 roles and 8 characteristics of a healthy ecosystem developed by Deepa Iyer in Social Change Now: A Guide for Reflection and Connection, we will gather together to explore how we build multiple layers of healthy Social Change Ecosystems. Expand your understanding of the roles you play in any ecosystem, the ways our teams interact to shape our UCE ecosystem, and how UCE might better engage with larger social change movements. 

After two preliminary small group conversations, our facilitators are excited to invite you to join us for this expansive conversation on May 9th. You may attend in-person in room 6 or online via zoom. 

Click Here to Register. 

You may buy a copy of the book at the Catalyst for Democracy’s Program Table in the café area after the service this Sunday, order the book at InSpirit Bookstore, or let Rev. Susan Frances know that you need a donated copy.

The UCE Fiction Book Group is reading "The Antidote," by Karen Russell and meeting on Friday, May 15, 7-8pm, by ZOOM.

Folks in the Nebraska dustbowl of 1929 realize they have all played a part in this violent national project. “I hadn’t known — no one had ever told me — that I was a soldier in a war. We newcomers to the Great Plains were invited out here by the U.S. government to hold ground. The Homestead Act, the Dawes Act, all part of a battle plan,” to wrest the land from Native hands. Ignorant of how to steward the soil, our national colonialism devastated the land within two generations. 

Next read: "Vigil," by George Saunders, June 19.

Nurturing Mother Earth

2026 Annual Community Plant Swap 

Saturday - May 16, 1-3 pm

Unitarian Church of Evanston

Parking Lot enter on Greenwood

1330 Ridge Avenue, Evanston

Plants, Seedlings, Divisions

Come with something you have,

Leave with something you want to grow

Please stop by the info table and get a name tag

Online preswaps at Garden.org click here

Spring Planting Time!

Inviting all gardeners on Saturday May 16th from 10:00 - 2:00 to help pick out a few weeds, then put new plants into our South Rain Garden. This project has been funded by the Endowment Fund and we are very excited to finish planting this South garden. Soon there'll be beautiful flowers blooming for you to see from our Kinship windows.

The Nonfiction Book Group will resume its normal schedule of discussions beginning in May, 2026.



We will meet on Sunday, May 24, 2026 at 2 p.m. using our recurring Zoom link to discuss Abundance by Ezra Klein and Derek Thompson. The authors define abundance as the state in which there is enough of what we need to create lives better than what we have had. They focus on the institutions and the people that must build and invent that future using the building blocks of housing transportation, energy and health. 

On June 28th we will discuss Undivided: The Quest for Racial Solidarity in an American Church by Hahrie Han.

UCE is Going Camping!

UCE is going camping May 29-31! Please click on this link to reserve a campsite. The top of the form includes links to reserve a site directly with ExploreMore IL, as well as a link to a table where you can see where other UCE campsites will be. If you have any questions or need help with reserving your site, email Grey Wiviott (greyleewivs at gmail dot com). Happy Camping!

It’s Time to Meet the Moment

UUA General Assembly (GA)

June 14-21, 2026



• It supports our Justice work through connection and sharing with the broader UU community.
• We learn from other UUs about challenges and solutions relevant to UCE.
• It helps us plan for the future by broadening our vision and providing resources for action.
• UCE delegates co-create statements or positions that are aligned with our UCE values and mission.
• It is an invitation to all of us to meet this moment as we collectively work for justice, liberation, and a world made whole

UUA’s study of Abolition, Transformation, Faith Formation will help us address how to replace theologies of retributive justice and violence; connect the many threads of our UCE social justice work in support of abolition; and transform ourselves and society through learning and action. 

Join the conversation! Read more about GA, Abolition, and Serving as a UCE Delegate

UCE Young Adult Group

Third Friday Faith Formation & Game Nights



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@ucevanston.org) with any questions.

Responding to the Anti-Trans Movement

May 12 and 19 from 7:00-8:30pm

in Room 3 and on Zoom

This week we move into understanding the current political attack on trans people and the misinformation that is part of that attack, and end with how to create safety and belonging for trans people at UCE and beyond in this moment.

Register here.

Family Friday – May 8 at 6:30p at Linne Woods

Feel free to bring supper and picnic earlier.

 And join us on Zoom May 11 at 7-8p as we plan upcoming events.

You can see what’s coming up on our evolving calendar here.

REGISTER HERE IN REALM

Childcare Pool

Do you love to hold babies or watch the imagination of a toddler unfold? If yes, then we want to add you to our childcare pool for occasional help in the nursery when staff need time off.

Email Kathy Underwood if interested.

Breaking the Chain: Transforming the Legacy of Enslavement to Justice and Liberation for All

How did we get here—and what is ours to do now?

Join UCE REAL, the Prison Ministry and Reparations Teams, Living Legacy Pilgrimage participants, and local advocates for a four-part, multi-platform learning and conversation series exploring the systems that connect enslavement, incarceration, and reparative justice.

Together, we will examine:

• the historical roots linking slavery and mass incarceration
• the economic forces that sustain systems of injustice
• the role faith communities can play in accountability, repair, and transformation
• how reparations work is unfolding in Evanston and beyond

Dates:

• June 24 – How Faith Communities Can Help Break the Chain
• August 26 – Reparations: In Evanston and Beyond

Our Shared Offering Program

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 something else) are shared equally between our operating budget and the current Shared Offering Program recipient.

