Weekly News Update

General Church News

Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026

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

Featured this Week

28 volunteers still needed for Loaves & Fishes this Sunday, Jan. 18

Our Social Action Teama still needs 28 volunteers for our monthly third-Sunday turn to provide the evening Loaves & Fishes meal this coming Sunday, Jan. 18, as follows:

2 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
6 volunteers to bring 20 servings of a vegetable (broccoli, cauliflower, green beans, etc.)
6 volunteers to bring 20 servings of cornbread
6 volunteers to bring 2 pies, 20 servings of cake, or 40 cookies
3 adult volunteers to set up, serve and clean up from 4 to 6:15 p.m.

Please sign up by clicking this button:

Jan. 18 Loaves & Fishes Signup

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.

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

Jan. 18 Newcomers’ Retreat has been canceled

The Membership Team has reluctantly canceled the “Getting to Know UU” Newcomers’ Retreat and Potluck that had been scheduled on Jan. 18 because of too few registations. The next scheduled retreat is from 4 to 7 p.m. Sunday, April 19. If you have questions, email the Membership Team.

Come celebrate UUCC’s 75th anniversary Jan. 25 and 30

Our congregation’s 75th anniversary is coming up on Jan. 28, 2026.

On the evening of Jan. 28, 1951, Philip and Ruth Stone, Addison Gulicks, Frank Mott, Huber Croft, and 14 other religious liberals met at the Daniel Boone Hotel in Columbia to form the new Columbia Unitarian Fellowship. Since that date, our community has grown and flourished, struggled at times and continued, and fed our spirits, always, with its curiosity, wide inclusion, and deep love.

Please join us to celebrate the past, present, and future of our congregation with the following offerings:

Founder’s Day Worship Service – 10:30 a.m. Sunday, Jan. 25 – featuring reflections on our congregation’s 75 years and dreaming of our next 75.
75th Anniversary Party – 7 to 10 p.m. Friday, Jan. 30 – With live music, small plates, drinks and toasts to our beloved community. Free childcare will be provided.

Help and donations needed for 75th anniversary party on Jan 30

We are in need of volunteer help and donations for our 75th anniversary party scheduled from 7 to 10 p.m. Friday, Jan 30.

Volunteers are needed for:

Setup starting at 5 p.m. (at least five volunteers)
Hosting the drinks area in shifts from 7 to 8:30 p.m. or from 8:30 to 10 p.m. (at least one volunteer per shift)
Cutting and serving the cake around 8 p.m (two volunteers)
Cleanup from 10 to 11 p.m. (at least five volunteers)

Donations needed are:

Wine or beer
Non-alcoholic beverages
Desserts

If you can help or donate, please email Rev Molly.

Rev. Jordinn Nelson Long will return in January for research project

Rev. Molly has announced that our visiting scholar, the Rev. Jordinn Nelson Long, will be returning to UUCC for a substantial research visit starting in the second half of January. Rev. Molly shared the following letter from Rev. Long about her plans.

Dear UUCC members and friends,

Thanks for hosting me this autumn; I am looking forward to returning this winter and deepening into exploration with you.

Ahead of that, we wanted to invite you to put a few dates on your calendar:

- Diverse Economies Workshop – Part A on Feb. 1 from 1 to 3 p.m. after Potluck
- Diverse Economies Workshop – Part B Part B on Feb 8 from noon to 2 p.m. after worship (lunch provided).
- Mapping Session – March 1 from 1 to 3 p.m. after Potluck.
- Mapping Session Follow-Up – March 15 from noon to 2 p.m. after worship (lunch provided).

We’ll get you more information as dates draw closer, but we know schedules are busy and we definitely want to mark this time with you if you are interested and able.

I am also happy to be in touch between now and my return if you have questions or comments about our research together. You can reach me at jnelsonlong@mun.ca. I’m also on Signal and am happy to connect there as well; Molly can help if you have questions about setting up your free account (it’s like WhatsApp, but more secure).

Wishing you a beautiful holiday, and looking forward to seeing you soon.

With care,
Jordinn

Rev. Jordinn Nelson Long, Memorial University of Newfoundland and Labrador

Check us out on the UUCC Facebook Group Page

Coming up Sunday, Jan. 18, 2026

For Forum meetings, meditation and worship,
drop-in childcare is provided. No reservation needed.

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

The Forum Discussion Group meets at 9 a.m. most Sundays from September through May except holiday weekends. On Dec. 18 Dr. Eric Lindblom will present on “Medical Care for the Under-Insured and the Uninsured.” Prof. Lindblom is on the faculty in Family and Community Medicine at the University of Missouri.

