Religious Education Wing built 1969;

New windows and façade 2014   

June 2014

June 1, 2014

“Beginning with Goodbye”

Rev. Khleber Van Zandt

We live like the bodhisattvas, one foot on earth and one foot in eternity.  This is more difficult than it might sound, because there’s always a goodbye hidden within each hello.  We were traveling when we found this special place, and we’ll be traveling again by and by.

June 8, 2014

"Walking into Change"
Robyn Berkley

Liturgist: Spiral Blanton

June 15, 2014

“Father’s Day Sermon”

Eric Johnson

What is fatherhood?  Is care-giving just care-giving?  Is there really something different about a fathers care?  This sermon will explore that through mirroring the work that Jean Bethke Elschtain did in her ground breaking work "Women and War."  Her book explores how women in societies have been traditionally divided into to two archetypes, the "beautiful soul" and the "Spartan mother."

Does a male parallel exist to her research?  Come and find out.

Liturgist: Paul Hebert

June 22, 2014

“Becoming Re-enchanted”

Rev. Susan Maginn

In a world where we got it all figured out yesterday, we still crave those enchanting experiences that have the power to poke holes in reality and let the magic flow through. 

June 29, 2014

“Why Social Justice”

Dee Evans

Question?  Do social justice activities work?  The question will be left open to the congregation to discuss.

Liturgist:  Dee Evans

11:15 am ADULT RELIGIOUS EDUCATION (ARE)

Nursery childcare available

There will be no 9:30 ARE during the summer.

The 11:15 ARE program will be coordinated by Dee Evans.  The discussion topics for the summer sessions will be chosen each week by the participants.

A Last Glance

We have accomplished many good things together over the last decade:   a Strategic Plan and Capital Campaign to support a building renovation;   becoming a Welcoming Congregation and being invited into the UUA's Leap of Faith Program;  feeding our neighbors and providing personal care products at 4^th Saturday Lunches;   sending teams to the Gulf Coast for hurricane relief and helping to build homes in East St. Louis;   participating in Alton’s Lenten Luncheons;   getting Marriage Equality passed in Illinois.

All along, there have been Easter egg hunts, May Day celebrations, and Our Whole Lives classes;  Dia de Los Muertos parties and dances out the wazoo;  the Centennial of the Sanctuary and a 175^th Anniversary Celebration;  weddings and memorials, new member blessings and child dedications, and even a baptism.  What a wild and wonderful time!

Not everything has been hunky-dory:  we saw the resignations of two congregational presidents in one fiscal year;  we suffered from a failure to adequately transition our financial systems in a timely manner;  and we had only marginal success in trying to shift our governance to a more modern system.

Beyond those troubles, we were unable to revise our by-laws to reflect new structures and procedures;  we were slow in getting a policy manual in place;  sometimes our volunteer recruitment, member retention, and stewardship drives were less than stellar;  and there were times when poor communication exacerbated trust issues between the congregation and its elected leadership.

Some of my own actions have been controversial:  for instance, I didn’t ask anyone’s permission before setting a trap a marauding raccoon, and after catching ol’ Rocky up on the roof one Sunday morning, I relocated him to a new home on the far banks of the river, which of course brought kudos from some quarters and great lamentation from others.  This is a UU church, after all, with an appropriate spectrum of opinion on any subject.

Massive changes have occurred in this congregation over the past decade.  And it occurs to me that even as I tell myself I want to know what everybody thinks before I act, sometimes - like with the Rocky incident - I step out on my own without asking permission, but ready instead to seek forgiveness. 

Leadership is complicated like that:  if we waited for consensus every time, would real change ever occur?

I don't know.  I know I have overstepped my bounds on occasion, but I also know I have often grossly understepped them.  But now it’s time for me to leave all this leadership stuff to you. 

I wish you all my best as you welcome an incoming interim minister and begin living into a new era in the life of this congregation.

Blessings on each and every one of you,

At 7 pm on Friday June 6^th, please join the congregation and friends to say a fond farewell to our much loved Khleber and Linda Van Zandt as they move on to an new adventure.

We’ll come together as a community in our sanctuary for an evening of music, storytelling and fellowship, reflecting on the impact that they have both had on our lives.

