In This Issue

Closer to the Heart: Authenticity, for its Own Sake

August 4th

For some, passion for a favorite artist can become part of one's authentic expression. Rush, a band of many talents, and some controversies, inspires passion like few other bands in the hearts of their fans. Join us as we explore how their music and journey exemplify lessons of Authenticity hard-earned through living true to one's spirit and soul.

Service Leader: Joe Gabaeff

Worship Associates: Jonathan Choe

Music: Sally Jones

Pianist: Roger Corman

The Basket: Our Own Saturday Breakfast for Our Neighbors

Soul Matters Team

August 11th

If you've been attending UUCSR services over the past few years, you have probably heard the term "Soul Matters". If you would like to take a deeper dive into what it is, where it came from, and how it has already impacted our services, come and find out! The "Soul Matters" committee will be offering their reflections on how it might be used to deepen our relationships with each other and bring more Soul into our community. 

Service Leaders: Katie Treller

Worship Associates: Eric Fischer

Music: Gage Purdy

Pianist: Roger Corman

Share The Basket: The Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA)

Seven Last Words of the Unarmed

August 18th

Experience a profound Unitarian Universalist service centered on Joel Thompson's "Seven Last Words of the Unarmed." Through poignant music and reflective readings, delve into themes of social justice, racial equality, and the sanctity of life. Join us in honoring the humanity of those lost to violence and advocating for change. (Potential Trigger Warning: Gun Violence & Police Brutality)

Blessing of the Backpacks!

Service Leader: Rev Dave Clements

Worship Associates: Gage Purdy

Music: Gage Purdy

Pianist: Recorded Music

The Basket: Our Own Religious Education Program

A Taste of Taize

August 25th

Over the past year UUCSR has been offering our contemplative Taize service once a month. In today's service we will learn about the history and tradition of Taize and how it brings together our UU Sources, ancient and contemporary wisdom, music, chanting and meditation. It will be a time for listening deeply with our hearts in a place of tranquility and connection in the midst of our busy lives and hurting world.

Service Leader: Gage Purdy

Worship Associates: Judy Withee

Music: Gage Purdy

Pianist: Roger Corman 

Share The Basket: Peace & Justice Center

From the Minister's Desk

Reverend Dave Clements

“Greetings From our Unitarian Roots”

Dear Members and Friends of UUCSR,

I along with Carol, LeeAnn, Mary Lil, Cathie, and Lucia are enjoying seeing the sites and historical places of our early Unitarian roots. I have been here before, but it has been exciting to see the expressions on each of the 5 newcomers. We have been warmly welcomed by the locals and fed incredible meals and homemade beverages. It is truly an immersion experience in a culture somewhat different from our American culture.

Language has not been a problem as smiles and eye contact have been a wonderful way to communicate. This experience reminds me just how small the world is and how we all want to feel loved and to believe that our life matters. The Unitarians here in Romania come from a rich background of over 300 years of oppression. Today in the region where we are staying there are over 150 active Unitarian churches along with two Unitarian high schools and colleges. 

Many of the connections that are being made will be long term as the Romanian/Hungarian Unitarians have welcomed our group with open arms. Our Unitarian faith is International and yes there are some practices that might be different but the Unitarians here in this area of Romania are proud to be Unitarian and have formed great communities where everyone looks after each other. It is amazing to see this strong sense of community engagement.

I hope that each of you are enjoying a summer full of many wonderful memories and taking time to reflect on the things which are most important to you and to your family. I look forward to being back with you in August and to our Ingathering on September the 8th as we kick off this next church year and the opportunity to call a settled minister in May of 2025.

Blessings to each of you. I miss you and love you.

Sincerely,

Rev. Dave 

CLICK HERE FOR MORE PHOTOS OF THE TRIP

President's Message

Board of Trustee President- David Reitzell

president@uusantarosa.org

We are in the middle of summer with the heat and services taking on a little different look. I have loved our summer services and would like to give a shout out to the Worship associates for their preparation and dedication. The messages and music have been so good. As the Board took July off, many Committees did as well, but neither the worship associates, our staff, nor the many volunteers that keep us going have that luxury. Thank you all!

August will see the BOT meet on Tuesday, August 6th at 6:30 in the Board Room and by Zoom. All are welcome to attend. This is a reminder that each Board meeting has an open mike / congregational comment segment in the beginning. Any member with a question, concern, or matter for the Board to consider is encouraged to attend and share your thoughts. This community, including the BOT meetings, belongs to all of us. We would love to see you there. You can always email me as well at the above “president” email.

