The Overlook
Unitarian Universalist Church of Huntsville 
3921 Broadmor Rd., Huntsville AL 35810  
January 12, 2017
Vol. 17 Issue 2
In This Issue

95
Items Collected In December!
 

The Social Justice Committee's goal is to collect and donate 100 items per month. CAN you pick up an extra CANNED good, nonperishable food item, or personal care product next time you are out shopping? Please do, and put it in the basket in the church foyer to be donated to the Huntsville Assistance Program (HAP).  Suggested donations:
macaroni and cheese, pasta and sauce, dry beans and rice, boxes of cereal, bars of soap, canned meat, and peanut butter!

Thanks in advance!

Do You Have Trouble Hearing During Worship Services?
UUCH has purchased a number of devices to help hard-of-hearing members of the congregation listen to services. Need one? Just ask the greeter Sunday as you come in and return the device after the service!

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January's Theme: Prophecy
Upcoming Services

Sunday, January 15th, 2017

"Toward a Third Reconstruction:
            The Vision of Moral Movement Alabama "

Moral Movement Alabama is an indigenously led, locally organized, state-legislature focused, deeply moral, deeply constitutional, anti-racist, anti-poverty, pro-justice, pro-labor, transformative fusion movement. Inspiration for this service developed from the Adult Religious Education study of the book, The Third Reconstruction: Moral Mondays, Fusion Politics, and the Rise of a New Justice Movement," by the Reverend William Barber. The Rev. Lawton Higgs has been a human rights activists for decades and it is a delight to welcome him to speak to us this Sunday.  

The Reverend Lawton Higgs with
The Reverend Alice Syltie

Read more on Rev.Dr. R.Lawton Higgs, Sr.  Read Biography  Top
This Sunday in Children and Youth Religious Education 
 
We continue our "Storysharing" curricula based on our Soul Matters monthly worship theme of PROPHECY. Children and youth will explore some of our "Prophetic Heroes."
   
Nursery care (ages 0-3) will be provided as usual. 
Register for the UUCH Children and Youth Religious Education program by going to: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/WS8LDNP. Paper registration forms are also available at the church.
For more information, contact Erin Reid, Director of Religious Education (DRE) at [email protected] or Audrey Fox, CYRE Chair, at [email protected].
Time to Return Guest at Your Table Boxes

Now that we are through the holidays, the Unitarian Universalist Service Committee (UUSC) Guest at Your Table program is wrapping up and it is time to return your Guest at Your Table boxes!

There are three ways you can return your contribution to the UUSC:
  1. Bring your box to church and place it in the basket in the Fellowship Hall (cash or check; if cash, provide the information on the side of the box)
  2. Send a check directly to UUSC at UUSC, PO Box 808, Newark, NJ 07101-0808
  3. Donate on-line at https://donate.uusc.org/checkout/donation?eid=75595
Thanks for your contributions!

Brad Korb, UUSC Local Representative 

Building Your Own Theology    

It's not too late!
Join us even if you missed the first session.
 

Do Unitarian Universalists get to believe anything they want? Can they keep the easy stuff and ignore "religion" when it gets hard?  We as UUs profess a free and responsible search for truth and meaning.  This means while we all covenant to affirm and promote our 7 principles we do not all follow the same path to that truth and meaning. Though Unitarian Universalism is its own theology, it encompasses many personal theologies we each have as individuals.  Our UU community is where we carry out the process of building our personal theology.

Join Adult Religious Education facilitators Shiela Burrows and Denise Runnels as we walk through UU Richard Gilbert ' s "Introduction to Building Your Own Theology." This workshop will "provide some tools for building a theology based on the materials of individual life experiences."   Gilbert ' s program is "designed to provide a systematic, disciplined, and communal approach to the process." As he says "we have gathered together not to believe alike, but, to love alike, to live religiously together."

We will meet Sunday evenings in January beginning January 8th. This four week workshop will meet each Sunday through January 29th from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. If you need childcare, please let Denise or Nancy Finley know at least one week in advance,  [email protected].

Hosted by your Adult Religious Education Committee 
Movement Class Now on Friday!
 
Come start a healthy New Year off in our Awareness Through Movement® class.These classes focus on gentle movement that can assist us in being more comfortable and pain-free in our everyday activities.
Come learn how to use the core of your body to improve movement, balance, and chronic pain. 

Everyone is welcome! Class is drop-in, no experience necessary,
 and is led by Sally Locklear. Wear comfortable, loose clothing, and bring a bath or beach towel to use as head support for comfort in side-lying.
ATM is held on Friday mornings at 10:00 a.m. , starting January 13th until further notice.

