February 2022 - Page 2 of 3

Assata’s Daughters – info for volunteering and in-kind donations: February 11, 2022

Assata’s Daughters, our February shared offering organization, organizes Black young people on Chicago’s South Side, addresses survival needs, helps them develop leadership skills, and provides a place of hope. Please contact Aisha at ourduty2@assatasdaughters.org if you can help with any of the following.

Help in repairing our garden’s shed, fixing loose and fallen wooden planks and possibly adding a new lock or securing the present one. This is needed in the spring, but please contact Aisha well ahead of time to schedule.
Donate heavy plastic containers and storage/tote boxes in various sizes. Assata’s Daughters needs them for storage of donated items, and they recycle plastic boxes.
Connect Assata’s Daughters with organizations and businesses that redistribute resources through in-kind donations for 20-250 young people and families such as: laptops, technology, toys, baby diapers and products, quality foods, household and hygiene products, tickets to museums or events for youth field trips, CTA transit cards, and catering.
Connect them with people, organizations, or businesses interested in offering free space and time at vacation homes, office/venue space, or leisure activities for space to create joy, healing, restoration space, and for strategic planning.

Assata’s Daughters is located in the Washington Park neighborhood on the south side of Chicago. Many of these volunteer options can be performed remotely. Please contact Aisha at ourduty2@assatasdaughters.org for the exact location for the repair project and to coordinate in-kind donations

Assata’s Daughters – info for volunteering and in-kind donations: February 11, 2022UCE UCE2022-02-15T22:09:25+00:00

A Small But Mighty Faith: February 18, 2022

As a congregation and as an association we cannot endorse any political party or candidate without endangering our tax status. However, we can participate in activities to encourage people to get out and vote. The UUA affiliated organization “UU the Vote” does just that. We mail out reminder cards to lists of voters in various races around the country to remind people to get to their polling places. Visit the “UU the Vote” website to add your email to their contact list.

I’m Lee Bannor and I’m a member of the Unitarian Church of Evanston. In 2008 I was a volunteer answering the phones in the Obama campaign office. A few days before the election the woman sitting next to me, who had been there on several previous occasions, said she would be glad when the election was over so she could get back to her day job. I asked her what her day job was.

She said she was the minister of the First Unitarian Church of Chicago. It was Nina Grey. I responded that I went to UCE and so did “Dick back there” (Dick Whitaker). A couple other people spoke up and said they were members of Unity Temple. A couple more said they were members of the Hinsdale Church, etc, etc. In total, about a third of the volunteers were UUs! Clearly, we are a small but mighty faith.

A Small But Mighty Faith: February 18, 2022UCE UCE2022-02-15T22:05:29+00:00

February 20, 2022

We will host an in-person and virtual worship service on Sunday, February 20th at 10:15 am.

Reflections on Risk and Innovation
To be a leader, especially in times of uncertainty and change (that is to say always), takes courage. Some of our leaders reflect on their experiences of leading and leaning into a new ways of being. Rev. Eileen leads the service with worship contributors Lane Deamant, Joe Romeo, Jessica Tomell-Presto, and Carla Williams.

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 20, 2022UCE UCE2022-02-15T20:02:17+00:00

February 11, 2022

Click here to read this week’s newsletter.

February 11, 2022UCE UCE2022-02-11T20:53:17+00:00

Summary of January BOT Meeting: February 11, 2022

The bulk of the meeting was spent considering the preliminary 2022-23 budget prepared by the Budget Working Group and the Integrated Stewardship Committee. Obviously, it is very challenging to plan without knowing the exact impact Covid will have on our income next year. And it is a further challenge to adjust to the fact that the $72,000 federal Payroll Protection grant which helped so much last year and this, will not be repeated. Other important factors we took into account include our goal of allowing our staff to keep up with inflation in a time when inflation is high and our income is uncertain. And of course, we would like to increase our UUA support to the full fair share level.

The Board approved the preliminary budget and a hopeful and challenging pledge drive goal after thoughtful review and discussion.

We also approved a motion to pursue holding a vote at the annual meeting regarding UCE signing a letter in support for the current HR 40 bill which calls for a federal study of reparations for those still impacted by our nation’s history with respect to slavery.

The next Board meeting is on February 17 at 7 pm via Zoom. All are invited.

Summary of January BOT Meeting: February 11, 2022UCE UCE2022-02-11T15:01:56+00:00

New Year News from Denominational Affairs: February 11, 2022

Happy New Year! The Denominational Affairs Team (DA) kicks off 2022 with a renewed sense of purpose which includes expanded communication with the Unitarian Church of Evanston (UCE) community. Watch for regular articles about DA activities and stories about UU work at UCE and beyond. Our team seeks to strengthen ties between our congregation and the larger association. We alert our members to resources offered by the Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA) and encourage participation in local, regional and national activities. DA maintains a flyer on UU organizations that thrive in and support our UCE community. Check out the updated version here.

Spotlight on UU Organization: The MidAmerica Region of the UUA provides congregational life services to approximately 187 congregations, 3 emerging congregations, and 10 covenanting communities across 13 states. In a year of adaptation, these services include relationship building, leadership development, faith formation, cultural competence, and support for dismantling systemic white supremacy culture, as well as coaching in stewardship and conflict transformation. The Friends of MidAmerica monthly newsletter offers a wide range of information and resources. Check out the January 2022 issue here and consider signing up for regular updates.

