01/05 “The Transient and the Permanent”
Rev. Howell K. Lind, Developmental Minister
01/12 “Finding Each Other Amongst the Ones and Zeros”
Rev. Jeremy Nickel, Minister of the Mission Peak Unitarian Universalist Congregation
01/19 “Give A Little Bit”
Amy Rowland, Assistant Minister
01/26 “Faith Is The Foundation”
Rev. Howell K. Lind, Developmental Minister
Let’s Take Flight: Help UUCB Soar- 2014 Silent Auction is coming Feb 9 and 23rd after church in the Sky Room. This year we are going high tech and you will be able to bid, donate and view the catalog online as well as get your statements via email. Bidding will be open for about a week before each auction date, and you can then see what price items are at in person at the silent auction. Final bidding will close at 12:30 on Feb. 23rd. Bid high, and bid often. Questions? Contact Diana King or Lisa Hughes or stop by our table after church starting Jan 5. If you bring your own wifi device any Sunday in January to the auction table we can help you with the donation process.
There With care is honored to receive the Unitarian Universalist Church of Boulder’s Share-Our-Plate contribution for the month of January, 2014! There With Care’s mission is to provide a wide range of thoughtful and fundamental services to children and families during the critical phase of a medical crisis. They serve families referred by medical agencies, by building a network of services and people who ease the burden of life’s day-to-day obligations with compassion and care. There With Care families receive services during the critical phase of a medical crisis. The timeframe for services is unique to the circumstances of each individual family and is determined by the Program Coordinators and the medical Social Workers. When a patient is transitioned into maintenance or has moved from the critical phase of their treatments, the family is transitioned from services. This allows services to be moved to other families going through a medical crisis.
The Endowment Committee is accepting grant proposals through Friday Jan. 31, 2014 for the UUCB church year of 2014-2015. Proposals will be evaluated by the Endowment Trustees, with their recommendations for funding reviewed by the UUCB Board.Grants will be announced in May, with funds to be used in the church’s new fiscal year (starting 7/01/2014).
The Endowment Committee invites you to apply for a grant in support of a meaningful project.
The Endowment Fund has been created with donations from UUCB members and friends. In the past church year, the Endowment has contributed over $14,000 to projects not covered in the UUCB Annual Budget. Per our charter, approximately 75% of this money goes to Building and Grounds-related Projects, with the remaining 25% to Social Justice and Community Outreach projects.
* Building and Grounds Projects have included grants for solar panels, new playground and energy upgrades.
* Social Justice and Community Outreach Projects have included grants for the Sunday Forum Program, PRISM, development of new UU congregations, etc.
For more information about the Endowment Fund, or on how to submit a proposal, please contact the Church Administrator or a committee trustee (Peter Holt, Eileen Sammells or Bill Belew). Proposal forms are available at the church office.
Many contributors to the Endowment Fund have had the pleasure of seeing programs and improvements that were made possible only due to their generous gifts.
A personal contributions statement will be sent out to each UUCB Pledge Member in mid-January. Thanks to everyone for their thoughtful giving. This process is consistent with year accounting and previous year-end statements. What is different, this year, is that each mailing will include 2 statements along with a giving total. This is necessary because during 2013 we changed midway through the year to a different (improved accounting) system. Your giving reflects the total of these two.
Interested in learning more about Unitarian Universalism or about the process of becoming a member of the Unitarian Universalist Church of Boulder?
There will be a two session Path to Membership class, from 12:00 pm until 1:30 pm, on Sunday, January 19th and Sunday, January 26th.
For those who, after participating in this Path to Membership class and wish to formally join our religious community, there will be a Welcoming of New Members at the 10:30 am Worship Service on February 2nd.
Attending this class does not commit one to joining the church, but it is an opportunity for those who want to know about UUCB and Unitarian Universalism to then make the decision of whether or not to formally affiliate with UUCB. A sign up sheet for those interested in attending will be at the church office in the weeks preceding the first class on January 19th. If childcare is needed so that you might attend these Path to Membership sessions, please let the church office know so that child care can be provided.
The Path to Membership sessions are a great way to learn more about Unitarian Universalism and to better understand what our church in Boulder is working to accomplish in the lives of our members and in the larger community.
Many thanks to Shirley Bulla who, while going through all of Bill’s files, collected all the newsletters, service bulletins, and other assorted mailings they had received from the church over the years and donated them to our Archives. We’ve been able to fill in many of the gaps in our records thanks to Bill’s saving habits. Mary Jean Ewing has also recently gone through her old files and found several documents that will be warmly welcomed into our collection! Tessa and Ginny encourage everyone not to throw out old church documents before checking with us to see if we could use them.
***50 YEARS AGO January 1964. The Reverend Philip Pennington preached at the church on the first two Sundays in January, 1964 and was subsequently called to be the Unitarian Church of Boulder’s (as we were then called) 2nd called minister at a full-time salary of $8200! He was the first minister in the almost-completed church building on Pennsylvania Avenue which had held its first services there on Christmas Eve the month before.
***25 YEARS AGO January 1989. Topic for the January 8 service at UUCB was “Humanism and the Problem of Evil” with Professor Darryl Mehring from Regis University. On January 15, UUCB’s minister, Dr. Forrest Whitman spoke about “M.L.King Jr.: The Warrior.” On January 29, after the service, the congregation held its Annual Well Blessing Ceremony before their Congregational Meeting and potluck. The church operated on the calendar year at that time, and besides electing officers and approving the budget at the meeting, the congregation also discussed the possibility of changing the church’s mission and discussing program ideas to support it.
***COMING UP THIS WINTER... Have you ever wondered about the story behind the copper doors outside Howell’s office, or the stained glass window in the sanctuary? Or what the church was like in the 60’s, or 80’s or 00’s? If so, plan to attend a 3-session class this winter when Tessa Davis will lead an Adult RE class that will give you the answers to these questions and more that you may have about UUCB’s past and our building’s art treasures.
Tessa Davis
January 5, 2014 at 12:15 in the Earth Room
The congregation is being asked to vote on the ordination of Amy Rowland, our Assistant Minister.
Resolution Recommended by the Board for Congregational Approval
Whereas Ms. Amy Rowland has successfully met all of the credentialing requirements to be a Unitarian Universalist minister by the Ministerial Fellowship Committee of the Unitarian Universalist Association, we, the congregation of the Unitarian Universalist Church of Boulder, in concert with the right and privilege of our faith’s congregational polity, desire to ordain Ms. Amy Rowland to the Unitarian Universalist ministry.
One of the distinct privileges and responsibilities of our Unitarian Universalist polity (“polity” is the term for a governance structure) is in the privilege of congregations to ordain individuals into the Unitarian Universalist ministry. Once a prospective candidate for the Unitarian Universalist ministry has met the specific credentialing requirements set by the UUA’s Ministerial Fellowship Committee (MFC), a congregation can then decide to ordain an individual as a Unitarian Universalist minister.
During this 2013-2014 church program year, Amy Rowland has served half-time as UUCB’s Ministerial Resident. With her successful completion of her appointment with the MFC in early December, Amy’s position title at UUCB has changed to being an Assistant Minister. Amy’s work this year focuses on helping our Small Group Ministry thrive and prosper, connecting UUCB closer to our partners in the Boulder community in our justice and outreach efforts, and working to strengthen and expand UUCB’s All Church Social Change efforts. In April, Amy will serve as UUCB’s Chaplain on our church’s BorderLinks trip. This BorderLinks trip will focus on the pressing issues of immigration as UUCB members travel to the United States – Mexico border and see, firsthand, what needs to be done to help alter and change our country’s de-humanizing and broken immigration system.
Amy has previously served as the President of the Columbine Unitarian Universalist Church, did her ministerial internship at First Universalist Church of Denver, and was the Mountain Desert District Consulting Minister to the Two Rivers Unitarian Universalist congregation before accepting the Ministerial Resident position (now, Assistant Minister) here at Boulder.
At the December Board of Trustees’ meeting, the request was made that the Unitarian Universalist Church of Boulder ordain Amy as a Unitarian Universalist minister. Though Amy serves UUCB in a half time position, her influence and work has made a “full time” difference in the programs for which she is responsible for here at UUCB. The Board of Trustees has called for a Special Congregational Meeting on January 5th, to affirm the Board’s recommendation that UUCB ordain Amy Rowland to the Unitarian Universalist ministry. It is a privilege and an honor for our congregation to take this step.
As our congregation has grown in its programs and membership, we have also become more active in our local Boulder Denver Cluster of Unitarian Universalist Congregations and are benefitting from our Cluster’s efforts to be more focused on our congregations’ shared efforts in creating Beloved Community. In February our church will be participating, along with the other Unitarian Universalist congregations, in the ordination of Kierstin Homblette, the Beloved Community Coordinator for the Boulder Denver Cluster. Kierstin has become an Affiliated Community Minister with our Boulder Church as well as an Affiliated Community Minister with the other churches in our area – all in an effort to keep our congregations better aware and informed on the legislative and social concerns that affect us all. From time to time, Kierstin will have information to share in our newsletter, the Clear Light Messenger, as well as on our UUCB website.
Taking part in the ordination process and the ministry of these two fine new Unitarian Universalist ministers is a positive way that our Boulder congregation is helping to insure our faith’s liberal religious future as well as the strong future of Unitarian Universalist ministry.
Howell
I’m very happy to be writing this article with a new title, as I am now the “Assistant Minister” at UUCB. The job description is the same, but my professional status has changed. In early December I met with the UUA Ministerial Fellowship Committee in Boston and was welcomed into fellowship as a Unitarian Universalist minister. It’s exciting news and I’m grateful to be in this community and share this with you!
In recent months I’ve been working with the Young Adults on the LGBTQIA* All Church Social Change project. I look forward to seeing many of you in January as the Young Adults host an afternoon program “Transgender Identities,” Sunday, January 19th, 12:30-2PM. This promises to be engaging, informative, and spirited. It wasn’t so long ago that it was possible in this culture to comfortably ignore sexuality and gender expression. Today, in our Unitarian Universalist faith tradition, we are engaged in conversations about inclusion, visibility, and relationship. Now we ask ourselves and others, what does it mean to be *Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer/Questioning, Intersex, or an Ally? All are welcome and encouraged to be part of this conversation on transgender identities. Registration details can be found in the Midweek Messenger and on Facebook.
In another programming note – the small group ministry for the winter will be starting in late January, early February. Look for notices in the Midweek Messenger for sign ups. There will also be a new small group offering, beginning in February. This new group will be a ‘mini’ group, meeting just 3 times. These mini groups are especially good for newcomers to the congregation or to Unitarian Universalism. The three sessions will focus on the ministries of our congregation, specifically “Living Well,” “Deepening Faith,” and “Enacting Justice.” Dates and sign ups will be listed in the Midweek Messenger.
See you in church!
Amy
UUCB President Whitney Wheeless
Over Thanksgiving, we headed to the San Francisco Bay Area to spend the week with family. Jim and I had the opportunity to visit our aspiring congregation in the Leap of Faith program—Mission Peaks Unitarian Universalist Congregation in Fremont, California. [Background information on the Leap of Faith program is found at the end of this message.] The Sunday we visited happened to be the kick-off for Leap of Faith program. Rev. Howell Lind was visiting them for a long weekend and they held workshops all day Saturday.
Sunday was the formal kick-off for the congregation. Howell gave the sermon and helped lead the worship service. Having not been to many other UU churches since discovering our faith, I enjoyed seeing other traditions and a different kind of worship. During the service, the congregation presented our congregation (via Howell) a lovely banner matching the one hung in their church. The banner highlights our two congregations and the Leap of Faith program. After the service, Jim, Howell and I went to lunch with their minister (Rev. Jeremy Nickel) and some members of their Leap of Faith team. We provided feedback on their hospitality and service, especially coming in as strangers, and talked about their upcoming congregational meeting.
From our visit, it is clear that Mission Peaks has an enthusiastic and dedicated congregation. They have lots of ideas and are looking forward to learning from us as the mentoring congregation. We are specifically helping them in areas of leadership, membership and hospitality, climate change ministry, committee on ministry, governance structure, and mindful meetings. They are currently trying to gain congregational approval for a Special Fund to enable the congregation to engage in a congregation-wide environmental outreach project.
