Sunday Service: In-person and Online Sunday at 10:30am

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September 12, 2021

We will host an in-person and virtual worship service on Sunday, September 12th at 10:15 am.

The Continuous Journey
Our Annual Ingathering and Water Communion is a time-honored tradition at UCE and yet, this year, it is like nothing we’ve done before. We will gather our blessings and share our hopes in our first truly multi-platform worship service. Whether you are participating from home or in the building, please bring to worship water that has nourished your soul. What does it carry and what do you hope it returns to you? Rev. Eileen Wiviott, Rev. Susan Frances, Kathy Underwood, and Lynn Kendall are our worship leaders.

A few important notes about participating in-person:

  1. Everyone over 2 in and around the UCE building will need to be masked.
  2. We will maintain physical distance, which means, chairs will be spaced apart and seating is limited in the sanctuary to 120. We will have overflow seating in room 3 (25) and room 6 (20), to participate in the service through the livestream. Beyond this, there will be seating outside the sanctuary on the south lawn.
  3. Please review our UCE Guidelines for Building Use before Sunday.

Please submit your Joys and Sorrows through this online form. If you submit a message by 11 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 Deborah’s Place.

September 12, 20212021-09-07T18:24:35+00:00

VirtUUal Faith Formation: September 3, 2021

What’s Happening in Faith Formation?

Backpack Blessing – Join the virtual worship service for our backpack blessing on September 5! Rev. Eileen will offer a blessing for our backpack tags for those who are beginning a new school year. You can pick up yours at UCE at the Ingathering Service on September 12, or in the lobby during office hours all week long.

Back-to-School pictures? If you took some pictures to mark the occasion, we’d love to show them during the worship service on September 5! You can drop them in this Google folder or email them to Kathy Underwood.

Playscape Steppingstone Event – September 25 and October 2 – Families are invited to help make steppingstones. For more details and to register, click here.

Registration for Faith Formation begins! This year more than ever, it is important that parents register their young people, so that we can plan according to current guidelines. Please complete the form here for all young people, 0-18 years old.

Faith Formation Help this Fall – If you’d like to join in making this new format fun and engaging, look here for some of the ways you can do so! If you haven’t seen the video about our worship and faith formation format for this fall yet, check it out here. And if you missed Kathy’s recent article about this you can find it here.

College-bound youth and young adults!A network to connect with UUs wherever you are! Join Rev. Byron Tyler Coles & Rev. Stevie K Carmody Eama for an information session about the recently launched Bridging Youth Hospitality Network!

  • Wednesday, August 18th, 5pm ET
  • Thursday, September 2nd, 5pm ET
  • Thursday, October 7th, 7pm ET

Check the links below for Zoom registration and more information. Spread the survey to recently bridged youth and the communities that want to welcome them!

UCE Book Groups

UCE Fiction Book Group is reading My Favorite Thing is Monsters, Book 1, a graphic novel by Emil Ferris. Discussion meeting September 17, 7-8:30 pm via Zoom. 

Set against the tumultuous political backdrop of late ’60s Chicago, My Favorite Thing Is Monsters is the fictional graphic diary of 10-year-old Karen Reyes, filled with B-movie horror and pulp monster magazine iconography. Karen Reyes tries to solve the murder of her enigmatic upstairs neighbor, Anka Silverberg, a holocaust survivor, while the interconnected stories of those around her unfold. When Karen’s investigation takes us back to Anka’s life in Nazi Germany, the reader discovers how the personal, the political, the past, and the present converge.

The Nonfiction Book Group will meet via Zoom at 2 pm on Sunday, September 26th to discuss How the South Won the Civil War: Oligarchy, Democracy, and the Continuing Fight for the Soul of America.

The author, Heather Cox Richardson, writes about how the South was the ideological victor of the Civil War as expansion of the Western frontier allowed the hierarchies of the South to proliferate. The book has been called “a thought-provoking study of the centuries-spanning battle between oligarchy and equality in America.”

VirtUUal Faith Formation: September 3, 20212021-09-02T23:33:00+00:00

From DLRE: September 3, 2021

Shared Ministry – Who Are We Leaving Out? 

Last month I wrote about my weakness: my fear of admitting when I need help, and then asking for help. It sounds silly, and looked even sillier in print, but the truth is hard to see at times.  

As I reflect on why this can be a challenge in my life, I thought of a couple of things. The first one has to do with my childhood and growing up in a household where I was told in subtle, non-verbal ways that only weak people asked for help. I don’t remember either of my parents asking for help, but that was probably because I was in my own little world and didn’t notice it, for I’m sure there were times when they did. My parents were both very self-sufficient in my eyes. 

The second has to do with my fear of leaving someone out. This usually happens in a dream where I am thanking all the volunteers who put in their time and energy to create a fun, safe, and welcoming program for the young people. In this recurring dream, I have a terrible feeling that I have forgotten someone, or worse yet, more than one person. I then have a deep sense of dread and shame for hurting their feelings. But in my awake moments, the fear is in not asking a specific person for help with a task. I talk myself out of it with thoughts like, “They do so much already” and “They have 7 little kids, I’m sure they don’t have the time”. How many of us have sat in a meeting and thought or said these things? I have tried to be intentional in changing my rhetoric in these situations, but often fall into old habits. 

And so I now wonder how many times I have left someone out in participating more fully? Does my white, middle-class status factor into this? More importantly, what do I need to do to correct this? 

In this time of change, asking for help is perhaps even more important. My struggle is partly in not knowing exactly how much help is needed. How many volunteers do we need when we aren’t sure how many families with children and youth will be in-person? And I struggle with asking people for help during a time when they are dealing with so much: grief, stress, the unknown, not to mention life in general.  

And yet this is an exciting opportunity for us! We have the chance to create the multigenerational community we have been wanting for many years. Through our shared ministry, we individually and collectively can genuinely welcome all ages through our doors, into our sanctuary, and into our lives and hearts. There are so many ways each of us can do this, and faith formation is one of them. Feel free to see how here. 

Let’s see what shared ministry looks like when we invite everyone in! 

In Faith, 

Kathy 

From DLRE: September 3, 20212021-09-02T19:55:31+00:00

Welcome Back to UCE Capital Improvements – Lobby: September 3, 2021

When returning to our beloved church building in September and beyond, you will notice some differences in the lobby and wing spaces thanks to funding from the 2019 Capital Campaign and the hard work and dedication of the Capital Campaign Implementation Committee and UCE volunteers and staff.  We wanted to highlight some of these exciting changes and talk a bit about how we made decisions about what updates to make. This is the first of three articles.

Our lobby planning involved a broad, human-centered design approach–a process that starts with the people you’re designing for and ends with new solutions that are tailor made to suit their needs.  To do this, we gathered input from the groups that use the UCE lobby space, (hospitality team, membership relations, family ministry, accessibility team, and staff), as well as rentals, safety and security. We then analyzed and synthesized these inputs, and categorized them to create our organizing focus areas: furnishings, layout, technology, information, and signage.  During this process we saw that some of the biggest areas of need were related to welcoming newcomers and families.

Over the next several weeks, we’ll be sharing with you various aspects of the lobby and wing projects so you’ll understand the thought process for each improvement area.

Welcoming Families

The first updates to the lobby space we wanted to highlight are related to welcoming families – and especially those with younger children.  As Rev. Wiviott has mentioned in many of her recent messages to the congregation, we are working as a congregation toward being a truly multi-generational community. As part of this work we have taken special care to understand the needs of families – both current and new – and worked on ways to make our lobby space as welcoming and functional as possible for them.  Here some things you will see:

  • New kid-height coat hooks.  We learned through our research that for families with younger children, the current coat area was a source of stress.  (Most young children are not able use hangers easily, and older kids couldn’t reach most of the hangers that were available.)  We further considered both accessibility (locating the hooks far from the ramp) and safety (locating them away from the top of the stairs; choosing kid-safe hooks), and inclusion (our only kid-height hooks previously were in the basement, and were seldom used because they were not convenient).

  • New kid-friendly corner in the lobby.  We noted in our research that no kid-sized furniture existed anywhere on the main floor of our church.  Now there is a designated spot in the lobby with a kid-sized table and chairs, surrounded by seating for parents/adults.  This spot was the best choice due to safety concerns (it is far from the automatic doors!).

Soon you’ll be hearing about our multi-generational outdoor space. It is coming along nicely as well and we can’t wait to welcome everyone to it soon.  This is just a taste of what we have been up to – we are eager to provide you with more updates next week!

Welcome Back to UCE Capital Improvements – Lobby: September 3, 20212021-09-02T17:16:58+00:00

“New” Kitchen Celebration: September 19, 2021

Just as Covid shut everything down last year, our totally renovated kitchen was completed, so we didn’t get a chance to celebrate all of the wonderful changes and upgrades. So on Sunday, September 19, the Kitchen renovation will be celebrated! There will be a recognition in the worship service, followed by tours in the kitchen and outer area guided by Carol Nielsen and Sandra Robinson. Coffee and cookies will be served outside following the indoor gathering to celebrate with food. Our kitchen has always been a warm and welcoming gathering place before, during and after events for our congregation and for our rentals. These improvements are due to your generosity during the Capital Campaign.

“New” Kitchen Celebration: September 19, 20212021-09-02T17:13:38+00:00

September 5, 2021

We will host an online worship service on Sunday, September 5th at 11:15 am.

To Work with Love
God cursed humanity with labor, to toil in working the land. Certainly the powerful and wealthy few have used this message to control the means of production, dehumanizing workers. The Labor Movement has tried to empower workers to collectively assert their right to worked without being worked to death. Where are we now? What does it mean to work with love – for ourselves, each other, and the earth?

Please submit your Joys and Sorrows through this online form. If you submit a message by 11 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 Deborah’s Place.

