OUUC Weekly Update 3-29-22
News from the Olympia Unitarian Universalist Congregation
Worship Service April 3 at 10:00 am - online and in-person
“Shared Ministry” - Rev. Mary Gear
OUUC Sunday Morning Service
https://zoom.us/j/873210124?pwd=U21qdmwxcTNyaE1LQ0xlU0MwM3VMQT09
Meeting ID: 873 210 124
Password: 995142
Dial +1 253 215 8782
See recordings of online services here.
No RSVP is required.
What to Expect on Sunday Morning
As we are each making decisions about returning to in-person events, I thought you might like some information about Sunday mornings to help you decide.
We continue to require masks in the building but not outside. Masks are welcome in any space.
When you enter, you’ll be asked to self-screen for COVID symptoms and exposure, and to sign in so we can notify you of any possible exposure.
Seating in the sanctuary allows people to space themselves and reserve chairs around them so they are comfortable.
Speakers remove their masks when they are at the pulpit.
The choir is in the Commons and wears masks when singing, except for soloists.
The congregation is singing hymns together with masks.
The ventilation system is working well, and we are monitoring it closely to ensure good air exchanges and quality.
Right now, there is no eating or drinking in the building due to masks, except for sips of water. If we provide refreshments, it is outside.
If you would like any other information about the Sanctuary or other space at OUUC, please contact Marie, Facilities Manager, Darlene, Congregational Administrator, or me.
Thank you and see you soon—in-person or online.
Rev. Mary
Thursday Evening Spiritual Practice - online
This Thursday evening we'll do a "Best of" recorded spiritual practice from June 2021 on the theme of "play." Join Rev. Mary, Sara Lewis, and Troy Fisher for music, words, quiet and fun.
Join Zoom Meeting
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/82994463887?pwd=TkRaOTNWekdTaEx4VENiL0VoVjRPdz09
Meeting ID: 829 9446 3887
Passcode: 548890
Come Bless the Sanctuary and Celebrate the Stewardship Drive!
Ordination of Sara Lewis
The Chaplaincy Institute Ordination Ceremony
Saturday, April 9 at 1:00 pm.
Attend on Zoom. Register in advance for this meeting:
https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZEpdu-rqzkpGtf_VPhvrZf-LIenuPq8ZZun
After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.
Or watch it on YouTube: youtube.com/c/ChaplaincyInstitute
Stewardship time is NOW
We are entering our last week of the Stewardship Drive. If you have already pledged,
THANK YOU!!!
And if you haven’t pledged yet, THIS is the time to do it! We have raised over $302,000 but we still need your pledge to reach our goal of $532,000.
This year our Stewardship Drive is different, in many ways. We changed our fiscal year; in the past, it has run from January to December, and we are moving to a July to June fiscal year. To bridge this change, we were all asked to make a half-year pledge last fall. And now we are back again with our first, annual Spring Stewardship drive for the entire July-June fiscal year.
And we are also doing a SHORTER pledge drive, asking you to make your pledge right away. We need those final figures soon so that Rev. Mary can put together a budget to be reviewed by our Board in April and be voted on by the congregation at our May 22nd annual meeting.
We need your support, no matter what amount you are able to pledge. We hope you will increase your pledge if you can. This is the money that runs our church, pays salaries, and keeps our wonderful programs going.
It’s easy! Click here for information on how you can pledge. You can also go to OUUC Connect (Realm) and open your Giving page. It will show what you pledged last time. (Remember that was a half-year pledge: double it for the full fiscal year of July 2022 to June 2023.) You can also ask OUUC's Administrator, Darlene for assistance.
Spring – the miraculous season of growth!
Let’s also grow our OUUC community now.
Sunday, April 10 Special Guest: Rev. Dr. Jay Atkinson
On April 10 we welcome the Rev. Dr. Jay Atkinson to the OUUC pulpit. Rev. Dr. Jay lives in Berkeley and will join us virtually for the service and an after-service forum.
This service for Palm Sunday is titled, “How Jesus and the Universalists Got It Right” and will highlight the Christian roots of Unitarians and Universalists, asking “What does this history teach us today as we look back at our UU journey within, and then away from, Christianity on this Palm Sunday?”
Following the service at noon, Rev. Dr. Atkinson will offer a forum on "Trying Once Again to Say Who We Are." He’ll review the work of the Article II Commission that is revisiting the purposes and principles of the Unitarian Universalist Association (which is Article II of the UUA Bylaws.) Rev. Dr. Atkinson will offer a historical look at our principles and raise some questions about what’s transient and what’s permanent in the identity of our UU tradition.
