Congregation established 1836

Newsletter of the

First Unitarian Church, Alton, Illinois

www.firstuualton.org

Rev. Khleber Van Zandt, Minister

May 7^th

“Religion and Healing the World”

Dr. David Christensen, Professor Emeritus,

Southern Illinois University at Carbondale

Religion is a very powerful force in the world, influencing both good and evil beliefs and actions of most of the human family. Is there reason to hope that religion might play a positive role in leading to more cooperation among nations and people?"

May 14^th

Mothers’ Day Flower Communion

“The Mixed Emotions of Motherhood”

Rev. Khleber Van Zandt

Mothers’ Day has become a day to honor, celebrate, and reflect on the women who gave us birth.  But some will come to this day bearing mixed emotions: maybe a little joy and tenderness, but perhaps many more difficult feelings as well.  We’ll consider the pain and the pleasure, the love and the loss of motherhood in all its manifestations.  It is also Flower Communion Sunday, so please consider bringing a few flowers to share during this annual ritual. 

May 21^st

“Cracking the Da Vinci Code”

Rev. Khleber Van Zandt

With the release of the blockbuster movie scheduled for this weekend, we’ll take another look through Dan Brown’s book, The Da Vinci Code.  Do all those secret organizations really exist?  How could they keep such secrets for so many centuries?  And why the popularity of this simple mystery novel?

May 28^th

“Virtues and Vices:  Modern Views”

Dr. Ronald Glossop, Professor Emeritus, Southern Illinois University at Edwardsville

Having discussed the classical views about virtues and vices last month, Ron will now discuss the ideas on that topic which have been advanced by the more modern philosophers – David Hume, Immanuel Kant, John Dewey, and Friedrich Nietzsche.

May 7^th – 9:30 a.m. to 10:15 a.m.

“In Search of the Historical Jesus.”  Who was Jesus?  What was he like?  For over 2000 years people have pondered these questions.  In this DVD series we’ll view presentations by Professor Bart D. Ehrman as he approaches the subject of who Jesus might have been from a purely historical perspective.  These programs are held on the 1^st and 4^th Sundays, and coordinated by the Rev. Khleber Van Zandt.

May 14^th – 9:00 a.m. to 10:15 a.m.

The “Welcoming Congregation Workshop” is a new series held on the 2^nd Sunday of each month.  This program is designed to help congregations develop individual and institutional strategies in order to become more welcoming to gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender people and their families.  This monthly program is coordinated by the Welcoming Congregation Committee.

May 21^st – 9:30 a.m. to 10:15 a.m.

“Understanding the Bible” is a monthly class led by Gerry Gilman on the 3^rd Sunday of each month.  The class is based on a book written by the Rev. John Buehrens, former president of the Unitarian Universalist Association. 

May 28^th – 9:30 a.m. to 10:15 a.m.

“In Search of the Historical Jesus.” 

A First Glance

Once upon a time, there was a group of people who lived in a village along a river.  From time to time, they would see other people floating down the river past their village in great distress, and they would do what they could to pull the folks out and help them get back on their feet.  Over time, they noticed that more and more people were floating by, needing help to get out of the river and back on their feet.  Finally, someone in the village had the idea to take a trip up the river to see why so many were falling in.  Upriver a short distance, they came upon a bridge that had a large hole in it and they could see that people were falling through that hole.  Rather than simply continue to pull people out of the water, the party decided to repair the hole in the bridge.

While not quoted verbatim, this is an allegorical story told at the April meeting of the Board of Trustees by Mr. Herb Reisinger about an organization he founded seven years ago called United Congregations of Metro-East (UCM).  Now more than twenty-five member congregations from all over the metro-east area, UCM’s work is all about repairing bridges.

Though Herb is a member of Holy Family Catholic Church in Granite City, UCM is an organization of people from many faith traditions.  Catholic and Protestant churches, a Jewish synagogue, and a Muslim mosque are among the members of UCM.  In the Alton area, St. Ambrose Catholic, Tabernacle Missionary Baptist, and College Avenue Presbyterian churches all work with UCM to effect social change.

