MAYwww.uusf.org

FirstNewsThe First Unitarian Universalist Society of San Francisco Monthly Newsletter

2011

“There is always a time to say thank you, and this is my time.”

Continued on Page 1

FirstNews is published monthly byThe First Unitarian Universalist Society of San Francisco, 1187 Franklin St., San Francisco, CA 94109-4580. Questions/Comments: FirstNews@uusf.org

FirstNews

Minister’s Mailbox

P.1By Rev. Gregory L. Stewart

Thank you...

Music

P.5By Dr. Mark Sumner

In Praise of Music

Since 1850 – A Welcoming Community For The Liberal Spirit

Beyond Sunday

P.2By Rev. Jeremiah Kalendae

A Cliché That Holds The Solution

Board Notes

P.6By Stephen Schwichow

Time and our Transitions

Pastoral Care

P.3By Rev. Fred Rabidoux

Separating Yourself

Community Presence

P.4By Rev. Dr. Kay Jorgensen

“Living in the Land of the Dead” Volume 4

Beyond Sunday: Adult Religious Education Series

10

Sunday Forum11

Congregational Meetings9

Amy Moses-Lagos 12

Ordination of Jeremy Nickel

16

All-Church Retreat & Registration Form7-8

Beyond Sunday: Membership & Hospitality Ministry

17

Jonathan A. Silk, Newsletter Editor Next Newsletter Deadline: June 15

May Day Celebration Lunch13

Calling all Delegates14

Petals Fundraiser19

Right to Water!18

What is Interim Ministry?21

Beyond Sunday: Social Justice Ministries20

From Laurie Moore22

Becoming and Belonging

Family Faith Activities15

Biographies23-25

Beyond Sunday: Spiritual Ministries26

PICT, Newcomer Orientation & Up On Top27

52 Sundays a Year28

By The Reverend Gregory L. Stewart, Senior Minister

Thank you...

Minister’s Mailbox

There is always a time to say thank you, and this is my time. A lot happens in five years, but it’s the people who have shared this journey with me that I’ll remember long after the events and accolades are forgotten. Each of you has contributed in some way to my ongoing ministerial formation. Now you send me off with the kind of experiential learning that money can’t buy. And I hope I have encouraged you to live out loud your “one wild and precious life” (Mary Oliver) as if there is no tomorrow. For indeed, there never really is. Thank you for taking a chance on me, a minister who has spent more years in the classroom than in the pulpit. While I found my preaching voice elsewhere, I became a preacher at the Society. Go and listen to my first sermon here, “Christina Baldwin is Hearing Voices,” and be glad that we have all moved on. Our historic pulpit and receptive congregation ensures that no one here will ever take preaching lightly. I am both blessed and humbled every time I preach to you. Thank you for sharing your stories with me, your hopes and fears, trembling hands and heavy hearts, joyful outbursts and holy silences. My greatest privilege has been to pray with so many of you, sharing the deepest longings of our hearts while we face an unknown future. I meet so many folk that do not have a sacred, supportive community to help them navigate their lives’ journeys. I pray that you never know what it is like to walk these streets alone. I am both blessed and humbled every time I pray with you. Thank you for going out on a limb with me when we wrapped the church and center in blue tape with anti-war messaging; when the

media started showing up for Sunday services; when more young adults found a spiritual home here; when the minister, a board member, and some congregants were arrested for believing in marriage equality; when Stillman and I officially and legally tied the knot at a Sunday service, when we embraced Sunday Afternoon Fellowship, Insight Meditation, and First United Lutheran Church as partners in urban ministry, and for supporting the formation of our Beyond Sunday Ministry. I am both blessed and humbled every time I act for justice with you. Finally, thank you for embodying phrases like, “We are a redemptive community of radical inclusion” and “Welcome home!” The preacher may attract people to worship, but only the people keep them coming back again and again. Please don’t ever forget how your life changed when you became a Unitarian Universalist. There is no more powerful witness to the efficacy of liberal religious faith than you and me. Never, ever doubt that what you believe matters. I am both blessed and humbled every time I welcome new UUs with you. Any five-year period is full of thank you, thank you, thank you, many more than can be expressed here. As our family heads to the Great Plains, we go with the confidence of our convictions and the love of this community. You know what you’ll hear when you land on our doorstep in Lincoln, Nebraska: “Welcome home!”