For more information, contact Adult RE chair Nancy Finley at
[email protected]. UUCH Adult Religious Education focuses on the whole spiritual person--mentally and physically. Join us!  
Wonderful Wednesday Spaghetti 

It's cold outside, time is short, and you want to see your friends. What to do?? Head to UUCH for wonderful homemade spaghetti. Can't handle gluten? No problem, we have gluten free spaghetti! Want meaty spaghetti? This one is a sure bet to please your family. Prefer a vegetarian or vegan option? No problem! Your hungry teen thrives on seconds? No problem!

The easy solution is to come dine in UU style, enjoying luscious homemade spaghetti, salad and dessert. 
Wednesday, January 18, 6:00 p.m. - 6:45 p.m. Childcare begins at 6:30 p.m. Choir and Adult RE begin at 7:00 p.m. Family-friendly pricing: ages 6 and younger are free, ages 7-12 are $2, age 13 and older are $5.Family maximum: $15

Hosted by your Hospitality Committee
Are We Bold Enough to Change History?
Wednesday Night Film Series  
January 18th, 7-8 pm
 
In keeping with the UUA theme for the month,"Prophecy," the Adult Religious Education Committee will present a showing of the video, "A People So Bold: Prophetic Church." Prophets are people who are  able to read the signs of their times and lead in creating justice. A contemporary "Prophetic Church" is on the cutting edge, reading the signs of its times, creating a just and loving community in its midst, and advocating passionately for a better world. 

Can UUCH be that? Can we make history rather than just observe it? What would that mean? Join us Wednesday night, January 18th at 7 - 8 pm, immediately following the Wonderful Wednesday Night Supper. The video will last around 30 minutes followed by a discussion of these
ideas. Everyone is welcome and, childcare will be provided.
Contact Nancy Finley, 
[email protected] for further information
weathered-movie-reel.jpg
UUCH Family Movie Night

January 21, 2017 at 6:15 p.m. 

Although our annual chili cook-off is being held on Feb. 4th instead of Jan. 21st, come join the UUCH Children's and Youth RE Committee as we celebrate a different type of food.

CAN YOU GUESS THE FILM? The chickens on the farm are in danger when their owners decide to transfer the farm's focus from egg production to chicken pot pie production. Will the plucky American rooster be able to help the chickens escape before they end up in the freezer section of the grocery store? Find out in this fun animated film for any age!

Please bring your favorite movie snack to share. Doors open at 6:15 p.m. with the movie starting at 6:30 p.m.

Hosted by your UUCH Children and Youth Religious Education Committee.
justice scales
Social Justice Meeting 

Our next Social Justice Meeting will be Sunday, January 22nd at 9:30 a.m. in the Fellowship Hall. Please bring your ideas for spring and summer projects. We'll have bagels, and if you need childcare, please contact Tonia at (256) 882-9891 or [email protected].  

Everyone is welcome!

UUCH Annual Chili Cook-Off is
Saturday, February 4!
Who Will Win the Coveted Red Ladle? singing chili
 
Who will win coveted red ladle on Saturday, February 4? It could be you! Queen Shiela Burrows won the 2016 Best in Show Coveted Red Ladle with her first entry. First-timers Emily Garrison and Alice Dilbeck won in their categories.

Bring your chili, side dishes, and hot talent to this fun evening!

Sign up on the Fellowship Hall poster or online
( http://www.signupgenius.com/go/10c044ea9a62aa3fd0-2017 )
to register your chili and to bring your favorite chili side dish: cheese, sour cream, crackers, salads, cornbread or rolls, and desserts.

Open mike entertainment is an important part of the evening! If you'd like to be part of the show, contact Susan Coddington (
[email protected] ) or call 256-520-3490 .

For others, doors open at 5:00 p.m. and eating begins at 5:30 p.m. Admission is $5 each for those 12 and older; children 3-11 are $3 each; with a family cap of $15. Free admission for Chili Chefs! 
 
Hosted by your Hospitality Committee
biographyRev. Dr. R. Lawton Higgs, Sr.
Biographical Sketch

R. Lawton Higgs, Sr. was born in Bauxite, Arkansas, June 26th, 1940 and is married, a father of three, and a grandfather of four. He finished high school in Huntsville, Alabama in 1958. He graduated from the University of Alabama with a degree in Electrical Engineering in 1966, afterwards working with Alabama Power Company in Birmingham, as a power distribution engineer for eight years before responding to a call to ordained ministry.  