The Rev. Dr. Jay Atkinson retired in 2011 from 32 years of full-time service in Unitarian Universalist parish ministry. During that ministry, he also served at various times on the adjunct faculties of our UU seminaries in Chicago (Meadville Lombard Theological School) and Berkeley (Starr King School for the Ministry). Before turning to professional ministry, he did research in nuclear physics for eleven years. Currently, he is a Research Scholar at Starr King with a focus on UU history.
COVID Phases
Are You a Cookie Baker?
Do you like to make cookies? Are you a fan of the cookie recipe queen, Dorie Greenspan? Can you make cookies that are gluten-free or vegan? Do people tell you that your cookies are beautiful? Has anyone ever cried with joy after tasting your cookies? If any of the above rings true for you, I want to talk to you! We have some upcoming events where we need cookies, and it would be great to have a good list of cookie bakers willing to bake and deliver. Contact Melanie Ransom.
Environmental Action Team March Challenge
Eat Less Meat.
The global production of food is responsible for a third of all planet-heating gases emitted by human activity, with the use of animals for meat causing twice the pollution of producing plant-based foods. This includes clearing forests for livestock grazing and methane production from cows and sheep. Methane is a powerful greenhouse gas.
Read more....
Challenges After Jail – Services in Thurston County
Supporting Ukraine at our Auction
Each year we hold an annual auction to raise funds for our church. During the auction we have an item called Raise the Paddle, in which we are asked to make a one-time donation for some extraordinary need that calls upon us to respond. This year that need is support for the people of Ukraine.
As a liberal faith community, we can make a strong and extraordinary response to the terrible devastation that Russia is inflicting on the Ukrainian people and their country. Many of us have already donated to relief efforts ourselves; now, as recommended by our Faith in Action Team and approved by the Board, we can combine our resources to send a sizeable gift to help alleviate the suffering caused by the war.
Your Raise the Paddle donation will be sent to the Unitarian Universalist Service Committee (UUSC), earmarked for Ukrainian assistance. The UUSC is working with partners in Hungary and Poland to help the vast numbers of Ukrainian refugees there and searching out ways to get support to people in the country itself.
On May 14, at the in-person auction, be ready to give generously to support the people of Ukraine. Look for more details coming soon. Questions? Contact Melanie Ransom.
Quick Notes
Church Office Hours: Tuesday and Thursday, 10:00 am - 2:00 pm.
Save the Dates:
*Ordination of Sara Lewis on Saturday, April 9 at 1:00 pm, on Zoom and YouTube.
*In-person dinner and auction on Saturday, May 14 at the Indian Summer Golf and Country Club.
*OUUC 70th Anniversary and Installation of Rev. Mary Gear on Saturday, June 4 at 2:00 pm at Lutheran Church of the Good Shepherd.
*Family Fun Picnic at Millersylvania on August 27.
In the Larger Community
Learn more about the following events and others here.
Register for UUA General Assembly, June 22-26.
Thursday, March 31, 5:00 pm: Speak up for Trans Lives: Spokesperson training.
Saturday, April 2, 10:00 am-1:00 pm: Stop Salmon Extinction: Free the Snake River Rally & March, at The Olympia Ballroom, 116 Legion Way SE, Olympia.
From Unitarian Universalist Mental Health Network: If you have lived through trauma or emotional distress (or care about someone who has) we REALLY need you to be Voices for our newly growing 'Recovery Community'.
If you are trans/non-binary, join Side with Love’s UPLIFT Trans/Non-Binary Monthly Gathering Space - 4th Tuesdays @ 5:00 pm-6:30 pm.
Sunday, April 24, 1:00-3:00 pm, Learning Right Relations presents "We Are the Middle of Forever: Indigenous Voices from Turtle Island on the Changing Earth."
Interfaith Earth Day Service - April 23 at 1:00 at Woodruff Park, 1500 Harrison Ave NW. Please join this community event that will feature voices from various spiritual and religious traditions reflecting on the theme of listening to our relationship with Earth.
Thurston’s Hunger Walk 2022. keep our hungry neighbors fed: The Thurston County Food Bank and The Community Kitchen. I encourage you - starting today, to go to our donation page to easily/safely donate online www.thurstonhungerwalk.com then scroll down to OUUC. Last year OUUC raised $2,520 for The Hunger Walk. Let’s see if we can match that or even reach $2,800 this year.
Read more....
About Us
Sara Lewis, Director of Community and Faith Development
Darlene Sarkela, Congregational Administrator
Marie Arensmeyer, Facilities Manager
Anissa Bentlemsani, Religious Education Assistant
Office Hours
Tuesday and Thursday, 10:00 am - 2:00 pm
Email: liberalfaith@ouuc.org
Website: http://ouuc.org
Location: 2315 Division Street Northwest, Olympia, WA, United States
Phone: 360-634-2005
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/OlympiaUUC/
Twitter: @OlyUUC