The joy continues Greg

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A Cliché That Holds The SolutionLiving in the present moment is a cliché that holds the solution to many of the problems we face as individuals and as an interdependent global community. So often we allow ourselves to spin around in the problems of the past or we worry about the future. I know I often find myself so consumed by the suffering of past wounds or so anxious about my own future, I forget to settle into the moment before me. I end up not living in the only moment that’s presenting itself and, instead, living in the illusions of what has been and what could be. Arriving in the present moment is the key to our own spiritual awakening and to transforming the world. This is why the Rabbis taught that “a single moment of awakening” was more important than any eternity that would come in the future.

As I mediate upon the coming transitions this month, this summer, and in the autumn, I keep returning to the wisdom of the Rabbis. If I become too attached to the past, or cling to some notion of the future, I miss out on the opportunity of the present moment. As a congregation, we are not immune to falling into the same snares that can hold us back as individuals. We also have the capacity to awaken, to embrace our contemporary reality, let go of what has been and loosen our grip on the way we may collectively envision the future. It is in the present moment that wounds can be healed, joys can be celebrated, love can be shared, and the fragments of our brokenness can be united. We can’t do any of those things in the days of old or in days that have yet to arrive. It is right now, that we can awaken to the pregnant potential of our religious community and of our own lives.

How will you make use of this new moment of awakening in the world? How will you show up for the members of this community and our friends in the larger world? What is it you want to do with the moment you have? Let us strive together to show up for each other in new ways. Let us strive to deepen the love we share and uplift the happiness that pervades our religious home. Let us recall the liberal religious values that guide our lives and try once again to live up to their high calling. Then we may all come to see why the Rabbis of old explained that “a single moment of awakening in this world is eternity in the world to come.”

Yours in love and faith,

Jeremiah

“Better a single moment of awakening in this world than eternity in the world to come.”

–From Teachings of the Rabbis

By The Reverend Jeremiah Kalendae, Beyond Sunday Minister

2

Pastoral CareBy The Reverend Fred Rabidoux, Pastoral Care Minister

SEPARATING YOURSELF

Have you got any plans for the summer? I know some people enjoy truly getting away from “home base” in the summer and going to an exotic destination or the mountains or on a cruise. I’m told there is a bundle of evidence that suggests that separating yourself completely from daily routines leads to a reduction in stress and that vacations are a good, healthy thing to do. For many of us our work identity has a tendency to over influence our sense of who we are and what we are doing here on our life’s journey. That is something to be weary of and something that can be un-good for your health. I think that our bodies need relaxation, that’s for sure and that putting our minds to rest for a while can be very fruitful and even be productive. So what about the soul--do our souls need vacations too?

I suppose the case could be made that, whenever our bodies go on vacation the soul necessarily goes along as well. Our souls are inexorably tied to us during the entire period of our lives and don’t ever abandon us or demand down-time to rest. But that’s not the point I’m trying to make. I’m questioning whether or not your soul needs a vacation from the routine hub-bub of your life. How would you know, how could you tell? A clue to this is found in my words above regarding the extent to which our sense of who we are becomes over identified with the work we do. Even if you love your work and want to spend a lot of time doing it there can come a point when this all can result in a routine that never has time for the still moments. Perhaps this is better said as a routine that we can’t grab time from in order to have still moments.

A vacation for the soul is when it does not have to compete for your inattention—that’s right your in- attention. Among the most valuable things we can do for our soul is to provide it with a time and space in which nothing else is taking place. For many of us regular meditation provides these still periods for 15 or 20 minutes a day, or perhaps the length of time it takes for a yoga session. Those who follow these spiritual practices will almost certainly speak of how beneficial it is for them.

I am planning a vacation for my soul this summer. I am planning to go away for several weeks to camp around Mt. Shasta and during that time set aside a number of days to take part in several vision quests. During the vision quest it is essential to remove yourself from people and activities, best to restrict food intake, avoid writing in journals or reading books, refrain from aimless thinking or wondering about the future. Absolutely no electronic devices are permitted, not even a watch. The time is best spent in idleness experiencing the responses of your body and mind to a lack of being stimulated or being called upon to engage in mundane things. Breathing with intention and working on slowing the pace of breathing also enhance the quality of the soul’s vacation time. Perhaps at the end of the summer we can get together and exchange stories about our summer vacations and about the journeys taken by our souls!

