General Church News

Wednesday, Jan. 15, 2025

Featured this week
Coming up Sunday
Announcements
What’s happening soon?
Joys and sorrows
More activities

Featured this Week

25 volunteers still needed for Loaves & Fishes this Sunday, Jan. 19

Our Social Action Team still needs 25 volunteers to provide and serve food for our monthly third Sunday turn to serve the Loaves and Fishes meal this coming Sunday evening, Jan. 19, as follows:

• 5 volunteers to bring 20 servings of a meat item (ham, chicken, beef, pork, etc.)
• 5 volunteers to bring 20 servings of a rice or potato dish
• 5 volunteers to bring 20 servings of a vegetable (broccoli, cauliflower, green beans, etc.)
• 5 volunteers to bring 20 servings of cornbread
• 3 volunteers to bring 2 pies, 20 servings of cake, or 40 cookies
• 2 adult volunteers to set up, serve and clean up from 4 to 6:15 p.m.

Please click the following button to sign up:

Jan. 19 Loaves & Fishes Signup

Please submit receipts for all food items, and some or all of your expenses may be reimbursed by the church. Email the Church Administrator to obtain the church’s sales tax exemption certificate to use when purchasing food for Loaves and Fishes. Both the volunteers providing food and those who will serve and clean up are asked to be at the Ashley Street Center,1509 Ashley St. (view map) between 4 and 4:15 p.m. The meal will be served at 4:30 p.m. Cleanup is expected to be complete by about 6:15 p.m.

If you have questions, email Fred Young or Gregg Suhler of the Social Action Team.

Board of Trustees will meet tomorrow evening, Thursday, Jan. 16

Our Board of Trustees will hold its regular monthly meeting at 7 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 16. Per church bylaws, church members are welcome to attend and observe board meetings.

The board’s agenda and related documents will be posted on the Board Information page before the meeting.

Website redesign will be launched next Monday, Jan. 20

Website Administrator Steve Scott has been working on a major redesign of our website for the past few months and plans to launch it next Monday afternoon, Jan. 20.

All current information and features on our website will be retained – the site will just have a new, cleaner appearance. The new design also will display better on smartphones.

The new design is based on a design recommended by the Unitarian Universalist Association – with tweaks to meet our congregation’s needs and standard procedures.

As is always the case with a website design change, there may be some issues at first with non-functional links. If you encounter any non-functional links on the redesigned website, please email Steve.

New year’s notes from Rev. Molly

Happy New Year! We have a lot of work ahead of us in 2025 to defend and grow what is beautiful and loving in our country, community, and world. I’m so grateful to be in it with you.

As we enter the new year, I have a few notes for you, our members, whose commitment makes this congregation what it is and will be:

1. I hope you have heard that our Board is leading a process of revising our mission and vision statement. This process needs the input of as many UU Churchers as possible. After our fall meetings reached 48 folks, the Mission/Vision Task Force has a goal to reach 88 more UU Churchers in cottage meetings this winter. We particularly need to hear from more of our long timers, who have not engaged as much so far as a demographic. Please sign up for a meeting today. These conversations have been very meaningful and connective for all who have engaged. This is not just information-gathering – it is a community-building opportunity, and we hope you will be a part of it! Here is the session plan for those who like to know ahead of time what to expect. More details are in the next article below. Please sign up here.

2. We have seen a 25% increase in worship attendance since the election, a reflection of the hunger in our community for the connection and hope that we are creating together at UUCC. We’d like to invite you, our members, to ensure that visitors and newcomers to the congregation feel welcome by introducing yourself to newcomers (identifiable by their temporary nametags), ensuring that your conversations at coffee hour are open in both subject matter and body language, and generally considering yourself an ambassador for the radical welcome that we seek to create!

3. Help us make physical space for visitors in two ways: First, by filling in the seats in the front rows and the east side of the sanctuary, you can help make sure there are open seats closer to the doors for those who may be visiting and feeling uncertain where to sit. Second, if those who are able to walk across the street will consider parking in the Shepard Elementary School lot, we can ensure that closer parking spaces (including on-street spaces) are open for those with accessibility needs and those who may be visiting.