September 5, 20212021-08-30T13:59:57+00:00

VirtUUal Faith Formation: August 27, 2021

This Summer in Faith Formation

Parent/Volunteer Conversation – Based on the feedback from the Family Engagement Survey so far, there is a need to get more information out to you so that you can make the decision on how your family participates this year at UCE. You are invited to one of two virtual gatherings for this purpose:

Monday, August 30 from 7-8 pm OR 
Thursday, September 2 from 7-8 pm 

Come hear about the format for Sundays at UCE for worship and the faith formation hour. Bring your questions and share your ideas! Those who are considering whether to volunteer this year are invited too!

Backpack Blessing – Join the virtual worship service for our backpack blessing on September 5! Rev. Eileen will offer a blessing for our backpack tags for those who are beginning a new school year. You can pick up yours at UCE at the Ingathering Service on September 12, or in the lobby during office hours all week long.

Back-to-School pictures? If you took some pictures to mark the occasion, we’d love to show them during the worship service on September 5! You can drop them in this Google folder or email them to Kathy Underwood.

Family Engagement Survey – Parents, please fill out this short survey regarding your family’s participation at UCE this fall. It should take 5 minutes or less!

Registration for Faith Formation begins! This year more than ever, it is important that parents register their young people, so that we can plan according to current guidelines. Please complete the form here for all young people, 0-18 years old.

Worship and Faith Formation this Fall – If you haven’t seen the video about our worship and faith formation format for this fall yet, check it out here. And if you missed Kathy’s article about this you can find it here.

Playscape Steppingstone Event – September 25 and October 2 – Families are invited to help make steppingstones. For more details and to register, click here.

College-bound youth and young adults! A network to connect with UUs wherever you are! Join Rev. Byron Tyler Coles & Rev. Stevie K Carmody Eama for an information session about the recently launched Bridging Youth Hospitality Network!

  • Wednesday, August 18th, 5pm ET
  • Thursday, September 2nd, 5pm ET
  • Thursday, October 7th, 7pm ET

Check the links below for Zoom registration and more information. Spread the survey to recently bridged youth and the communities that want to welcome them!

UCE Book Groups

UCE Fiction Book Group is reading My Favorite Thing is Monsters, Book 1, a graphic novel by Emil Ferris. Discussion meeting September 17, 7-8:30 pm via Zoom. 

Set against the tumultuous political backdrop of late ’60s Chicago, My Favorite Thing Is Monsters is the fictional graphic diary of 10-year-old Karen Reyes, filled with B-movie horror and pulp monster magazine iconography. Karen Reyes tries to solve the murder of her enigmatic upstairs neighbor, Anka Silverberg, a holocaust survivor, while the interconnected stories of those around her unfold. When Karen’s investigation takes us back to Anka’s life in Nazi Germany, the reader discovers how the personal, the political, the past, and the present converge.

The Nonfiction Book Group will meet via Zoom at 2 pm on Sunday, September 26th to discuss How the South Won the Civil War: Oligarchy, Democracy, and the Continuing Fight for the Soul of America.

The author, Heather Cox Richardson, writes about how the South was the ideological victor of the Civil War as expansion of the Western frontier allowed the hierarchies of the South to proliferate. The book has been called “a thought-provoking study of the centuries-spanning battle between oligarchy and equality in America.”

VirtUUal Faith Formation: August 27, 20212021-08-26T21:58:43+00:00

Update: Syrian Refugee Family: August 27, 2021

Five years ago, UCE sponsored a Syrian refugee family—the Haj Khalafs.  We learned recently that Fatoum (the mother) will welcome her sister Ghufran Bakir, to the U.S. on September 2 along with her three children Ryaan, 13; Hatty, 12; and Talib, 8.  Ghufran, was widowed in the war, and has spent the last eight years in a refugee camp in Turkey. They are delighted to be reunited.   

A few members of the congregation and the Immigrant Solidarity Team would like to help the new family.  Our goal is to raise $5000 (or more) that will help them pay their rent for 4 or more months. The settlement agency that works with them has a very limited budget for 2 months of rent. Ghufran will need to learn English and get a job so she can provide for her children. The young adult Haj Khalafs will try to help the family out, but their finances are quite limited. Any amount, large or small will help them 

To donate to the refugee family 

  1. Send a check made out to UCE to the church and write Refugee Family Fund in the memo line.   
  2. You can also go to the Web site and choose GIVE in the top line (donate here). Follow the directions and put the amount in the Refugee Family Fund box.   

After the family arrives, we’ll have a better idea of exactly what they’ll need outside of rent. The immediate need will be school clothes and supplies. They will no doubt need help learning English. We will keep you posted as to specific needs in the newsletter and on the UCE Facebook pages. 

Thank you in advance for your generosity. May it bring joy to you. Reach out to one of us with any questions (our email addresses are in Realm). 

By Jeanne Kerl and Jane Kenamore

Update: Syrian Refugee Family: August 27, 20212021-08-27T15:31:30+00:00

Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Evanston

1330 Ridge Ave
Evanston, IL 60201
Directions

(847) 864-1330
uce@ucevanston.org

UCE’s office hours:

Monday: CLOSED
Tuesday – Thursday: 10 AM – 4 PM
Friday: 10 AM – 1 PM
Saturday: CLOSED
Sunday: 10 AM – 2 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 Universalist Congregation 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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