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Sunday Morning Service at 10:30am
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January 27
“Ways to Grow” How and why do congregations grow? How and why is the Fellowship growing? It’s not just about numbers! Rev. Connie Grant speaking.
Click here for January Worship Services
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Your Leadership Journey
"If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, you are a leader."
— John Quincy Adams, sixth President of the United States
February 2, 9:30am - 11:30am in Room UL302
Presented by Sara Clavez, Shannon Sonoras and the Rev. Connie Grant.
We will explore our experiences becoming leaders and learning how to exercise leadership, explore connections with our sense of the divine/ultimate, identify ways our faith has changed over time, and become familiar with the work of James Luther Adams, a 20th century Unitarian theologian.
In 2019, the Engagement Team plans to continue to offer monthly workshops based on the "Harvest the Power" program developed by the Unitarian Universalist Association. There are no prerequisites, no obligation to participate in all the workshops, and no cost to you for participating. We do ask that you preregister so we can have enough copies of the materials for all participants. Please click here to register.
"Harvest the Power" is a series of workshops designed to provide leadership skill development that goes hand-in-hand with faith development. Through discussion, art, play and introspection, the program helps lay leaders grow in spirit as they grow as leaders. "Harvest the Power" addresses the reality that today’s leaders operate at a time of rapid cultural change, both in and outside our congregations. Leaders need a broad range of skills, both technical and visionary. Whether you are new to congregational leadership or an experienced leader in our congregation, these workshops offer opportunities to enrich the skills you bring to your leadership and will raise awareness of how you and others experience leadership as part of your Unitarian Universalist faith journey.
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Deepening: A Covenant Group Experience
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Sunday, February 24 at 12:00pm in the Sanctuary
Would you like to strengthen your connections with others at UUFoM and enhance your participation in the Fellowship, while deepening your own spiritual life? Try a Covenant Group!
This will be an opportunity to try out the Covenant Group experience before deciding whether you want to join (or even facilitate) an ongoing group. This sample session will include a focus reading, chalice lighting, a short check-in for each participant, and a discussion of the topic, followed by a brief check-out and closing reading. Whether or not you decide to be part of an ongoing group, this session offers the possibility of learning something about yourself and each other!
A Covenant Group consists of up to ten people who gather around an interest, affinity, or activity to meet regularly over time for spiritual growth, community building, and congregational participation. Group meetings follow a specified format, and each group is led by a trained facilitator who also participates in an ongoing facilitators’ group. The facilitator’s role is to help the group stay on track and accomplish its purpose. Each group establishes covenants including ground rules for the group’s relationship and interaction, commitment to welcome new members to the group, and service to the Fellowship and the community.
If would like to consider facilitating a group or if you have questions, please contact Rev. Connie Grant at [email protected], or Sara Clavez, Covenant Group coordinator, at [email protected].
A light lunch will be provided for the February 24 Covenant Group Experience if you register by February 17. Please register here!
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Photos For Member Directory
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In an effort to get to know the congregation better, we would like to add photos next to names in the Member Directory on the password-protected section of the website. Couples and families can be photographed together. Photos and/or names of children will be included at the discretion of their parents.
The FINAL photo shoot will take place after Sunday service on January 27 at 12pm. Photos will be taken in the upstairs meeting room, room UL301. To sign up to get your photo taken on Sunday, please see Christina Van Poucker or email her at [email protected].
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Regional Assembly Registration Open
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Registration is now open for the 2019 MidAmerica Regional Assembly. This year, our Regional Assembly will be held in St. Louis, Missouri, at the Marriott St. Louis Airport Hotel, April 5-7, 2019.
Please click the following link to find out more information about Regional Assembly including pricing, hotel information, our schedule of events, workshop information, information on volunteering, how to register, and much more:
https://www.uua.org/midamerica/ra
The theme is “Intersectionalities.” Presentations and workshops will explore identities we encounter and embody, the challenges of social inequality, and tools and skills we need in order to work more effectively with one another, as well as the general “nuts and bolts” of congregational life, such as leadership, stewardship, membership, and religious education. Our Keynote Presenter will be UUA President, Rev. Susan Frederick-Gray. Join us to explore, share, and worship with fellow Unitarian Universalists.
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February 3
"The Truth Shall Make You Laugh"
Laughter can be a powerful tool to fight injustice, promote healing, and unveil the truth. Laughter can help people be more open to new ideas or ways of seeing each other. In situations where no one is talking, it can sometimes open a door to communication. It can also make it easier to talk about difficult things. We’ll explore pathways to truth and justice through humor. A multigenerational service led by Heather Cleland-Host.
February 10
“Believing in Evolution”
I believe in evolution. For me, this is a theological claim as well as a scientific one. As Charles Darwin’s 210th birthday approaches, an exploration of the meaning of “evolution” in our lives. Rev. Connie Grant speaking.
