The Serendipity Auction is often called the “social highlight of the church calendar.” If you’ve never been to this spectacular event you may be wondering why.

On November 11th, the sanctuary will be transformed into an elegant auction hall. Some members will dress up, but it’s not required.

Get to know someone new over a delicious dinner (there will be gluten-free and vegetarian options). Then walk around the silent auction tables and make some bids. Be sure you return to your desired items frequently to make sure you haven’t been outbid. There are items at every price point and for every interest. Bid on a gift basket, a gathering at someone’s home, gift cards to your favorite restaurant, or beautiful handmade jewelry. You will be amazed by all the options.

After the silent auction closes, the live auction will begin. This year we have a brand new auctioneer/magician. Before the live auction starts, make a game plan for what to bid on with the printed catalog. Each item will be announced and then watch as your fellow members and friends one up each other until the winning bid is made. Don’t hesitate to hold up your number when the item speaks to you. You don’t want to miss out when it’s going, going, gone.  The live auction is full of excitement and laughter.

After the live auction there will be a raffle for some truly magnificent prizes. Maybe it will be your lucky night.

If you are still on the fence, give it a shot. It’s a great evening out—good dinner, conversation, child care, all for a good cause. You won’t regret it.

Click here to make your dinner reservation and reserve free childcare.

Click here to view the auction catalog.

We’re getting closer to the groundbreaking for lower level access (LULA).  Although it has taken some time to move through the process of providing access beyond a traditional lift, we are making it a reality. As you have seen from the printed materials in the lobby, this LULA will provide easy access to the lower level. The LULA looks like an elevator, has an easy one-touch button, and faster transport than a traditional lift.

To date, we have passed the first of two reviews by the City of Evanston. The first step was zoning followed immediately by our application for Preservation Council approval which was administratively approved, we are advised as of yesterday. Our architect is now submitting drawings for the final step… the building permit. These additional steps were needed when we decided to move forward with the LULA and a different access location, which required a 4 foot bump-out into the space beyond the storage room.

Ultimately the improved unit and access point will make the extra time and expense worth it as the LULA from the lobby by the bathrooms will provide universal access. Upon completion an individual can walk or wheel up the ramp outside, enter the west doors, and move into the LULA at the corner of the coat racks and be transported into the tunnel in the lower level.

Over the next few weeks staff will be moving items out of the large storage room into the walkway outside the storage room wall. We will be inconvenienced for a period of time with storage in the area outside the large storage room.

We are applying for the permit on Monday morning which we are told will take from 2-4 weeks.  Our goal for groundbreaking is mid-late October.

The architectural and construction engineer are meeting to develop a detailed timeline for us with the many moving parts of construction outlined in a way that will be helpful for us to follow and plan around.

Please contact me with questions you may have.

Sandra Robinson
Executive Operations Director

We will be collecting diapers at UCE to ship to the Texas Diaper Bank, which is distributing diaper kits to hurricane evacuees. Relief organizations in Texas are assisting thousands of evacuees with food, water and shelter, but don’t always provide diapers. We will send both diapers for babies and young children, as well as for seniors with incontinence. Please bring your donations to church, starting this Sunday, September 3rd, through Sunday September 10th. If you have questions, contact Heather Brown at heathermbrown1970@sbcglobal.net

A week in July in Decorah, Iowa. Summer camp for Susan Comstock and Eliza Khan-Roberts? Not quite. Susan and Eliza attended the UU Midwest Leadership School, a program which develops leadership tools and skills in the context of UU identity and congregational involvement.

Susan described her week as a “transformational” experience which centers on the individual, not the congregation. She was cautioned not to return to her religious community and say “I know it all.”

Eliza, a high school sophomore and member of the senior high group, compared her experience to a “week-long CON, more about learning, but still lots of fun.”

Each day was tightly scheduled starting with a 7 a.m. breakfast and ending with after-dinner worship. Throughout the week, in small group sessions, participants tackled difficult “situations” by discussing leadership options. Situations highlighted issues such as conflict, difficult people, change and mission.

In another daily activity, groups, combining adults and youth, wrote credos and developed worship services. Each day ended with the entire school taking part in one of the services which had been created. Susan mentioned that the youth had a much easier time with this creative exercise than many adults.

Susan learned that UCE is ahead of many congregations with policies in place which deal with personal conflicts, welcoming and steps to membership.

Both UCE participants enjoyed their week of sharing and learning with other UU’s, always a winning and worthwhile combination, especially in the middle of summer.

UCE Staff and the Accessibility and Inclusion Team have been working with an architect on plans for a lower level lift. This project has a time priority because the existing stair lift has deteriorated and cannot be repaired. Also, we want to replace it with a lift that does not obstruct the stairway. The main trade-offs appear to be:

1) Location: The lift shaft will be located at the back of the storage room. Two access routes have been determined. The shortest walking distance and least congestion can be had by going thru the Annex wall at the base of the interior ramp. Access from the Sanctuary level entails walking twice the distance and traversing an often congested ramp and sanctuary lobby. Blue and green tape will be temporarily placed on the lobby floor to show these walking paths.

2) Ease of use: A Limited Use/Limited Access lift (LULA) has all the conveniences of an enclosed hydraulic elevator, complies with Universal Access design, but cannot handle heavy loads. It needs a substantial foundation, a tall shaft, and a separate machine room. A Vertical Platform Lift(VPL) has served UCE’s “loft” offices since 2002 with no maintenance cost. A VPL is slow, only half enclosed, and limited to mobility impaired persons. It requires continual pressure on a safety switch for activation. Both of these options feature a 42” x 60” platform. Further information on these lifts is available at the Lower Level Access display in the UCE lobby.

3) Cost: After many attempts, i.e. Studies A thru E, we have agreed on three main options. These vary in cost from $124,000 to $157,000. Currently $127,000 has been pledged. Drawings of the Study F and Study G options are shown in the UCE display. Study B (a fallback) and Study H are variants of F and G. They do not need a machine room and substitute a VPL for the LULA at the same location.

Study F: LULA with access thru the glass-block wall near the Sanctuary entrance. $138,869.
Study B: VPL variant of Study F. $92,139
Study G: LULA with access thru the Annex wall at the base of the interior ramp. $156,924.
Study H: VPL variant of Study G. $124,050.

The A&I Team is seeking your pledge, by June 20th, to pay for one of these options. Pledge online by clicking here. Pledge cards are also available at the UCE display or you can mail this form to UCE, attention Carli Magel. If we cannot achieve any of the three more expensive goals by June 20th, none of the pledges will be collected and construction will begin using the Study B design. Ribbon cutting is projected to take place in September and all pledges must be paid by then.

The search committee charged with hiring a Director of Religious Education (DRE) consists of seven members: Bret Lortie and Ann Gadzikowski (co-chairs), Rachelle Brooks, Sandy McNabb, George Monical, Winnie Stevenson, and Jessica Tomell-Presto. This DRE role a new position at UCE, in some ways similar to the position of Congregational Life Minister held by Connie Grant, but different in other ways. For example, the DRE is a staff position, reporting directly to the Senior Minister, not the Board of Trustees. The DRE will not deliver pastoral care and other duties typically performed by a called minister. The primary responsibility and focus of the DRE is to develop and manage the religious education programming for children, youth, and adults.

The search committee has employed several strategies to gather information and feedback from the congregation to inform our search, such as surveys and listening sessions. Both strategies yielded significant input from participants in adult education at UCE. One challenge of this process is engaging parents of children and youth – most are too busy to participate in activities such as listening sessions. To counter that challenge, we made sure that the individuals recruited to serve on the search committee all had direct experience as parents and volunteers in the programs serving children and youth.

Several priorities have emerged from our listening process. Two of the primary messages we are hearing from the congregation are (1) that we should make every effort to use this opening as an opportunity to add diversity to UCE leadership and (2) that the DRE should be someone with high energy and enthusiasm, ready to develop new, engaging religious education programs for all ages, from young children to adults.

The initial timeline for our search was ambitious – we hoped to have a new DRE in place by August 1, someone who would come in as an Acting DRE and, if successful in the role, would move into a permanent role after a year. However, since the initial job posting in April, we have not yet received a broad pool of applicants with the level of experience and credentials we require. The DRE search committee is now moving into a new timeline that includes hiring an interim DRE who will fill the role temporarily for 6 to 12 months until we can find the right person for the permanent job. We are now preparing to interview several candidates for this interim role and we plan to have an interim DRE in place by the end of the summer. We will continue to keep the congregation informed of our progress.

Ann Gadzikowski

DRE Search Committee

The Pledge Drive began with great excitement and great momentum from Early Bird pledgers. By now, you have seen Reverend Bret’s video telling us what we can do together.

By now, you should have received your pledge information in the mail and a Visiting Steward has probably made contact with you. It is vitally important that you share with your Visiting Steward what is important to you about UCE and the work we do. The VS wants to understand what you love about UCE, what your goals are for our future, and what you might suggest to improve your experience. And if you haven’t heard from a VS, please take advantage of signing up for a steward meeting on Pledge Day (Sunday, March 19) itself so you can share your perspectives.

As Bret said in the video, “In time like these, our impact is needed more than ever.” Not only do we want to grow spiritually and intellectually, we also want to impact positively our lives and the lives of others, to inspire others and ourselves, and to support ourselves and our mission.

In the video, Bret concludes with these words, “For me, church is a modern miracle. It is a miracle that each year so many people pool their generosity to make UCE happen. Together We Can continue to connect to our community. Together We Can position our staff to facilitate the ministry you’ve asked for. Together We Can continue to support UCE so we can support your lives and the lives of so many in our community. Yeah…Together We Can.”

Several hundred gathered at the Unitarian Church of Evanston on Monday, February 27 to hear Rep. Robyn Gabel, State Sen. Dan Biss, State Rep. Laura Fine and panelists from the ACLU and Planned Parenthood.

“Protecting our Civic Liberties” provided an opportunity to learn about the biggest concerns, challenges and threats to civil liberties and what citizens can do to protect rights.

The recording of the event is broken into two parts. You can listen by clicking on the files below.

Part 1 – Protecting our Civic Liberties – Part 1

Part 2 – Protecting our Civic Liberties – Part 2

Dear Friends,

I am so honored and grateful for your affirmations, congratulations and your unanimous vote this past Sunday to ordain me into Unitarian Universalist Ministry. I don’t remember ever feeling more held in love and I am humbled by your generosity and kindness. The ordination will be Sunday, June 4th at 4pm. More formal invitations will be sent out soon but I hope you will save the date to join me for this meaningful celebration. Some of you have asked for the written version of the comments I made on Sunday after the vote. I may have strayed from this a bit but, in essence, this is what I said and very much what I feel:

“Almost twelve years ago, I spoke in front of this congregation for the first time at the behest of our former minister, Rev. Pescan. If I remember correctly, the directive was something along the lines of, “say something pithy about how this church transforms your life.” I had no idea at the time just how much transformation was to come. I found that short speech I gave twelve years ago and is some of what I said:

My name is Eileen Wiviott and I am a new member of the Religious Education Board. Some of you have heard me say, because it is often something I repeat, that I am not a natural born leader. Tell me what needs to be done and I’ll do it but say the word “chair” or “lead” and I try to sit as still as I can and blend in with the background. As the youngest of five with only older brothers, I was never looked upon to inspire the dog let alone to inspire a vision. But low and behold there I was with some of the leaders of our church yesterday at the Connections Convocation to discuss our Mission and Vision. It was there that I realized that sometimes leadership happens just by nodding your head. This is why I am standing here. When Barbara asked who would be willing to share with the congregation a few tidbits about our meeting, I, who thought that was a great idea, was nodding my head in spite of myself. This is essentially how I have found my way into involvement here at UCE. When someone asks, I say, “yes.” I figure if they think I can do it then I must be able to. I often feel overwhelmed and under-qualified but I keep my ears and mind open and continue to ask, “What can I do?” Sometimes leadership happens just by following the leaders.

We broke into groups of two to discuss what brought us here and at what moment did it feel like home. I literally wandered into this church looking for something I hadn’t even put words to and it immediately felt like home. That feeling of belonging has deepened the more I have gotten involved and the more I have been able to meet the needs of my spirit.

There is a beautiful balance here between the nourishing roots of tradition and the spreading branches of openness. I like that I feel grounded and safe in this community at the same time that I am pushing my own comfort zone and reaching out to help others. I love that I have found peace as well as energy here. As I become more involved this year, I am looking forward to getting to know more of you. I hope you will all bear witness as I uncover the hidden leader inside me.

“My friends, my beloved community, my spiritual home, you have not only witnessed as I have emerged as a leader, but you have called me, nurtured me, loved me into being who I am. Each person in this room, and many who are not here in body but will remain forever with me in spirit, have and continue to transform my life.”

I am so excited to share in the celebration of my ministry with you on June 4th at 4pm. Your love and encouragement has made all the difference in my life. Thank you.