New Year News from Denominational Affairs: February 11, 2022UCE UCE2022-02-11T14:56:46+00:00

From EOD: February 11, 2022

Greetings from your Executive Operations Director

This Sunday, February 13, we return to the sanctuary for in-person worship. So much time has passed and I miss you all. Your dedicated staff remains committed to our accomplishing our work and our mission toward Nurturing the Human Spirit for a World Made Whole. We are still transitioning from our home offices to working in the building. Jessica will post our UCE office hours.

I have big news on the music front. Saturday, April 30 at 7 p.m. Emma’s Revolution (Pat Humphries and Sandy O) returns to the UCE stage. The concert will be in-person and streamed live from the sanctuary. Tickets will go on sale in March. If you are not familiar with their powerful music, go online and check them out. Pat and Sandy’s songs are voices for justice. Their lyrics are moving, provocative and clear in their quest for equality and change in our world. We had the privilege of seeing them on stage at UCE with the legendary Holly Near. Watch the newsletter and social media for more information in the coming weeks and don’t miss this special opportunity to hear them in person or in the comfort of your home.

Inside our walls there’s been much progress. The Sanctuary Cooling Team (Greg Grabowski, Michael Drennan and I) have just completed almost two years of research and work toward installing cooling in the sanctuary and social area of the sanctuary. We signed a contract with Gleason Heating and Air Conditioning. Their work begins this week and installation will be complete by the end of May.

A new “Welcome Center Desk” — The Lobby Team (Sandy Danforth, Gillian Lawrence and I) have been reviewing proposals and sharing information with the ministers and are prepared to move forward with construction. This unit is being made by the same, talented young woodworker who made the nametag cabinet. Materials will be the same as that cabinet and will have storage, doors to hide the storage and an open area beneath for a stool where a hospitality team member can sit. Welcoming signage that will invite guests and congregants into our space. will be inserted into discreet wood rails along the top and bottom of the front.

Next week staff and volunteers will meet to plan for an event that will help us make Rummage Sale budget. It is doubtful it will be as it was before, but there are many options we hope to explore on Wednesday evening via zoom. If you are interested in being on this planning team, please let me know by emailing me at srobinson@ucevanston.org

Rentals have declined during November/December and January as you can imagine. They are beginning to pick up again during this first half of February. I am working with several previous renters and new ones to rebuild the significant income we have lost over these past two years. New ideas are being explored to market our space. If you know of organizations that need meeting space, music groups who need a place to perform, or someone who wants to hold a memorial, please ask them to contact me at the email shown above.

A new Garden Team at UCE has been formed. This is very exciting and will be enormously helpful as our gardens have expanded and we need individuals who can care for them. The spring and summer will be beautiful on the grounds of UCE with new plants along the wing, our Intergenerational Playscape and a newly planted pollinator garden in the west lawn. Janelle Brittain is leading the Garden Team and welcomes your help. If you have an interest in caring for gardens, please contact Janelle or me.

Our Integrated Stewardship Team met last evening for our regular monthly meeting. We focused on plans that our Pledge Drive Team Co-Chairs Jim Strickler and Rafael Hernandez-Arias have been busy coordinating over the past several weeks. They have assembled various teams to help them accomplish the goal of a successful pledge drive. Look for more information from the Pledge Drive Team this month as letters will go out in the new few weeks. There is more in this newsletter about the kick-off event and the 2022/23 UCE Pledge Drive.

From EOD: February 11, 2022UCE UCE2022-02-11T19:38:29+00:00

February 13, 2022

We will host an in-person and virtual worship service on Sunday, February 13th at 10:15 am.

The Risk of Hospitality
Being open, inclusive, and genuinely welcoming as individuals and as a faith community requires us to accept a level of discomfort and to let go of the expectation that we will always be safe. True hospitality can be dangerous. How can we lean into love, with curiosity and courage and without being reckless? Rev. Eileen leads this service with Elaine Siegel 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 13, 2022UCE UCE2022-02-08T15:27:49+00:00

February 4, 2022

Click here to read this week’s newsletter.

February 4, 2022UCE UCE2022-02-04T18:53:20+00:00

Endowment Task Force Winter Update: February 4, 2022

The Endowment Task Force has been working steadily since our last update in the congregation in autumn. In our semi final phase, we are considering the following eight areas:

Board of Trustees and Endowment Committee Relationships
Endowment Committee Structure
Distribution of Endowment Funds
Committee Processes and Policies
Legal Review and Bylaws
Investments
Communication with the Congregation
Application Process

We have developed proposals to address the approximately 150 issues which were identified by the congregation. We are considering those issues and are finalizing our recommendations.

We have been meeting a couple times each month, for about an hour and half each time.

So far, we have completed draft versions of our proposals for two areas and half of a third. That leaves five and one half to finish. We expect that further input from the congregation will be necessary for us to conclude our final proposal recommendation process. We have determined that taking our time and giving each proposal proper consideration will lead to the best results.

By the spring we expect to reach out one more time for guidance from the congregation, before we publish our recommendations.

Thank you for caring about how we make use of this extremely valuable resource of UCE.

Joe Romeo

Endowment Task Force Winter Update: February 4, 2022UCE UCE2023-04-15T22:21:52+00:00