As part of the Leap of Faith program, the Mission Peaks team will be traveling to UUCB from January 10-12 to meet with members of our congregation and our Leap of Faith team (Howell Lind, Caitlin Moore, Barb Richards, and Amy Rowland). We will hold meetings on Saturday afternoon, host a potluck Saturday night, and have more conversations on Sunday. The goal is to continue to address questions they have and to help them move forward with their goals. If you are at church that Sunday, please welcome them!
Here’s some basic information on the Pacific West Regional Leap of Faith program (from a program handout). There are 16 aspiring and mentoring congregations participating in this year’s program.
What is Leap of Faith?
Leap of Faith is a one‐year experience that pairs a healthy congregation aspiring to grow with a healthy congregation that is growing. Together they focus on breaking through the barriers hampering the aspiring congregation’s growth. The program begins officially in August 2013 and ends in June 2014.
What are Aspiring and Mentoring Congregations?
Both have demonstrated health in shared ministry, and robust congregational life. An aspiring congregation chosen for Leap of Faith is poised for growth, but is experiencing a growth plateau or challenge. This congregation will be paired with a mentoring congregation that has been successful in growing through similar plateaus, has sustained stable or growing membership, and is ready to help the aspiring congregation explore the adaptive challenges that might be holding them back.
We honor members, friends, visitors
Our thoughts and good wishes continue to be with: As a community of faith, we joined with the rest of the world, as together we mourned the loss of Nelson Mandela. His life and legacy of standing up for freedom is an example of what courageous love and passionate conviction to a cause can mean for humanity. Our concern, condolences, and caring also goes out to Amy Rowland whose mother, Kate Chason, passed away last month. Amy and her siblings were with her in Ashville, North Carolina during her final moments. Many of our older members were saddened by the news that Fritz Claussen died Dec 3rd (age 91) in Clear Lake, Iowa. He was a former member, and long time friend of UUCB.
Congratulations, Good Luck, Blessings, and Thanks to: Lupita Guiterrez who turned eight on November 19th, and during coffee hour we had cake to celebrate her. Kay Stevens whose, great granddaughter arrived at 1:15 am on Sunday, December 8th. Mother and daughter, Irie, were doing fine. Barbara Molfese’s Aunt Anna Erickson, celebrated her 95th birthday last month. With a sense of joy and blessing, it is a pleasure to announce that Amy Rowland is no longer our Church’s Ministerial Resident, but is now our Assistant Minister. On December 7th, she passed (with flying colors) the accreditation process of the UUA’s Ministerial Fellowship Committee.
On December 15th, Hayes De Zengremel, Kendall Richards’ daughter, also turned eight years old.
Random Thoughts: Last month, I was thinking about many other things. As a result, I did not leave room to wish everyone a Happy, Healthy, Safe and Joyful holiday season. May I now extend my heartfelt wishes into the New Year of 2014, and for YOU, YOUR families, and for OUR church community.
With Love & Care, Barb
The UUCB Young Adult Social Change Ministry invites YOU
to the
All-Church Social Change Event: 
TransGender Identities
. Sunday, January 19, 2014, from 12:30-2:30pm
. Unitarian Universalist Church of Boulder, 5001 Pennsylvania Ave, Boulder, CO 80303
– Enjoy lunch and fellowship with others committed to social change.
– Review Transgender basics with Jean Hodges, national VP of PFLAG.
– View a screening of “Faces and Facets of TransGender Experience,” produced by PFLAG Boulder. - Learn from a panel of LGBTQIA folks and get your questions answered!
To confirm that we’ll have enough food for you, please quickly register here by Jan 15th! (https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1r3DVMlBYEcrbjAMjuC3kyGf9C2aazI4AgPVRqafgS1M/viewform)
For more information, contact Justin Butterworth (justin.butterworth87@gmail.com) or view our Facebook event (https://www.facebook.com/events/515421248555990/).
