Update from REAL on Child Care: February 25, 2022

Heartfelt thanks to all the UCE members and friends who offered help during the Evanston school closure that left families in a bind in the thick of the Omicron surge. Unscheduled closures hurt families who are already pushed to their limits, especially parents who face job loss if they miss even one day of work. Thinking of our District 65 neighbors, Jennifer Crosby approached Reverend Eileen and the REAL Planning Group about creating a pop-up child care. We reached out to the Joseph E. Hill Head Start program and they sent out an announcement. Jennifer identified a trained child care provider from the community and we scheduled volunteers in teams of three covering nine shifts. Volunteers gathered supplies, snacks, and meals. We figured out COVID protocols and testing with advice from Rev. Eileen and UCE’s COVID Task Force. Members gave cash donations for snacks, supplies, and the child care worker’s stipend. We reconfigured a classroom downstairs and made pop-up child care available for the three days before Christmas Eve. 

We made a difference for the family who took us up on our last-minute offer. The little boy who attended had a great time, and the volunteers did, too. Shirley Adams commented, “He felt very loved and got a lot of positive adult attention.”

We learned a great deal from this process. We are working on how to meet this need in a sustainable, effective, and scalable way. REAL Planning Group members met with the Evanston Early Childhood Council and we are reaching out to Evanston Cradle to Career. We will explore ways to gather information from families impacted by unplanned school closures to learn what would be most helpful for them. We are speaking with school administrators about what volunteers can do to help. We are learning requirements for volunteer classroom assistants and how to create activity bags designed for children to use at home in times of quarantine or home-based child care. 

We were moved and deeply grateful for every person who pitched in for the pop-up child care. Stay tuned!  

Update from REAL on Child Care: February 25, 20222022-02-25T18:02:08+00:00

From Rev. Susan Frances: February 25, 2022

Dear Friends, 

Stewardship may be viewed as an ethic that embodies the responsible care for items that belong to someone other than yourself. For our faith community, it is our ethic for how we take care of UCE: its building, its grounds, its programs, its members, friends, and employees. Stewardship may take many forms. At UCE, we talk about giving of our time, treasure, and talent to support the stewardship of our faith community. Here are a few ways you can get more involved and share your: 

  • Time – Volunteer with one of our Hospitality Teams!  
  • Treasure – Pledge! Our pledge drive starts February 26th!  
  • Talent – Share your talents through our Faith Formation programs!  

Time – Volunteer with one of our Hospitality Teams!  

After being closed for six weeks, we again reopened our doors on February 13th to hold our Sunday morning services at 10:15 am, engage in Kinship Time (formerly Coffee Hour) at 11:15 am, and then to have our all-ages Faith Formation Hour at 11:35 am. In order to have in-person greeters, kitchen attendants, and offering counters and to maintain our online livestream service with an online host, we have restructured our Hospitality Teams to have 4 teams. One way you may give of your time to care for our community is to join one of these teams and commit to volunteer on a Sunday morning twice in a year: 

  • Hospitality Team for Greeters – If you enjoy making others feel comfortable or appreciate how you were welcomed to UCE and would like to provide that for another, this is the team for you. No training needed; you will receive instructions on the morning you volunteer. To volunteer contact Rev. Susan Frances at sfrances@ucevanston.org. 
  • Hospitality Team for Money Counters – If you like ushering during the service or counting the offertory funds after the service or if you prefer a role where you don’t have to talk with a lot of people, this team is for you. There is training provided. To volunteer contact Peggy Boccard via REALM or Rev. Susan Frances at sfrances@ucevanston.org.
  • Hospitality Team for Kitchen Ministry – If you enjoy providing food to show you care, this team is for you. We are planning to start serving coffee, tea, and lemonade during Kinship Time on March 27, 2022. In the meantime, we are providing water and hard candies. There is training provided in using our newly renovated kitchen. To volunteer contact Rev. Susan Frances at sfrances@ucevanston.org.
  • Hospitality Team for Virtual Only – If you are not yet comfortable volunteering in-person, this is the team for you. There is training provided. To volunteer, contact Rev. Susan Frances at sfrances@ucevanston.org. 

