Channing Channel. August

Transcription

1 Channing Channel Channing Unitarian Universalist Church August President s Corner New Board Members and UUA Dearest Members and Friends... Let me start by saying thank you for your encouragement and loving support during Channing s first ever green wedding on June 7. We have many wonderful pictures to share with you, courtesy of our in-house professional photographer, Chelsey Simpson. June went by in a blur. There was only Virginia with UUA President Bill Sinkford one week after our wedding vacation with our daughter, Dasha, before we headed to Fort Lauderdale, Florida, for the 47th annual Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA) General Assembly (GA). There were 3,500 registered participants with many present who attend every year, voting delegate or not. Family members were allowed to participate during the Sunday worship service, which brought the number up to 5,000 worshippers. The offertory collection totaled over $23,000 and was donated in full to a local charity. Wouldn t that be something if we could donate our cash donations each month to a different local charity! We know this is the year for elections and Channing is no different. The new Board of Trustees began their duties on July 1. Here is a listing of Channing s new officers: President: Virginia Benson Daniel President-elect: Pat Hervey Past President: Cheryl Barr Secretary: Melody Joyce Treasurer: Liz Duncan. Trustees: Gene Douglas, Dorothy Driver, Harriette Porter, Dana Spears, Katherine Williams, Val Zemke To better understand their duties, please see the explanation of each position on page three. We are here to serve the congregation of Channing UU Church. Feel free to talk to any one of us about your thoughts and concerns, and some praise every now and then might help too. Next month I ll introduce the various committees and committee chairs who really run the church. Not much happens without this dedicated group of volunteers. Until then I leave you with these words I found on a t-shirt at GA: It s a blessing each of us was born. It matters what we do with our lives. What each of us knows about god is a piece of the truth. We don t have to do it alone. Unitarian Universalism Isn t it about time you joined? Blessings to all, Virginia Benson Daniel Pasture land available again You may have noticed that we no longer have horses on our property behind the church. The renter has moved the horses to another location and that means our property is available once again. We can always put up another For Rent sign... but we thought we d check see if the congregation had new ideas about other uses for the property. This is an open call not just for ideas (we ve all got plenty of those) but for well thought out proposals, keeping in mind benefits both to Channing and to the local community. Make sure to include a plan with your proposal that includes a project leader and sufficient and committed volunteers. We need to make a decision about renting it or implementing a new plan within the next 30 days. Contact Virginia Benson Daniel with your ideas: vbenson777@hotmail.com President: Virginia Benson Daniel President-elect: Pat Hervey Past President: Cheryl Barr Secretary: Melody Joyce Treasurer: Liz Duncan Trustees: Gene Douglas, Dorothy Driver, Harriette Porter, Dana Spears, Katherine Williams, Val Zemke

2 voices August Sermons Topic: personal growth August 3 Lead by Anna Holloway The Music of Language: Meditations on Poetry Poetic language makes use of the sounds in words to assist the feel of a poem. This service will include readings of poetry and meditations, as well as examinations of how the interplay of sound and the poet s flexible use of grammar contribute to the meaning and experience of the work. August 10 Lead by Scot Harvey Within/Without When we think of personal growth, it is helpful to remember that we are radically connected to the rest of creation. To what extent is personal growth really a collective enterprise? August 17 Lead by Donna Compton To be announced August 24 Lead by Carol Fincher I ve Known Rivers It was Langston Hughes who wrote I ve Known Rivers ancient as the world and older than the flow of human blood in human veins... My soul has grown deep like the rivers. In our personal growth we know deep rivers and we know blue skies and loamy soil that nurtures our souls. We will examine these aspects of our lives and how they affect us as we grow into mature spiritual humans. August 31 Lead by Pat Hervey What We Can Do For Religion Today This prize-winning sermon, written by theological student Holly Anne Lux-Sullivan, suggests ways we can incorporate our religion into our lives as we interact with the people we encounter in our world. 2 Guest Minister Bios Anna Holloway, Student Minister Anna has earned a Master of Divinity degree from Phillips Theological Seminary, with awards in Scriptural Interpretation and Practical Theology. Her ordination is from a non-denominational church tradition and she is currently pursuing ordination as a Unitarian Universalist minister. She preaches from time to time at UU churches in Stillwater and Lawton as well as here at Channing; she is a member in the Norman UU Fellowship. Anna is a practitioner of several religious and spiritual traditions and a student of many others. Scot Harvey, Guest Minister Scot earned his Master of Divinity from Phillips Theological Seminary in During the week, he works as an engineering supervisor and on weekends he preaches at several congregations across the state. Donna Compton, Ordained Minister for Disciples of Christ Donna holds a Masters of Divinity from Phillips University. She provided regular pulpit supply for Channing Church from 1996 to 1999, and has been an occasional speaker since then. She served on the Executive Committee of Disciples Peace Fellowship for 10 years. She is currently serving as a chaplain at the Oklahoma Heart Hospital Carol Fincher, Reverend Carol is a native of Fairfax, OK, She holds degrees in Social Work and Studio Art and a Masters of Divinity from Starr King School for the Ministry in Berkeley, CA. Carol has served four congregations in the Southwest UU District and is currently serving the UU Church in Stillwater as the Pastoral Care Minister. She has facilitated various workshops over the past 15 years including Mandala workshops, topics on women s spirituality, and nourishing the spirit with art. Pat Hervey, a retired mathematics teacher, discovered the UU church less than seven years ago and is trying to make up for lost time. She is Worship Chair, President Elect, Stitchers Chair, Publicity Chair, occasional liturgist and a choir member. She recently served three years as Channing s treasurer.

