UPDATE. November 2016 Volume 47 Number 12

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1 UPDATE November 2016 Volume 47 Number 12 MUUF S MISSION STATEMENT A friendly beacon for religious freedom, supporting lifelong spiritual growth and working for social justice with compassion and love. December 4 Leadership Qualities in Early Florida Rev. Emmalou Kirchmeier will be our speaker and her topic will be: Good leaders verify the integrity of those around them; they are not aloof; they are just the opposite being compassionate to those in need. Music: Robin Skinner December 18 The Lights of Freedom Dr. Robert Tucker will be our speaker and his message topic will survey the origin and meaning of Hanukkah and the importance of religious freedom. Music: Eleanora Lvov December 11 Rev. Dee Graham will lead our service. Music: Choir Fellowship Office Hours: 8 am 1pm Mon Fri OFFICE: muufoffice@manateeuuf.org Rev. Dee Graham Office Hours: Tuesday 9 am-noon or by appt. MINISTER: muufminister@manateeuuf.org The UPDATE Update Content Editor Lorraine Berry Update Production Editor Karen Salzinger December 25 Christmas Concert Our Choir will lead our service with a Holiday Celebration in Song and Story.

2 December 2016 MUUF Calendar SUNDAY MONDAY TUESDAY WEDNESDAY THURSDAY FRIDAY SATURDAY 1 2 1:30 Play Reading 3 10:30am Speaker- Emmalou Kirchmeier Music- Robin Skinner 12:00 RE Meeting 12:00 Social Justice 3:00 Jim Scott Concert 4 5 2:00 Book Group 6:45 Occupy Bradenton- Discussion 6 11:30 The New UU Workshop 6:30 Zen Meditation 6:00 Toastmasters 7 8 6:00 Share-A-Dish Childhood Christmas :00 UU Friends Art Show 9:00 Choir Practice 10:30am Speaker- Rev. Dee Graham Music- Choir 11:45 Brunch Fundraiser :00 Chalice Circle 11:30 The New UU Workshop 3:30 Membership 6:30 Zen Meditation 3:00 Men s Group 6:00 Toastmasters 6:30 Women s Spirituality Class :00 Our Daily Bread 16 1:30 Play Reading 17 10:30am Speaker- Dr. Robert Tucker Music- Eleanora Lvov Special Collection- Turning Point :00 Book Group 6:45 Occupy Bradenton- Movie 20 UPDATE Articles Due 6:30 Zen Meditation 6:30 Board Mtg 6:00 Toastmasters CHRISTMAS DAY 9:00 Choir Practice 10:30am Christmas Service by Choir 4:00 Pagan Perspectives :00 Chalice Circle 6:30 Zen Meditation 28 6:00 Toastmasters

3 President s Message Carol Bartz As Unitarian Universalists most of us are still working our way through the aftermath of the election. As we struggle to understand what happened and what will happen we need to keep our principles in mind and do all we can to use them to guide our decisions and everyday living. As a beacon of justice we can expect others to seek us out as a safe refuge. Let us open our arms and embrace them when they enter our door, at least figuratively. Not everyone is the huggy type! I recently had the experience of feeling extremely uncomfortable in a situation I put myself in, not knowing or expecting I would have such a visceral reaction. In attending a community theater play we initially noticed that the theater was not even half full and wondered why. The welcoming announcement included a warning that the play contained violence with authentic sounding gunshots as well as some foul language. If patrons wished to leave they could do so and exchange their tickets for another show of their choice. Many laughed, but I had a feeling of foreboding that this show was going to be different from the typical musical we usually see. Within the first five minutes I felt as though I was being assaulted by the violence. Though I knew it was art it affected me in such a way that I felt ill. It was like looking deep into the eyes of evil, of stepping into a cesspool. Guns were pointed in our direction as we listened to the script s extreme anger expressed by the actors. I decided to give it a try and see if my initial reaction would recede, but it didn t---in fact it only got worse. After ten more minutes I knew I had to leave and waited till what seemed a reasonable opportunity to slip out the side door. My husband stayed as did everyone else according to him. I wasn t angry or outraged I just wanted to not be there. I drove to MUUF, thankful that I have a key, to wait for him. You can only imagine how calm, warm, and loving it felt when I walked in the door of our sanctuary and a couple of the choir members were just leaving after completing choir practice. The quiet sounds coming through the door of the social room from the Thursday night meditation group soothed me even more and when they finished I joined them for some nonviolent human contact. This experience was just a temporary situation from which I could escape. Many people residing in our country, citizen and non-citizen, are faced with authentic feelings of being in an unsafe place. See them. Welcome them. Religious Education Lisa Bohn, DRE The end of 2016 marks a beginning of something new, but I'm so uncertain what that 'new' will be. Gail Forsyth-Vail, in the UUA's Call and Response Blog, wrote these words last December, that really hit the spot for the way I feel entering into this holiday season....we all seem to be waiting, waiting for hope and joy to be reborn in our hearts. Waiting and longing, in this advent season, for a sign that peace on earth is coming, and that good will among people is possible. Unitarians and Universalists are well represented among the architects of our contemporary North American Christmas season. Our faith is evident in the way we celebrate the season: love reaches out beyond our own families; hope can be found in the most unlikely of places; our human hands can do the work of making this world a better place for all people. Even in the face of voices and events that suggest otherwise, Christmas offers us a chance to affirm together the vision that shapes and challenges us as a people of faith. So hold tight to your loved ones, look to the sky, imagine the world you want to live in and tell them the stars(s) mean wisdom, tell them the star(s) mean kindness, tell them the star(s) mean understanding, and (will) lead to a vision of a fairer world. Have a sweet season of Love! 3