Herb told us of the group’s accomplishments over the past few years - preserving the funding for treatment and rehabilitation provided by the Madison County Drug Court system and urging the formation of similar structures in other area counties;  gathering large public meetings where a diversity of local people work together on issues important to them, their families, and their communities;  providing leadership development resources for all citizens - women and men, prosperous and impoverished, white and Asian, African American and Hispanic;  building a charter school to increase the education potential of Madison County youth.

First Unitarian Church of Alton is proud to reinvigorate a relationship with the interfaith community as embodied in United Congregations of Metro-East.  If you’d like to learn more about how you personally can get involved, watch your newsletter for details or ask the minister or a representative of the Member Committee to put you on a list of congregational leaders who will meet soon with UCM staff to get going.  See you in church,

CHURCH ANNUAL MEETING

Friday evening, May 19^th

7:00 p.m.

Dessert is provided

Childcare is available

All church members should plan to attend the Annual Business Meeting of the church to be held on May 19^th.  This is an opportunity to put into practice the 5^th UU Principle which states that “We … affirm and promote the right of conscience and the use of the democratic process within our congregations ….” 

At the meeting an overview of the past year will be given by various Board Members and Committee Chairs and comments made about future goals. 

In addition there are three items to be voted on.  The first is a proposed change to the Church Bylaws Article V – Meeting of Members.  In Section 2 the Church Board has proposed that the line “A regular semi-annual meeting of the church shall be held in the second quarter of the fiscal year…” be changed to “A regular semi-annual meeting of the church shall be held between November 1^st and January 31^st…”

The second item to be voted upon is the slate of Board Officers and Nominating Committee members.  The candidates for those offices and their terms are:

Ted Loucks     – President (term 2006-2008 – one year

as President, one year as Past President;

Beth Nalick     – President Elect (term 2006-2009)

Mary Weber    – Secretary  (term 2006-2009)

Jerry Johnson – Treasurer (term 2006-2009)

The Nominating Committee nominees for the 2006-2007 church year are Mona Hebert, and Cheryle Tucker-Loewe.  [Carolyn Hazzard as past president will automatically be the Chair as per the Bylaws, and does not need to be elected.]

The third item to be voted on is the July 2006 – June 2007 Church Budget.  This Budget, as proposed by the Finance Committee, includes a full-time ministry salary line starting in January 2007 for our minister, Khleber Van Zandt.  Full-time ministry means that our minister would be in the pulpit at least 32 times a year instead of the current 20 times; he would have more available time to spend on pastoral care concerns; and he would allocate more time to social justice work and community outreach, building a greater presence in the community by becoming more involved with local business and minister’s groups.

April Board Meeting Summary

Minutes taken by Mary Weber

Summarized by the Newsletter Editor

The Board heard from Mr. Herb Reisinger, representing United Congregations of Metro-East (UCM), an organization of faith communities working together on economic and social issues affecting the poor and underserved.  The Board voted to pursue the idea of membership in this organization.

Jamie Gross, Director of Religious Education, presented a safety policy regarding actions to be taken if problems are found during a background check of potential RE teachers.  The Board approved the policy.

Becky Green, Church Administrator, said that the history tours of the church are continuing almost weekly during the spring, summer, and fall. Also, the hot water heater has been replaced.

The Board approved having a vented roof with a 20 year guarantee applied to the existing roof on the Wuerker Room for $6,300, plus a maintenance “mop and patch” on the RE wing for $2,370.  All work will include removal and repair to flashings and drip edge.  The work will be done by Jourdain Roofing.

Since it had been decided earlier in the year to have church services, RE activities, childcare, and other programming year round, the Board approved having central air conditioning added to the upper level of the RE wing.  This includes air conditioning the kitchen, The Place, the nursery, the activity room, the minister’s study, the halls and the restrooms. This will cost $4,239 and will come from Memorial funds.  Barretts Heating and Cooling will be doing the work.

The Board is looking for delegates to attend the General Assembly in June.

In Our Church Family

Lucy Bouton continues her recuperation at home following her hip surgery in March.  She is doing well; however mobility is restricted. Lucy hopes to see many of you at the Annual Meeting on May 19^th if not before.

David Wiseman is recovering at Alton Memorial Hospital, room 113 after having an aortic valve replacement.  He would like to thank everyone for the visits, cards, flowers and support.  Cards and flowers are welcome as he has difficulty with talking.