February 17
“Why We Tell Stories; Art, Faith and Animation”
The strange world of imagination, often relegated to the children's library, preserves clues and mysteries that ask us to look closer and to think differently about firmly held beliefs. I have found that imaginative works from folk literature, art history and children’s picture-books, often cause me to reconsider the role mystery plays in our lives. Much of what I know about my own faith I have come to understand through the language of story. I have found that the storytellers who draw specifically from faith and folk traditions resonate with me most deeply and remind me that my own journey is part of a much larger story. Stephan Leeper, guest speaker, is Associate Professor of Animation in the Department of Art and Design at Central Michigan University. Steve has produced short films using pixilation, stop-motion, digital cutouts and drawn animation. You can see examples of his personal and commercial work on his JSL Studio/Vimeo page.
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RE-flections from the Director of Religious Education
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It is a new year filled with new opportunities to connect and transform our children’s lives and our own. In January our elementary and middle school students explored the question of "what is true?" and "how do we know it?" It has been amazing walking this journey with our children.
Truth is something that determines how we value ourselves and each other. Our youngest religious explorers shared with each other who they were and how to learn together. They had the opportunity to teach each other and learn from each other. They ended with an expression of who they are as a class and as a community. It is delightful what our youngest children can create.
Truth is also something that is not always clear. We can find the truth in different ways. Sometimes the truth we find is the meaning we give things. The upper elementary religious explorers found ways of seeking different kinds of truth. They explored the search for truth through meaning within pagan traditions, how science and reason can help understand the truth, and how sometimes you have to seek out and work for the truth. Many different religious and secular traditions are focused on how we give meaning to what we learn and how to see things more clearly. These kids inquiring minds led the discussion in wonderful ways!
Finally, the truth is not always easy. Our middle school class spent this past month exploring the truth about death. We looked at how humans have a hard time talking about death. Often people try to avoid the topic, but what if we look more closely at it, not merely what happens when you die, but what it might add to our lives now. How does death clarify and give meaning to our lives here and now? How are we affected by losing people to death? What might we want to make certain we do in our lives before we die? Talking to teens about death can be a mixture of absurdity and seriousness that is transformative as a teacher. We had a Death Café, a game where Snakes and Ladders determined the paths of our characters’ lives, death by Exploding Kittens, and lists of what we might want to do first, knowing that one day our lives will end. How much more important is it to make certain the people we love know we love them?
Our children are amazing! And I invite you to join them in February as they explore what is fair or not fair for the month of February. We still need teachers in Upper Elementary and Middle School! Message me or catch me Sunday if you are available.
Yours in the Spirit of the Search for Truth,
Heather Cleland-Host
Director of Religious Education
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February Children & Youth Religious Education Winter Program
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My UU Identity, Values & Beliefs
In the fall, the religious education program focused on who we are as a UU community. Who is our community? Who are we as a congregation? In January, we began exploring how this community helps us shape our identities, values and beliefs – and how to live them out.
Winter Block 2 begins February 10:
Junior and Senior Children’s Circle January focus: Not Fair! What is fair?
Age 4 to 2 nd grade in UL303, and 3 rd – 5 th grade in UL302
Secondary Lodestone Program: Racism – Unfairness at the Societal Level
Grades 6 th – 10 th in UL103
Coming of Age Program – 8th-10th grades
(Starting February 17 After the Service, Location to be determined with youth & mentors)
We will be holding a Coming of Age program starting February 17 after the service. The program will meet every other week for a total of 6 sessions. Each teen will be matched with an adult mentor who will attend the luncheon program with them. The program will also have a few sessions external to the luncheons and will close with a Coming of Age ceremony and a Coming of Age journey. The location will be selected with the teens, mentors and their families. Traditionally in UU congregations the journey might be to General Assembly or Boston where the UUA is headquartered. The trip is optional for mentors. We are currently recruiting mentors and other supporting volunteers. If you are interested, contact the Director of Religious Education, Heather Cleland-Host at [email protected].
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Upcoming Religious Education Events
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UUFoM Parents' Circle Meeting
February 10 at 12:00pm in UL302
Light lunch & childcare provided
The Parents’ Circle is made up of families with children through 12th grade, gathering together for discussions, activities, potlucks, and more. We also have a private Facebook group for safe sharing. Elspeth Hetrick has been managing the Facebook group and leading us on adventures.
We will be holding monthly meetings again on second Sundays. We are starting with meeting after the service during the winter months for discussion and munchies. Discussion topics will be chosen by parents attending. Some possible topics: "How is our parenting impacted by our religious journey?" "How do we equip our kids to deal with religious bullying?" Come join us for great company and conversation!