We cannot ignore the events of the world and our country. This church is a sanctuary, for me anyway, where we can be together and share our impressions and thoughts in a safe and sane place. This congregation as well as my previous UU church in East Lansing MI, have helped me navigate our sometimes chaotic and convoluted society. For this I am grateful and a better person. It is one reason why I am an optimist as I know that good will prevail, even through trying times, as long as we are willing to put in the work to make it so. See you at church.

Love and Peace, David

Message from the Treasurer

Your New Acting Treasurer, Rose StJohn

FISCAL YEAR SUMMARY.

UUCSR ended fiscal year 23/24 with revenue exceeding expenses, thanks to several significant one-time donations, and the reliable pledgers who paid their pledge. Both our membership number and our pledge revenue have declined, compared to pre-pandemic. Glaser Center rentals are slowly coming back from a pandemic standstill.  

BUDGET FOR CURRENT YEAR.

In June, the Congregation passed a deficit budget for year 24/25 which included two controversial revenue sources. Hopefully, the Board of Trustees will harmonize our policies and practices regarding Share-the Basket and Minister's Discretionary Fund. Also, hopefully, revenue from pledges, fund-raising and Glaser Center will improve to offset the anticipated deficit.

PRIORITY.

The minister and the Board of Trustees will prioritize current and ongoing financial stability in order to ease our financial anxiety and to make us even more attractive to the best new minister we can find.

FINANCE COMMITTEE.

Please consider joining the finance committee if you are at ease with spreadsheets and numbers, and are interested in the UUCSR finances.

Religious Education

Era Capone

Hello all,

Summer Camp is in full swing as I am writing this, and it has been incredibly busy month leading up to it. Keep an eye out for next month, where I'll be reporting on how camp went, and what we have in stor for this upcoming congregational year in RE.

For those of you looking to get involved in RE, we would love to have you join us! If you're interested in volunteering, leading an activity, or just want to learn more about our programs, please email me at dre@uusantarosa.org. There's a little something for everyone in RE, and we can't wait for you to join us!

In love and gratitude,

Era

dre@uusantarosa.org

Taize at UUCSR

Everyone will get a "Taste of Taize" at the Sunday Service on August 25th. In the meantime mark your calendars for these upcoming Thursday evening Taize services - August 1st, September 5th, October 3rd, November 7th, December 5th.

From CUUPs

By Debby Belansky

"The Sun"

As the NASA website says “the sun is the star at the heart of our solar system. Its gravity holds the solar system together. Keeping everything, from the biggest planets to the smallest bits of debris in its orbit.” 

The solar system was born about 5 billion years ago. Before the sun was formed, there was a cloud of swirling gas and dust that collapsed due to its weight and it spun faster and faster. Gravity pulled it together. The Sun coalesced under gravity and got hot and lit up. The sun was born. The little bit of gas and dust that was leftover formed the planets around the sun, each in its own orbit based on distance from the sun. The Sun is the giver of life. The Earth is a spinning disc around it. And thus we are creatures of earth and sun.

Ancient people tracked the motions of the sun in various ways. Massive stone monuments were built around the world by ancient people. They aligned them at the right place and time with the sun to tell them time or when a season started. They worshipped the Sun as master of reality and time. We are shaped by this planet and this sun with this cycle of rotation/revolution. It dictates our body, brain and social organization. 

There is no life without the sun. Night becomes day, day becomes night in an endless cycle. The Sun sets the rules that we follow to survive. Farmers follow the sun to know when to plant and harvest . How do we make sense of the sun and our earth cycles? The sun controls our body. Our cells are set to the sun and tell us what to do and when to do it. We are synced to the sun by the cycle of day and night that humans had to adjust to. It is encoded in our cells. There are trillions of cells in our body with clocks in them that are aligned to the sun. Our circadian rhythms are sun-based. They tell us when to work, eat, and sleep and regulate our body’s physiology. Our cells follow this 24 hour cycle. Our body follows the sun.  

Here we stand in the halfway point between Summer Solstice and Autumn Equinox. You may notice how your body and mind follow the Sun in this time of the year.

Soul Matters

Soul Matters takes a break for the months of July and August. Themes will return in September.

Please click on the photo to read more about Soul Matters in the Participants Guide.

Come to the Soul Matters theme service on August 11. Sign ups for groups will be taking place after August services in the courtyard. Groups forming will be available at UU, on zoom, and in Oakmont. 