4. Would you like to meet some of our newcomers? Join us at a dinner to welcome them at 6 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 26 at the end of their new member class. A baked potato bar will be provided as long as we have your RSVP! Sign up here.

See you in church!
Rev. Molly

Signups now open for Mission/Vision cottage meetings in new year

Check us out on the UUCC Facebook Group Page

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Coming up Sunday, Jan. 19, 2025

9 a.m. – Forum Discussion Group – Lower Level-Forum Room/Library

The Forum Discussion Group is an adult issues-and-answers discussion program that meets from 9 to 10 a.m. most Sundays from September through May.

On Jan. 19 Melissa Lewis, Ph.D., will speak about her role with the Cherokee from Tahlequah, Okla.

9 a.m. – Mindfulness Meditation – Fire Circle or Lower Level-Centering Room

Mindfulness Meditation takes place at 9 a.m. every Sunday. Beginners and experienced meditators are welcome. If the outside temperature is 55° F. or higher and weather permits, meditation will take place at the Fire Circle behind the church. Otherwise, meditation will be in the Lower Level-Centering Room. For more information, email Anna Lingo or Susan Pereira.

10:30 a.m. – Worship Service – Sanctuary

Martin Luther King Jr. Sunday – “Abolition is Care” – Rev. Dr. Molly Housh Gordon

Join us on this Martin Luther King Jr. Sunday to reflect on some contemporary voices in liberation organizing, particularly those that envision a future of collective care where needs are met fully, harms are addressed humanely, and carceral systems whither from disuse.

 Online worship links – Zoom • Facebook

Submit Joys and Sorrows by 8:30 a.m. Sunday before worship:

Joys and Sorrows Submission

Online Donation or Pledge Payment

Visitors participating in our online worship services are invited to fill out our Visitor Connection Card:

Visitor Connection Card

10:30 a.m. – Youth Religious Education – Lower Level

After a centering time in the Sanctuary at the beginning of worship, the children will go downstairs for a Service Sunday project. Free nursery care for infants to 3-year-olds will be available until 11:45 a.m. Read about our Youth Religious Education program.

11:30 a.m. – Coffee Hour – Greeting Area

Enjoy beverages and chat in the Greeting Area.

Noon – LGBTQ Collective – Sanctuary

The first LGBTQ Collective meeting in December was a success. Those able to attend discussed ideas about what the group would like to do. Ideas centered around making the collective known within UUCC, advocacy, resource sharing, and collaboration with existing organizations and efforts within the local community. We invite those who identify within the LGBTQ community to attend the next meeting at noon Sunday, Jan. 19. We will plan to meet on the east side of the sanctuary. Please feel free to bring a snack (with an ingredient list) to share. Email Heidi Shearer with questions.

Noon – Junior High OWL – Lower Level-Forum Room/Library

7th-9th graders will gather for a session of Our Whole Lives (OWL), our comprehensive and inclusive sexuality education program. Led by trained facilitators, this program goes well beyond biology and covers topics such as gender identity, sexual orientation, consent, health relationships, body image, and more. The program fosters an open dialog where we see exploration of our sexuality as a healthy and holy aspect of what it means to be human.

4 to 6:15 p.m. – Loaves and Fishes Dinner – Ashley Street Center

Our Social Action Teamhttps://uucomo.org/social-action-team/ organizes volunteers to provide the evening meal at the Loaves and Fishes Soup Kitchen on the third Sunday each month. Click the button below to sign up to prepare food for this meal and/or to help set up, serve, and clean up.

Jan. 19 Loaves & Fishes Signup

Please submit receipts for all food items, and some or all of your expenses may be reimbursed by the church. Email the Church Administrator to obtain the church’s sales tax exemption certificate to use when purchasing food for Loaves and Fishes. Both the volunteers providing food and those who will serve and clean up are asked to be at the Ashley Street Center,1509 Ashley St. (view map) between 4 and 4:15 p.m. The meal will be served at 4:30 p.m. Cleanup is expected to be complete by about 6:15 p.m.

If you have questions, email Fred Young or Gregg Suhler of the Social Action Team.