4 RE Calendar Dec 4 Dec 11 Dec 18 Dec 25 Words for All Ages in the Service, then children proceed to RE Classes RE Classes card making for MUUF shut-ins RE Classes Merry Christmas! Special Holiday Service for all at 10:30 Social Justice Bernita Franzel There are many ways to give Christmas gifts through MUUF. There is a basket on the counter in the social room hoping to get filled with white socks for inmates and homeless people. The blue bins at the back of the Sanctuary are for donations to Turning Points: lists of what is needed are on bulletin boards and in the Sunday inserts. Thanks to Walter Pascal and Joan Butcher who make sure the donations are delivered to Turning Points. The December special collection for Turning Points will be Dec. 18. In the next few weeks, we will be checking the voting records to see what effect MUUF's vote-by-mail initiative had. Thanks to everyone who worked to get the Solar Amendment stopped. Now we can focus on our next Issue of the Quarter: Climate Change and Energy Sustainability. We will see what is in store for Florida for the next decades. We will be working on material gathered by Sierra Club and our state Social Justice organization. Book Discussion Group Bill Hayes & Mary Lou Thompson The Book Club will continue to meet every other Monday at 2:00pm at the Fellowship. Our read for December 5th and 19th will be The Last Day s Night by Graham Moore. The book is a historical novel about George Westinghouse s law suit against Thomas Edison over who discovered the electric light bulb. As you can imagine, billions were involved. In conjunction with reading the book, the club will travel to Fort Myers to visit the Edison and Ford winter vacation homes there. In January our book will be Between the World and Me by Ta Nehisi Coates. Coates discusses what it is like growing up black in America especially knowing that race is a made up idea to support the concept of slavery and has no basis in science. Please consider joining us. It is not necessary to have participated in past sessions. We usually take two sessions to discuss each book. Welcoming Congregation Gary Chanco The Welcoming Congregation workshops start the 2 nd Saturday of January and the GLBTQ movie series starts on the 4 th Saturday of January. They both will continue on the 2 nd Saturday of each month for the workshops and the 4 th Saturday of each month for the GLBTQ theme movies. The first movie is Coffee Date, a GLBT theme comedy. Pizza follows the movie. For information see Gary Chanco. Special Collections Bill Hayes The Special Collection for December will be taken on December 18th and will benefit Turning Points. Turning Points mission is to provide, coordinate and facilitate services to the homeless and those at risk of becoming homeless in Manatee County. It s One Stop Service Center served over 6900 persons with 125,570 services in the past year. Walter Pascal will be the point person Great Decisions Bill Hayes This study group is beginning to get organized and will hold its organizational meeting in January. We will then meet once a week for 8 weeks in February and March. Each session is usually 1 1/2 hours and meets from 10am to 11:30am on Mondays. Each session has a different topic, different facilitator and a video of a panel of experts on the topic. The topics this year are: 1. The Future of Europe 2. Trade and Politics 3. Conflict in the South China Sea 4. Saudi Arabia in Transition 5. US Foreign Policy and Petroleum 4

5 6. Latin America s Political Pendulum 7. Prospects for Afghanistan and Pakistan 8. Nuclear Security Please see Bill Hayes if you have any questions or would like to join us. The curriculum books must be ordered in advance and cost around $ Bill Hayes , Want to Know More About Unitarian Universalism and this Fellowship? There will be a series of three workshops called The New UU using the Tapestry of Faith Program for Adults which was designed by the Unitarian Universalist Association for: New members People considering membership Those who are curious about UUism Long time members who enjoy discussion and getting to know others Our first session will be on Tuesday, November 29 at 11:30 a.m. 1:00 p.m. The following sessions will be Dec. 6 and 13, same time. A light lunch will be provided by Judith Frey and Geri Pasquarella. Topics for these interactive sessions will include theology and worship, UU roots, social justice, governance & polity, and membership. Rev. Dee Graham, Sally Isham, and Carol Bartz will be leading the sessions. There will be sign-up sheet on the table in the social room. Who You Gonna Call? At last we have a new edition of our Involvements Booklet completed. It serves as a guide so that MUUF members know about committees and activities and who to contact. This helps in determining what areas you might want to get involved in, who to talk to about a particular concern, or who to work together with as so many projects committees work on overlap into other areas as we are indeed an interdependent web! Copies are available on the table in the social room. Thank you to the following who have recently stepped up to chair committees: Arts & Decoration: Peggy Dickson Caring Committee: Leslie Roell and Lorraine Berry with Martha Pelletier and Linda Marshall assisting Memorial Committee: Leslie Roell and Lorraine Berry Publicity: Ricki Cunninghis and Gary Chanco, add Geri Pasquarella Social Justice: Bernita Franzel, add AJ Wolff Speakers: Sally Isham Welcoming Congregation: Gary Chanco, add AJ Wolff and Geri Pasquarella Worship Committee: Becky Smith We still need someone to find and schedule our Sunday musicians! It s a fun way to contribute in a substantial way to our Sunday services. Becky Smith has been doing it for a few years and is retiring from this role. Contact Carol Bartz if you feel the urge! Save the Date Sunday, Feb. 5 for Lunch and MUUF s Annual Live Auction! Think About What Items/Services You Want to Donate! Our Annual Auction is a vital part of our congregation both for meeting our budget and for building community. It gives us a chance to show off or share our talents since most of the items and events are donated by none other than MUUF members! The most popular events are the variety of dinners and trips that occur throughout the year these always turn out to be fun whether you are the host or one of the guests! As in other years there will also be a Silent Auction which will be set up to begin on Sunday, Jan. 29 and finish a week later just before the Live Auction on Feb 5. Besides items and services from our members we will have 5

