Sunday Service

"Calibrating Our Compass"

led by Rev. Erica Baron

In times of change, it is risky to move in a new direction. It is also risky to stay put. How do we decide which risks are worth taking?

Rev. Erica Baron is a member of the New England regional staff of the Unitarian Universalist Association. She lives in Malden, Massachusetts with her wife and son.

This service will be held in the sanctuary and on Zoom:

Join us online at zoom.us/j/89873989254

Join us by phone at 301-715-8592, meeting ID 89873989254

Masks encouraged in the sanctuary. 

Religious Exploration

RE CLASSES THIS MONTH

Next class: Sunday, April 23

9:30 am

In April, our children will explore some of the major religious holidays this spring: Passover, Easter, and Ramadan. These are big holidays around the world, but what do they mean?

RE classes are held the 

FIRST and THIRD Sundays from 9:30 - 10:15 am. All are welcome! Snacks provided!

Childcare will always be available during worship!

Please use the buttons below to register your child(ren) for RE, or to volunteer to help!

All children participating will need a registration form.

Thank you!

Please contact our RE Coordinator, Colleen Munson, with any questions. [email protected]

Youth Group News

Youth group is holding a babysitting night on April 29th! There will be food, fun, and games to keep your kids entertained while parents can have a relaxing night to themselves. The cost is $15 initially, and then an additional $5 for every child after the first. All proceeds will go towards sending youth group to General Assembly in Pennsylvania this year. If you wish to sign up, please fill out this form!

HUGE Thanks to all who helped with, supported and attended the special coffee hour last week sponsored by the Nominating Committee. We hope your pansies are thriving, as our church will do with all your care.

There are some positions we still need to fill to support our church activities:

1) CLERK- takes minutes at the monthly board meeting (most meetings are on zoom recently) and posts and takes minutes at special meetings eg the annual meeting in June. Please talk to a board member for further questions, and reach out to Kim Hall, Pauline Sciarappa, or Janet Purney-Balabanis if you can help us in this critical position!

2) MEMBERSHIP ENGAGEMENT TEAM- join in planning the very important and FUN activities to keep us all engaged- needs at least 3-4 more folks’ energy.

In more detail: Plans engagement activities, maintains an accurate directory of all current members and friends. Works to attract and welcome newcomers, to integrate new members and to attend to the membership needs of the congregation. To do this, they recruit and train greeters for Sunday Services; hold a variety of activities to inform and introduce newcomers to each other, the minister and members and friends of the congregation; and develop some activities promoting fun and fellowship. In addition, they maintain a calling list for emergency contacts and monitor other lists of the society such as the mailing list, the Directory of Members and Friends, and the annual census of active members for the UUA. Also assumed hospitality duties of facilitating volunteers to host Coffee Hour and bring flowers for the altar each Sunday

PLEASE LET US KNOW IF YOU CAN HELP!

THANKS, and follow the attached link listing all the committees so you can see if you can put energy in some of these place as well.

Kim, Janet, and Pauline

Share the Plate

This month's Share the Plate organization is the Safe Baby Project as coordinated by the Worcester Healthy Baby Collaborative and as operational at the Family Health Center of Worcester. One of the aims of the Safe Baby Project is to counter racially based, negative health outcomes for infants and mothers, by giving them a free package that includes a cribette, which creates a safe space for babies to sleep, and materials on postpartum depression, breastfeeding, and early literacy.

A recent article in the Worcester Telegram highlights why this work is so important:

PLEDGE UPDATE

EMERGENCE: Our Annual Pledge Campaign!

We are getting close! With 65% of our pledge units responding, we are at $121,000 towards our goal of $150,000. Please help the pledge committee by getting your pledge in as soon as possible.  Don't forget this year's special matching feature - an anonymous donor will match any increase over last year's pledge which means your increased generosity counts for twice as much.

The easiest way to pledge is to simply email our treasurer, Lisa Shumway at [email protected] with your pledge amount. Or, you can pledge online in Realm here: AddPledge

Or, you can fill out and mail the pledge card found in the letter we sent you (and available at church). Get in touch with Lisa if you have any questions.

Thanks so much! Let’s get there – TOGETHER! 

Sincerely,

The Annual Pledge Committee

Pete Allen, Bruce Hall, David King, Rev. Laurel, Kathie Metzger, Ellen Rutter, Lisa Shumway, Nancy Siegal and Juliana Spofford.

Greeters Needed

We need smiling faces greeting our friends at the doors. Can you help? Please sign up using this sign-up genius link: Greeter SignUp Genius Link

Thank you for your help in making UUCSW a more welcoming congregation!

Wondering what being a greeter entails, or have other questions? Please contact Lisa Shumway at [email protected]

Come join our Community Choir! Previous experience is not required, all are welcome to join us in embracing the connective healing power of communal singing. Please join us on Sunday mornings at 9:30 am!

Contact Kala Farnham at [email protected] with any questions. 

Book Group

Our next Book Group meeting will be held Fri, April 14.  We will be reading The Red Rose Crew by Daniel J Boyne

This month we will meet at First Central, 40 South street at the back door at 7pm.

Contact Susie Wells at [email protected] with any questions.

SMOC Food and Clothing Drives

SMOC Food & Clothing Collections are on the following Thursdays:

April 27

May 25

4:30 pm

Ruggles St. Door

Community News

The Halalisa Singers, the Boston-based world music vocal ensemble performs “Concert For The Earth” honoring Earth Day and featuring the amazing “Missa Gaia (Earth Mass).” 

Composed in the early 1980s, the riveting multi-movement work weaves lyrical melodies with Latin and Gospel traditions and the calls of wolves and whales as a joyful tribute to the planet, reminding us of the incomparable beauty, preciousness and precariousness of nature. Special guests include UU composer, singer, and guitarist Jim Scott, who joins us as performer and soloist in his own works including “Missa Gaia” and “We Are the Earth”, acclaimed saxophonist/vocalist Stan Strickland, First Parish of Arlington member Meg Candilore and local branch members of the national climate movement organization Mothers Out Front including singalong with Music Out Front members!

Come be moved to action and uplifted! Saturday, April 29, 8pm at the First Unitarian Church of Worcester and again on Sunday, April 30, 4pm at First Parish in Arlington. Visit www.halalisa.org for tickets and information! 

Earth Day Town-Wide Cleanup and Cleanup Volunteers’ Picnic 

Family/Individual Sign-up: Week of April 1-6, 2023 

Cleanup: Week of April 8-15, 2023 

Drop-In Volunteers’ Picnic Lunch: Saturday, April 15, 11:30-12:30 

(Online Signup Only—No Walk-In Registration) 

Join the annual town-wide litter clean-up sponsored by WCLT, and enjoy a drop-in Earth Day Volunteers’ pizza picnic lunch afterwards! Come on your own, or rally your family, co-workers, or neighbors and form a team to beautify our town! Families and individuals go to https://westboroughlandtrust.org/earth-day-signup between April 1-6 to sign up and choose an area to clean. Trash bags will be dropped off at participants’ homes by the 7^th, or if necessary, you can arrange to pick up. Clean your chosen area any day or time before noon on April 15. Leave closed bags by the road in the area you cleaned, and they will be removed on April 15. Then head over to Bay State Commons for an appreciation picnic of pizza with all the sides! For the cleanup, wear gloves, long pants, long sleeves, and sturdy shoes. 

For questions contact: [email protected]