This Sunday's offering will be shared with Children's Best Interest Project. The Children’s Best Interest Project educates Illinois families, organizations, and lawyers about the Children’s Best Interest Act, which requires Illinois courts to consider children’s needs in decisions about their parents. They help win dismissal or reduction of charges for parents to maintain family stability and enhance community safety. Parent-child separation causes lasting harm to children’s health and development, yet thousands of parents are unnecessarily removed from their families each year based on minor criminal charges. 

Free Our Moms 13th Annual Vigil – May 9

Join the Children’s Best Interest Project, Love & Protect, Moms United Against Violence and Incarceration, and many partner organizations for the 13th Annual Free Our Moms Vigil on Saturday, May 9, from 1–3 p.m. on the grassy median across from the Cook County Jail.

The event will feature speakers, family-friendly activities, children’s music, resource tables, snacks, and water, while highlighting the connections between state and interpersonal violence.

Please bring a lawn chair or blanket if you'd like. Note: spring bridge lifts may cause traffic delays, and restrooms are not available on-site.

We are looking for volunteers for the Evanston Interfaith Family Pride Fest on June 14th. Click here to volunteer at the UCE table at the Fest. Click here to volunteer with the organizers of the Fest.

TO VOLUNTEER SIGN UP HERE

Join the UCE Race Against Hate Team



Be a part of the Race Against Hate by joining the UCE Team on June 21, 2026. Every Father’s Day, the YWCA hosts a race to honor Ricky Byrdsong, who was murdered by a white supremacist in front of his children while walking near their Skokie home. You can run or walk 5k or 10k, and there are Kids Fun Runs. Proceeds from the event support the Evanston/North Shore YWCA racial equity programming. More information about the Race and Ricky Byrdsong is here.

Register by April 20 to receive early bird pricing. Register for the Race here.

If you can’t be with us in the Race, but want to join in spirit, support the Team through your donation. Be sure to apply your donation to the UCE Team.

Dana Deane is coordinating the UCE Team 2026. Please let her know if you have any questions. Dddeane847 at gmail dot com or 847-682-1045.

LOVE RESISTS

Springfield Lobby Days 

May 2026

You are invited to participate in two opportunities this May to lobby with our community partners in Springfield. 

* Wednesday, May 13 *

Be part of the Community Renewal Society (CRS) 2026 Springfield Advocacy Day! CRS will be lobbying for public safety and an end to racially biased policing (both ICE and CPD).

Register now to join CRS in Springfield on May 13th and be part of this collective effort. Whether it’s your first time or you’ve joined us before, your presence makes a difference. 

Whether or not you are able to join them in Springfield, sign CRS' Statement of Principles on Public Safety Toward Flourishing Communities if you believe in police accountability and policy reform.

* Saturday, May 30 *

Join Faith in Place (FIP) and the Illinois Environmental Council for the IL Environmental Advocacy Day in Springfield! A coalition of environmental organizations will be lobbying to protect Illinois' air, water, and communities. Illinois, like many states, is seeing rapid growth of data centers. How Illinois manages this growth will shape the health of our environment and communities for decades to come.

Register now to join FIP in Springfield on May 30th. UCE is a bus pick up and drop off location for this lobby day.

Wisconsin Voter Registration Training

Get trained to register voters in Wisconsin. Once trained, you will be invited to go to one of several Milwaukee DMVs to register voters as they wait for services.

All trainings are held via zoom and you only need to attend one training date:



• Thursday, May 14 - 3:00 PM
• Tuesday, June 2 - 7:00 PM
• Thursday, June 11 - 3:00 PM

The training is one hour and presented by the Milwaukee Voter Project. For more information, please contact Laura Kushner with the Milwaukee Voter Project at laurakushnerx2@gmail.com or Rev. Susan Frances at sfrances@ucevanston.org. 

ONGOING UU CONNECTIONS

Reparations in a Community Context Recording

On April 30th, Rev. Eileen spoke along with Rev. Dr. Michael Nabors, on a panel moderated by UUA President Rev. Dr. Sofia Betancourt about the work of Reparations in communities, especially communities of faith. If you were unable to attend, here is the recording of the conversation.

DRUUMM Public Worship “We Ride at Dawn” 



Join the Diverse Radical Unitarian Universalist Multicultural Ministry (DRUUMM) for its Public Worship on May 14, 2026 from 7-8:30 pm CT. In a time of rising fear, political uncertainty, and deep fatigue, DRUUMM invites all souls into a bold and grounding public worship experience. This online event is open to all people. It is a multiracial gathering of courage and conviction, designed to steady our hearts and strengthen our resolve for the work ahead. Be part of this powerful, multiracial gathering of courage and conviction, and experience a worship service designed to steady our hearts and strengthen our resolve for the work ahead.  UCE is proud to be a sponsor of DRUUMM’s Public Worship. Register at druumm.org/events (scroll down to May 14th event). 

Unitarian Church of Evanston

1330 Ridge Ave. Evanston, IL 60201

847-864-1330