Treasure – Pledge! Our pledge drive starts February 26th!  

Join us in-person or online this Saturday and Sunday to kick off our annual pledge drive! Information about when and where can be found further down in this newsletter. The pledge drive each spring asks members and pledging friends to make a commitment to support our congregation for the following year, so our requests over the next few weeks are for the July 2022 – June 2023 congregational year. Please respond to the volunteers who will be reaching out via email, text, and phone calls to members who haven’t returned their pledge form. If you are not a member, but feel a part of UCE and would like to pledge, you are invited to become a pledging friend by reaching out to me at sfrances@ucevanston.org or Rev. Eileen Wiviott at ewiviott@ucevanston.org. 

Talent – Share your talents through our Faith Formation programs!  

Do you like to work with youth? Are you interested in facilitating a program on a topic dear to your heart? Are you a musician or magician? Are you good at organizing? All of these talents are needed to run our children, youth, and adult faith formation programming. If you are interested in getting involved, but not sure where your talents might be best used, please reach out Kathy Underwood, Director of Lifespan Religious Education, at kunderwood@ucevanston.org.  

These are just a few ways to get more involved and share your time, treasure, and talents with our community.  

I also want to offer that if life is hard right now and sharing more of your time, treasure, or talent is not good for you, that is okay. If you need support and care right now, please use your time to attend or watch Sunday morning services or other programs that fill you up and sustain or restore you, or use your time to reach out for assistance through our Congregational Care and Support Teams. If finances are challenging right now, that is okay. There is no required pledge amount. You are part of our community regardless of the financial support you give. If sharing your talents sounds exhausting instead of uplifting, that is okay. My wish for you is that tapping into those talents at home just for yourself without the expectations of others might bring you some joy.  

Wherever you are in your life right now, you are part of this community. You are invited to take care of yourself and you are invited to join in being a steward of this loving faith community. 

In faith, 

Rev. Susan 

From Rev. Susan Frances: February 25, 20222022-02-25T20:06:39+00:00

February 27, 2022

We will host an in-person and virtual worship service on Sunday, February 27th at 10:15 am.

Supporting the Whole Mission with the Whole of Us
“All of us need all of us to make it,” says the minister, poet, and activist Theresa I. Soto. Whatever your gifts, whatever your needs, whatever your resources, it takes the whole of us to make the world whole. Bring your scattered hopes, your partial wishes, your broken dreams, and your fragile commitments to the altar of this community. Together we will collect and expand them into a more beautiful whole. Rev. Eileen leads the service with Ann McCallister as worship associate.

Please submit your Joys and Sorrows through this online form. If you submit a message by 9 am, we will try to read it that Sunday. Thank you for your patience as we are adapting to best serve you all! Note there will only be one service time so that we can gather together as a whole community of faith. You can still give to the shared offering through “text to give,” mail a check to the office with “shared offering” in the memo line, or go to our website and hit “give” on the upper right or click here. This Sunday’s shared offering recipient is Assata’s Daughters.

February 27, 20222022-02-23T20:52:54+00:00

Pledge Drive KickOff Party & Packets: February 18, 2022

Enjoy the Official Kickoff
Join in the fun for the Pledge Drive Kickoff Celebration on the evening of Saturday, February 26, 7 to 8:30 pm. Celebrate the WHOLE shebang to energize our spirits, mission, and generosity and to officially launch the drive!

Packets Starting to Go Out
Jessica Meis has begun sending out the pledge packets to all UCE members and friends. If you have received yours, why not complete and submit it now? If you pledge before 5:00 pm on Friday, February 25, you can pick up a dessert box at UCE on Saturday morning to enjoy during the Official Pledge Drive Kick-Off Celebration that evening!

No Packet Yet?
If you haven’t received your email with your pledge packet already, please be patient. But don’t be patient too long. If you haven’t received it by Monday, February 28—and it’s not in your spam folder—please contact Jessica at admin@ucevanston.org.