Announcements

Chalice Circles signups still open for 2024-25

Rev. Molly requests gifts to the Minister’s Discretionary Fund

Dear UU Churchers,

I am writing you with an invitation to support the community with a donation to the Minister’s Discretionary Fund, as many in Boone County struggle to make it through the lean time of late fall and early winter. We are seeing rent go up all over town, and heating costs will increase as the weather turns cold.

As you know, the Minister’s Discretionary Fund of our church allows me to offer confidential assistance to those struggling in systems that were not set up to help them thrive, and this summer I have been grateful to be able to pay directly for utility bills, groceries, partial rent, and emergency short term housing to keep folks from homelessness in the deadly heat. It is such a sacred honor to be the channel for your material care into our wider community, an honor I take very seriously.

We replenish our Discretionary fund every December at our Christmas Eve service, and by later in the year the fund dwindles just as more need is apparent. So, I’m reaching out to ask for your support. If you have a little extra to spare, I invite you to direct it to those in our community struggling to get by. You can donate to the Discretionary Fund by selecting “Minister’s Discretionary Fund” in the drop down menu of our secure online giving portal, or by sending a check to the church with Discretionary Fund in the memo line. 

Thank you for your compassionate support!

– Rev. Molly

Sanctuary and Immigrant Justice Team seeks volunteer drivers

Our Guatemalan family continues to work toward independence. Our team of transportation volunteers is put to use only when Lilly has car trouble. The car that the Donaldson family so generously gave to Lilly is no longer dependable. With assistance from the team, she has purchased a more dependable vehicle. More dependable doesn’t mean totally dependable – it is quite used. Over the years that we have been assisting Lilly, our group of volunteers has dwindled considerably.

Although we have drivers for the afternoon, if the need arises we currently do not have enough morning drivers to reliably pick up Lilly and the children at 7:30 a.m. and take them to day care, school or the bus stop, and work by 8:30. If you are available and willing to volunteer to stand by for that morning transportation duty, please email Ruth Milledge.

Columbia Room at the Inn now open year-round

Our community partner Room at the Inn has now opened year-round at its permanent location in the former VFW building on Ashley Street. Read more.

The organizers still rely on volunteer help to keep the shelter staffed and running smoothly. Maybe you want to grab a friend, look at your calendars, and sign up for some shifts together soon? It’s getting coooold, and the need will be great! Sign up here: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/20F0C49AFAA29ABF94-44559659-room#/

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What’s happening soon?

Weekly and bi-weekly recurring events

Gentle Yoga with Karen Dwyer – Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday

Gentle Yoga takes place at the church from 10 to 11:30 a.m. Tuesdays and Fridays and from 6 to 7:15 p.m. Mondays and Thursdays (except the first Thursday each month). Additional information is available from Karen Dwyer, or contact the church office. There will be no yoga on Nov. 2.

Choir Rehearsals – Wednesday evenings

Choir rehearsals with Music Director Violet Vondar Haar take place at 7 p.m. Wednesday evenings in the Sanctuary at church. All singers are welcome, regardless of experience and vocal part.

Crafting Group – 1 to 3 p.m. Thursdays

The crafting group meets from 1 to 3 p.m. every Thursday in the Greeting Area. The group is recruiting new members and can help with any projects you may have. Beginners are welcome, and there is no hard commitment – come when you can. For more information, email Bonnie Johnson.

Living Earth Study Group – 9 a.m. first and third Saturdays

The Living Earth Study Group meets on first and third Saturdays from 9 to 10:30 a.m. at Show-Me Dharma, 1600 West Broadway. It is facilitated by Peter Holmes, Ph.D. and Jared Belden, M.A. Sign up to attend by email. When warm weather returns next spring, Living Earth Meditation will resume. It is facilitated by Peter Holmes, PhD, and Tricia Straub. Sign up to attend by email. The living earth study group and meditation programs are a joint project of UUCC, the Columbia Friends Meeting and Show-Me Dharma.

Scheduled events coming soon

Board of Trustees – 7 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 16

Our Board of Trustees will hold its regular monthly meeting at 7 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 16. Per church bylaws, church members are welcome to attend and observe board meetings.

