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InTouch
The weekly newsletter from North Universalist Chapel Society in Woodstock, Vermont
Our Mission
Guided by Unitarian Universalist principles, the North Chapel aspires to be a congregation that nurtures the growth and supports the needs of its members, sustains a strong spiritual life within a loving church community, and seeks to have a positive impact on the world around us.
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Worship Theme for the Month
July 2026 - Go to the Woods
Step beyond the noise of daily life and into a deeper relationship with the living world. In the woods, we encounter transformation through changing seasons, new growth, and the rhythms of nature. The forest teaches resilience, connection, humility, and wonder - reminding us that we are part of something larger than ourselves.
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Last Sunday, July 19, 2026
Reflection by Rev. Leon Dunkley
“The Fire of Thought”
Henry David Thoreau went into the woods to discover the fire of thought. “The fire of thought” is what Ralph Waldo Emerson believed was required for a good sermon. Plato believed that this was required for a good life. What does it mean to discover the fire thought? How does it help us today in Woodstock? …today in Houston? …today in Biddeford, Maine?
Service Coordinator - Anne Marinello
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This Sunday, July 26, 2026
Reflections by
Mary Blanton, John McHugh and Richard Waddell
What is your relationship with the natural world? Are you merely an observer or do you engage with the natural world? Do you observe the natural world through a window or do you take a walk and look at the spring flowers or smell the autumn leaves? Are you a tree hugger or a peak bagger? Mary Blanton, John McHugh and Richard Waddell will share reading and stories about their personal relationships with the living world.
Service Coordinator - Kathy Astemborski
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Please check the calendar on the link above before scheduling a meeting or event at North Chapel. For more information and to reserve space, email Administrative Assistant Joanne Boyle at the office or call or text 802-369-9838. | | |
Book Club for July
TONIGHT - Thursday, July 23rd at 6pm on Zoom
Ian McEwan's latest novel takes readers to the Britain of 2119, transformed to an archipelago through climate change and nuclear disaster. The plot follows an academic's search for a lost poem that was read at a dinner party more than a century earlier. A blend of literary mystery and speculative fiction, What We Can Know uses history, memory, and love to explore the limits of what we can ever truly know about the past and future. Join us at 6:00 on Thursday, July 23 for an interesting discussion.
Contact Sherry Belisle (sherry.belisle@gmail.com or 802-457-1919) for the Zoom link and more information.
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THIS SATURDAY!
Village Harmony Concert - Teen World Music Ensemble
Saturday, July 25th in the Sanctuary at 7:00
Don't miss a fabulous Village Harmony teen ensemble performing in Woodstock on Saturday, July 25 at North Chapel Universalist Society, 7pm. Village Harmony, a non-profit umbrella organization based in Vermont, promotes the study and performance of ethnic singing traditions from around the world. For more than thirty years they have organized teen ensembles each summer in New England and ensembles for mixed-age and adult singers in numerous foreign countries. Each Village Harmony ensemble develops its own unique sound with a different team of leaders. All share common traits: a powerful, natural, unrestrained vocal sound; a remarkable variety of vocal styles and timbres appropriate to the ethnic and traditional music; and a visible, vibrant community among the singers and audience as they share in a joyful celebration of music. Village Harmony ensembles are non-auditioned, with the philosophy that if a singer is excited about living in community and exploring music from around the world, they belong at Village Harmony.
