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Weekly E-News
February 18, 2021
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Join us this Sunday!
Please join us on Zoom this Sunday, February 21st at 10:30 AM for our service titled What they Dreamed Be Ours to Do with guest minister, the Reverend Julie-Ann Silberman-Bunn.
About Our Speaker
Reverend Julie-Ann Silberman-Bunn is a lifelong Unitarian Universalist, who has served as a Parish Minister, Religious Educator, Hospice Chaplain and now a Hospital Chaplain at Mercy Medical Center in Springfield, Ma. and quarter time Assistant Minister at the Unitarian Universalist Society of Greater Springfield. An author of chapters in Everyday Spiritual Practice and Living a Call, Julie-Ann reflects frequently on what it means to be a Unitarian Universalist, and evolving her understanding of faith and spiritual practices. Julie-Ann and her husband Ken live in their forever home, a cabin in the woods of Western Massachusetts with their rescued Maine Coon cat, Kattia.
Sunday's Sermon
My sermon title is "What they Dreamed Be Ours to Do." In this sermon I will be looking at story and how hymns tell us stories of what our predecessors gave us as their hopes and dreams. I will also reflect on how these strange times challenge us to renew those dreams and pull them forth from stories we have been told and make them into stories we live while casting our dreams forth for future generations.
Join Zoom Meeting Sunday at 10:30am
https://zoom.us/j/98733916229
No password needed
Or, follow the link on our webpage for audio only: uucfm.org
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Thank you to Sunday's Participants:
The Reverend Rev. Julie-Ann Silberman-Bunn, Guest Minister
Albie Johnson, Lay Minister
Suellen Kipp, Director of Music
Leslie Gatto, Worship Associate
Peter Golbitz, Musician
Lesley Peterson, Musician and Tech Team Member
Mark Brandon, Tech Team Member
Walter Peterson, Tech Team Member
Holley Rauen, Tech Team Member
Jill Carville, Tech Team Coordinator
Kathy Ford, UU Dialogues Host
Carole Latino, UU Dialogues Host
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UU Dialogues & Breakout Rooms
~After the Service
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To participate in UU Dialogues, stay in the main zoom meeting after the service ends and do not accept the breakout room invitation that pops up. All are welcome to attend this intentional dialogue session, especially newcomers.
If you'd rather join a breakout room for casual conversation, please accept the pop up invitation.
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Community Sharing in February- ACT
ACT (Abuse Counseling Treatment) is a private, not-for-profit agency committed to serving victims of domestic violence, sexual assault and human trafficking. ACT provides services to all persons without regard to race, color, religion, national origin, gender, age, mental or physical disability, sexual orientation, citizenship, marital status, gender identity (or expression), language spoken, immigration status and any other protected class. Services are free and provided to everyone. After several years of working out of their own homes to help provide services for women and children in trauma situations, they incorporated as a non-profit in 1978. More info can be found at actabuse.com.
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Vespers Service
Join Albie and Mary via Zoom bi-weekly Thursdays from 6:30PM-7:00PM. The next Vespers Service will be February 25th.
Join Zoom Meeting
https://zoom.us/j/91800250314?pwd=MmRRenNOUjNUdjcvU1Y3VTIxNFBTQT09
Meeting ID: 918 0025 0314
Passcode: 743236
Vespers Service: a time of prayer, meditation, and contemplation. Have your soft lighting (candles) ready.
What to expect:
We may experience crystal/Tibetan bowls, flute, violin, lite drumming, poetry, short quotes, and testimonials. In addition to a time for prayer, meditation, and chanting, maybe short story telling, and dance. Each service is different but will always include prayer, meditation and contemplation. During Vespers, many will desire to share. At times we may experience story telling, and movement.
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Volunteer of the Month
Kudos this month go to Carole Latino, the UUCFM Volunteer of the month. Carole has been working hard in the Membership Committee, is the long-serving Treasurer of CUUPs, and she is the Registrar for the SingFest Annual Womyn's Gathering. Carole is a dependable and organized volunteer; she administers jobs, tasks, groups, and funds efficiently and responsibly. Thank you Carole!
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Congregation Zoom Forums for Bylaws Amendments
In late March at our Annual Meeting, members will be asked to approve a set of bylaws amendments. The Board of Trustees has scheduled 3 congregational Zoom Forums to discuss the proposed changes:
Sunday, Feb. 21, 2:00 PM:
https://zoom.us/j/99312053843
Passcode: 308397
Friday, Feb. 26, 2:00 PM:
https://zoom.us/j/92618583170
Passcode: 036768
Sunday, Mar. 7, 2:00 PM:
https://zoom.us/j/99576308982
Passcode: 739770
Clear and relevant bylaws provide sound governance, congregational cohesion, and sustainability for our faith community. They help guide our Board of Trustees, as well as deal with infrequent situations such as the calling of a minister and the purchasing of real estate. Bylaws hold the highest level of authority of congregational guiding documents. All bylaws need to be amended from time to time. Ideas and thoughts change, and new situations arise that need to be addressed in the bylaws. UUCFM is at such an inflection point in its evolution as a faith community responding to changing cultural values. Our Bylaws may be amended at any meeting of the congregation by a two-thirds (66.67%) favorable vote of those voting members present and voting.
Our Bylaws have been amended 19 times since 1966. The goals of these proposed Bylaws amendments are (1) to provide for an organization that reflects our
current realities and vision, (2) to more clearly describe our committee structure with well-defined chains of authority and reflective of our vision and volunteer expectations, and (3) to provide for enhanced governance responsive to current strategic focus areas and relative technologies of today.