Contact Katie for information

Katie Trieller: ktrieller@icloud.com 707-329-5083. smallgroupministry@uusantarosa.org

Share The Basket Donations



Share the Basket offerings from Sundays and direct Donations for the month of June 2024

World Central Kitchen : $265.50

NBOP: $ 82.00 *

The Living Room: $378.52

UUCSR Religious Education: $

Saturday Breakfast for Our Neighbors Share: $280.50

Saturday Breakfast Direct Donation: $ 387.00

*There was no Share the basket during Service due to GA streaming. NBOP was rescheduled.

Please note that Share the Basket Donation checks need to be made out to UUCSR in order for us to process them and send the intended donor their share. We are not able to process checks made out to the individual organizations. Thank you.

~ ~ ~

Please consider joining the Share committee. It is a very rewarding position.

Your Share the Offering Project members,

Elaine Wellin, Mary Louise Jaffray, Jan Prater, Judy Wismer

From The Lay Chaplains

Those who attend services in person may enter a personal joy or sorrow in the Milestones book which is found just outside the sanctuary door on Sunday mornings. If you cannot be there in person, please email before 7pm on Saturday to: laychaplains@uusantarosa.org

Please limit milestones to personal joys and sorrows. If you have an announcement please contact the office during the week.

As always, anyone can use the email to send milestones at any time or to contact a Lay Chaplain for support.

Our Lay Chaplains are: Rob Carlisle, Judy Ervice, Bruce Hope, Barb Kezur, Sandy Brewer

Adult Education:

Join The World Affairs Council of Sonoma County

September 5, 2024, at 4:00 p.m.

At the Glaser Center. Open to all.

The 2024 Election Cycle

An Electoral Politics Briefing For The Most Important Election of Our Lifetime

The 2024 Elections will prove to be pivotal in American history. In what is shaping up to be the most important election since 1860, we will explore changes in the Democratic ticket, shifts in the electorate, conditions affecting the vote, and prospects for both major parties up and down the ballot. With Dr. David McCuan, Sonoma State University

$20. for members; $30. for non-members

(wine and cheese reception included).

Pre-register at WACSC.org

For more information, e-mail Linda Lambert at linlambert@mcn.org

The Adult Education Committee offers a wide variety of courses and programs in such areas as film, science, current social and political issues, skill development, personal growth, and forms of religious understanding. We always welcome suggestions from anyone who would like to present or participate in a program. Our members are Steve Sweaney (chair), Nadene Carroll, Carol Daeley, Linda Lambert, and Clare Whitfield.

First Sunday Flower Dedication

The Chancel flowers on August 4 are dedicated:

In loving memory of Forrest Randall’s 47th birthday, 

by Stacy Sincheff, his mother and Aphrodite, his Sister.

With some of his last spoken words in 2006, Forrest reminded us to “Go Forward”.

Forrest, you are loved and missed.

♥♥♥

For more information on how you can dedicate First Sunday Flowers, contact flowercommittee@uusantarosa.org

Our Chalice

"Being readied for the future"

By Catherine McBride

We've all had some experience of looking at, standing near, or passing by our chalice as it stands on the chancel. But in cleaning off the tarnish and soot I had some very unexpected and powerful experiences.  

When my hands moved over the chalice, I thought of all the weddings, memorials, Sunday services, choir rehearsals, reflections, story readings, drum circles, congregational meetings, instrumental music, and songs that our chalice has witnessed. I felt that maybe I should leave the chalice as is. But it was so wonderful to see the metal work start to show little by little! Then I started to have the feeling that it wasn't the chalice's past being removed but the chalice being readied for the future.

The next unexpected experience was feeling all the maker's craft under my hands. I could feel the shapes planned when the mold was made for the brass pour and then I felt the marks made by the maker's tools. Our chalice has the iconic shape and style of the UU chalice. But it's not crafted as a smooth shiny work. It's a bit more rustic and rough with a feeling of sturdiness under the hands.

These were surprising and deeply felt gifts! I thought it would be hard work and it was. But who would have thought our chalice had so much to share? I hope members of the congregation will find some time to visit the chalice to see all the maker's work and all the years of use in its shape. And, most of all, I hope people will reach out and feel the lip of the lamp, the texture of the bowl, its sturdy stem, and the strength of the circles.

I read a bit about the UU chalice evolution and understand the two circles are meant to represent the joining of the Unitarian and the Universalist traditions. But the whole time I worked on the chalice circles I was thinking of a sermon Rev Bev gave on the song "Spirit of Life". She spoke of the Spirit of Life as being a wondrous thing. But she offered that we should, just maybe, lead with the Spirit of Love. So, in my mind, those two circles will always be the Circle of Love and the Circle of Life.

UUCSR Women Together:

Women Together Potluck

Please join us for our End-of-Summer Party on Saturday August 24th, from noon to 2PM. As we prepare for an exciting new UU year, let's celebrate the ending summer together! Elaine Wellin has volunteered the use of her beautiful, shade-filled backyard for our annual party. Thank you, Elaine!!! Please bring a potluck item to share and your own plate, utensils & cup. Carpooling is always strongly suggested so grab your friends and take a drive to Elaine's place. Come for the food, come for the friendship, come for the fun, but make sure you come!!!  

Address: 3625 Lurline Way. From Montgomery and Yulupa, turn right on Jacqueline, left on Hacienda and right on Lurline Way. From Montgomery and Summerfield, turn left onto Jacqueline, etc.

Women's Retreat : October 4-6, 2024!

Our Women's Retreat is scheduled for October 4-6 this year and will take place at beautiful Camp Newman in northeast Santa Rosa. We, at Women Together, are very excited about the retreat this year and are busy putting together a program that we think you'll love. At Camp Newman, our group will be lodged together in one set of cabins. Each cabin room has its own 2 stall bathroom and a shower and 4 well-spaced beds. The dining hall is lovely and has an outdoor area that will make mealtime special. There is plenty of room to move around and we'll be able to hear each other and converse at mealtime which has been such a challenge in past years. And best of all, no one has to walk up or down any steps unless they want to. Camp Newman, mostly rebuilt after being destroyed in the Tubbs Fire, is completely ADA compliant!

Our theme this year is Change, which seems pretty appropriate on several levels! Some new workshops this year will be Watercolor Painting and Flower Arranging, along with some of your old favorites. We'll also have Croquet and Cornhole games available throughout the weekend. There are some lovely outdoor areas for chatting as well as hiking trails within the camp. We are planning for an outdoor service on Sunday in one of several beautiful gathering areas. You can expect alot of the same lively discussion and camaraderie that you've come to enjoy at our annual retreat. There is something for everyone!

We will be sending out more details in the coming weeks and months but be sure to mark your calendars now for October 4-6. You're not going to want to miss it!

Swap

August 24

See Change of Date to:

September 28th

10-2pm

FALL CIRCLE DINNERS

Sign-ups in August!! 

A great way to get together with old and new friends over food and conversation.  

Organizers: Sandy Brewer scbrewer@sonic.net and Cathie Wiese cathie@sonic.net

WHAT are Circle Dinners??? Circle Dinners are informal social gatherings over a pot-luck meal. They are opportunities to enjoy getting to know folks you might never have met otherwise. As participants, we have had some wonderful times visiting other members' homes (large and small---it doesn't matter!) and always look forward to great food and conversation.

HOW do they work??? Members and Friends (interested in membership) of UUCSR let the Circle Dinner organizers know they want to be on the list. We then take all

the names and shuffle them into groups of 7 or 8 (singles and couples) which becomes a "Circle Dinner Group" for the 4 months of the Circle Dinner period.

WHEN? In the September Newsletter we will post the Fall Circle Dinner Lists. The groups then contact each other, decide on a date, time and place to gather and who will bring what. The rest takes care of itself! Before the fun is over, the group decides the who, what , where and when for the next month's gathering. You don't need dinner service for 8, a family sized dining room, linen napkins, or even a room with a view! All you need is an enjoyment of meeting new friends, connecting with old friends, and the love of a good meal and conversation. Some groups meet for lunch and some even decide to meet at a restaurant.  

WHERE? We will be taking sign ups in THE SOCIAL HALL. Look for the sign up table. Also we will do sign-ups via email. We will need your name and phone number to post on the list so that your Circle can connect!

Watch for more information in the weekly Newsblasts. Sign ups will begin Sunday, August 4th through Sunday, August 26th.

NBOP

Rev Dave and Rev Bev, both members of the Religious Leaders Caucus of North Bay Organizing Project, urge the UUCSR community to attend the showing of this important documentary. The implications of this very organized Christian Nationalist movement are disturbing. We cannot ignore this movement. 

(Click on Flyer for larger viewing)

Glaser Center

If you have a non-profit group or a religious event (memorials, weddings, etc) and need a space to rent, please remember the Glaser Center!

Please contact the rental coordinator, Leslie at: leslie.jacobson@uusantarosa.org