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Introducing the NUUC Caring Committee
Hello! My name is Teri Cornell. Diane Mattox, Karen McGuire and I have formed what we are calling a Caring Committee. In years past we had Pastoral Care/Casserole Brigade committee. When the pandemic hit reaching out became complicated. As we have started to gather more we now see a need to regroup/connect and form a caring community. . NUUC members don’t just come to church or view services on zoom. We are also all a part of a church family. While we encourage you to be your own steward of kindness and caring, we hope to help that effort by reaching out with a card, a phone call, maybe a visit or a meal when needed. Here’s where you come in. If you have a need you’d like to share or know someone in the congregation who could use a little TLC (with their permission) please let us know at Caring@nuuc.org. When joys and sorrows are spoken during the service we are listening. We will also be reaching out to visitors and new members to make them feel welcome. We look forward to moving forward and building our caring community together.
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The Service Auction is Coming!
Rat-a-tat-tat ---what's that sound I hear? It's the background music for our annual service auction May 21. While we are Creating Connections: Building for the Future, the church will be starting its own building project. But that should only add to the excitement. We will be enjoying hearty appetizers prepared by Rev Ritchie as we bid on items at our live auction after church on Sunday, May 21. We will also have a silent online auction and a raffle for the younger set.
The April 23 deadline for donations is just a few weeks away. So, it is time to put on your thinking hats and let your imaginations run wild as you think of items you could donate.
Donations of things are welcome, but what we really would like to see are donations that let us have fun with one another. For instance, for those who love the water -- you could take folks out for an afternoon on the water with light snacks or teach someone the joys of kayaking. Your could lead a guided bike hike with snacks or have an Earth Day gathering on your deck. How about summer salads on the patio or hosting a banana split making party. Your could offer to rake leaves, help plant a garden or even do some weeding. For the picky pet owner you could offer to pet sit while they are out of town. If you like to play cards, how about a card party? Better yet, offer to teach someone how to play Euchre or Pinocle. For the OSU fans you could host a game watching party with snacks. The crafty set could share their skills by offering to teach someone to knit or cross stitch. Your options are endless and we would love to have the donations in our catalog. This is your chance to share your talents and to connect with others.
So write a description of your donation on the donation form which is available online at:
https://forms.gle/GffgszKMK9ztaGrs8
And, if you need some ideas, we have copies of the past catalogs on line at:
https://auctria.events/NUUCauction
When you write out your donation idea down take some time to tease and to please with your description. If we have any problem understanding your donation, we will be sure to contact you -- and don't forget to include the value of the item, even if it is priceless. How do you price donkey petting?
Once we have all of the donations the committee will divide the items into two categories, live and silent. You will be able to check out this year's catalogs on May 7. Even better, you may start bidding on silent auction items a week before the live auction. Thanks to our new computer system, we will be able to let you know when you have been outbid on an item so you may change your bid. We will also offer auto-bidding up to a preset maximum price....who could ask for anything more?
We are looking forward to a lively, fun-filled event with lots of good food, laughter and of course, great bidding. Looking forward to seeing you at the auction May 21.
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Nonviolent Communication Workshop April 23
Hi, I'm Brian Lohiser, and I would like to make an offering because I have needs for contribution, connection, and shared reality. For 8 years, I have been involved in the practice of NVC, Non-Violent Communication, based on the works of Marshall Rosenberg. It's a form of communication based on an awareness of feelings and underlying needs which leads us to better connection and conversation outcomes, both with others and with ourselves. I highly value the impact it has made in my life over the past years, as I now speak more kindly to myself, and I have more understanding, patience, and connection with others. To anyone interested, I would like to offer an informal information session describing my understanding of the practice, my personal experiences, and to try and answer any questions you may have. We'll begin with an hour or so session in the community room directly following coffee time after church, with the possibility of more in-depth sessions if there is any interest. Thanks for your time and attention. :)Sunday April 23, at noon, in person in fellowship hall, no registration required.
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Join us for some Picnics! May 28 and June 11
Who: Everyone - all ages, all friends, members, non-members, whoever.
What: Picnics, some people may bring games. Hiking or creeking is also a possibility.
Where: Shale Hollow Park, https://preservationparks.com/parks/shale-hollow/
Go to the very end of the entrance road, look for the nature center and we will be to the left.
When: May 28th and June 11th, directly after church, no snacks will be provided after church on those days, ya' gotta' go to the park!
Why: Connection, fun, outdoors, sample other peoples food, building community, to do stuff together.
Please bring a dish to share and a chair (a table would be nice). Come prepared to relax, go for a walk in the woods, play games, sing songs...the sky is the limit.
Melinda Rosenberg is looking for some help to plan monthly NUUC Picnics. Interested? Please find her in fellowship hall on Sunday, March 26, immediately after worship.
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Would you like one of of our pews?
The new sanctuary in the building expansion will feature chairs, not pews. Would you like a pew, or two, or twenty? We will make them available to members and friends for a donation of your choosing. If you are interested, write minister@nuuc.org
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Story Sunday is May 7!
Come join us for Open Mic Story Sunday!
“The Story of Us”
Why do we tell stories? Who are we? How do we fit together? What is a story anyway?