Welcome to Our New Members

Please make a special effort to meet and get better acquainted with our newest members.

Rachel Berg from Glen Carbon, IL

Ken Hoeft from Hazelwood, MO

Jon Durrett from Edwardsville, IL

Kit Schoenborn from Alton, IL

Church Canvass Update

A BIG THANK YOU to everyone who pledged this year!  To date we have received 63 pledges totaling $85,944.  And, if you have not yet turned in your pledge card, you may still do so.  Pledges are always welcome.  

A Thank You also to Nancy Brunner and her family for organizing and coordinating the Canvass Wrap-Up Party.  Photos of the event are in the Kate Wuerker Room.

Thumbnail Sketch of Upcoming Events

Read details in other parts of the newsletter.

Tues.,  May 2^nd – UU Pagans – 7:00 p.m.

Thurs., May 4^th – Anna Ds – 11:30 a.m.

Thurs., May 4^th – Choir practice – 7:00 p.m.

Tues.,  May 9^th – Men’s Lunch Group – 11:30 a.m.

Tues.,  May 9^th – Board meeting – 7:00 p.m.

Fri.,     May 12^th – Movie night – 7:00 p.m.

Sat.,    May 13^th – Square Dance – 7:00 p.m.

Thurs., May 18^th – Choir practice – 7:00 p.m.

Fri.,     May 19^th – ANNUAL MEETING – 7:00 p.m.

Sun.,    May 21^st – Volunteer Faire – before/after church

Sun.,    May 21^st – UU & You! – noon to 2:00 p.m.

Fri.,     May 26^th – Movie night – 7:00 p.m.

Sun.,    May 28^th – Potluck – 11:45 a.m.

A “Volunteer Faire”

To be able to function fairly well committees need a fair number of people.  To let everyone learn more about what opportunities are available for sharing their talents with the church we will be having a “Volunteer Faire” on Sunday, May 21^st.  At this “Faire” each committee will “display its wares” and give out information about what its role is in the life of the church.  This will give everyone an opportunity to choose projects they’d like to work on in the upcoming new church year.

Here are the names of church members and friends who are celebrating birthdays this month.  If this is ‘your month’ and your name didn’t get included, we’re sorry.  For future months please let Mary Johnson know your birth month and day. (mejohnson@mindspring.com)

  2 May – Bill Dittman

  7 May – Amy Murray

  9 May – Andrea Gross (1999)

12 May – Marcia Salisbury

13 May – Mark Tade

16 May – Rose Hoshiko

26 May – Audrey Wiseman

28 May – Willis McCoy

31 May – Davona Paul

RE NEWS

Dear Parents and Friends,

First of all, I would like to thank Pat Moore who has been coming in during the week to paint our new classroom downstairs.  She has done a great job.  It is worth the trip down the stairs to take a look.  However, now that the room is painted I need some volunteers to hang new fluorescent light fixtures in there.  Please come and speak with me if you have the talent and the desire to help out.

It has been decided that we will continue to "do church" over the summer.  This is a big change for us as it also includes having RE over the summer.  This is something that I don't think that this church has ever done before.  Due to summer being a busy travel time for families, summer RE will not look like RE does now.  We will have a series of volunteer-led children's chapels held in The Place.  The children will start out in the sanctuary, and when they are sung to their activities they will go to The Place.  Children's Chapel will last for about 20-25 minutes, and then the children can be taken outside if the weather permits or to the activity room for supervised recreational time.   As mentioned this will be volunteer led, so we will need two volunteers to sign up each week in order to have this happen.  There is no curriculum preparation necessary.  All of the songs (no musical ability necessary) and stories that will be used are already in the building.  The volunteers just get to pick the ones that they like.  Please see me if you are interested in helping out.

On Friday, May 5^th at 6:00 pm the RE department will be hosting an Earth Dinner here at the church.  This is a potluck dinner with the caveat that the dish that you bring should be a dish that is grown by you, grown organically in this community, or a dish that your family has a connection with.  The dinner involves food trivia and storytelling about the food that we bring as part of the entertainment.  We will also have a May Pole set up outside.  The only other event that is coming up in May is the Family Day celebration that will take place during regular RE time on May 14^th.

I always welcome any comments or questions that any of you may have whether you are parents with children in the program or not.

