Wednesday, April 14, 2021 |
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THIS SUNDAY'S
VIRTUAL WORSHIP SERVICE
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"A Lynching on the Eastern Shore"
Rev. Sue Browning
and
Philip Dutton, UUCR member
UUCR & UUFE Zoom Worship Service
April 18, 2021
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In 1892, James Taylor was lynched near the Kent County Courthouse. He never received his day in court. At this service, led by Rev. Sue Browning and UUCR member Philip Dutton, we'll explore the story of this lynching, the power of bringing an honest telling of history into current conversations, and the current plans to memorialize James Taylor's story.
Join us by clicking the Zoom worship service link here on Sunday, April 18 before 10 am, immediately followed by UUCR & UUFE Coffee Hour. Please sign in by 9:50 am so we can begin the worship service promptly at 10 am.
If you have a joy or sorrow for the April 18 worship service, please share it during the UUCR & UUFE Coffee Hour or if you're not planning to attend, email the UUCR office at UUCR email by Thursday, April 15 at noon.
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Come Join Us for Coffee Hour |
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Please come join us for UUCR & UUFE Coffee Hour at 11:00 am, on Sunday, April 18 immediately following the worship service (continuation of the worship service's Zoom link.)
It's a time to see and talk to one another, and the next best thing to being there!
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This Week's
Worship Service
Last Week's
Worship Service
Apr 11 - Will not be posted online
UUCR
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Apr 10 - 26, "Kiss the Ground" online film - see below for more info. 📽️
Apr 14 - Board Meeting
Apr 15 - Starr Center Segregation Zoom Event - see below for more info. 💻
Apr 16 - UUFE Native Plant Sale - 🌿 LAST DAY TO ORDER 🌿
Apr 17 - Household Hazardous Waste Drop-off Day - see below for more info.
Apr 18 - UUCR & UUFE Zoom Worship Service
Apr 21 - “Sacred Ground, a Message of Hope” Zoom webinar - see below for more info. 💻
Apr 22 - Earth Day 🌎
Apr 25 - YouTube Earth Sunday Worship Service
Apr 25 - UUCR Coffee Hour
May 1 - Merry Month of May Celebration - see below for more info 🌸
May 2 - UUCR & UUFE Zoom Worship Service
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If you know of another link or event that should be added, please contact
the UUCR office by email or phone 410-778-3440. Thanks!
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Upcoming
Virtual Worship Services
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Sunday, April 25
"Pathways to Healing & Regeneration:
an Earth Sunday Service"
When you imagine pathways to personal, social and ecological healing and regeneration, what do you see? Who is with you on your journey? What transforms and gives way to new beginnings? Who and/or what are you accountable to along the way? This Sunday the UUs of the Chester River will join UU Ministry for Earth and The Reverend Yadenee Hailu for a special Earth Sunday worship service exploring these questions in a collective journey on the pathways to healing and regeneration.
This worship service will be available on UUCR's YouTube Channel Sunday morning.
Sunday, May 2
"The Stories We Inherit"
- Rev. Sue Browning
- UUCR & UUFE Zoom Worship Service
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Getting Close to Issues
In 2017 I had the honor to hear Bryan Stevenson, founder of the Equal Justice Initiative and author of the book Just Mercy, speak at the UU General Assembly. He was breathtaking as he shared his story and wisdom, a sermon, and lecture all in one.
Stevenson was born in the late 1950s and he grew up in segregation right here on the Delmarva, in Milton, Delaware.
Stevenson holds four basic tenets for fighting racial injustice. First, get closer to issues; second, work to change the narrative; third, fight hopelessness, and finally, get uncomfortable. He notes, “There is no path to justice that is only comfortable and convenient. We will not create justice until we’re willing to sometimes position ourselves in uncomfortable places and be a witness.”
This Sunday we’ll have a chance to learn from Philip Dutton and Paul Tue about the James Taylor Justice Coalition. This local group was founded to ensure an honest telling of James Taylor’s story, including his brutal lynching in 1892, and through this history to educate and move toward truth and reconciliation as a part of dismantling current-day racism.
The James Taylor Justice Coalition is part of a nationwide effort to work for racial justice, with deep ties to the work of Bryan Stevenson and the Equal Justice Initiative.
Understanding our local history helps us learn "up close" and is a part of changing the narrative. Through the work of the James Taylor Coalition we can both bear witness to the history and see accountability in a new light. I continue to be amazed by local leaders, like Philip and Paul, who work persistently to address deep challenges. I continue to be amazed by the ripple effects on Stevenson’s vision.
I hope to see you at our Sunday Zoom worship service this week. Gratitude in advance to Philip and Paul.
In connection,
Rev. Sue
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*** PLEASE NOTE ***
Sometimes due to the length of Reflections, some sections are on a second page in some members' emails. If you don't see "END of REFLECTIONS for APRIL 14, 2021" at the very end of this email, you will need to click at the bottom where it says "[Message clipped] View entire message" (or something similar in whatever email service you use) to view the entire email.
Or, you can click immediately below this message.
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Having trouble viewing the entire email? Click here
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Come and Celebrate
the “Merry Month of May" at UUCR!
Let us cheer: May Day and all its Pagan, Pantheistic History;
Cinco de Mayo, in Salute to our Southern Neighbors; and Spring in General!
Saturday, May 1, 5 pm
Parking Lot of UUCR
914 Gateway Dr.
Festive Food and Drink will be served. Colorful Dress
encouraged! Mark your calendars and stay tuned!
Right now we are looking for volunteers
- To provide appropriate finger food
- Help to set up and clean up.