For the purposes of story sunday, a story could be a poem, a song, a personal story, or a folk tale which lasts 4 minutes or less. We encourage original works, though anything you love sharing is welcome. Come share your favorite piece with our congregation. Please sign up in advance, and if time allows, we will accept walk-ins.
Sign up link: https://forms.gle/5jczogPrS5JZ3ADp7
For more information contact beccamorse@gmail.com
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Mowing at NUUC – We Need Some Help
The mowing season is about to get underway and the Building and Grounds Committee (B&G) again plans for NUUC to handle the mowing ourselves using the same approach as last year. Doing the mowing ourselves would normally save us about $4,550 in the budget by avoiding having to contract out the mowing. This year, due to our building’s expansion construction and the upcoming sale of Nielsen House, we estimate that we will have a 1/3 reduction in the areas to be mowed and in the associated cost. Therefore, we will save about $3,540 this year by doing the mowing ourselves, which is still a significant savings.
The B&G Committee will handle the mowing on a rotating basis with some help from the congregation. This year, B&G will only be able to cover 2 weeks instead of 3 weeks each month. The remaining 2 weeks plus sometimes a 5th week will be handled by volunteers from the congregation. Thus, we will need more congregational volunteers this year to offset the B&G reduction. This approach will spread the work so each B&G member will mow about once a month, and each congregational volunteer would mow just one time during the season. Our approach will keep everyone's work commitments reasonable.
The areas to be mowed include the church yard (bounded by the driveway and the parking lot plus the yard around Nielsen House. In addition, part of the southern field at the rear of our property and the west side of the parking lot are included. However as mentioned earlier, this year the amount to be mowed will be reduced due to building construction and selling Nielsen House.
We have a nice zero-turn riding mower, which we use for almost all of the mowing. Having the zero-turn mower continues to make a big difference in our mowing efforts. It has cut our mowing time in half and some volunteers even say the mowing is now fun!
If you are not familiar with using a zero-turn mower, we will give you some brief training for about 15 minutes that gets you familiar enough with the mower to comfortably mow the main parts of the yard. For a few small, tight areas, which the zero-turn mower cannot handle, you would finish up using a self-propelled push power mower. People who haven’t used a zero-turn or even a riding mower, have done well using the zero-turn mower.
Mowing this season will be a bit of an adventure. You will get to see firsthand what building construction progress has been made. In addition, the areas to be mowed and the amount of mowing will vary each week as the construction progresses.
We would like to get 2 or 3 volunteers from the congregation each month to mow one time in the season. The mowing season runs from early April through early November. This year volunteers from the congregation only will be needed beginning in the 3rd week of April and through October. Two of those months will contain 5 weeks and require 3 volunteers, so we need a total of 16 volunteers.
Please consider volunteering to mow one time this season. If you would like to help the church handle the mowing, you can see the mowing sign-up schedule posted at this weblink: tiny.cc/NUUC-mowing . To get scheduled, contact Bob Keith at bobkeith@zoho.com or 740-815-2825. You also can contact Bob if you have questions or would like more information.
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A New Adult Enrichment Offering
Life has a way of rushing by. Sometimes we feel the need to pause or to reflect more deeply. Join me for a virtual half hour of mindful contemplation that is inclusive, non-judgmental and expectation free. I’ll bring a mix of poetry, music, breathwork, silence, or meditation to create a space for you to relax. Participants are muted. Feel free to turn your video off. Please engage in whatever way feels most meaningful to you. A Space for Reflection is freely offered the third Wednesday of the month at 7:00pm on Zoom. Registration is required (link here).
As for me, Karen McGuire, the facilitator, I’m a lifelong Unitarian Universalist, a retired educator, and a trained Interspiritual Companion who finds it necessary to stop every once in a while, and pay attention.
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Volunteers Wanted to Host Coffee!
Coffee hour hosts arrive at 10:15 AM to begin the preliminary coffee set up and leave at some point after noon when folks have drifted away. Specific details for how to prepare, set up, and clean up from coffee are posted on the cabinets in the kitchen. All coffee and coffee related supplies are stocked an on hand in the kitchen. The coffee host has the option of supplementing the coffee service with snacks as desired. Click here to sign up.
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Ways to Connect
Brown Bag Books
Brown Bag Books Discussion Group, on Tuesday, April 18, noon at the church. The group will be discussing Rev. Susan Ritchie's book, Dark and Stormy: Unitarian Theology in Gothic and Ghostly Literature 1789-1912.
Mindful Writing:
Mindful Writing will meet by Zoom on Monday, April 17, at 7:00 pm. All are welcome to share your original prose and poetry, or just to listen. Please contact Marty Keith if you're interested, and she'll send you the Zoom link. (martykeith@zoho.com)
Wednesday Noon Check In
Join us using the regular NUUC zoom connection at noon everyday Wednesday for informal check- ins and chat with your fellow members. Write revritchie@aol.com for a direct link.
Soul Matters Small Group
We currently have a Soul Matters Small Groups virtually meeting, for regular in depth check ins, and for exploring together different spiritual themes. New members are welcome at any time, write to revritchie@aol.com. NOTE: Teri Cornell's Soul Matters Group is now meeting the Third Thursday of every month from 6:30-8:00pm.
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