More Information
You can get details or help by

Pledge Drive KickOff Party & Packets: February 18, 20222024-01-15T17:35:33+00:00

Pledge Drive FAQs

Each year the Budget Working Group (composed of our Treasurer, Senior Minister, and members of the Integrated Stewardship Council) drafts an operating budget to reflect the priorities of the congregation and to meet the needs identified by the ministers and staff. It embodies the ways in which we seek to live out our shared values together.

At the heart of our budget is support for our staff. Their dedication helps bring our mission statement to life by providing the vision and structure through which we, as members and friends, can contribute our gifts and passions.

Your pledges provide 80 percent of the operating budget, with the remaining money coming from rentals, shared plate offerings, and fundraisers throughout the year. Once approved by the congregation in May, the budget is our guide for spending throughout the coming year, as well as a tool for transparency and accountability.

The Board of Trustees has committed to the following goals for the coming year:

  • Paying our dedicated staff an equitable and living wage
  • Continuing our Anti-Racism and Anti-Oppression work
  • Investing in and supporting efforts to be a welcoming and diverse Beloved community
  • Making decisions that support operational vitality and viability
  • Creating a more visible and effective Board

The Federal Paycheck Protection Program helped UCE maintain and fully fund our excellent staff. While some costs were lower when our building was closed, we also lost significant revenue from rentals and fundraising events. We have recovered remarkably well due to the tremendous efforts of our staff and volunteers, as well as the generosity of our congregation.

UCE remains financially healthy, and we’ve been able to proceed with projects funded by the capital campaign that was conducted four years ago, and using our Endowment funds to give to the community.

Now that we have fully returned to our space, we are hosting more events, sharing our space with community partners, welcoming returning and new renters, along with more individual families into our spiritual home.

In our efforts to be as fiscally responsible as we can be and to manage the stewardship of our congregation in a transparent way, we ask each member and pledging friend household to submit a pledge every year (approximately 3 months before the fiscal year begins on July 1) so that we can budget and responsibly plan for the coming year.

We are grateful to accept the form of payment that works best for you and your personal budget. Please consider creating or updating an online account so that your gift is made automatically. Many members find this a convenient method, and it provides UCE with a steady, predictable flow of revenue. You can set up automatic payments to be made weekly, monthly, quarterly, or in one lump sum. If you prefer to pledge by credit or debit card, thank you for adding on the 3 percent processing fee.

If you have an existing Vanco automatic payment, UCE staff will update the amount in July at the start of the new fiscal year to reflect your pledge for 2023-2024. Question? E-mail Vickie Doebele at finance@ucevanston.org.

We encourage you to complete the pledge form online, which you can find by clicking here. Alternatively, you can fill out the form that was part of the e-mail pledge packet and submit it via e-mail at admin@ucevanston.org. You may also complete a printed form and mail it to the church office. When you submit your pledge, you will receive a receipt via e-mail.

Submitting your pledge form by February 28th will provide the Board of Trustees an actual pledge base to draft an accurate UCE budget for 2025-2026. Thus, having your pledge on time will help the Board of Trustees approve the budget by April and present the final budget to the congregation in May.

Yes! We have a Support Team of UCE members trained to answer your questions about the pledge drive and to assist you in completing and submitting your pledge. You can reach the Support Team by calling 847-864-1330 ext. 111 or e-mailing them at pledgeinfo@ucevanston.org.

Thank you for supporting our whole mission to nurture the human spirit for a world made whole!

Pledge Drive FAQs2025-01-17T17:32:32+00:00

Tips to Complete the Pledge Form

Thank you for looking for tips on how to complete your 2025-2026 pledge. We have prepared two documents to help you complete your pledge online and a paper form. We also drafted tips on creating a Vanco Services profile to make recurring payments towards your annual pledge.   

The form you are completing is the 2025–2026 Pledge Form. The following notes will help you navigate and complete the pledge form. Please use the sequential number on the pledge form to locate the instruction for each item included in the form.

Do you have questions about pledging? During the pledge drive, you may contact our Support Team for assistance. Please leave a message at 847-864-1330, Ext. 111, or send an email note to pledgeinfo@ucevanston.org with your questions. A team member will get back to you shortly.