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

“The Children March” – All-Ages MLK Jr. Service
Molly Housh Gordon, Monica Clark-Robinson, and Jamila Batchelder

Join us for our all-ages Martin Luther King Jr. weekend service reflecting on the power of – and our discernment about – protest, both in our history and in our current moment. We are delighted to anchor the service in our own Intern Minister Monica Clark-Robinson’s children’s book Let the Children March about the 1963 Birmingham Children’s Crusade.

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. – No Youth Religious Education – No Classes – All-Ages Worship

The 10:30 a.m. worship service will be for all ages. There will be no children’s religious education classes. Children will be with us during worship – please welcome them and their families. Free nursery care for infants to 3-year-olds will be available until 11:45 a.m. Read about our Youth Religious Education program.

After Worship – Coffee Hour – Greeting Area

Enjoy beverages and conversation in the Greeting Area after worship.

Noon – Care Team Meeting – Lower Level-Centering Room

Our Care Team will hold its regular monthly meeting at noon Sunday, Jan. 18 in the Lower Level-Centering Room. All are welcome to participate. For more information, email the Care Team.

Noon – LGBTQ Collective – Sanctuary

The LGBTQ Collective meets on the third Sunday each month after worship. On Jan. 18 We will be having a White Elephant Gift Exchange in addition to our usual conversations. Feel free to bring a gift (up to $5 if purchasing) to exchange. You are welcome to join regardless of your participation in the gift exchange. Snacks and childcare will be provided. If you have questions, email Heidi Shearer.

Noon – YRUU – Lower Level-YRUU Room

Members of YRUU, our high school youth group, will gather for the regular weekly meeting.

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

Our 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. 18 Loaves & Fishes Signup

Announcements

Chalice Circles signups still open

Need community? We’ve got you.

Being in community might just be the most important thing we can do right now for ourselves and for each other.

As a small-group ministry of our church, Chalice Circles are designed to build that community, foster connections between members, and provide opportunities to share your heart in a safe, brave space.

These groups of no more than 10 members are led by fellow UU volunteers and topics are planned to complement the monthly themes of the church year. A Chalice Circle commitment is for one cycle of eight or nine sessions, though some chalice groups may elect to continue in some form over the summer. Groups will meet once or twice a month for one and one-half hours, from September or October 2025 to May 2026.

You can learn more here or go ahead and sign up here!

If you have questions, you are welcome to email the Chalice Circles Leadership Team that consists of the Rev. Dr. Molly Housh Gordon, Gretchen Maune and Crystal Paddock Buffaloe, or call or text Crystal at 573-289-9705 (please leave a message!).

We look forward to a fun, connected, meaningful year ahead!

With Gratitude,
Crystal Buffaloe, Gretchen Maune and Rev. Molly

“Coming Back to Life” programs planned on Saturdays

UUCC members and friends are invited to share their care for the earth and engage in relational and earth mindfulness practices in these sessions that will take place from 9 to 10:30 a.m. Saturdays beginning Nov. 1.

“Living Earth Dialogos” will take place on first and third Saturdays at Show Me Dharma, 1600 East Broadway. Read more about what is planned.

“The Work that Reconnects” will take place on second and fourth Saturdays at UUCC. Read more about what will be covered.

You can sign up for these programs and ask questions by emailing livingearth1400@gmail.com. The sponsors are UUCC, Show Me Dharma and Columbia Friends Meeting.

What’s happening soon?

Weekly and bi-weekly recurring events

Choir Rehearsals – 7 p.m. Wednesdays

The UUCC Choir rehearses at 7 p.m. Wednesdays in the Sanctuary. If you are interested in joining the choir, click the button below to learn more and to sign up.

Choir Info & Signup

Gentle Yoga with Karen Dwyer – Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays, Fridays

Gentle Yoga is offered at the church:

- 10 to 11:30 a.m. Tuesdays and Fridays
- 6 to 7:15 p.m. Mondays and Wednesdays

Additional information is available from Karen Dwyer, or contact the church office.

Crafting Group – 1 p.m. Thursdays

The crafting group meets from 1 to 3 p.m. every Thursday in the Greeting Area from September through May. For more information, email Bonnie Johnson.

Sacred Song Circle with Violet Vonder Haar – 6:30 p.m. Thursdays- To start again this Spring

Join Violet for group singing. No experience or RSVP required. Just come join the group and sing. Sacred Song Circles are held on Thursdays from 6:30 to 8 p.m. except the first Thursday of each month and on holidays. If you are interested in participating, please sign up here for the weekly email. The Sacred Songs program is co-sponsored by UUCC and Compass Inc. For questions, contact Violet by email.

“Coming Back to Life” – 9 a.m. Saturdays

A collaborative program of UUCC and two other faith groups will offer a “Coming Back to Life” series of programs on Saturday mornings from November through March with a theme of “Empowerment in the Fact of Planetary Suffering.” UUCC members and friends are invited to share their care for the earth and engage in relational and earth mindfulness practices in these sessions that will take place from 9 to 10:30 a.m. Saturdays beginning Nov. 1.