6 items, gift certificates, artwork, etc. from local businesses and artists to bid on in both the Silent Auction and Live Auction. Now is the time to think of what you could donate for the auction. Please complete promissory notes (forms are on the table in the social room) so that you can name and describe what you are donating. The deadline is Jan. 15 so that items can be listed in the catalog. We have sample catalogs from previous auctions and from other UU churches that you may look at for ideas. If you would like to help with the auction, have questions, or have ideas please contact Carol Bartz. We ll be in need of people to help with record keeping and money collection, getting business donations, set up, food, clean up, and transportation. Directory Changes Gary Chanco th Ave. E Bradenton, FL Cell Chuck Wolfe Cwolfeb3@gmail.com YIKES! Our garage has been over loaded with STUFF. If you have anything stored in the MUUF garage, please remove it or you might run the risk of it being disposed of. Seneca Bristol 12/1 Jake Geeslin 12/2 Nels Gullerud 12/4 Karen Salzinger 12/11 Dick Kraft 12/24 Becky Smith 12/20 Update Deadline The Update deadline is the 20 th of every month! Anything that you would like published in the January Edition of the Update needs to be into the office no later than 9:00am December 20th unless other arrangements have been made prior to the deadline. Thank you so much to everyone who provides items for each month s Update. Your prompt consideration is greatly appreciated. Dec. 20 HELP! The garage key is missing. If you have it, please return it to the closet hook. Thanks! Member Assistance Brunches Save the dates for the next Member Assistance Brunches: December 11 th and January 8 th after Sunday service. 6

7 Join Us For Christmas Dinner Out Lazy Lobster At Lockwood Ridge Rd and University Parkway Sunday, December 25 th At 12pm Order off the Menu A Pete Seeger Songfest Singer/Songwriter Jim Scott remembers Pete through song in concert Sunday, December 4 th at 3:00pm at MUUF. Admission $15.00 Contact Leslie Roell for more information Signup on the social room table. UU Friends Art Show You and your friends are invited to the UU Friends Art Show on Saturday, Dec 10, Some art will be on display Friday evening and Sunday morning also. The artists would enjoy sharing their art and maybe selling you something unique. MUUF will benefit also. Judith Frey has her dogs in stained glass, AJ Wolff has her recycled materials mosaics, and Chris MacCormack has her acrylic and water color paintings. This is an informal plan so others with art to show should contact one of us. International Piano Virtuoso ELEONORA LVOV New Year's Romance on the Piano Celebrate the beginning of the New Year with Soulful Classical Music Sunday, January 1, 2017 at 4 Two tickets remain for the Murder Mystery Dinner Saturday Night Clever (Murder in a Disco) to be held Saturday, January 28, 2017 at 4:00pm. Each guest will play a designated role in a murder mystery. Through conversations by the guests, clues will emerge to help solve the mystery. Dinner will be served while the mystery is being solved. If interested in attending, please contact Al Usack. Board of Directors President Carol Bartz Vice President Becky Smith Secretary Peggy Dickson Treasurer Mary Lou Thompson Asst. Treasurer Bob Yavis Directors Geri Pasquarella Jim Heaton Ricki Cunninghis Linda Myers Pres. Emeritus Bill Peruzzi Martha Pelletier Board Meetings are the 3rd Tuesday of each month, 6:30 pm in the Social Room. All members of the Congregation are invited to attend. 7

8 Share-A-Dish Friday, December 9 th 6:00pm A Childhood Christmas Please bring your favorite childhood food to share. Pork loin will be provided. Suggested donation of an unwrapped $10.00 toy for the children in Manatee Memorial Hospital for Christmas morning. Manatee Unitarian Universalist Fellowship th Street West Bradenton, FL