3 Duties of Channing s elected officers President: The president shall be the presiding officer at meetings of the Board of Trustees and shall have all powers and duties usually pertaining to the chief executive officer. The President shall make all committee appointments with the review of the Board of Trustees. The resident shall preside at all congregational meetings. President-elect: The president-elect shall be the presiding officer at meetings of the Board of Trustees in the absence of the president. Immediate Past President: The immediate past president shall serve as an advisor. Treasurer: The treasurer shall hold in custody all funds belonging to this congregation; keep an account of all receipts and expenditures; expend monies subject to review and/or approval of the Board of Trustees; render monthly to the Board of Trustees a written report of receipts and expenditures; and render at the annual meeting a summary report for the current and preceding year. The treasurer shall be bonded in an amount to be determined by the Board of Trustees and shall be presiding officer at meetings of the Board of Trustees in the absence of the president and the president-elect. The treasurer, with the approval of the Finance Committee, may authorize committees and organizations to maintain separate bank accounts and cash funds, provided that regular reports on those monies are rendered to the treasurer and the Board. The financial accounts shall be audited periodically under procedures established by the Board of Trustees. Secretary: The secretary shall keep records and minutes of all meetings of this congregation and of the Board of Trustees; shall keep a correct roll of members; shall hold in custody all papers and documents of this congregation; and act as its official correspondent. The secretary shall lay communications before the Board of Trustees and shall notify correspondents of actions taken thereon. Board Of Trustees: The Board of Trustees is comprised of three classes of two members each who will serve rotating three-year terms and will be elected at the May congregational meeting. Members of the Board of Trustees shall be members of the church for at least one year. No person shall serve more than two consecutive three-year terms. All vacancies shall be filled by the Board of Trustees until that office is filled at the following May congregational meeting. The Board of Trustees shall hold at least one meeting each month. All meetings of the Board of Trustees shall be open to all members of the congregation. The Board of Trustees, which includes the Executive Committee, shall have general responsibility for the property of the church and the conduct of its affairs. A quorum of the Board shall be a majority of voting members. The president and minister shall be ex-officio members of all committees, except for the Nominating Committee and the Committee on Ministry. news & notes Community Action Corner CROP Walk Par ty The CROP Walk kick-off and orientation pizza party will be held at 6 p.m. on August 10 at First Christian Church of Edmond, 2nd and Boulevard. Come and learn about CWS, the interfaith organization which organizes CROP Walks all across the country to raise funds to support their many and varied projects worldwide. The CROP Walk will be September 28 at 2 p.m. at Mitch Park in Edmond. A quarter of all the money raised stays right here in Edmond to help fight hunger. Join us for the party and the walk. Hope Center Thank You Thank you for continuing to support the Hope Center by placing your donations of food and staples in the basket in the foyer. Elouise Bell delivers them about once a month. Also thanks for the small bottles of shampoo, etc. from your travels or the sample section of the drugstore. Pat Hervey delivers these, also to the Hope Center. We are thinking of The Tennessee Valley Unitarian Universalist Church as they heal, both spiritually and physically. Keith Goodyear as he works towards building his furniture business. We wish him great success and hope to share fellowship with him again soon. 3