Art GroUUp – Writing (and Reading) for Spiritual Sustenance – 6:30 p.m. Friday, Jan. 17

If you love art and making connections, the new Art GroUUp is looking for you! We will be meeting at the church from 6:30 to 8 p.m. every third Friday of the month. Meetings may include BYO craft nights, art therapy prompts related to monthly sermon topics, collaborative creations to beautify the church, and service projects. Open to all skill levels and experience!

UUCC Writer’s Group – 10:30 a.m. Saturday, Jan. 18

The Writer’s Group meets from 10:30 a.m. to noon on the first and third Saturdays of the month to write and share at the church. For questions email Mary Herde.

LGBTQ Collective – Noon Sunday, Jan. 19

The first LGBTQ Collective meeting in December was a success. Those able to attend discussed ideas about what the group would like to do. Ideas centered around making the collective known within UUCC, advocacy, resource sharing, and collaboration with existing organizations and efforts within the local community. We invite those that identify within the LGBTQ community to attend the next meeting on Sunday, Jan. 19 at noon. We will plan to meet on the east side of the sanctuary. Please feel free to bring a snack (with an ingredient list) to share. Email Heidi Shearer with questions.

Loaves and Fishes – 4 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 19

Our Social Action Team needs volunteers to prepare servings of various dishes and other volunteers to serve the meal and clean up afterward.

The location of Loaves and Fishes is the Ashley Street Center, 1509 Ashley St., behind the city power plant (view map). The meal time is 4:30 p.m.

Both the volunteers providing food and those who will serve and clean up are asked to be at the Ashley Street Center between 4 and 4:15 p.m. Cleanup is expected to be complete by about 6:15 p.m. Please sign up here.

You can also support this effort by making a donation to the church specifying “Loaves and Fishes Fund.” For more information, email Fred Young or Gregg Suhler.

Men’s Group – 8:30 a.m. Saturday, Jan. 25 – online

The UUCC Men’s Group meets online via Zoom on the second, fourth, and fifth Saturdays of each month. For more information, contact Wiley Miller at 573-864-8574 or by email.

Milestones Circle – noon Sunday, Jan. 26

The Milestones Circle is an open, drop-in small group for older adults to meet, share thoughts and concerns, and receive support and friendship in a UU setting. The group meets each month on the fourth Sunday after the worship service in the Forum Room/Library on the lower level of the church. Bring a brown bag lunch and help explore the spirituality in your life.

Are you a retiree or thinking of retiring? Transitioning into retirement is a process, and it may be scary at first, so share your concerns in the Milestones Circle. Expect it to take some time to make the transition – getting accustomed to retirement won’t happen overnight. And you may have different emotions during the transition, so don’t be hard on yourself or pressure yourself to feel a certain way immediately. Focus on you and what makes you happy. Retirement is a time to pursue your passions, build new routines and even a new identity. So do the things you love – spend time with family and friends, take up new hobbies and make new friends. Doing what makes you happy is key for a healthy, fulfilling retirement with a sense of purpose.

Milestones materials are available here. For more information, contact volunteer Kathie Bergman at 573-999-3938 or by email.

Kaleidoscope Pagan Gathering – 2 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 1

Join Kaleidoscope as we celebrate Imbolc, also known as Brigid’s Feast. The first stirrings of life after the long winter appear. Brigid shines the light of creativity upon us. Growth begins. Gather with us at 2 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 1 at the church. We will join in ritual, followed by a simple finger food potluck and friendship. All are welcome, no matter what their personal paths.

Founders Day Celebration – 7-9 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 1

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Joys and sorrows

You can read the Joys and sorrows shared with the congregation by clicking the button below. The page is also accessible from the Members/Friends drop-down menu. The Joys and Sorrows page is password-protected, so you must be logged in as a registered user of our site to see it. If you have not already registered, you can do so here.

Read Joys and Sorrows

You can submit joys and sorrows online by clicking this button:

Submit Joys and Sorrows

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More activities

View Online Calendar

View Upcoming Events Page

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