If you can help, or have questions, please contact us via
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Thursdays with the Starr Center
at Washington College
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The Other Chesapeake: Segregated Beaches, White Sand, and Black Feet
Thursday, April 15 at 5 pm (Zoom)
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Join us for guest speaker and “Admiral of the Chesapeake” Vince Leggett as he discusses the era of segregated vacation spots on the Chesapeake Bay. Award-winning recording artist Karen Somerville and acclaimed pianist and composer Shajid McMillan will join Leggett in paying tribute to the musicians who performed at those resorts.
Leggett will focus on Annapolis’s Carr’s and Sparrow’s Beaches, which served as respite resorts for Black vacationers from both the Eastern Shore and Western Shore between 1920 and 1970. These exclusive properties came to be known as the Black Coast, and drew such major musicians as Billie Holiday, Duke Ellington, and Ray Charles.
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Household Hazardous Waste
Drop-off Day
Saturday, April 17
8 am - 2 pm, rain or shine at the
Nicholson Transfer Station
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Free to Midshore County residents (Caroline, Kent, Queen Anne’s and Talbot Counties). For further information about the event, and acceptable drop-off items, please click here. |
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What if there was a simple solution that could help balance our climate, replenish our freshwater supplies, and feed the world? That solution is right under our feet.
Registration is now open to view this year’s featured film, "Kiss the Ground,' as part of the events for Faith Climate Action Week’s theme of “Sacred Ground: Cultivating Connections Between our Faith, our Food, and the Climate” (April 16 – 25).
"Kiss the Ground" is a new film about how regenerating the world’s soils has the potential to rapidly stabilize Earth’s climate, restore lost ecosystems, and create abundant food supplies. This film explains why transitioning to regenerative agriculture could be key in rehabilitating the planet, while simultaneously invigorating a new sense of hope and inspiration in viewers.
Thanks to a special arrangement with "Kiss the Ground" and Ro*co films, Interfaith Power and Light (IPL) will offer a FREE online viewing period from April 10 - 26. All viewers must register with IPL.
Wednesday, April 21 at 2 pm, IPL will also host a webinar “Sacred Ground, a Message of Hope.” We’ll have a conversation with "Kiss the Ground" filmmaker, Josh Tickell, and Faith in Place’s Statewide Outreach Director, Veronica Kyle, on what congregations can do to be part of the solution to food justice and climate justice. When you register to view the film, you will also receive the Zoom link to join the webinar.
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Social Concerns/Social Justice |
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Anton’s Law Passes in Maryland GA |
The Maryland Police Accountability Act of 2021 – “Search Warrants and Inspection of Records Relating to Police Misconduct (Anton's Law)” passed in the Maryland General Assembly on April 10. The part of the bill that applies to Anton’s case will allow greater public access to police misconduct records. The passage of this bill was part of a comprehensive package of law enforcement bills undertaken by the General Assembly in response to the call for reforms in policing. Thanks to everyone who emailed, called, or wrote letters to our legislators in support of this bill.
Amy Warner
Co-chair, Social Concerns/Social Justice Committee
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Bayside HOYAS Outreach Collection
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The Social Concerns/Social Justice Committee’s fourth outreach collection for this year was launched on Sunday, April 4, for the Bayside HOYAS. If you watched Sunday’s Easter service — or have yet to watch it —John Queen, the president of the HOYAS, promotes two ways our members and friends can donate to the organization: one for their Frederick Douglass Day celebration in February 2022, and the other for their endowment. In order to simplify our giving, please make your outreach donation just to the Bayside HOYAS.
The Bayside HOYAS, an acronym for "Helping Our Youth Achieve Success," is a youth program which targets young men from the ages of 11-17 to help them better themselves in school, home, and community. Their mission is “to promote academic excellence, positive character development, and civic responsibility among secondary school age youth and young adults in Kent and Queen Anne’s counties, Maryland.” They work to achieve this mission through educational enrichment, mentoring, leadership training, health promotion, and public service projects with youth of limited opportunities. Founded by Paul Tue, Pierre Tue, and John Queen in 2013, the organization provides a wide range of programming, which includes academic counseling, community service projects, youth leadership summits, outreach to families in need, and athletics. Since 2019 they’ve operated a resource center (UUCR’s former office on Cross Street), which provides the young people a place to drop in, socialize, plan events, or seek counseling and resources.
You can contribute by sending a check to the church office, made out to UUCR specifying "Bayside HOYAS Outreach Collection" in the memo line, or you can donate online at the church website using the "Donate" button (click here) and "Custom Amount", specifying "Bayside HOYAS Outreach Collection" in the comment section. Any questions, please contact Amy Warner, co-chair of the SC/SJ committee at [email protected]. Please make your donation by Friday, April 30th.
The committee thanks all members and friends for their very generous support of the outreach collections for this church year.
Amy Warner
Co-chair, SC/SJ Committee
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Pastoral Care and Connection |
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We are here for you! We will focus on staying directly connected with our members and friends, especially those who may need assistance or support. The caring teams from our congregation is staying in touch, but if you need to reach out, please be in touch with any of the contacts below to stay connected (and see additional contacts below for RE families).
Please know your congregation is here. We can help you find connections. Please don't hesitate to reach out and let us know what is helpful for you in this time.
Rev. Sue Browning, and the Pastoral Care Associates: Kevin Brien,
Gayle Folger, Nancy Holland, and Vida Morley
or for more information, contact:
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APRIL BIRTHDAYS
6 - Stan Salett
7 - Tom Tontarski
9 - John Ramsey
13 - Amy Warner
16 - Connie Schroth
17 - Jim Lavin
22 - Elisabeth Tully
30 - Kim Agee
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We want to help celebrate your birthday! If we didn't include your birthday, please contact Darlene at UUCR office email
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Unitarian Universalists of the Chester River 914 Gateway Drive, Chestertown, MD 21620
Phone: (410) 778-3440
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END of REFLECTIONS for APRIL 14, 2021
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