Come to one of the Zoom Forums to understand the proposed changes, provide your feedback, and be informed in preparation for your Annual Meeting member vote. See you at the Zoom!
The Transition Team & Board of Trustees
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Generosity + Campaign Progress
The formal end of the Campaign is Sunday, February 21st. We are close to meeting our goal of $138,000. The amount pledged so far is $130,500. We are very appreciative and grateful to the 57 pledging units that have stepped forward as of the beginning of this week. We hope that those who have been putting off making a pledge will take advantage of the few days remaining to join the rest of us in supporting this faith community that we love.
Pledge online at: http://www.uulead.org/fairshare/
Doing Beloved Community
We are so very grateful to Albie Johnson, who highlighted for all of us the importance of contributing our Time, Talent, and Treasure to our community. Thank you, Albie for your inspiring message. As to contributions of “treasure,” the Stewardship Committee will be contacting members and contributing friends from whom we have not heard by Feb. 21. Help us out. If you have moved or changed your affiliation or found that you cannot financially make a pledge at this time, please let our Treasurer, Pati Maier or our Office Manager, Jill Carville, know. Both will handle pledge information confidentially. We want everyone who values participation in UUCFM to know that you are important to our community. We want to make sure that no one is left out.
Dave & Nancy Hutchins,
Generosity + Campaign Leaders
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Charitable Contributions
If you would like a receipt for donations made to UUCFM in calendar year 2020, please email your name(s) to: uuchurch@uucfm.org
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The UUCFM Book Group
The Monday Book Group will meet at 1 pm on Feb. 22 to continue our consideration of Caste with a discussion of Part 6. If you’re joining for the first time, please email Mary Studer. She will send you the link. mstuder929@gmail.com
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UUCFM/Caloosahatchee Mindfulness
The Caloosahatchee Mindfulness and UUCFM Meditation Book Group will be starting a new book in February- The Inner Work of Racial Justice: Healing Ourselves and Transforming Our Communities Through Mindfulness by Rhonda V. Magee.
The author "reveals that the work of racial justice begins with ourselves. The practice of embodied mindfulness--paying attention through our thoughts, feelings, and physical sensations in an open, nonjudgmental way--increases our emotional resilience, helps us to recognize our unconscious bias, and give us the space to become less reactive and to choose how we respond to injustice."
The group meets from 10 a.m to 11:30 a.m. on Wednesdays. Contact Helen Leddy at helen.leddy@gmail.com or Mary Robinson at mindfulness579@gmail.com for more information.
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Member to Member Fundraiser
How it works:
Items are offered by Donor/Seller with total price, percentage of sale to UUCFM, and contact information. Donors/Sellers determine their own percentage of the sale to UUCFM. Delivery/pickup of item is between Buyer & Seller. Buyers write two checks, one to the seller and the other to UUCFM for the percentage of sale going to the church, with fundraiser in the memo line.
Example:
Dining Table, $25. 50% to UUCFM. Contact Suzanne at suzanneziemer@gmail.com, 239-463-9020. (include photo if you want)
How to Participate:
Send email to newsletter@uucfm.org with item description, photo (if possible), price, percentage going to UUCFM, and contact information. Your offer will run for a month or until sold. Limit of 2 items per week per person, thank you.
Questions?
Contact Ways & Means Chair, Suzanne Ziemer, 239-463-9020, suzanneziemer@gmail.com
Click HERE to see the items!
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Birthdays in February
February 17 Tom Sizemore
February 24 Mary Alice Pierce
February 26 Don Ehat
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Our Greater Community
Greetings from The South Fort Myers Food Pantry! Our pantry continues to evolve to provide food for those in need in the safest possible environment for patrons and volunteers. As the pandemic continues and food insecurity increases, we are exploring different ways to expand our reach and help feed even more of our neighbors.
First, we want to remind you of a benefit we extend to all our Coalition Members and Supporting Partners. Our Pantry’s current service area includes certain zip codes in South Fort Myers. However, for those in your congregation in need of food, we waive the residence requirement so they can access the Pantry regardless of where they reside in the local area. We would just ask you to provide these folks with a note on your letterhead confirming they are members of your church. They can present that note on their first visit to the Pantry. Another way we are considering expanding our services is through outreach to provide food for seniors who are homebound and/or reluctant to visit the Pantry because they concerned about possible exposure to COVID. We plan to develop a program that would allow volunteers from your church to pick up food at the Pantry for those senior members that you have identified. Food pickup would be available during our normal service hours or could be arranged at a different time by appointment. If you have an interest in this program, please let us know and we will provide you with information needed to get started. 239-628-3191.
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SWFL RESET Center
Regenerative Agriculture Practices and Collaborations
with Emmanuel Roux and Renee Giroux
3 - 4:30 PM, Wednesday, February 24, 2021
Join us for a ZOOM event to discuss regenerative agriculture, community gardens and permaculture from small farms to big agriculture.
Emmanuel Roux has a vision for the space that has been three years in the making.. part of a University of South Florida interdisciplinary group focused on building stronger local food systems, including farm incubator food hubs and direct farm product sales. Check out this article about the formation of an Eco-Village in St Petersburg, FL
Renee Giroux, with her husband, is cofounder of Earth's Palate Farm in Warren CT. They have developed a 40 acre farm that includes raising of many animals as well as produce and fruits. Currently their Hub aggregates locally grown food from 20 farms.
Following the presentations there will be ample time for Q&A.
Use the link to register and get the zoom link.
https://zoom.us/meeting/register/tJcoc--pqTwqG9xMW91ey8-tMw0bo-wrNGly
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Please send all newsletter articles by Wednesday at noon for publication in Thursday's newsletter. Send articles to newsletter@uucfm.org. | | | | |
