The North Unitarian Universalist Congregation Newsletter September 2010 |
Page 2
September
News and Events!
“Orientation
to Our Congregation” Set
for Oct. 3 Sign up for the next “Orientation to our
Congregation” session Sunday, October 3, Coming of Age Program for Youth is Coming Soon! Coming
of Age is a
program, a passage, and a pilgrimage. It is the culmination of our Children’s
Religious Education ( Youth will meet
regularly with individual mentors who will help them explore and define their
own beliefs. Each youth works on the development of a personal faith
statement with Rev. Susan Ritchie, and is involved in creating the Coming of
Age worship service at the end of the year where they will present their
credos. In addition to requiring a
commitment to regular attendance for the Sunday morning class held during
usual Religious Education time, the youth will participate in one weekend
retreat, and one service project. See Rev. Ritchie,
Melinda Rosenberg, or Dick Leavy with any questions. Cost for the whole program (including
overnight and retreat) is $75/youth.
We need a commitment by Monday, Oct. 11 to make this program
work. Contact RevRitchie@aol.com to sign up. Brown
Bag Book Group Please join us on Tuesday, September
21 at Please
bring your suggestions for future books you’d like to read as a group to the
September 21 meeting Our small group continues to grow,
and we are having lively discussions each month. Remember, we meet the
third Tuesday of the month at For questions, please contact group
facilitator Ruth Rusk at ruthrusk@midohio.net . Happy Fall
Yoga Want to improve your health, your
mood, your flexibility? Come try us
out! Certified Yoga Instructor Abby Dorn
has returned to offer a 10-session class of yoga on Thursday nights through
October 28. Cost is just $8.00 per
drop-in class. Abby offers a blended style of hatha and vinyasa yoga with
modifications and options suitable for all levels of fitness and experience,
including beginners. No previous attendance or experience
is required--all are welcome to come (our class is attended by both males and
females). No need to purchase special
equipment to visit--a limited supply of mats and other aids are available to
use that night. Classes are sponsored by the NUUC
Adult RE & Enrichment Committee.
For questions and more info about the fall session, see the bulletin
board or contact Jeri Dill at the church office at 740-657-8081, ext. 1 or
Adult RE Committee member Ruth Rusk at ruthrusk@midohio.net. NUUC
is Going Green! Thanks
to the help of the Building and Grounds Committee, we will soon have the
opportunity to recycle glass, plastic (#1 & #2), aluminum, and
paper/cardboard. Please look for the correct bins to place the items to
be recycled. They will be located both in the kitchen and in Nielsen House. While
helping the planet, we may even be able to make money from recycling our pop
cans! Please contact Cathy Rodeheffer with any questions
(614-370-5202). September
Music Notes I hope you have enjoyed the small
ensembles that provided music for summer worship services. I was particularly delighted by the range
of selections from vocalists and instrumentalists. A special thank you goes out to the August
performers: Fred Kohn, Lauren Richards, Marty and Bob Keith, Daniel Mallett,
Barb Lubberger, Carolyn Gross, Darlene Tschudy, and Ruth Rusk. The NUUC Choir will return in full
voice on September 12, for Ingathering.
I am pleased to announce that we will be welcoming four new members to
our ensemble, bringing our number to 24.
Pretty soon, we won’t all be able to fit on the chancel. Music selections through Christmas have
been chosen to compliment the sermon topics.
Expect to hear old favorites and plenty of new music too. Choir members: folders of music are
available This will be my eighth year as music
director at NUUC, but it never ceases to be a fulfilling job. I love making
great music with truly talented and interesting people.
I’ll see you on Sunday! Marlene Metz Hartzler, Music Director “Women
of Spirit” Program NUUC's women's group, “Women of
Spirit,” continues a new program that might best be described as “Looking for
the Feminine Soul.” The program
consists of 10 sessions and meets every 6 weeks (session one began on June
27, but you can come whenever you like).
Meetings are from We will be reading these novels: The
Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd, The Temple of My Familiar by
Alice Walker, and/or The Kitchen God's Wife by Amy Tan. There also will be readings (provided) from
The Dance of the Dissident Daughter (Sue Monk Kidd), The Goddess in
the Gospels (Margaret Starbird), When God Was a Woman (Merlin
Stone), Toward a New Psychology of Women (Dr. Jean Baker Miller), and
the UU curriculum Rise Up and Call Her Name (Elizabeth Fisher). Men are welcome to attend
meetings. They may be interested in
“archetypes” or the bits of history that will be studied (see session
six). Women and men: come to as many
(or as few) sessions as you like. The remaining sessions: 3 (Sept. 19) Taking the Journey, part 2 Book
discussion: The Secret Life of Bees, with questions to consider 4 (Oct. 31) Doing Our Own Naming 5 (Dec. 12) Reflecting “The
Great Goddess,” inside, out 6 ( 7 (Mar. 6) Assessing the Hard Facts: What is
Still at Stake, part 1 Abuse
world wide, and why 8 (Apr. 17) Assessing, part 2 Book(s)
discussion: The Temple of My Familiar, The Kitchen God's
Wife, or other 9 (May 29) Backing Away from Power: Why is
That? The
importance of conflict 10 (July 10) Unlocking It Just
what have we “locked up”? The
“Water Blessing” Contact person: Marty Keith (740) 369-1919 or martykeith@verizon.net |
September Calendar
Preview: (N) = Nielsen
House (F) = Fellowship Hall (S) = Sanctuary September 2 7:00pm –
Yoga (F) September 4 10:30am –
Covenant Group (Highbanks Park shelter house) September 5 No Social
Action Committee Meeting due to holiday No
Children’s RE today September 9 7:00pm – Yoga
(F) September 12 Ingathering
(intergenerational service) Loose Change
Sunday (benefiting Fair Trade
Sales after service September 14 Worship
Committee Meeting September 16 7:00pm –
Yoga (F) September 18 9:00am –
Board Meeting (F) September 19 Children’s
RE classes begin (F & N) September 20 Sign-ups for
new Covenant Groups end September 21 Noon - Brown
Bag Books (F) September 22 October
newsletter submission deadline September 23 7:00pm –
Yoga (F) September 30 7:00pm – Yoga
(F) New
NUUC Covenant Groups Forming Two new covenant groups are now
forming and will start meeting in October.