The Pledge Drive Letter you recently received via e-mail from the UCE office contains the information you need to complete this form. You can enter the required information manually. However, if you use a computer to view the letter and fill out this form, you can enter the information by cutting and pasting.

Pledge submission deadline
The pledge drive will take place from February 9 to February 28, 2025. The Pledge Drive Committee kindly asks that you submit your pledge by February 28, 2025. In doing so, you will help the Board of Trustees finalize the budget in April and present it to the congregation by May.

Contact information
The information captured in your pledge form provides the UCE administrative office with an opportunity to update your contact information.

1. Name or Names
Please include the full name of the head of household. If you make your annual pledge with your partner or spouse, please enter their name.

2. Street Address, 3. City, 4. State, 5. Zip Code
Please enter the number and street name, unit number, city, state, and zip code.

6. Phone number, 7. Email address
Please enter your preferred telephone number and email address.

Annual pledge
8. Please enter your pledge amount for the 2025–2026 fiscal year.
Please enter the total pledge amount for the fiscal year, not the amount of your monthly contributions. You can select how you like to make your contribution and specify the amount and frequency of your contribution in the next question.

Selecting the mode of making contributions
9. Select your preferred method for making your pledge contribution throughout the year.
You may select a mode of making your contributions, amount, and frequency that works best for you. If circumstances change, you can change your choices. The following list ranks the payment options from the lowest to the highest cost incurred by UCE per transaction.

Check: If you make your contribution by check, it involves a few steps for you and the UCE administrative office, but it does not incur a transaction fee. Compared to the other modes, using checks to make your contributions is the least expensive to UCE.

If you select this mode of making your contribution, please write PLEDGE in the memo line of your check. You may mail the check to the UCE office, or you can drop the check off at the collection basket during the Sunday services.

Automatic Bank Account Withdrawal: If you make your contributions by automatic bank account withdrawal, it involves fewer steps for you and the UCE administrative office, but it does incur a transaction fee. However, the fee is lower than making your contribution by credit or debit card.

If you select this mode of payment, you need to set up automatic bank account withdrawal. For instructions, go to the UCE webpage, select “Ways to Give,” and “Pledge.” You can also contact the UCE office at finance@ucevanston.org.

Automatic Credit or Debit Card Payment
If you make your contributions by credit or debit card, it involves fewer steps for you and UCE, but it incurs a transaction fee. Using your credit or debit card to make your contribution incurs a higher fee than the other modes of payment.

If you select this mode of payment, you need to set up credit and debit card payments. For instructions, go to the UCE webpage, select “Ways to Give,” and “Pledge.” You can also contact the UCE administrative office at finance@ucevanston.org.

Text-to-Give
If you make your contributions via Text-To-Give, it involves additional steps for you and a few for the UCE office, but it incurs transaction fees. You cannot set up a recurring payment, and the transaction fees are similar to those of credit and debit cards.

If you select this mode of payment, please text a message at 844-730-6645. Enter the dollar amount of your contribution in your message and the note PLEDGE. Adding the notation helps the UCE office to allocate your contribution as part of your pledge.

Affirming or discontinuing membership.
If you are unable to make a financial pledge at this time, you are still a valued member of our congregation. Please affirm your membership or let us know if you no longer wish to be a member.

10a. I or we wish to affirm my or our UCE membership
Check the box if you, your spouse or partners, or family wish to remain UCE members

10b. I or we no longer wish to be a UCE member or members
Check the box if you, your spouse or partners, or family do not wish to remain UCE members

11. Options for making annual pledge contributions
Please, consider the following two options for making your annual pledge contribution. Unlike the previous options, setting up these options requires additional steps for you and UCE. If you are interested in exploring these options, please contact the office at finance@ucevanston.org.

Gift of Common Stock
Please consider making your pledge contribution by donating shares of common stock to UCE. This option might have tax advantages for you over making cash donations. This is a relatively simple process, which your broker and the UCE office can handle.

Employer Matching Contributions
You may increase the value of your donation to UCE at no additional cost to you. Some employers have programs to match employees’ charitable contributions. Contact the UCE office for more information about the employer matching contribution program.

