Today At Our Fellowship

Thursday, August 27, 2026

This Week @ AUUF

Thursday, August 27

6:30-8:00 pm Choir

Friday, August 28

*12:00 – 2:00 pm Freethinkers in Person Room 7

Saturday, August 29

8:30 – 10:30 am AA-Slap Happy Group at AUUF Social Room

Sunday, August 30

*9:00 – 10:15 am The Forum

*11:00 am – 12:00 pm Sunday Worship Service

4:00 – 5:30 pm Anchorage Friends Meeting Sanctuary & Social Room

*5:00 – 9:00 pm Sunday Solidarity- All are Welcome Social Room

Monday, August 31

Tuesday, September 1

*2:00 – 4:00 pm Knitting Group

Room 7

4:30 – 6:30 pm Forum Planning

Wednesday, September 2

3:30 – 5:00 pm Connections Team Meeting on Zoom Library

5:00 – 6:30 pm CYRE Team Meeting - In Person & Zoom Library

5:00 – 6:00 pm RE Meeting

7:00 – 8:30 pm Building & Grounds Meeting - Zoom

Thursday, September 3

6:30-8:00 pm Choir

5:30 – 7:00 pm Anti-Racism Team Meeting Library & Zoom

Friday, September 4

*12:00 – 2:00 pm Freethinkers in Person Room 7

*Open to AUUF Members & Friends

August to December Social Justice Pillar: Environmental Stewardship and Climate Change

The Forum

Sunday August 30, 2026, 9:00 AM

IN- PERSON and on Zoom

“An Overview of Crime Victim Rights

in the Alaska Criminal Justice System”

Mike Shaffer, Alaska Office of Victims’ Rights

COMING UP AT THE FORUM. SUNDAYS AT 9:00-10:15 IN PERSON & ON ZOOM

The Forum speaker for this Sunday, August 30, will be Mike Shaffer, an attorney for the Alaska Office of Victims’ Rights. Prosecutors represent the government when it is trying to convict someone accused of committing a crime, and defense attorneys represent the accused individuals. Mike will tell us about the role OVR plays in protecting the rights of crime victims dealing with the state’s criminal justice system.

The following week, on Sunday, September 6, our Forum speaker will be United States Congressman Jared Huffman, who represents the area along the coast of California from the Golden Gate Bridge to the Oregon Border, and NOT coincidentally is the brother of Tim Huffman and brother-in-law of Katherine. Jared, who has spoken with us once before, has a written a book called “No Prophets: The Fight to Save Democracy from Christian Nationalism.” Tim may have some copies available that folks could purchase at or before the Sept. 6 Forum—we’ll let you know.

Click here to join on Zoom.

Sunday Worship Service

Sunday August 30, 2026, 11:00 AM

IN- PERSON and on Zoom

“Having Your Cake and Eating it too.”

Kay Sind & Dennis Arashiro

Click here to join on Zoom.

Mark Your Calendars & Join Our Auction Team

Hey, AUUF, mark your calendars now for our annual dinner, awards ceremony and auction wrap-up for Saturday, Nov. 14. It’s always such a lovely time together and we want to be sure it’s in your calendar now. And speaking of the auction wrap-up, your small but mighty auction team would be thrilled to have another couple of members. We’ll probably start planning in early October, so it’s a very time-specific commitment. Plus, it’s fun! If you ‘re interested or want to learn more, please be in touch with Robin at akhills@ak.net or 907.244.9192.

Helping Hands Auction

Your AUUF Alliance is planning to have an auction to raise funds that will be used to contribute to the Fellowship. This on-line auction involves offering to share our skills with one another.

Do you love gardening, sewing/mending, knitting, playing with children, cleaning, organizing, car washing, genealogy, sharing and teaching tech skills?

Please think about what you might be able to offer as well as what you might want to purchase. Contact Kalen via email, kalensaxon@gmail.com or phone 907 244-8221, with a description of what you can offer, a photo and a starting bid suggestion.

The auction will take place 9/24-10/4. A link will be sent to AUUF members and friends. We will gratefully receive your offers and hope that you will find something to bid on too!

AUUF Fall Religious Exploration Updates

Click here to read.

AUUF RE Registration 2026/2027

Hello Families!

We are prepping for the start of the RE school year at AUUF. Please register your child(ren)/youth ASAP so we can get information updated for the year. Thank you!

Click here to register.

Fall Frolic Registration

Sept. 18 6:00 pm to Sunday, Sept. 20 12:00 pm

Click here for more info.

Religious Exploration

Classes will begin Sunday, August 23 for the school year. I'm looking to round up some new RE helpers this school year. We'll be adding another classroom to split up our largest group once again. Classrooms will be Pre-K, Grades K-1, Grades 2-4 and Grades 5-8.

The NEW Junior Youth Group (Grades 5-8) will begin in October- meeting monthly on a Friday evening. Thank you to all who supported the youth fundraiser of Pride merchandise. Pearl and Dougie staffed the table and collected over $300 to go into our youth account. This will help to plan and fund any special events for youth group we may want to have or attend in the future.

