Weekly Communicator

Weekly Communicator

July 14, 2022

Sunday Service

Zoom only

Join us as we explore what it means to live in Right Relationship–with ourselves, our community, other cultures, creation and more. We hope you will come and explore this with us on Sunday July 17 at 10:30am via Zoom.

Join us this Sunday at 10:30am

https://zoom.us/j/5264858673

or listen to audio only at UUCFM.org

July Services

The Lay Ministers and Worship Associates together with the Board of Trustees have set an alternative schedule for Worship Services in July. These changes are necessary for a number of reasons.

7/17 Mary Cline Golbitz, CLM

ZOOM ONLY

7/24 Guest Speaker: Mary Tracy Sigman

HYBRID

7/31 Blessing of the Animals

HOBART HALL Hybrid

Please send all newsletter articles by

12pm Wednesday for publication in Thursday's newsletter.

Send articles to newsletter@uucfm.org

**Please do not send requests to the office manager email**

Covid Protocol Update

The efficacy of vaccines and treatments has significantly reduced Covid’s danger for most of us. As a result, the protocols for campus events have been revised:

Masks will continue to be required in the sanctuary during worship services.
Masks are optional for coffee and other functions in Hobart Hall.
In the library, classrooms, and other small spaces, masks are required UNLESS everyone present agrees otherwise. We’ll continue to be respectful and protective of those of us whose immunity is impaired.
Worship services will continue to be available on Zoom.

Although the Covid risk level will continue to fluctuate, I’m sure all of us hope the worst of the pandemic is behind us. We’ll continue to monitor the risk and change the guidelines as needed to protect our congregation.

Please reach out to me with any questions at UUCFMPresident@UUCFM.org.

Namaste,

Mary Studer

President, Board of Trustees

Introducing Rev. Sue

The Board of Trustees is excited to introduce our new Minister. The Board met July 12th to approve a letter of agreement with Rev. Sue Gabrielson to become our Part-time Minister. It is nothing less than serendipitous that Rev. Sue is available to minister to our congregation.

Volunteer Opportunities

There are multiple volunteer opportunities available.

Sunday Social Hour Kitchen Help contact Dorothy Van Howe

Sunday Tech Team contact Walter Peterson

Brewer Family Gardens contact Bonnie Jean Clancy

Band/choir contact Suellen Kipp

UUCFM Grounds Volunteer work day July 16th this Saturday, July 16, beginning at 8am.

The Scouts will be coming to help with grounds maintenance, mulching in front of the sanctuary and more. Please come and join us in beautifying our grounds. Contact Bonnie Jean Clancy.

DID YOU KNOW…

…that UUCFM has a Zoom account you can use for your committee meeting, book group, or any other UUCFM-affiliated virtual event? There are no time limits on the Zoom meetings, but only one meeting can happen at a time. Meetings are limited to 300 participants. Please contact Denise Greenwood at officemanager@uucfm.org or 239-561-2700 to learn more.

OPEN: Our Purpose, Exclude Nobody

Dear Friends,

We want to let you know we are here!

In April, the Board established a committee to engage in matters concerning diversity. We have renamed ourselves OPEN: Our Purpose, Exclude Nobody. Our discussions have included:

How to be more inclusive in all areas of our congregation –worship, music, membership, publicity, programs, etc.
How to communicate our support and partner with ongoing groups such as The Book Group, BLUU, the Grace Project, Coming to the Table, etc.
How to educate ourselves and our community.
How to connect with the community around us – LIFE and Voices for Racial Justice.
How to set goals and measure our success.

In addition, we have been creating our own charter. Our mission statement, which is one element of this charter states:

We aim to assist our members, staff, friends and visitors to greet with joy diverse perspectives and backgrounds. We will support this enquiring and open attitude by encouraging critical thinking, empathy, and a deeper appreciation of all, in harmony with our first principle, our belief in the worth and dignity of every person. By building on our traditions of outreach, we seek to become an ever more inclusive, equitable, and culturally dexterous community.

I can tell you that I “greet with joy” and with a renewed feeling of pride in this congregation that we are making this important step towards building the Beloved Community.

Marge Gonzalez, Chair of OPEN

Community Sharing for July

The Southwest Florida Gay & Lesbian Chorus was formed in 1993, at the initiative of Doug Gathers and a small group of founders, despite the problems that would undeniably come with his "coming out" publicly. Since our founding in 1993, we have been a LGBTQ-friendly and all-inclusive 5013c non-profit organization. This group participates in local, regional, and national performances.

Their mission is to provide educational, cultural, and social enrichment for our audience and ourselves through excellence in the choral arts.

The group's name was changed in 2019 from Southwest Florida Gay & Lesbian Chorus to Southwest Florida Voices, to be more inclusive to the LGBTQ-Community and Allies.

Since you cannot attend in person for the next few weeks, please still donate by mailing a check to the office with "community sharing" in the subject line, or by using the "donate" button on the website and marking it "community sharing".

Volunteer of the Month

Dorothy Van Howe has been a member since 2011 when she moved here to be closer to family after becoming widowed. (She’s related by marriage to UUCFM longtime members Andy and Ellen Erickson.) Dorothy quickly endeared herself by volunteering in the kitchen for after-service coffee hours; whenever it's time for a thorough kitchen cleanup, Dorothy organizes willing workers and the job is accomplished in record time. With her ever-cheerful “can-do” attitude, Dorothy has served on the Board as VP Operations which is a demanding position of various responsibilities, but she went out of her way to see that all details are addressed. Most recently, Dorothy chaired the Nominating Committee. Meanwhile she continues to make herself available whenever possible for the benefit of UUCFM. Not only is she a hard worker, but she inspires others. Dorothy truly is an exemplary member of our Congregation!

Embracing the 8th Principle:

Actions That Dismantle Oppression

A series of conversations about oppression, from 4:00-5:30pm on Mondays, via Zoom, began on July 11, 2022. We are using the book Is Everyone Really Equal? by Oslem Sensoy & Robin DiAngelo as a basis for our discussions, with recommendations of other optional readings for those who wish to dive more deeply into each week’s topics. The next meeting is Monday, July 18, and new participants are welcome to join at this meeting.

We will identify our own social locations and explore their influence on power dynamics, work to develop shared understanding of intersectionality and of inclusive social justice vocabulary, including the terms “oppression” and “oppressions”, and move toward the richer and more complex comprehension of the meanings and effects of “racism and other oppressions” as we work to build a foundation for the actions addressed in the 8th Principle.

We hope that you will join us on this journey. Contact Cat Pivetti for information and links.

Poetry Circle

Come, come, Poets and Lovers of Poetry!

We read and discuss in detail a variety of poems, often related to our UU experience, usually centered around a weekly theme. Members share their own work for discussion as well, if they want to, but you do not need to be a writer to join. We offer weekly prompts, although there is no obligation to follow them.

This is an ongoing Zoom group. New members can join at any time, and we really hope you will. Contact Judi Dettorre or Cat Pivetti for more information.

The Poetry Circle will meet next on Tuesday, July 19. We meet every other Tuesday from 1-3pm.

INVITATION FOR NEWCOMERS

REVISED Schedule

Newer Members, Recent & Past Visitors:

Sundays, July 24 & August 7

11:45am-1:15pm - Room 2

Note original schedule has changed:

The July 10th meeting is cancelled because services for the first three Sundays in July will not be in-person but virtually via Zoom.

Sign-up by Friday 7/22 appreciated.
VP of Membership Marge Gonzalez will facilitate our continuing discussions, as we get to know each other by sharing our spiritual journeys.
Light refreshments will be served.
RSVP judyburget@gmail.com.

Save the Date!

Collaging Our Lives:

Based on Soul Collage by Senna B. Frost

August 6 from 10:00am-1:00pm in Hobart Hall

Facilitators: Debra Leigh and Karen J. Brown

Phone: 862-432-0173

Collaging Our Lives is an intuitive collage process for self-discovery & community. Both Debra and Karen have experience in Soul Collage and would love to start a group for our members and friends. We are limiting the group to 10 people. We will select images and make personal cards as a daily reminder to handcraft our own lives. For questions about the workshop and/or for registration please email Karen or Debra.

November trip to Guatemala

This is going to be exciting! In Patulul, we are collaborating with the Mayor's Office to facilitate Women's Health and Empowerment Workshops. We begin with two workshops to orient 60 Facilitators and prepare them to teach the day-long course. They will go on to teach over 3000 more women! Plus, nearby is the Heart of the Water Cooperative, which is a sustainable permaculture community that thrives by producing watercress. There we will have a tour and enjoy an organic lunch. Finally, there will be a day to take a "lancha" and visit Panajachel to shop the Maya crafts along Santander Street.

Most people do not realize that community gardens were established in the 1800s in the United States. Perhaps the most well-known of these projects is the World War II Victory Garden. Many of them are still thriving.

And while community gardening provides myriad benefits — offering a local food source, reducing food insecurity (food bank beds), encouraging physical activity, and more — experts believe the reason for its enduring popularity is much simpler: It just feels good. Nothing “grounds” a person like getting your hands dirty.