Thank you,  Jamie Gross

Movie Nights @ Church

Friday May 12, 7:00 p.m.

Title: What the Bleep Do We Know?

The movie follows the journey of professional photographer Amanda (played by Academy Award winning actress, Marlee Matlin) as she comes to understand the sources of her depression and slowly change her life. There are in-depth interviews with sixteen of the world’s top scientists, journalists and mystics, who talk about consciousness, psi research, physics, biology, emotion and addictions. The movie’s power and magic lies in the fact that it really makes us understand how human beings are connected to each other - to the whole universe - and how we all affect reality.

Friday May 26th, 7:00PM

Title: Falling Angels

The movie is about a "nuclear family" no pun intended and their experience with a bomb shelter in their backyard. There is fun in dysfunctional according to the "Toronto Sun".

 Questions – contact Beth Nalick bnalick@charter.net

Join the Choir – It’s Fun!

Rehearsals

Thursday May 4^th – 7:00 p.m.

Thursday, May 18^th – 7:00 p.m.

Questions, want to learn more?

Contact Willis McCoy wbmccoy@charter.net

SQUARE DANCE

For EVERYONE – kids, youth, adults, singles, couples – bring friends

Bring a snack to share and join in the fun on Saturday, May 13^th at 7:00 p.m.  Contact Diane Thompson det@ezl.com if you need further information.

Sunday Pot Luck Lunch

May 28^th – the 4^th Sunday

Bring a dish to share and plan to stay after church to join in food and fellowship.

A-L will do Clean Up

M-Z will do Table Set Up

Everyone will be responsible for setting food out on the buffet table.

Membership Update

Between January 2005 and April 2006 twenty-nine new members joined the church, and fifteen more children enrolled in the Religious Education program.  It is heartening to see the growth and new energy that is now evident at every church activity.

If you haven’t attended church services for a while come back and see what’s happening now.

Do you have an idea, suggestion, or comment for the good of the church and don’t know who at church to give it to?   There is a now suggestion box in the RE Foyer or you may send your suggestions to suggestions@firstuualton.org.  Or if you’re looking at the church’s homepage at http://www.firstuualton.org there is also a “suggestion box” icon there.

Directory Updates

Please make these changes and corrections in your 2006 Directory

(Addresses and phone numbers are not given in the electronic version of the newsletter.)

Mark with an * indicating a church member:

Hoeft, Ken (new member)

Schoenborn, Kit (new member)

Carter, Beverly (is a member, * accidentally removed)

Add the following names to the Directory and mark with an * indicating a church member:

Rachael Berg (new member)

Jon Durrett (new member)

Shop in Your
IN-CHURCH

Book Store

Come and look at the new books for sale at the Book Cabinet, located in the Wuerker Room and sponsored by the RE Department.  Shop for your favorite books published by Skinner House and Beacon Press.  Forty percent of the proceeds will go to benefit the RE department of this church.

Church Website Info

http://www.firstuualton.org

Many of our church newcomers indicate they first found the church through our Internet website.  A review of website usage from January through mid-April shows that our website was “visited” 1,248 times, with 412 of those being repeat visits.  The top 10 “pages” visited on the website included: information about the minister (28 times); this week at church (24 times); worship services (23 times); the newsletter (23 times); and selected sermons (22 times).

Further enhancements to the homepage are in the planning stages, including adding sound.

Selected Bits and Pieces

 (From “This Day in Unitarian Universalist History: a treasury of anniversaries and milestones from 600 years of religious tradition / by Frank Schulman – and available for sale at the RE Book Hutch)

May   1, 1933 – the Humanist Manifesto was published

May   4, 1796 – Horace Mann was born

May   5, 1819 – William Ellery Channing preached his famous “Unitarian Christianity” sermon, known as the Baltimore Sermon.

May 10, 1818 – Paul Revere died.

May 12, 1812 – The Boston Society for the Religious Improvement of Seamen was organized under the leadership of a Unitarian.

May 14, 1562 – Laelius Socinus, founder of Unitarianism in Poland died at the age of 37.

May 15, 1962 – The American Unitarian Association and the Universalist Church in American consolidated to form the Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA).

May 25, 1803 – Ralph Waldo Emerson was born.