Parent's/Grown-Up Night Out will return in October as well.

HS Youth events/activities will announced as planned and scheduled. HS OWL classes will run for seven consecutive Sunday mornings mid-January through February.

Children's Choir will begin on Sunday, August 30 following the 11am service. Approximately 12:30pm-1pm (a chance to grab a snack after the 11am service and RE classes). There will be an option on the RE Registration to sign up. Kids will be singing at the multi-generational services throughout the school year. The first being the Water/Homecoming Service on Sunday, September 13.

Fall Frolic dates are September 18-20 at Birchwood Camp on Chugiak. Registration will be available mid-August and end on Thursday, September 3. Thanks again to ,The Alliance, for providing funds to pay for the food this year!

I think that is all the RE related news I have to share. Enjoy the remainder of the summer!

Volunteer for Sunday Hospitality through Sign-Up Genius

Please consider signing up to help make AUUF a warm and welcoming community. Encourage a friend or relative to join you! Every Sunday we need greeters, zoom ushers and Social Hour helpers to keep our kitchen tidy. Below is a link to the Signup Genius which includes downloadable directions on what to do. All you need is an email address and you will be sent an automatic reminder 2 days ahead of time. Thanks to all who continue to help!

Age in Place Anchorage Project-Steering Committee

Designed after the elder and senior support Aging at Home Fairbanks modeled on the national "village" concept, a group of us in Anchorage are looking to create a Age in Place Anchorage project. The Anchorage group is looking for volunteers to serve on a steering committee-people who can provide their expertise and experience to get this project off the ground. Our meetings are on zoom. If you are interested or have questions please email: yaso.thiru@gmail.com

Invitation to Study Deliberative Democracy

Dear Friends,

We'd like to invite you to join us for a study of deliberative democracy. Forms of participatory democracy- alternatives that go beyond what we are traditionally accustomed to are being experimented around the world. Come, learn with us what deliberative democracy is. "Deliberative democracy rests on the recognition that laws and policies gain their legitimacy not merely from a vote, but from a process of careful deliberation among citizen peers leading up to that vote. Its principal instrument is the citizens’ assembly: a group of ordinary people — usually a hundred or more — chosen by sortition to be genuinely representative of the broader population, who engage in sustained facilitated discussion on a particular topic until they arrive at a considered recommendation." Jeremy Lent, Ecocivilization. Dates & Times: 6- 7:30 p.m. on September 9, 23, October 14, 28 Snacks, coffee, tea will be served.

For more details, please email Yaso at yaso.thiru@gmail.com with "Study Group" on the subject line.

Yaso Thiru & Erika Grant

AUGUST HALF PORTION FOR SOCIAL ACTION:

NAMI Anchorage

National Alliance on Mental Illness

We are deeply honored to be named the Anchorage Unitarian Universalist Fellowship's Half Portion for Social Action recipient for August 2026. The National Alliance on Mental Illness provides trauma-informed, evidence-based, peer-led support and education while advocating for mental health parity at the federal, state, and local level — and NAMI Anchorage takes that mission to support the mental health of every Anchorage resident seriously. In addition to facilitating the support groups and educational programs provided by the national organization, we work to create safe community spaces, because we know that isolation is one of the biggest risk factors for mental health challenges. We recently moved into our new home in the Umoja Coworking Building at 3001 Porcupine Street, and our doors are open to the public Tuesday through Saturday from 12 to 4. Come in, have a cup of coffee or tea and a snack. Peruse our library. Take advantage of our crafting room and the myriad donated supplies waiting to be turned into something beautiful. Enjoy the sunshine in our community garden — getting your hands dirty is optional, but recommended. Visit with Little Bit, our Crisis Dog in Training, or any of our staff and volunteers. Join us every Saturday for Community Crafternoons, the last Wednesday of each month for our On The Menu lunch and learn, or quarterly for Mental Wealth, our community roundtable with dinner, and StoryTime. We believe that when you replace the I with We, illness becomes wellness — and that by offering unconditional acceptance and radical empathy, we can have a positive impact on the mental health of our entire community.

Like so many nonprofits right now, we are facing a funding crisis — and our deepest commitment is to keep every one of our programs free to the community, always. We often think about this: if every Anchorage resident gave just one dollar, we would be fully staffed and could stop writing grant applications and start spending every hour doing what we love — showing up for people. Your generosity this August brings us closer to that dream. Every dollar given through the Fellowship's Half Portion collection is a direct investment in peer support, safe spaces, and the simple but radical idea that no one in Anchorage should have to face their mental health journey alone. We are so grateful for the Fellowship's kindness, for this recognition, and for the values of compassion and community care that we so clearly share.

Click here to see a calendar of NAMI Anchorage events.

You can contribute in person at our Sunday services or online by visiting anchorageuuf.org click on Donate/ Pay on the home page. Enter your donation under “Half-Portion for Social Action."

Go to anchorageuuf.org

Click on Donate/ Pay

ON of the home page.

Enter your donation under

“Half-Portion for Social Action”