In peace, Rev Fred

3

COMMUNITY PRESENCE

“LiviNg iN the LaNd of the dead” voLuMe 4

Before Otto called, my news was to announce that the Spring issue of “Living in the Land of the Dead” Volume 4 will be out

in May. It is a very rich collection of, photography, paintings and drawings submitted by artists who have experienced life in the Tenderloin by participating in Street Retreats offered by the Faithful Fools Street Ministry, or through living on the streets, or by living and working in the “ neighborhood,” as do the Fools, an outreach of this congregation.

Yesterday, Otto Duffy called. He lived in an SRO (Single Room Occupancy) hotel in the Tenderloin which, without bathrooms or kitchens, serve thousands of people who spend their entire check on rent. His message added a sense of reality and urgency to my news about the book. Otto is chair of the Community Advisory Board of the Tom Waddell city homeless and social service clinic. Carmen and I have served on that mostly client-led board and have witnessed mayor after mayor fail to “end homelessness” as they promised.

In a nutshell, Otto reported to me that because homelessness is increasing and much needed skilled medical personnel is disappearing for lack of funds, the future looks bleak at the clinic.

I tell Otto that we might read what the poets have to say about the situation.

the WiSh

---Norm Milstein

“I wish to be

Beyond this land of ghosts,

Beyond foolish devotion,

Beyond mistrust,

Beyond imperfection,

Beyond grief,

Beyond pain and

the fear of pain,

Beyond the memory

of human cruelty,

Beyond everything but

the accumulated beauty

of love’s most artful

dreams.”

Thanks to the poets!

Rev. Dr. Kay Jorgensen,

Community Minister

4

By The Reverend Kay Jorgensen, Community Minister

IN PRAISE OF MUSIC

MUSIC IN MAYThe choir kicks off May with a special presentation of San Fran-cisco composer, David Conte’s mini-masterwork “In Praise of Music.”  This work will feature the combine choirs of First UU San Francisco and the singers from the Live Oak UU Fellowship in Alameda.  The tour de force ac-companiment will be performed by our regular piano accompa-nist, Wm. Garcia Ganz.  The choirs will again present Conte’s piece in Alameda the afternoon of May 15th.

Another young composer, Mark Popeney will be visiting San Fran-cisco so that he may attend Greg’s last service on May 8th.  This service will also mark our second performance of the piece we commissioned earlier this year from Mark, “Daylight Finds the Sky.”  

The remainder of May will feature Chris Waltz on guitar, Thomas Yee on violin and the Youth Choir and select Young Adults presenting music along with the Adult Choir at a special Coming of Age service May 22nd.

For specific information and our updated worship schedule, please check the UUSF website and look for the music link!

5

By Dr. Mark Sumner, Music Director

Time and our transitions seem to be moving so quickly I’m asking myself how it could possibly be May but here it is! There has been so much going on lately that I’ll try to be concise.

2011-2012 Annual Budget: At the Budget Setting board meeting on April 12th, your board – working with the treasurer, finance committee members and staff discussed and finalized a proposed budget for FY 2011-12. Then at our regular board meeting on April 19th, the board formally passed the budget, which will now be presented to the congregation for a vote on Sunday, May 22.

In preparation there will be an informational town hall discussion on May 1st, to be held in the Chapel after the Sunday service. Hand-outs and members of the board will be available to discuss this proposed budget. Then on May 22nd, our congregation will come together after the service to vote on a final version of the budget.

Search for a Director of Religious Education: With the search committee for a new director for Religious Education now in place, the board – in consultation with the Family Faith Education Committee and the interim Coordinator – has charged the new committee with responsibility for all aspects of the employment search and requested that the committee bring a recommendation on a qualified candidate to the board by May of 2012. Our interim Coordinator for Religious Education, who has agreed to stay on until we have hired a Director for Religious Education, will be call-ing the committee together to begin the advertising and interviewing process.

