Sunday Service: In-person and Online Sunday at 10:30am
“Ingathering and Water Communion”
Where have we come from? Who are we? Where are we going? The beginning of the church year is an opportune time to celebrate the gathering of community and the promise of our church year. Please bring a small sample of water gathered from your summer travels (near or far).
Some people consider January the beginning of a new year, but another opportunity for renewal happens when the seasons change in September. It also marks the beginning of the new church year. It’s when we return from our travels or our relaxing summer breaks to the excitement of another year at UCE filled with possibility.
Many congregants may not know the Board of Trustees sets goals every year. It’s our way to focus our energy and resources in order to make the biggest difference. After a lot of brainstorming, the board members came up with these six goals and we wanted to share them with you:
Some consider the religious education program to be the most important program in the church, because it is the future of our congregation. In addition to the children’s programs, membership at UCE is about learning and expanding our knowledge even as adults. The board set this goal in order to throw our support behind all of our educational programs.
Last year, UCE started the important process of creating a long-range plan. The staff and most church groups thought about where they want to be in 5 years and what they need in order to get there. The Long-Range Planning Task Force will present the assimilated plans to the board in September, then we’ll have our kick-off after that. Stay tuned.
The third goal is part of the reason for this newsletter article. The word “linkage” may not have a lot of meaning to you if you’ve never served on the board. What it means is creating open communication between the congregation and the Board of Trustees. We started this process last year with the congregational survey and hope to continue improving our communication.
Throughout the church year we will working on ways to “link” the board to the congregation. Plans include: more frequent newsletter articles, being more visible in the UCE community and on the website, and a casual forum to share updates and field questions/suggestions from the congregation.
The board is entrusted to hold the congregation’s vision for the church and to work toward that vision. Therefore, we want the right people serving on the board. This year we plan to do a “board composition analysis,” to determine the strengths of the current board members and what type of skills and talents we will need in future board members. Then, we will work with the Nominating and Recruiting Committee to make that happen.
The UCE Board of Trustees is a volunteer body. Each of us was nominated because of our skills or involvement in the church; however, many of us had never served on a church board before. In order to best serve the congregation, we will complete educational activities this year to further our effectiveness, such as meeting with other UU boards.
UCE is a large congregation filled with innovators and innovation. The board aims to put UCE at the forefront of Unitarian Universalism by seeking to present at Mid America and/or General Assembly about our experience with policy governance and our long-range planning process.
If there is anything you want to know or ways in which you would like us to communicate please don’t hesitate to reach out to one of us. https://ucevanston.org/board-of-trustees/
Submitted by: Kerry Heckman
The Refugee Team is busy preparing for the arrival of the Haj Khalaf family who will be arriving on Sept. 8th. The family fled from Syria in August of 2012 and have been living in a refugee camp in Turkey since then. We will soon be welcoming Khaled (the father), Fattoum (the mother), Aya, (their 18-year-old daughter) and Uday (their 14-year-old son). We don’t yet know where their apartment will be located, but Refugee One is working on that now. The Apartment team will be busy cleaning and preparing it and the Furnishings team is ready to move loads of furniture and housewares into their new home. We will welcome the family at the airport and the mentors will start visiting the family and showing them how to do basic tasks such as grocery shopping, shopping for school, using the pharmacy, riding the “L”, etc. Mentors will also arrange for social outings for the family, so they get to know their new home city. We will mentor the family for a 6-month period.
Thanks again to everyone for their generous support (time, money, kind words.) Additional donations are welcome, simply make a check to UCE with a notation that the donation is for refugee resettlement fund. Thank you, all!
“Theology Set In Stars, Not In Stone”
A person’s theology can change over the course of one’s lifetime. Ministerial Intern Kevin DeBeck examines how one of the people he most admires–Gene Roddenberry–and how his theology evolved through the expression of his greatest creation, which is celebrating it’s 50th Anniversary this week, Star Trek.
The Board of Trustees invites our Beloved Community to a conversation on the exploration of the community’s interest in a name change, during the month of October. The Board has structured a process that will be experienced in “Conversation Circles.” The goal in the process is to have your voices/interests heard, while using our Covenant of Engagement as a model for civil, courageous, and loving conversation.
Depending on the outcome of expressed interests, we’ll see if there is enough interest to go further in the name change exploration. If there does not seem to be a desire of the community to move forward with a name change, the Board would recommend that the discussion end for the year. If there seems to be a desire to explore the topic further, the Board has a process to proceed.
The Process of Exploration
The October conversations, facilitated by the Board, will be done in Conversation Circles. Participants will have an opportunity to express their thoughts/feelings. Then they will express their opinions on a form about going forward or not. An opportunity for non-Circle participants to complete this form will be made available as well. The Board will compile the information gathered and report to the community the results.
Please Attend!
October 2-15: Fourteen days of Conversation Circles will be made available to fit everyone’s schedule.
The circle process (in covenant group style with deep listening):
If you have questions, please reach out to Brian Meister or Janelle Brittain of the Board along with the other Board members. We look forward to your participation in this conversation.
“Liberating White Environmentalism”
Faith in Place is joining us on Sunday August 28th! A local nonprofit that empowers Illinois people of all faiths to be leaders in caring for the Earth, providing resources to educate, connect, and advocate for healthier communities. Rev. Brian Sauder, a Mennonite Minister and President of Faith in Place, will guest preach at this service.
August 28, 2016 – “Liberating White Environmentalism” – Rev. Brian Sauder
These three efforts at UCE work in different but mutually supportive ways for positive social change.
CRS (Community Renewal Society) is in active discussions with Chicago officials and the public about police accountability proposals. Come to a town hall meeting Tuesday August 23 at 6:30 at Granville Avenue United Methodist Church, 1407 W. Granville Ave to learn about and advocate for the CRS proposal, called FAIR COPS. This is an educational opportunity to see CRS in action along with community leaders and others making a difference. Contact Bedford West, come to the table in back of sanctuary Sunday for more info.
SAVE THE DATE – Saturday morning, November 12, Community Renewal Society (CRS) annual membership assembly – nearby location TBD. This is the kickoff to another yearly cycle of celebrating victories and ratifying a platform for the coming legislative cycle. Usually an action advocating for an issue is part of the morning.
UUANI (UU Advocacy Network of Illinois) as part of its racial justice work asks you to tell Governor Rauner you would like him to sign three pieces of legislation that were passed by the Illinois legislature and would remove certain lifetime bans on employment for people with criminal records. The easy process can be found at: http://salsa3.salsalabs.com/o/50480/p/dia/action3/common/public/?action_KEY=19237
This link is also on the UUANI and CRS Facebook pages.
The UU Prison Ministry of Illinois is about to move into ministry in prisons, welcoming efforts for people returning from prison, and advocacy for alternatives to incarceration.
For more information on any of these please contact Dale Griffin or other participants. DaleCGriffin@comcast.net
Submitted by: Dale Griffin