This particular incarnation of Village Harmony will feature singers from many different states and will be led by Lysander Jaffe, Liam Kantor, and Lexi Ugelow. Lysander Jaffe is a singer, violist, and a devoted student of traditional music. He has studied with master musicians in Bulgaria, Kosovo, Greece, Corsica, and Caucasus Georgia. He holds a master’s degree in Contemporary Improvisation from New England Conservatory and has been teaching with Village Harmony since 2015. Liam Kantor is a vocalist and instrumentalist based in Evanston, IL. A recent graduate of Northwestern University with a degree in ethnomusicology, Liam's musical interests span a wide range of traditional folk styles from around the world with a focus on New England-style and Celtic fiddle music and traditional ballads of those regions. Lexi Ugelow is a vocalist, songwriter, expressive arts workshop and music education facilitator. Her interests and experience with music spans from funk, to world folk music, and her heart really lies with anything a cappella. Lexi has toured with groups such as Northern Harmony, Culomba, and Road Dogs, performing and teaching workshops to adults and children.
https://www.villageharmony.org/ Admission by donation at the door.
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Save the Date!
Central Vermont Chamber
Music Festival
Sunday, August 9th, 2026
4pm in the Sanctuary
An Encore Performance - Brahms, Gliere, Źeleński
Johannes Brahms - Sonata #1 in f minor, Op. 120 for Viola and Piano
Reinhold Gliere - 8 Pieces, Op. 39 for Violin and Cello
Władysław Źeleński - Piano Quartet in c minor, Op. 61
Artists:
Violin: Michael Roth, Viola: Arturo Delmoni, Cello: Peter Sanders, Piano: Diana Fanning
Suggested donation at the door, $20.
Learn more here: https://www.cvcmf.org/
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Free Window Inserts
WindowDressers
https://windowdressers.org/vermont-community-builds/
Drafty windows? High heating bills? This fall, Sustainable Woodstock will be collaborating with WindowDressers, a nonprofit organization, to make custom-built, interior storm window inserts for residents of: Woodstock, Pomfret, Barnard, Bridgewater, Plymouth, Hartland, and Reading. The inserts are easy to install, removable, and reusable. They let light in, keep drafts out, and reduce heating costs.
We are now taking applications for inserts! Inserts are free, and there is a limit of 10 inserts per household. The inserts are high quality and low cost because they are built at barn-raising-style Community Builds. Everyone who orders inserts also participates in the Community Build. Sign up soon to reserve yours.
To qualify for our community build, participant's income must be below the moderate-income threshold. Check to see what income-level your household falls under at https://www.efficiencyvermont.com/income-limit
If you would like free inserts, now is the time to sign up!
Sign up by contacting: Heather Knoll, Program Coordinator at Sustainable Woodstock: 802-296-1595 or programs@sustainablewoodstock.org
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Join the Upper Valley Singing Resistance -
Woodstock Area Pod
Upper Valley Singing Resistance, with its smaller group pods, is organizing for singers to rehearse and sing at protests in the area.
The group meets the first Thursday of the month at 6:30 at Bethany Mennonite Church,
(169 VT-100A, Bridgewater Corners, VT 05035)
and the 3rd Thursday of the month at 6:30 at North Chapel in the Social Hall.
All are welcome to join!
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Coffee Hour After the Services
Please join us after the Sunday Services for coffee hour in the social hall downstairs or, when the weather is nice, on the front porch.
In July the Nominating Committee has hosted. In August the Finance Committee will host.
Since this is a very small committee, feel free to bring something to share.
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A Circle of Men
1st and 3rd Thursday Evenings in the Parlor
We are a group of committed men stepping into our vulnerability, our joy, our sadness, our wonder. If you want to explore more deeply into the man you are and to find the man you want to be, reach out to us, you are welcome! The only thing you have to risk is that you might be changed.
We meet on the 1st and 3rd Thursday evenings in the parlor and we ask that you contact myself Ben Kelley-Outten, bkelleyovt@gmail.com 802-356-9506 or Aaron Darcy, mkpdarcy@gmail.com 478-338-4878 before you come.
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Meditation Sessions
Friday Mornings 9:45-11:00
in the Meditation Chapel
Led by Judy McClain, the sessions are open to all. Long-time and beginning meditators alike will feel comfortable here.
Enjoy an hour of quiet, spacious Mindfulness practice in community.
Sessions are free; all donations go to the North Chapel. All are welcome.