Lifespan Religious Education Team Meeting
February 7 at 7:00pm in UL302
The Lifespan Religious Education Team meets monthly to support and develop the religious education program at the Fellowship. If you are interested in helping on the team or just interested in knowing more about what we do, feel free to attend our meeting and see what it is all about! (Contact Heather Cleland-Host, Director of Religious Education for more information ahead of the meeting, especially if you are interested in joining the team).
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Will You Welcome a Guest At Your Table?
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 The idea behind Guest at Your Table is to take a box home and place an amount of money in the box each day over the winter holidays, an amount that we might spend to host a guest in our homes. Guest at Your Table donations support the work of the Unitarian Universalist Service Committee, protecting and promoting basic human rights.
This year’s Guest at Your Table theme is Justice Across Borders. From the Northern Triangle of Central America, to deserts of Mexico and Arizona, to detention centers in the United States, the road away from danger is paved with injustices. Partnering with grassroots allies along the Central American migration trail, UUSC addresses root causes, supports migrants in transit, and protects the right to seek asylum. Join with UUSC for Guest at Your Table to learn more about UUSC’s and our nation’s involvement in Central America – historically and presently – and our courageous Migrant Justice partners.
Please pick up a box or envelope at the Events board and bring it back to the Fellowship by February 3. If you have any questions, please contact Amanda Clifton at [email protected].
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Midland County Emergency Food Pantry Network Donations
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The Midland County Emergency Food Pantry Network is a cooperative effort of area churches and other organizations to provide food and supplies to people in Midland County who have emergency needs and are living near or below the Federal poverty level income guidelines.
At UUFoM, we collect donations on an ongoing basis. Bring your donations with you when you come to the Fellowship and place them in one of the bins in the UUFoM Donation Center outside the sanctuary, and we will transport them to the Food Pantry.
UUFoM donated 80 items on January 7!
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Empty Ink Cartridge Collection
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 UUFoM can receive $1.00 each for recyclable empty ink cartridges. Not all cartridge types are eligible, but please bring to the Fellowship any empty cartridges you have and they will be turned in, with a credit then being issued to the UUFoM for eligible cartridges. Ineligible cartridges will be properly disposed of. This is an on-going collection effort that in the past was facilitated by RG Converse. Please bring in empty cartridges and deposit them in the labeled collection bin in the UUFoM Donation Center outside the sanctuary. If you are allowed to collect empty ink cartridges from your workplace this can greatly increase our return.
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This Week at the Fellowship
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Fellowship Office Hours
The Fellowship Office is usually open Mondays through Thursday from 9:30 am until 3:00 pm. Please email the office or call 989-631-1162 if you need to get in touch at any other time.
| Sat 01/26 |
1:00pm |
Private Event (Rental) |
| Sun 01/27 |
10:30am |
Sunday Service |
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11:45am |
UUFoM Board Meeting |
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12:00pm |
Member Photos |
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7:00pm |
AA Meeting (Rental) |
| Tue 01/29 |
11:00am |
Staff Meeting |
| Tue 01/29 |
6:00pm |
Cakes for the Queen of Heaven (Cov Grp) |
| Wed 01/30 |
5:00pm |
Three Jewels Sangha Tea & Meditation |
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7:00pm |
Choir Rehearsal |
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8:00pm |
AA Meeting (Rental) |
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Calendar
Reserve a space.
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Pastoral Care Ministry Team
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January Contact: Mary Johnson 989-859-1490
Our Pastoral Care Ministry Team is here for you. We can provide a meal, a ride, some respite or a supportive ear and a cup of coffee.
We maintain a volunteer list where you can identify ways to help a Fellowship member in need. Please click here to fill out the Pastoral Care Volunteer Form online.
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You can access the Member Directory on the password-protected Member section of the website. The Member Directory contains names and contact information for all members and pledging friends. Please notify the office if you need to change your information or you do not wish your information to appear in the online directory.
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The Weekly Candle Flame is published each Thursday. Submission deadline is Monday for Thursday publication. Please send submissions to Wendy Altmeier, Office Assistant, using only this address [email protected].
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Fellowship Office Hours
Monday - Thursday 9:30am-3:00pm
[email protected]
Rev. Connie Grant
Interim Minister
Office Hours
Tuesday, Wednesday, & Thursday 11am-3pm
[email protected]
(847) 840-8542
In case of a pastoral emergency, call anytime
Heather Cleland-Host
Director of Religious Education
Office Hours by appointment only
[email protected]
Wendy Altmeier
Office Assistant
Office Hours
Monday - Thursday 9:30am-3:00pm
[email protected]
989-631-1162
Sandy Hay
Sexton
[email protected]
(918) 698-0311
In case of building emergency, call anytime
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