As a 1977 graduate of Candler School of Theology at Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia, with a Master of Divinity degree, he was ordained as elder in the North Alabama Conference of the United Methodist Church. He completed a Doctor of Ministry Degree in 1988 where the focus of his professional project was  Urban                     Congregational Development and Revitalization. He served 12 years as the pastor of Church of the Reconciler, a multicultural, interracial United Methodist Congregation in downtown Birmingham, Alabama, where he was the organizing pastor.

Over time, Lawton has served in many capacities: Dean, Study Leader, led volunteer mission teams to Chile, Bolivia and the Dominican Republic, Chairperson and/or President of several boards. He was also selected by President Bill Clinton to be a part of the Presidential Party at the 1998 State of the Union Address and was the representative of the Clinton Administration's commitment to One America for the Twenty First Century.

Lawton now serves on the board of Greater Birmingham Ministries (www.gbm.org), and has served on the boards of the Community Affairs Committee of Operation New Birmingham, and the Greater Birmingham Chapter of SCLC. He is active in the Birmingham Progressive Christian Alliance (www.birminghamprogressivechristianalliance.org)
 and serves as a volunteer organizer for the Birmingham Bus Riders ( https://www.facebook.com/pages/Birmingham-Bus-Riders/306399792714069). Lawton is currently serving as the Chair of the Leadership Council of the Progressive Christian Alliance ( progressivechristianalliance.org).

His hobbies are gardening and photography.   
(view Sunday's Bulletin for further information)  Back to top 
Looking for It? Check Lost & Found 
 
Where is that blue jacket? The car keys with my fob? My pink tam and scarf? My lettuce keeper? In the Lost & Found, of course! There are several youth jackets, work gloves, stuffed animals, earrings, rings, lots of eyeglasses, and more. Take a look. After several more weeks, it will all be donated.
Soul Circles are Forming!
 
Don't forget--Soul Circles are forming! We are bringing small groups into the Soul Matters shared thematic ministry alongside our Worship and Religious Education ministries. Our "Soul Circles" will meet monthly. Each month, prior to meeting.
 

If you would like to join a Soul Circle please contact John Czachurski at [email protected]

General Assembly 2017
June 21-25, 2017
New Orleans, Louisiana

It is not too early to begin planning your trip to our UUA's General Assembly! Important dates and programming updates may be found here: http://www.uua.org/ga. This is close enough to drive from Huntsville! 
votives
Care List
 
At our Circle of Candles on Sunday,  January 8th, 2017:

A candle of sorrow for Colonel Larry Shields who passed at 94 on 1/7/17. Rest in peace.
 
From Rev. Alice
A candle for Roger Turley, who had gallbladder surgery on Sunday morning.
 
From Pam Siegler  
A candle of joy. Yea! Welcome back Kathy Fisher.

If you have pastoral care needs, please contact the Reverend Alice Syltie at [email protected]Barbara Hitt is Chair of the Care Committee, and may be reached at home, (256) 881.2531; on her cell, (256) 348.5845; or by email at [email protected].
UUCH 16-17 Board Members

 

President: Laurel Bollinger 

Vice-President: Denise Runnels  

Secretary: Ed Bernstein           

Treasurer: Greg Howard   

Trustees: Susan Coddington, Kathy Heath,

   and Lynsie Lamitie 

 

Do you have an Agenda Item for the Board?  
The Board respectfully requests that all agenda items for the meeting be submitted to Board President Laurel Bollinger, no later than one week prior to the meeting, i.e. the Tuesday before. You may leave a copy of your request in her Mailbox at the church office, or contact her at [email protected].

The next UUCH Board Meeting will be held
on Tuesday, January 24th, 2016 at 6:30 p.m. Thanks for your cooperation!

From the Overlook is a publication of

The Unitarian Universalist Church,

3921 Broadmor Rd. Huntsville, AL 35810

Minister: The Reverend Alice Syltie

Board President: Laurel Bollinger  

Editorial Board: Laurel Bollinger, Kathy Heath 

 

Newsletter deadlines are each Monday at midnight.
Please send submissions to news collator Willette Battle at
[email protected].  

 

Office Hours: 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. Mon-Fri.

Office phone: 256.534-0508, email: [email protected] .

Minister's email: [email protected].

Website: www.uuch.org 

 

Sunday Services are held 10:45 a.m. to 12:00 noon;  

Children's Religious Education held concurrently.   

Nursery available for age 3 years and under.

For further info on any event, call the church office:
256. 534-0508.