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The Choir is on Summer Break
If you would like to sing with the choir, please contact Michael Zsoldos and join us for rehearsals starting again in the Fall on Sunday mornings at 9 am in the sanctuary and Wednesdays 4:30-6 pm in the parlor. All are welcome!
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Spirit Pages
From Rev. Leon Dunkley
Now, if all my golden moments could be rolled into one
They would shine just like the sun for a summer day
And after it was over, we could have it back again
With credit to the editor for striking out the rain very clean
And all it really needed was the proper point of view
The first leaves of chard are coming out of the garden. I am grateful for them. I washed them and cut them into strips before sautéing them with onions and eating them for breakfast.
My garden is very important for me this year. I am starting to understand a long journey that I’ve been on. It seems fitting that a film called The Odyssey is in the movie theaters now.
Sing to me of the Man, Muse
The man of twists and turns
Driven time and again off course
Once he had plundered the hallowed heights of Troy...
—The Odyssey by Homer
The Odyssey is a civilizational classic. With its twin, The Iliad, they are, perhaps, examples of the most important writing of our time. The Odyssey is about the epic journey of finding one’s way back home. In his interview with Martin Scorsese, Bob Dylan said,
I had ambitions to set out and find [my way home.]. Like an odyssey, I was going home somewhere. I set out to find this home that I'd left a while back and it couldn't remember exactly where it was. But I was on my way there, encountering what I encountered on the way. That was how I envisioned it all… I was born very far from where I'm supposed to be and so I'm on my way home.
On the spiritual level, we express it slightly differently: We say that the Odyssey is about the epic journey of finding one’s way back whole. The journey is as real on earth as it is in heaven.
More regularly now, I am finding myself in conversations with people who have been offended or hurt by the state of the world these days and by the ways in which the ministry of North Chapel has responded to it. Something beautiful is happening. As a minister, I have been allowed to challenge the habit of righteousness and justice by which spiritual seekers like us can be ensnared - especially when injustice seems so obvious, especially after losses of life at the hands of law enforcement.
A member of the North Chapel community approached me in this way recently, respectfully asking why Sunday reflections were political sometimes. I was honored by this question. It was an indication that we aren’t just preaching to the choir with respect to the stands we take about what we are all experiencing right now. A member of the Woodstock community reached out to me in this way as well, respectfully expressing anxiety around the conflict in Gaza, Israel and the West Bank. By so many twists and turns, it is no surprise that we are often driven off course.
The theme of finding our way back home is something that Unitarian Universalism takes quite seriously. There is even an annual conference centering issues of race and social difference called Finding Our Way Home. It is a tremendously successful UUA conference that has been taking place over the last 15 years or so. Retreats have been held in Montreat, NC (2026, 2025), San Juan, PR (2024), Atlanta, GA (2023), Long Beach, CA (2022), Miami, FL (2019), Albuquerque, NM (2018), Baltimore, MD (2017), Philadelphia, PA (2016), Denver, CO (2015), Boston, MA (2014), Chicago, IL (2013), New Orleans, LA (2012), and Silver Spring, MD (2011). I took part in the conference that took place in Silver Spring in 2011 and began my ministry at UUCSS the following year.
I also participated in the conference that took place in Long Beach, CA. In Long Beach, I was able to begin to connect with Rev. Jennifer Youngsun Ryu who serves in Oregon and with Rev. Cheryl Walker who served as President of the Unitarian Universalist Ministers Association for a time. Jennifer was part of the Ethics Committee that reviewed the crisis that unfolded in Silver Spring. She read the “letter” that I submitted in 2019 (the “letter” was more that 100 pages long). Her surmise was that we have not yet achieved the level of integrity that is required to address such crises. We will need that level of integrity moving forward.
It is worth stating here that the most damaging crisis that the Unitarian Universalist Association has faced in recent history started a Finding Our Way Home conference (Baltimore, 2017). That crisis resulted in three, high profile resignations, including Peter Morales who resigned the presidency of the Unitarian Universalist Association.