Identifying Interim Ministry Candidates: During the last week of April, the Unitarian Universalist Association’s Transi-tions Office sent the board information on possible candidates to be brought here as our interim minister for the start of the 2011-2012 church year. This information has been turned over to the board’s sub-committee, which has been tasked with researching, communicating with and identifying the best candidate for us. Elsewhere in this issue of FirstNews you will find a message from the UUA Transition’s Office regarding interim ministry; i.e., what is it and what it can do for us?

May is going to prove to be a very busy month here at First Church!

Leadership Roundtable: Your board had originally hoped to bring together our committee chairs and other past, present and budding new congregational leaders during this spring for a roundtable discussion. The current reduced size of the board and the plethora of issues needing attention within our congregation have unfortunately made it difficult to plan a worthy get together. With a new interim minister coming in August, the board felt that the late sum-mer would probably be a better time for a Leadership Roundtable discussion when we and our new interim minister will all have the opportunity to become acquainted. Stay tuned for more on this event.

June Board Meeting: Because the Unitarian Universalist Annual General Assembly will begin on Wednesday, June 22, and a number of board members will be leaving for Charlotte, NC on Tuesday, the 21st, the regular June Board of Trustees meeting, which would have been held on the evening of June 21st, has been moved forward one week to June 14th. Please mark your calendars in the event you had planned on attending the board meeting.

Senior Minister’s Farewell Sermon: Although a date has not quite been pinned down for a Farewell Party for our se-nior minister, Greg Stewart, the board encourages everyone to attend our Mother’s Day service on May 8th. Greg will be preaching his final sermon from the historic pulpit of Thomas Starr King.

I must confess that I will be there with mixed emotions, both joy for Greg and his family and the bright future ahead of them as well as personal sadness as I say farewell to a friend and his vibrant and inclusive ministry among us.

Please join me …

In faith,Stephen Schwichow

Board NotesBy Stephen Schwichow, Moderator, Board of Trustees

Time and our Transitions

6

BECOMING AND BELONGING

FAITHFUL FOOLS OSCARD’S FEAST APRIL 2011

All-Church Retreat

Memorial Day WeekendMay 28th – 30th

Join us for a great weekend - make new friends, relax in the outdoors, and enjoy good food without having to cook!

Lots of options:vhike in the woodsvswim in the poolvplay gamesvmake a bookmarkvhelp with the jigsaw puzzle

…or whatever else you choose!

The CYO Camp offers cabins with electricity and heat for up to 12 people, six in upper bunks. Participants can put together a group to share a cabin or choose a cabin at check-in (i.e. family style, same sex, adults, teens, even people who snore.) Communal bathrooms have flush toilets, electricity and hot showers.

There are also accommodations for people with special needs. The common areas are accessible via an outside ramp. Workshops will be offered for both children and adults, but there will also be plenty of free time. Childcare will be available for children not participating in workshops.

Registration fees include accommodations for Saturday and Sunday nights as well as six meals from Saturday lunch through Monday breakfast.

You can go up Friday night for an additional fee.

Question? Ideas? Want to get involved?Contact: Linda Enger (650) 678-3800 or Shulee Ong (415) 235-6770

venjoy the sunvlearn how to make a bookvjoin a discussionvsing around the campfirevperform at the talent show

FirstNews 7

All-Church Retreat Registration FormMemorial Day Weekend

May 28th – 30th, 2011

Each person’s name (First & Last) Age if under 18

Fees Adults $115 Youth $80

Contact Name: $

Name: $

Name: $

Name: $

Name: $

Total of Registration Fees (non-refundable after 5/1)

5% Early Bird (paid before May 8th)

Gift to support scholarships

Total Check Amount

+$

- $+$

$

Address, City, Zip:

Phones: Email:

qI need wheelchair-accessible housingqI need a ride for ___ people

I can help by:Feel free to check more than one!qLeading a workshopqAssisting with a workshopqProviding a ride for ___ peopleqOther:qI need childcareqI have other special needs (describe):qBeing a Song LeaderqPlanning the worship serviceqProviding childcare

FEES and DISCOUNTS:Fees include housing on Saturday and Sunday nights, and six meals from lunch on Saturday

through breakfast on Monday. (Some workshops may have an additional materials fee.)

Adults -$115 Youth (age 4 to 17) -$80 Babies (3 and under) -No ChargeScholarships -

A limited number of scholarships are available. You must submit your request for scholarship with your registration by May 8th.

Early Birds -Registrations paid by Sunday, May 8, 2011 get a 5% discount

Please make checks payable to the First Unitarian Universalist Society, with the word “Retreat” on the check. Send the completed registration form and check to First Unitarian Universalist Society of San Francisco, 1187 Franklin Street, SF, CA 94109, or leave it in the “Retreat” mailbox in the church office.

You may also register on-line at http://uusf.eventbrite.com

REGISTRATION DEADLINE IS MAY 15, 2011 There will be NO on-site registration!

Have questions or suggestions? Want to help? Need help?Contact: Linda Enger (650) 678-3800 or Shulee Ong (415) 235-6770 or e-mail AllChurchRetreat@uusf.org

FirstNew

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PLEASE ATTENDPLEASE ATTENDPLEASE ATTEND

An informational meeting will be held on Sunday, May 1 to present the proposed 2011 - 2012 budget. We hope you can join us for this

important and informative meeting in the Chapel.

Then on Sunday, May 22, we will hold a congregational voting meeting in the Thomas Starr King room after the Sunday worship service.

See pages 23, 24 & 25 for biographies.

Please also mark your calendars for our congregation’s annual meeting on Sunday, June 5.  The meeting will be held after the service in theTSK & MLK rooms and lunch will be served.

Please contact a board member if you would like additional information or have questions about any of these upcoming meetings.

Laura Gilmore, Board of Trustees Sund

ay, M

ay 1

and

Sund

ay, M

ay 22

FirstNews 9

Hinduism, Yoga, & the Bhagavad-Gita

Tuesdays, May 10th, 17th and 24th , 6:00pm-7:30pmRev. Jeremiah Kalendae, Instructor

Hinduism is among the oldest and most diverse of the world’s religions. This course will introduce the sacred texts, the(a)ology, rituals, and culture of this ancient tradition. Class participants are encouraged to purchase The Bhagavad-Gita: Krishna’s Counsel in Time of War, translated by Barbara Stoler Miller (Columbia University Press) to deepen their experience of this spirituality.  Jeremiah studied in India while in seminary and his doctoral work is in Eastern philosophy and religious traditions. This course if offered free of charge. Please contact Jeremiah to let him know you’re coming and/or for additional information at jkalendae@uusf.org.

Beyond Sunday Adult Religious Education Series

FirstNews 10

Sunday ForumBy Karen Melander-Magoon, Chair

Sunday, May 1 at 9:30 amTim Redmond, Editor, SF Guardian, speaks on “San Francisco and the World.” Local Politics in a year of turmoil.

Sunday, May 8 at 9:30 am“Petals in the Dust : India’s Missing Girls” a special presentation for Mothers Day on female infanticide in India. Nyna Pais-Caputi, activist and film maker, tells of the heart-wrenching abandonment and genocide of baby girls in India, a little known tragedy that opens our hearts to seek an answer to the deepest pain a mother can possibly know: losing her child sometimes through the violence of her own family. How is this not just an Asian or Indian issue, but a global one?

Sunday, May 15 at 9:30 amA RETURN TO HEALING: Healthcare Reform and the Future of Medicine. Len Saputo, MD, a 1965 graduate of Duke University Medical School, is board certified in internal medicine. After his awakening to the deep flaws in conventional medicine, Saputo developed a new paradigm that is now known as integral-health medicine. Saputo founded the Health Medicine Forum in 1994, and went on to found and direct the Health Medicine Center in Walnut Creek-- one the first integrative clinics. Sunday, May 22 at 9:30 amTom Blees, President, Science Council for Global Initiatives and author of Prescription for the Planet, gives us a glimpse of the cutting edge in reactor design--the Integral Fast Reactor. Developed at Argonne National Laboratory in the ‘80s & ‘90s, the IFR can use nuclear waste and nuclear weapons as fuel. Yet the Clinton administration terminated the IFR project in 1994. Tom will discuss how this technology, along with others, can lead to an era beyond scarcity, enabling people all over the world to enjoy an advanced, environmentally sustainable standard of living. In the aftermath of the Japan catastrophe, this is an opportunity to review the implications of nuclear power.