Following the service join us for appetizers, drinks and dessert as we have casual conversation and amusing roasts and toasts for Khleber and Linda.  Everyone welcome! This is an all ages event!

If you wish to contribute to the service, support or help out, please contact Lee or Spiral or Sayer. Let us know if you need transportation or any support making it to this event. 

SUMMER SPEARKER SCHEDULE FOR WORSHIP SERVICES

10 am

July 6 – Paul Fischer

July 13 – Sabrina Trupia

July 20 – Jeremy Colton

July 27 – Michelle Bryant-Barbeau

August 3 – Sayer Johnson

August 10 – Ron Glossop

August 17 – TBA

August 24 – TBA

August 31 – TBA

Upcoming Interim Minister Search

The board will be pursuing an interim minister through the UUA.  This position will hopefully last 2 years and help prepare us for a settled minister search.  If you would like to know more about Interim Ministry and the success other churches have had with it, here are a few informational links:

• UUA Main Interim Ministry Page
• Informational video on Interim Ministry
• UUA Fair Compensation Page

Fourth Saturday Lunch & Personal Care Items

for those in need

June 28

11:30 am

Information about what is needed for May’s lunch will be available at church, via email from the Church Office, on UU Friends, and on the First Unitarian Church of Alton’s Facebook page.   Questions – contact Robyn Berkley.

Our distribution of personal care items has become very popular – as many of these needed items cannot be purchased through the government’s “Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program” (SNAP - formerly known as food stamps). 

If you can contribute any of the following items, your donation would be very welcome.  Toilet paper – feminine hygiene products – shampoo – laundry detergent – bleach – baby wipes – diapers/pull-ups – Afro-American hair products – cleaning supplies – toothpaste - soap.   Questions – contact Sabrina Trupia.

Report from the Board

Sandy Shaner,

Secretary

            We spent most of our time at the May meeting discussing future plans:

-- the agenda and handouts for the 5/18/14 Congregational Meeting;

-- our June meeting with Lisa Presley of the Regional UUA for her help in the ministerial search;

-- the planned telephone interviews with candidates who have expressed an interest in us (6 as of this date).

            All of this is to say that, by the time you read this, you should know more about those issues than we do right now. So, stay tuned – to updates at services, Church this Week e-mails, your Facebook links – to the many ways we’re working to keep you informed. And, as always, ask any Board member if you have questions we’ve not answered for you.

Church PotluckLunch

June 1, 2014

1^st Sunday of each Month

We hold our potluck lunches on the 1^st Sunday of each month.  Bring a dish to share on June 1^stand stay after the service to join with friends and newcomers in an enjoyable tradition.  Volunteers are needed to help set the tables and help clean up, so please enjoy both the food and the sharing of the tasks.

Worship Team Associates

Monday, June 16

7 to 8:30 pm

Have you wanted to share in bringing new perspectives to Sunday morning worship?  Would you would enjoy a deeper study of what happens (emotionally, spiritually, intellectually) during worship, and how to make those experiences more meaningful to yourself and the congregation?  If so, please plan to attend the Worship Team Associates meeting.

Contact:   Khleber Van Zandt.

UNITY CIRCLE

The Unity Circle, facilitated by Sharon Johnson, will meet on Sunday, June 8 from 12:15 to 1:30 pm. 

Our topics are now all around Living Simply. Indeed our group name is the Living Simply Unity Circle. June topic is "Letting Go Part 2"

Everyone is welcome. Participants should join if they are able to commit to joining us monthly for 6-12 months, as this Unity Circle is intended for relationship building.

This Unity Circle is intended for deep listening, and not feedback or advice.

Donations to the Alton Crisis Food Center

Please continue to bring your donations of non-perishable food for The Crisis Food Center.  The Center is in need of canned green beans, corn and other vegetables; tuna; canned meat; peanut butter; boxes of mac ‘n cheese; and basic food staples.  The food collection box is in the RE foyer.

Personal care items should be put on the shelves in Emerson Place.