We can make our way through these challenges. It starts at the ground level. It starts relationally. It starts one-to-one. It starts face-to-face with good-hearted people who come forward respectfully and ask for a level of integrity that we have not achieved before this time.
We need this now. We need real patience and understanding. We need deep compassion and integrity. We need grace enough to see ourselves through.
So, it is more than personally important to cherish the first leaves of chard out of the garden. It is important to honor that beautiful experience of being alive. Mary Oliver writes,
I don’t know exactly what a prayer is.
I do know how to pay attention, how to fall down
into the grass, how to kneel down in the grass,
how to be idle and blessed, how to stroll through the fields,
which is what I have been doing all day.
Tell me, what else should I have done?
Doesn’t everything die at last, and too soon?
Tell me, what is it you plan to do
with your one wild and precious life?
Life is a series of miraculous moments, prayerful moments, golden moments. Our job is not to learn how best to accumulate them. Our job is to learn how best to appreciate them. They say that life is not measured in the number of breaths we take but in the number of times that life leaves us breathless. I am about to find out if that’s true.
This Thursday, I’m off to Brooklyn to memorialize an old friend, Scott Anderson.
Then, I will go to Maine for “Healing Turtle Island”. The website for this event reads as follows:
10TH ANNIVERSARY GATHERING HEALING THE WOUNDS OF TURTLE ISLAND
https://www.landpeacefoundation.org/events/healing-turtle-island-2026
We are coming together under the ceremonial arbor at Wičuhkemtultine Kinship Community, to stand side-by-side on the land, with many hearts and one prayer.
In this 10th year of Healing the Wounds of Turtle Island we are looking to the West, seeking the wisdom of our ancestors.
We will be joined by wisdom keepers and thought leaders representing cultures and religions that span the globe, carrying messages from their fires to ours, bringing us together in one collective prayer for peace, unity, and healing.
We will be joined by some beautiful spiritual leaders from around the world.
Including Indigenous people from:
- Penobscot
- Passamaquoddy
- Mi'kmaq
- Wolostoq
- Onondaga
- Mohawk
- Anishinaabe
- Havasupai-Hopi-Tewa
- Toltec
- Filipino
- Maōri
- Mongolia
- Kyrgyzstan
- Siberia
- India
- and more
As well as faith leaders from:
- Christian
- Jewish
- Buddhist
- Muslim
- Bahai
- Unitarian Universalists
- and more
THIS GATHERING IS FREE AND OPEN TO THE PUBLIC
*If you would like to attend in person please RSVP here, so that we can have an in-person head count.
To those who have come forward respectfully seeking a higher level of integrity, thank you. I have committed myself to the deepest expressions of this faith and that means that we find best ways of moving forward together. It means that we find the best ways of getting back home.
May it be so. Blessed be and amen.
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Monthly Articles
Previous special monthly articles are accessible from the link above and the links below.
Schedule
1st Thursday: Worship Theme for the Month (see the top of this page)
2nd Thursday: Letter from the Board
3rd Thursday: Spirit Pages
4th Thursday: Arts Corner & Photos Page
Articles and contributions will be due by noon on WEDNESDAYS on the week of publication. Some weeks they are left out. Some months they are out of order.
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Our Church Calendar
Please check the calendar on the link above before scheduling a meeting or event at North Chapel. For more information and to reserve space, email Administrative Assistant Joanne Boyle at the office or call or text 802-369-9838.
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Leon's Open Office Hours
Tuesdays from 3 to 5 pm and Wednesdays from 12 to 2 pm.
Please text or call or text him at 802-369-5104 to be sure his schedule has not changed.
Joanne's Church Office Hours
Administrative Assistant Joanne Boyle is usually in the church office on
Monday and Friday from 1-3 and on Wednesday and Thursday from 11-4.
She also works from home.
Please call or text her at 802-369-9838 before stopping by.
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New to North Chapel?
What does it mean to "Sign the Book"?
Become a Member of the North Universalist Chapel Society
Are you curious about all things Unitarian Universalist? Thinking of joining our membership? Contact Sherry Belisle or Ann Wynia to answer your questions about moving forward on that path.
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Please Join Our NC Listserv and Our Church directory!!
The North Chapel Listserv
Our listserv is a place for all of us to post any notices like want ads or classifieds.
The listserv will be in inboxes the morning after a notice is posted.
To receive the North Chapel Listserv or to place an ad, send an email to the office.
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The North Chapel Directory is Updated Monthly
If you would like a PDF of the newest directory sent to you
or would like a copy printed for you contact the office.
To add your information to the directory, please send your name, spouse or partner's name, mailing address, email address(es). land line and cell phone numbers and your kids names. Thank you.
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Do You Want a Name Tag?
At the Sunday services, you may have noticed many of us have hand made name tags that we wear on a string around our necks. They are stored on a board in the entry to the sanctuary. Want one? If you’re new, we would love to learn your name.
If you have been a member or friend of North Chapel for a while, you may have lost yours. Here's an opportunity to replace it.
Just email Ann Wynia or look for her on Sundays. She usually sits in the back row near the guest book table. She will be happy to take your name and create a name tag for you.
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North Chapel Emergency Procedures 2026
There is always a chance an emergency will arise at the North Chapel that requires such a rapid response that normal board or committee or individual personnel procedures are hard or impossible to follow.
Emergency situations like this require more clarity in how to respond.
The following procedure will be implemented for extended power outages or other emergency situations.
First: The board chair or co-chairs, in consultation with the minister and others directly connected to the nature of the emergency, will make the needed decisions.
Second: If these individuals are not reachable, Board Members Dana Hall, Michael Zsoldos and Amy McElroy, Woodstock village residents, would be consulted.
Third: A sheet with email addresses, cell and landline phone numbers of the North Chapel Leadership, employees, committee chairs and members has been posted on the bulletin board in and in the old office. It has been distributed to the minister, board members and employees.
Fourth: The congregation will be made aware of the situation by email and on the church website and listserv. We encourage everyone to sign up for our Constant Contact emails here: https://bit.ly/4625KkM
Please be sure we have your cell phone numbers for texting if power is out or the internet is down.
Click here to download the North Chapel Leadership Contact Information.
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Rental Spaces Available At North Chapel
Please share this information with friends and business associates who may be interested in holding meetings and events at North Chapel.
Sanctuary - Social Hall - Kitchen - Parlor - Library - Meditation Chapel
The Back Lawn "Riverside Garden" and the Pizza Oven
We welcome you to inquire about holding conferences, meetings, classes or events in any of the spaces at North Chapel.
Look on our website here or contact the office for a rate sheet and more information.
In a town known for historic and beautiful buildings, the North Chapel Unitarian Universalist Church stands out. We are proud to have preserved and enhanced our facility to offer a spiritual gathering place, community resource, and historic treasure for Woodstock area residents and visitors. Our beautiful indoor and outdoor spaces were renovated in 2009-2010 and are ADA compliant/accessible.
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See More Photos, Floor Plans, and a Drone Video Here:
Thanks to Laird Bradly and his
connections for providing these images that assist in the rental of our spaces.
Click on the link below to take a tour of the interior of our beautiful church.
North Chapel now has a new Matterport 3D Virtual Tour of the North Chapel!
Our Church in 3D
Walk through the light-filled Sanctuary then continue through the door on the back left. Turn left and down a few steps to see the first floor Parlor and Library. Head down the large staircase on the right to view the ground floor Social Hall and Kitchen. Step outside and to the left through the side entrance to see our Meditation Chapel.
| | Other News from North Chapel | | |
Guitar, Piano or Bass Lessons with Ben Kogan
If you've been teaching yourself from the internet and want to be held accountable, if you're a parent of a child that has expressed some interest in playing an instrument, or if you feel stuck and want to learn how to improve contact Ben Kogan 305-495-9962.
I teach many students from the Woodstock and Upper Valley area in the parlor at North Chapel.
Piano, Bass (Upright and Electric) and Guitar
I teach all levels and most styles.
- Ages 8 to 88
- Bluegrass, Jazz, Rock, Classical, Blues, Pop and Boogie Woogie(piano only)
- By ear or written music
- Convenient Woodstock Vermont Village Location (at North Chapel)
- Custom lessons. I like to teach songs you want to learn and sneak in the theory and technique. I call this tricking people into learning. Depending on the level, I'll suggest some songs then once a certain amount is achieved we can move on to songs you pick.
- I run a weekly bluegrass etc... Jam Session every other Monday night at the Ottauquechee Yacht Club in Woodstock from 6:30-9 if you want to come by and join the jam or just say hi.
Feel free to call or email if you'd like to sign up! I only have a few spots left.
Ben Kogan
bkogan2@gmail.com
305-495-9962
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Free Window Inserts!
Drafty windows? High heating bills? This fall, Sustainable Woodstock will be collaborating with WindowDressers, a nonprofit organization, to make custom-built, interior storm window inserts for residents of: Woodstock, Pomfret, Barnard, Bridgewater, Plymouth, Hartland, and Reading. The inserts are easy to install, removable, and reusable. They let light in, keep drafts out, and reduce heating costs.
We are now taking applications for inserts! Inserts are free, and there is a limit of 10 inserts per household. The inserts are high quality and low cost because they are built at barn-raising-style Community Builds. Everyone who orders inserts also participates in the Community Build. Sign up soon to reserve yours.
To qualify for our community build, participant's income must be below the moderate-income threshold. Check to see what income-level your household falls under at https://www.efficiencyvermont.com/income-limit
If you would like free inserts, now is the time to sign up! Sign up by contacting:
Heather Knoll, Program Coordinator at Sustainable Woodstock: 802-296-1595 or programs@sustainablewoodstock.org
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Woodstock Community Food Shelf
The Woodstock Community Food Shelf witnesses firsthand the ongoing rise in the need of Vermonters for help, and reaches out to those in need.
According to Hunger Free Vermont, the state is the ninth hungriest in the United States. Approximately 14% of the population receives some assistance to supply their food needs.
Please consider supporting our neighbors by donating:
North Chapel collects non-perishable foods and other items in the collection bin in the narthex - the main entrance to the sanctuary.
Financial donations can be made here: http://woodstockfoodshelf.org/donate/
Check the Food List on the right side of that webpage for the items that they need.
For those struggling:
WCFS welcomes folks from our community, our state, the Upper Valley - in fact from anywhere. No barriers: no questions other than registration by name so that guests may shop once a week. Regardless of income, age, whereabouts, employment, race, age, other assistance, gender identity, belief systems, WCFS is open three times a week, to provide nutritious food to individuals and families who need our help. We protect everyone’s privacy, all records are confidential.
Open 4-6 on Mondays, 1-3 on Wednesdays, and Saturdays 10-noon.
217 Maxham Meadow Way, Woodstock, VT 05091
Call 802-457-1185 for more information.
http://woodstockfoodshelf.org/
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Transportation Service
Rideshare service available for the Woodstock/Quechee area and surrounding towns.
You can call or text to arrange a ride, and at that time Jane will quote the fare.
Available 7 days a week. She travels often to: Dartmouth Coach, Lebanon Airport, Manchester Airport, Rutland Amtrak, Burlington Airport, Bradley International and Boston Logan. Please note her vehicle is nothing fancy, just a practical multi-use vehicle.(Tacoma Double-Cab). Cash or Venmo preferred. Looking forward to sharing a ride with you!
Jane Warren - Rideshare Service - 603-486-8778
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