4 news & notes Green Tip of the Month Should you be using pure gasoline? You see the signs everywhere No Alcohol In Our Gas and We Use Only 100 Percent Gasoline. Why are these signs going up all over the metro? Well, simply, as fuel prices rise, so has the number of gas stations that sell reformulated gasoline (known as RFG ) containing up to 10 prcent ethanol by volume. And according to a recent state law (Oklahoma Statute 347 of Title 52, effective 1 July 2008), all fuel which contains greater that 5 percent v/v ethanol (or methanol) must be identified as Contains Ethanol (or Contains Methanol ) and must also report the percentage of alcohol in the fuel being sold. Gasoline blended with 10 percent ethanol is known as E10 and is less expensive to produce. Recent prices observed by yours truly indicate that E10 fuel sells for about $3.50/gal. while 100 percent gasoline is selling for about $3.80/gallon. So we find that 100 percent gasoline is 8.6 percent more costly per gallon that E10. The question we all ask is, Which should we use? Many people question the effect of E10 fuels on gas mileage and on the fuel systems of their cars. This we know: ethanol does have lower energy content than standard formulated gasoline (93,500 Btu/gal. for Ethanol vs. 109,000 Btu/gal. for gasoline), so this means that E10 fuel will provide approximately 105,700 Btu/ gal. of energy. According to the EPA Office of Transportation and Air Quality and President Clinton s Office of Science and Technology Policy, this is a reduction of thermal energy of about 3.0 percent [ gov/otaq/gasoline]. When adjusted for the combustion of these fuels in an automobile engine, Professor Larry Johnson of Iowa State University estimates that the use of E10 vs. 100 percent gasoline will exhibit a reduction in fuel efficiency of approximately 3.6 percent. So for a typical car that has a 17 gallon tank and gets 25 miles per gallon (mpg) on standard formulated gasoline, the range is 425 miles. This same car would get 24.1 mpg with E10 and have a range of 410 miles [DesMoines Register, 27 August 2006]. Let us take a look at it from the perspective of cost/ mile driven. Using our hypothetical example of 25 mpg 4 vs mpg, the use of 100 percent gasoline ($3.80/ gal. or $64.60/full tank), will cost 15.2 cents per mile while the E10 ($3.50/gal. or $59.50/full tank) costs 14.5 cents/mile. What is the breakeven point? When the fuel efficiency drops to 23 mpg (approximately 8-9 percent reduction), then both fuels have the same cost/mile. So unless you experience a drop in fuel efficiency of greater than 8 9 percent, it may be less costly to use E10. What about the effect on the fuel system and engine? Well, by federal mandate, all cars manufacture after 1985 are designed to run on up to 10 percent ethanol. Why? Because the use of gasoline blended with oxygenates like ethanol significantly reduces the production of hydrocarbon smog and particulate emission by internal combustion engines thus improving our air quality. Also, in my opinion, the use of the phrase 100 percent gasoline is misleading, since every distributor of gasoline uses a different formulation. All gasoline formulations include the addition of detergents, drying agents, lubricants and other oxygenates. So, beware of the hype and determine for yourself if the use of E10 fuel is acceptable for your bottom-line and your concern for air quality. Nelson Daniel

5 groups WRITERS COVENANT GROUP will meet at 7 p.m. on August 4 at Dorothy Driver s home. For info, contact WOMEN S LUNCHEON GROUP: contact Lucy Almitra at or lalmitra@cox.net. GAIA CIRCLE will meet at 6 p.m. on August 17 for a potluck dinner and program. The program will be on Water, one of the four elements GAIA Circle is studying this year. Presenters will be Lucy Almitra, Cheryl Barr and Sharon Huey. For more information, contact Angela Brown at SPIRAL CIRCLE CUUPS will meet at 6 p.m. August 3 for potluck supper and the celebration of Lammas. Our facilitators will be Sharon Huey and Chelsey Simpson. Please bring a fresh, uncooked vegetable to add to a soup we will be making together. All are welcome to join us. STITCHERS will meet at 2 p.m. August 9 at the home of Dee Welch. For information, call Pat Hervey at BRIDGE GROUP: contact Dorothy Driver at THE CHOIR meets at Channing on Thursday nights from 7:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. DRUMMING CIRCLE: contact Cheryl Barr at LUNCH BUNCH meets at 12:30 on Sundays. Location TBA. Info: Gene Douglas at MAH JONG GROUP Contact Dorothy Driver at PFLAG: contract Dana Spears at WOMEN S NIGHT OUT: contact Jana Leslie at LABYRINTH STUDY GROUP is staying cool by walking the indoor labyrinth at First Methodist Church in Edmond from 6-8 p.m. on the third Monday of each month. All are welcome. Instructors are present if you ve never participated in this easy and ancient form of walking meditation. LITERARY GROUP: will meet August 27 at the home of Cheryl Barr ( ). We are reading Beginner s Luck by Laura Pederson. THEATER GROUP dines together and attends the productions of the Oklahoma Theatre Company. For information about the next performance contact Pat Hervey. HARVEST HEALTH will meet at 4 p.m. on August 3. We will prepare a recipe using tomatoes and herbs from our garden and learn their nutritional and historical information. For more information, contact Angela Brown at All Channing groups are open to anyone who wishes to attend. Check calendar for time and place. More information on any group is available at Goodies and Greeters August 3 Pot Luck August 10 Linda Gray August 17 Pat Hervey August 24 Cheryl Barr August 31 Sue Spears Beginning in August, POT LUCK will be on the first Sunday as we used to do. Please sign up to be a greater on the sigh up list in the church foyer. And if you signed up for August, don t forget! 5

6 Channing Unitarian Universalist Church The Church of the Open Mind and Open Heart Phone: Virginia Benson Daniel, President Channing Board of Trustees Sunday Services: Adult and children s education programs (Forum): 9:45 a.m. (Children s programs take a summer break from June through August) Church service and continuing children s program: 11 a.m. Channing Unitarian Universalist Church 324 N.W. 164th Edmond, OK