Joined 5/11/2014

Ryan* & Missy* Long

Alton, IL  62002

missywuellner@gmail.com

Joined 5/18/2014

Phil* Embree & Claudia* Harju

Alton, IL  62002

embreephil@gmail.com

The rummage sale coordinated by Char and Lee on May 9 -10 brought in a little over $1700.  Twenty-three volunteers put in a total of 235 hours to make this sale a real success!  Four charitable organizations were supported through our donations to them of “left over” rummage sale items.  A BIG THANK YOU to all who donated items and helped with the sale.  The baby grand piano which was going to be too costly to repair and had been sitting in the Wuerker Room for months was also taken away by a rummage sale buyer.

Interest Groups

Our next Anna D’s meeting will be held on Thursday, June 5^th at 11:30 a.m. and hosted by Lorli Nelson at Methodist Village.   Call Lorelei with your RSVP by Monday, 6/2/2014.

We will continue our earlier conversations about ways to make our meetings more enjoyable and attractive. At last month’s meeting we agreed to meet through the summer so that we can cancel some winter dates if necessary due to weather. We previously had a discussion about choosing some new-to-us places to go to break free of our routine and also talked about potentially creating a year’s worth of meeting dates and hosts so we can plan ahead and even arrange speakers if desired.

So please come with ideas and options to discuss on June 5.   

Fifty-Plus (50+) Forum

First SATURDAY of every month

June 7, 2014

10:30 am to noon at church

We invite anyone who is over 50 or even getting near that milestone to join us. We have a lot in common: long work lives, preparation for or entry into retirement, a vast array of interests … and we love sharing all of it.

We will have a presentation/discussion about the book by Richard Rohr entitled “Falling Upward.”

Men’s Monthly Lunch

June 12 @ 11:30

The Men’s lunch bunch meets the second Thursday of each month.  Join us on Thursday, June 12 at 11:30 am at the Best Buffet at 615 Wesley, Drive in Wood River, IL.
Coordinator:   Jim Moore.  All men in our church are invited.

Renegade Women -

topical discussions

1 pm to 3 pm every 3^rdSaturday.

June 21, 2014

The Renegade Women will continue meeting throughout the summer.  The topic for the June meeting will be “The role of forgiveness in organizational life,” led by Sandy Shaner.  For information, contact Dee Evans.

The theme for the upcoming year is “Women in Organizations.”

June Birthdays

Most people enjoy getting a card, email, or phone call on their birthday.  Below is the list we have of church members and friends celebrating birthdays this month.  If you do not think the church office has your birthday on file, please contact Becky Green at church@firstuualton.org and give her that information.

6/01     Sayer Johnson

6/04     Marcia Custer

6/04     Jennifer Herndon

6/06     Ella Chapman Baker, (14)

6/09     Wayne Politsch

6/12     Will Adams, (9)

6/12     Honor Dimick, (14)

6/13     Samuel Berkley, (12)

6/13     Zyairra Kambal, (7)

6/16     Claudia Harju

6/17     Ryan Wucher, (14)

6/20     Meridith Koch, (14)

6/20     Abigail White, (5)

6/21     Justin Herndon, (6)

6/21     Joy Hoeft

6/21     Andrew Strangeman, (3)

6/22     Cole Chapman, (12)

6/24     Devin Johnson (14)

6/25     Mandan Kirk

6/25     Char McAllister

6/29     Charlie Chapman Utgaard, (10)

6/30     Brianna Bennett, (3)

6/30     Ruth Maskow

First Unitarian of Alton Campfest

Campfest is an intergenerational, all inclusive camp out in rustic cabins at Pere Marquette State Park in Grafton Illinois. This year Campfest will be Sunday June 29^th  through Friday, July 4^th

If you would like to know more and or assist us in the planning process we would love for you to come to our meeting Sunday June 8^th.  We will soon have formal registration and fee structure available. Stay tuned!  Questions, contact Sayer Johnson.

Below is the list of members of the Caring Ministries Team.

Marcia Custer is the Coordinator. You may always contact a Team member in time of illness, loss, crisis, or other need.  Keep this list of contact people available in case you or your family is in need of pastoral support.

The Caring Ministries Committee is ready to welcome several more members! If you are interested in engaging in conversations with other church friends and getting to know them on a deeper level, please consider joining our group! Please contact Marcia Custer for more information.

June RE Program News & Notes

Teaching Children. ~ Raising People. ~ Growing Souls.

Thank you to all of the folks on our Teaching Ministry Team this year from the Minister, Religious Education Coordinator, and Congregation: