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The monthly newsletter of the
Unitarian Universalist Church of Tucson
4831 E. 22nd Street, Tucson, AZ 85711, 520-748-1551, www.uuctucson.org.
To view previous editions of the newsletter, click here.
Newsletter editor: Craig Rock at newsletter@uuctucson.org.
Send us your UU stories, poems and photos.
Navigating this 4-page newsletter: Link onto the desired page at the top or bottom of each page.
District Assembly 2017
by Reverend Lyn Oglesby
UUs from around the Southwest marched to Sunday Service
along the border wall in Nogales, Arizona, on April 2.)
More photos on page 4.
What an exciting time! Our Pacific Southwest Regional District Assembly (DA) began March 31. UUCT and the other Baja 4 congregations (Mountain Vista, Green Valley/Amado, and Sky Island) hosted about 250 participants and visitors, with programs, trips and services at the border, along with discussions about immigration rights and social justice for immigrants. All very exciting and interesting.
Many of you contributed to the success of this important DA by opening your homes to guests from other congregations and other cities. Thank you! A special shout-out to Carolyn Saunders, who worked tirelessly and with great charm to ensure that everybody had a place to sleep and all the meeting, transportation and food details were cared for. We had a terrific weekend. Also, a special thanks to the Worship Associates who put on our regular Sunday Worship service while many of us were worshiping at the Border. And thanks to Larry Newhouse, Byron Skinner, Margot Garcia and other “tekkies” and sound experts who made sure that many DA events were streamed to our Baja Four congregations so that we all could see and hear the same thing at the same time. That is all remarkable. And special thanks to Margo Newhouse and her kitchen crew! Thank you all.
We are more powerful when we work together! Let’s keep up our good social justice work and cooperate.
Jose Antonio Elena Rodriguez was killed by a Border Patrol Agent after allegedly throwing stones at the agent. The agent's trial for murder is schedule to start in June, more than five years after the shooting. Rodriguez, 16 years old, was shot at least eight times.
(Photo is a handout posted on the U.S. side of the border wall in Nogales.)
To read a recent Los Angeles Times story about the shooting and upcoming trial, click here.
Quote of the Day - from Rebecca Solnit's
Mother of all Questions
"The task of calling things by their true names, of telling the truth to the best of our abilities, of knowing how we got here, of listening particularly to those who have been silenced in the past, of seeing how the myriad stories fit together and break apart, of using any privilege we may have been handed to undo privilege.... It's how we make the world."
Newsletter Contents
Page 1 - District Assembly, New Minister Search, Exploring Religious Education at UUCT, by Sam Meyer.
Page 2 - Wrapping up the Stewardship Campaign, Finance Committee Report, Desert Art Museum, Announcements, including Pagan Service and Film, Gender Revolution.
Page 3 - Save the National Endowment for the Arts, Social Justice Digest, and the campaign to provide Tucson ID Cards.
Page 4 - Earth Month Events, including Green Sanctuary Movement at UUCT, Katherine Hayhoe Talk, Earth Day March for Science, and People's Climate March. Revive Civility Tucson Event, Updates from No More Deaths, and More Photos from the District Assembly.
The Search for a New Minister
by Frank Valdes (UUCT President)
I'd like to share an example of how we (the Board, the Transtion Team, the Interim Minister, and our regional and national denomination) are all working together and listening to each other in our path to a new minister.
A few people talked to the president, that would be me, about whether there were other options for our next ministry that should be considered. When Rev. Anne Hines, our transition guide from the Pacific Western Region (PWR) of the UUA, came to Tucson to meet with the leaders and congregation about the steps for a settled minister search, we put that question to her and ourselves. The Board, Transition Team, and Rev. Lyn reflected on the options and what would be best for our congregation. We had a variety of opinions and questions. Rev. Anne gave us information and also pointed us to the PWR and UUA transition teams for questions she did not have the answer to. The Reverends Sarah Milspaugh (who met with us earlier at a workshop) and Keith Kron (the UUA ministerial transitions leader who also worked with us in finding our interim minister) responded by email and phone.
The part that I was particularly pleased with that demonstrated working together was that, despite the diversity of opinions, we all sought to achieve a consensus. The Transition Team, Rev. Lyn, and the Board all reached the conclusion that, of all the options, we should search for a settled minister. The Board authorized this search and also a process for forming a Search Committee.
In this process we will talk with as many congregation members as we can reach to ask, “Whom do you trust and would recommend for the Search Committee?" The Board members, who will not be considered for the Committee by virtue of their positions, will be conducting this survey. Based on the most frequently recommended people, the Board will bring to the congregation a list to vote on.
This is, of course, not the end of the process. The congregation will be consulted along the way, as appropriate, leading to a congregational candidate introduction and finally a "vote to call" the minister. If you have any questions about the process please ask your Board, Interim Minister, and Transition Team. This is an open and thoughtful process.
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Important Church Meetings This Month
Come to the Call to the Congregation for the latest news from your leaders, to ask questions, and to discuss any matters of concern. The meeting will take place April 9 at 12:10pm in Holland.
Make plans to attend the Annual Meeting of UUCT on Sunday, April 30th from 12:15pm to 2pm. The agenda and official call will be forthcoming. Attend the Call to the Congregation and Budget Information Forum to be prepared.
Exploring Our Religious Education Program
by Sam Meyer (Team Leader)
The Unitarian Universalist Church of Tucson is an active and vibrant community. Here are just some of the things that the RE (Religious Exploration) Council and the Interim Director of Religious Exploration, Sam Meyer, have going on.
What is a DRE? A DRE is a Director of Religious Education. Sam Meyer is currently serving as Interim DRE and her term will expire on June 30. Rev. Lyn, Sam, Board of Trustees President Frank Valdes, and others have been hard at work writing a job description and defining the most important tasks of RE and how to accomplish them in 15 hours per week. It is not easy and could not be done without the MANY, MANY volunteers who help. It also could not be done without the congregation, whose pledges allow us to plan and budget for the future. THANK YOU! Leadership is working on a job posting which will be announced in the near future. If you have questions or comments, please talk to Sam, Rev. Lyn, or Frank. We would all love to hear your opinions.
Church Picnic! A committee has been formed to explore an early summer (May) church picnic to conclude the teaching year. Classes will continue all summer, but as families and teachers take their vacations the makeup of the classes will change. If you can grill, host games, make decorations, or plan activities, please contact Sam at sammeyer13@gmail and she will put you in touch with the right people.
Fall Retreat. Rev. Lyn is planning what sounds like an amazing retreat. If you want more information please contact Sam or her for details.
Whoooo is OWL? OWL stands for Our Whole Lives and is a course to explore our sexuality at different ages from Kindergarten to Mature Adults. UUCT is blessed to have its current program,
which teaches K-1, grades 4-6, grades 7-9, and grades 10-12 on a cyclical basis. We would like to recognize both Natasha Warner (nwarner@u.arizona.edu) and Melissa Brosanders (mbrosanders@live.com) for being co-facilitators. Sam Meyer will start facilitating the Young Adult Program in July as our congregation looks to expand our welcome to both young adults and families.
OWL facilitator training will be held for Young Adults at UUCT in mid-August. OWL facilitator training will be held somewhere in Arizona for grades 7-9 and 10-12 sometime this summer or fall. Several congregations, the District, and UUCT are working together to firm up these plans. Facilitator training is an intensive 22+-hour training done from Friday afternoon to Sunday afternoon. If you would like to join our team or reserve a place in the training workshop, please contact Sam or Natasha ASAP.
Volunteer Recognition. This month we would like to recognize new member Jodi Bergedick, who has become a huge help to the RE department. She currently teaches YRUU every other week, will be teaching Young Adult OWL in the fall, and has volunteered to help with the Safety Committee and picnic among other things. She has great ideas about integrating our Young Religious UUs into the congregation and has fascinating stories about Big Bird. Say “Hi” and “Thank You” if you happen to see her at coffee hour!
EASTER. Please donate candy for the annual children’s Easter Egg Hunt. There will be no RE class April 16. If you would like to help with the Easter Egg Hunt, please contact Sam! We will need some supervising parents and older kids who can help hide eggs before 10:30 on April 16.
RE Council. The RE COUNCIL is looking for members who can make a commitment to attend seven meetings per year after the church service during the 2017-2018 school year. We need help with curriculum, adult classes, summer classes, parties, social media, website editing, as well as publications, bulletin board management, and special events like the Easter Egg Hunt. If you do not want to teach RE but have a child in the RE program, this is a great way to volunteer based on your interests and other time commitments. We all lead busy lives, but RE cannot happen without YOU!
Safety Committee. As part of our ministerial transition, a Safety Committee is being formed. We are looking for one parent or RE teacher to be on the committee to help deal with the many issues surrounding safety and children. Please contact Rev. Lyn for more information!!
TEchN*c@L DIFFicu/#ies. Every week Sam sends out an “RE Parent Email Blast.” If you do not receive this and would like to, email Sam. THANKS!
Have a great month everyone! Contact info: Phone: 520-561-6936. Email: sammeyer13@gmail, FAX: 520-561-6026.