Other forms of contributing
You may have other financial means to make charitable contribution, which often provides benefits to you, such as in taxation. If you like to explore using other forms of making your pledge contributions, please contact the UCE office.

Signing your pledge
12. Your signature and date
Please sign your name and enter the date you are submitting your pledge.

13. Partner’s Signature and date
If you submit your pledge with your partner or spouse, please have them sign their name and enter the date you submit the pledge.

Your pledge receipt
The UCE office will send a receipt to your email box within two business days after submitting your pledge. If you do not receive a confirmation note, do not hesitate to contact the UCE administrative office at finance@ucevanston.org.

Thank you for submitting your 2025–2026 pledge!

The following tips will help you create a Vanco Services profile. The profile facilitates making recurring contributions during the fiscal year towards your annual pledge.  

You can easily set up recurring contributions using your checking account, credit, or debit card. In the process, you can choose your contribution the amount and frequency that works best for you. 

During the pledge drive, you can contact our Support Team for assistance. Please leave a message at 847-864-1330, Ext. 111, or send an email not to pledgeinfo@ucevanston.org. A team member will get back to you shortly. 

At the bottom of this page, you may download the tips for creating your profile for future reference.   

Download the tips for setting up your Vanco profile here.

Tips to Complete the Pledge Form2025-01-17T20:16:08+00:00

Download Your Pledge Form: February 2022

Thank you for choosing to complete your 2022–2023 Pledge as a printed form. We encourage you to submit your pledge online. Completing the form online is the easiest and quickest mode of completing your pledge. To access the pledge form online, click here. 

We have prepared “Tips to complete the pledge form” to guide you in completing and submitting your pledge form. To access the document, click here.  

Once you click on download the document, the Pledge Form will open in a new window and you can download it as a PDF document. The form contains fourteen questions and should take you less than five minutes to complete. 

Please print and complete the form. You can mail the form, bring it to the UCE office, or drop it off in the collection basket during the Sunday Service. 

 During the pledge drive, you can contact our Support Team for assistance. Please leave a message at 847-864-1330, Ext. 111, or send an email to pledgeinfo@ucevanston.org. A team member will get back to you shortly. 

Download Your Pledge Form: February 20222022-02-19T17:59:27+00:00

Pathway to Membership Classes: Feb-Mar 2022

You are invited to deepen your connection with UCE. We just finished a round of virtual classes and our next round of classes will be in-person. We hope you can join us! 

Introduction to Unitarian Universalism will be offered in-person on Sunday, February 27, 2022 from 2:00-3:30 pm in Room 6.  

The two-part Journey Toward Membership class will be held in-person on Tuesdays, March 1 and 8, 2022 from 6:30-8:00 pm in Room 6.  

Would you like to learn more about Unitarian Universalist history? The Introduction to Unitarian Universalism class takes an in-depth look at our progressive faith, including Unitarian Universalist principles, sources, and covenant, and is led by Rev. Susan Frances. This class will be offered in-person on Sunday, February 27, 2022 at 2-3:30 pm. Click here to register for the in-person class. 

Would you like to learn more about becoming a member of UCE? The Journey Toward Membership (JTM) class includes the exploration of our spiritual lives and what it means to be a member of an intentional community like the Unitarian Church of Evanston. The JTM class is divided into two sessions and is led by Rev. Susan Frances. The next in-person class, sessions 1 and 2, will be on Tuesdays, March 1 and 8, 2022 at 6:30-8 pm. Click here to register.  

Pathway to Membership Classes: Feb-Mar 20222022-02-18T16:20:11+00:00

Unitarian Church of Evanston

A Unitarian Universalist Congregation

1330 Ridge Ave
Evanston, IL 60201
Directions

(847) 864-1330
uce@ucevanston.org

UCE's office hours: Monday - Friday 10:00 am - 4 pm

In-person and Virtual Sunday Service is held at 10:30 am.

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Member congregations of the Unitarian Universalist Association covenant to affirm and promote the Seven Principles of Unitarian Universalism.

The Unitarian Church of Evanston is recognized by the Unitarian Universalist Association as a Welcoming Congregation, a Peace Advocate Congregation, and a Green Sanctuary.

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