- “Living Earth Dialogos” will take place on first and third Saturdays at Show Me Dharma, 1600 East Broadway. Read more about what is planned.
- “The Work that Reconnects” will take place on second and fourth Saturdays at UUCC. Read more about what will be covered.

You can sign up for these programs and ask questions by emailing livingearth1400@gmail.com. The sponsors are UUCC, Show Me Dharma and Columbia Friends Meeting.

Scheduled events coming soon

Board of Trustees – 7 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 15

Our Board of Trustees will hold its regular monthly meeting at 7 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 15. Per church bylaws, church members are welcome to attend and observe board meetings.

Life Writer’s Group – 10:30 a.m. Saturday, Jan. 17

The UU Life 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.

Care Team – noon Sunday, Jan. 18

Our Care Team will hold its regular monthly meeting at noon Sunday, Jan. 18 in the Lower Level-Centering Room. All are welcome to participate. For more information, email the Care Team.

LGBTQ Collective – noon Sunday, Jan. 18

The LGBTQ Collective meets on the third Sunday each month after worship. We will be having a White Elephant Gift Exchange in addition to our usual conversations. Feel free to bring a gift (up to $5 if purchasing) to exchange. You are welcome to join regardless of your participation in the gift exchange or not. Snacks and childcare will be provided. If you have questions, email Heidi Shearer.

Loaves & Fishes – 4 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 18

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.

FOWF Team “Dinner & Book Club” – 5:30 p.m. Jan. 23 to cook, 6:30 p.m. to eat

The Finding Our Way Forward Team plans a “Dinner and Book Club” on Friday evening, Jan. 23. The book Mutual Aid: Building Solidarity During this Crisis (and the Next) by Dean Spade will be discussed. A communal vegan meal of rice and beans (with some extras) will be prepared. Cooking will start at 5:30 p.m. You can come then to help cook or arrive at 6:30 with your appetite and curiosity about the book. RSVP and ask questions by email to the FOWF Team. Childcare will be provided if requested.

Men’s Group – 8:30 a.m. Jan. 24 – 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.

Founders’ Day Worship Service – 10:30 a.m. Sunday, Jan. 25

Our congregation’s 75th anniversary is coming up on Jan. 28, 2026! On the evening of Jan. 28, 1951, Philip and Ruth Stone, Addison Gulicks, Frank Mott, Huber Croft, and 14 other religious liberals met at the Daniel Boone Hotel in Columbia to form the new Columbia Unitarian Fellowship. Since that date, our community has grown and flourished, struggled at times and continued, and fed our spirits, always, with its curiosity, wide inclusion, and deep love. The Founder’s Day Worship Service will include reflections on our congregation’s 75 years and dreams of our next 75. The service will include a New Member Ingathering.

Philosophy Club – 11:50 a.m. Sunday, Jan. 25

Philosophy Club, led by Ben Schulz, is a group for anyone interested in discussing a topic more deeply with others. No philosophical training is needed, all worldviews are welcome, and any member can submit a subject to be discussed from spirituality to sociology, psychology, ecology, science and anything else. The group will meet in the Sanctuary.

Milestones Circle – Noon Sunday, Jan. 25

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. Milestones materials are available here. The Jan. 25 Milestones Circle will be reflecting on this topic: “What is on your bucket list?” For more information, contact Kathie Bergman by email.

Disability Justice and Inclusion Team – 12:15 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 25

The Disability Justice and Inclusion Team (DJIT) meets on the 4th Sunday of each month in the Centering Room and via Zoom. DJIT contacts are Gretchen Maune and Marcie Brennan.

75th Anniversary Party – 7 p.m. Friday, Jan. 30

Our congregation’s 75th anniversary is coming up on Jan. 28, 2026! On the evening of Jan. 28, 1951, Philip and Ruth Stone, Addison Gulicks, Frank Mott, Huber Croft, and 14 other religious liberals met at the Daniel Boone Hotel in Columbia to form the new Columbia Unitarian Fellowship. Since that date, our community has grown and flourished, struggled at times and continued, and fed our spirits, always, with its curiosity, wide inclusion, and deep love. Please join us at the 75th Anniversary Party from 7 to 10 p.m. Friday, Jan. 30 in the Sanctuary. There will be live music, small plates, drinks and toasts to our beloved community. Free childcare will be provided.

Men’s Group – 8:30 a.m. Jan. 31 – 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.

Kaleidoscope Pagan Gathering – 2 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 31

Join Kaleidoscope as the group celebrates 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, Jan. 31 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.

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

More activities

View Online Calendar

View Upcoming Events Page