Hello Metro Denver Boulder Area Unitarian Universalists, We have set our date for our service trip to Haiti. It is March 15th to March 23 of 2014. Our Journey is sponsored by the new UU College of Social Justice. The UUSCJ is a group co-created by the Unitarian Universalist Association and Unitarian Universalist Service Committee. UUSCJ leads groups like ours on various Journeys. The 8 day trip to Haiti in March is focused specifically on working on the building Eco-Villages that are being built by a Haitian Organization, MPP or Papaye Peasant Movement. Our time there will be focused on some digging, planting, painting but mainly to learn about the amazing work the MPP is doing for Haiti. The Eco-Villages are built for sustainability. After the earth quake of 2010 most Haitians are without suitable shelter, food and employment. The MPP believes the Eco-Villages are a way to help former Port-au-Prince residents build new lives in rural Haiti. Click on link for YOUTUBE VIDEO /http://uucsj.org/journeys/haiti/
Some people have already signed up for the Trip but we still have openings for those interested in putting their principles into action. At this time, we are opening up this trip to all UU’s from the Denver/Boulder area.
Here are the financials on the program. The cost is $1350 plus air fare which is probably about another $550. There are ways to reduce these costs. Scholarships are available through UUCSJ. The Social Justice Council at First Universalist will offer some assistance; if you are a member of another church, perhaps your Social Justice Group will help. Financial support can also come from fundraising such as bake sales etc. Similar help could be available through your congregation.
If you have questions or concerns please contact me by email or phone -evening times are better. We have been in touch with Evan Seitz from the UU College of Social Justice and he is willing to be available by Skype.
We have opened this trip up beyond First Universalist to our brothers and sisters in the Metro Area. The trip could only be made richer by making this not just a Congregational Trip but a METRO DENVER-Boulder Trip.
Please consider joining us for our Trip to Haiti
Dan Moen CO-UUSC Rep at First Universalist
After Sunday Worship on December 8, adults and kids made paper snowflakes to help put UUCB in the holiday spirit.
UUCB men and friends drum up the sun on December 21, 2014.
In November, several UUCB families gathered for the Family Matters potluck.
Extend your talents and compassion to hospice patients and their families. Assignments made near your home. Be part of a team that supports maximum quality of life at end of life. Training begins Jan 11. For more info: Contact Lynette at Evercare Hospice 303-714-2376 or lynette_reiling@uhc.com”
Sunday, January 19, is the date for our monthly gathering for tea and nibbles. On the third Sunday, each month we gather in a UUCB home to visit and get to know each other better. Guests bring finger food to share. The hosts provide tea and another beverage. It’s a really easy way to entertain! We are looking for a host for January and subsequent months. Please contact Dianne Ewing, if you’d like to host. Entertaining could not be easier!
UUCB will be providing dinner for about 24 students in the Progressive Really Inclusive Student Ministry on Tuesday, January 21. This group is largely CU students, both undergrads and grad students. They have a house near CU, where they meet on Tuesdays during the regular school year. Since students are on break for the beginning of January, our meal date is later than usual in January. In February we will be back to our usual first Tuesday of the month dinner schedule.
Look for the signup sheet at UUCB on January 12 and 19. We ask people to prepare or purchase a dish to feed 6, choosing an item from the planned menu on the sign-up sheet. Some people may provide something for more than 6, if they wish. Arrangements are made to pick up your food, or for you to deliver it to UUCB or to PRISM. Plan to help with at least one item at least once this academic year. With many contributors, no one has to do very much. Questions? Contact Dianne Ewing.
JANUARY– Welcome the new year with a “Favorite Leftovers” meal at the Longmont home of Dianne Ewing on Saturday, January 4, at 6 p.m. Sign up at UUCB or contact Dianne. Deadline for signing up is Thursday, January 2. Circle Suppers are an informal pot luck meal, usually in a UUCB home. In the summer we sometimes go to a park for a picnic. Sometimes there is a theme, but often it is strictly pot luck. Only once did we have all desserts (many, many years ago)! All UUCBers and friends are welcome, but you must sign up ahead of time. Often space is limited. If you’d like to host sometime, contact Dianne Ewing.
FEBRUARY== On February 1, Carrol and Bill Kalafus will host our Circle Supper at their home near UUCB. Watch for the sign-up sheet the last two Sundays in January.