One of these new groups will meet on a weekday morning each month and
the other new group will meet monthly on a weekday evening. A third existing covenant group still has
room for new members and meets in the morning on the first Saturday of each
month. So what is a covenant group? Covenant groups are small groups of 6-10
people that meet monthly and allow you to explore significant questions and
to experience community through deep, intentional listening. Covenant groups are not support groups. Nor are they intended to solve people’s
problems or to provide spiritual enlightenment. In covenant groups, people get to know each
other in a neighborly way, to feel in touch with each other's lives, and to
provide a context in which to think about and talk through "the big
questions." Covenant groups provide
a unique experience that differs from adult education, other groups, Sunday
services, or anything else you do at church.
The groups are open to NUUC members, non-members, visitors, and
friends. Covenant groups meet for 2 hours
monthly from October through June.
Each covenant group creates a covenant as a way they intend to be
together. Meetings have a discussion
topic, follow a simple format, and are guided by a facilitator. The format of the meetings helps
participants set aside daily distractions, reflect on their lives and
beliefs, and make meaningful connections with one another. Each meeting focuses on a different
topic, which leads to reflection on the deeper issues of who we are and what
gives our lives meaning. Here are the
planned topics to be discussed: (*
- Weekday morning & evening groups, ** - Saturday group through Dec.) Sorting Our Values * Pure Joy * Ethical Wills * What If God Was One of Us? * The Bucket List * Stages of Faith * Play’s the Thing * Where would you be without UU? Turning Points * Path of Forgiveness ** Failure ** Accomplishment ** Finding Our Boundaries ** Here is specific information about
each group: Weekday
Morning Covenant Group: o
Meeting Day & Time: To be
determined by group o
First Meeting: October o
Facilitator: John Rodeheffer
(740-369-9659, jrodeheffer@insight.rr.com ) Weekday
Evening Covenant Group: o
Meeting Day & Time: To be
determined by group o
First Meeting: October o
Facilitator: Bob Keith
(740-369-1919, bobkeith@frontier.com ) Saturday
Morning Covenant Group: o
Meeting Day & Time: Monthly
on 1st Sat. at o
Next Meeting: Sat. September 4
at o
Meeting Location: Highbanks
Metro Park on US 23 north of I-270.
The group will meet at the first shelter area on the left after
entering the park. The topic will be
"Path of Forgiveness" and will be led by Melinda Rosenberg. In case of rain, the group will meet at the
Panera Bread store north of the park on US Rt. 23 in o
Facilitator: Dick Leavy
(614-890-7319, rckleavy@sbcglobal.net ) If you have general questions or
other comments about covenant groups, please send a note to Rev. Susan
Ritchie at RevRitche@aol.com. The sign-up for the newly forming
covenant groups is by September 20. To
sign up for a covenant group or to ask questions, just contact the group’s
facilitator. Also watch for the
covenant group brochure, which will provide more information about the
covenant groups, including a description of each meeting topic. Reminder:
Renew your Kroger Plus Cards NUUC
recently received $167.34, thanks to your registering your Plus card with the
Community Rewards program and designating NUUC as your recipient. Thank you!
Individual participation must be renewed annually, so be sure you have
updated your record. Go to http://www.kroger.com and select Kroger Community Rewards at the bottom
of the page. You’ll need your account
information or your Plus card number to complete the registration. It is a little cumbersome, but the sooner
you do it the sooner your purchases start counting toward another nice
donation from Kroger. (Should you need
it, our NUUC Nonprofit Organization Number is 84869). Fair Trade Sales Resume Fair Trade Sales of coffee, tea and chocolates will resume on Sunday,
September 12 after service (typically held the second Sunday of the
month). Your purchase of fair trade coffee, tea and chocolate supports
economic justice in coffee-growing communities. See new coordinators
Brandy & Paul Montgomery for more info (brandy.montgomery@gmail.com ) Delaware
County Community Market The Delaware Country Community Market
is a fascinating new venture in downtown NUUC
Directory The Summer update to the NUUC
Directory of Members and Friends was disseminated via e-mail just before
Memorial Day. Additional updates will be
sent out as new information warrants (next update about October or more often
if needed.) Please notify Jeri Dill in
the church office if your address, phone, or e-mail information needs
updating. If you ever need a re-send of the
directory, or you have no means to print out a copy of the directory and/or
just wish to have a paper copy, kindly let Jeri know at nuucjdill@aol.com or 740-657-8081, ext. 1, noting whether you are
able to pick it up at church (to save postage) or you need it mailed to you. |