Sunday, May 29 at 9:30 amWho are we, “Why” are we, and Where are we Going as Unitarian Universalists? What do Remembrance, Memorial, and Sacrifice mean to us personally and as a community? The Rev. Jeremiah Kalendae writes that “almost a decade ago (he) became the youngest openly gay person to run for political office in the country. His campaign to unseat the conservative council president of his hometown in Ohio garnered national attention from The Advocate, The Cleveland Plain Dealer, The Gay People’s Chronicle, and public radio. At the conclusion of the campaign trail, he had made it through the primary, garnered 45% of the vote in the general election, and forever changed the discourse about LGBTIQ issues, building community, and economic development in his hometown.” This Sunday Forum, he will share with us his story and the important spiritual lessons he learned in the political arena.

FirstNews 11

I am so excited to share with you that beginning in August of this year, I will be serving for nine months as the Intern Minister at the Mt. Diablo Unitarian Universalist Church in Walnut Creek.I will have the opportunity to work with Reverends Leslie and David Takahashi Morris in the next step on

my path towards ministry.  The First Unitarian Universalist Society of San Francisco has a longtradition of working with interns as they have the opportunity to practice their skills of preaching, teaching, pastoral care, and more.

For this reason, many of you likely have some sense of what it means to serve a congregation as an intern.  In this internship, I will have the chance to truly practice many of the things I have learned about in seminary, and I will begin to take on the role of minister.  This will be an opportunity to try new things, to receive feed-back about what I’m doing, and to learn where I can improve.  It will be a time for practical engagement, and theological reflection.

The internship is one of many steps required of Ministerial Candidates by the Ministerial Fellowship Commit-tee, which is the national credentialing body of the Unitarian Universalist Association.  Anotherrequirement is that Candidates obtain sponsorship from their home congregation as they prepare for minis-try.  I am grateful to this Society for sponsoring me as a Candidate for Ministry.  This congregation is a won-derful source of community, support and friendship to me as I walk on the path towards ministry, in all of itsjoys and challenges. While I serve as the intern at Mt. Diablo UU Church next year, I will continue to be a member of this congregation, although I won’t be able to spend as much time here.  When the internship concludes, I expect to again be an engaged participant in congregational life.  I want to extend my gratitude to the members of this congregation for your encouragement and support as I continue to follow the call toministry.  

Many thanks to you all.-Amy Moses-Lagos

Amy Moses-Lagos to Intern at the Mt. Diablo Unitarian Universalist Church in the Fall

By Amy Moses-Lagos

FirstNews 12

FirstNews 13

the Pacific central  District (PcD) assembly anD/or the national UUa General assembly (Ga):if you are planning to attend either assembly, delegate

or not, please email fUUssf board moderator stephen schwichow at  schwichs@gmail.com with your contact information  - email and phone where you may reached during the assemblies, and for Ga, please include your hotel information or other accommodations, if known. stephen is compiling lists so that all attending may remain in touch with each other before and during these events.

1. if you are an elected delegate to either assembly, but will not be attending, please notify stephen right away, so an alternate may be assigned in your place. thanks.

2. Ga delegates/alternates - Please arrange with millie Phillips (milliephillips@comcast.net, 415 272-4152) to pick up your signed delegate cards. you must have these cards when you arrive at Ga.

3. if you haven’t registered for PcD assembly or Ga yet, please do this asaP. here are the links: http://www.pcd-uua.org/ (deadline may 9) and  http://www.uua.org/ga/.

4. Please make sure these items are on your calendar:may 13 to 15  - District assembly (in fremont)may 17 and June 14 - 6:00-7:00 Denominational affairs committee (Dac) meeting (in the church library). all delegates are de facto members of this committee and you are encouraged to attend meetings. June 12 - after sunday service, linda laskowski will present about this year’s key Ga issues. Ga delegates are strongly encouraged to attend; everyone is welcome.June 22 to 26 - Ga (in charlotte, nc) 

last but not least, congratulations to this years’ delegates and alternates:

PcD: Kiam cua, laura Gilmore, marie Kazan-Komarek, amy Kelly, trudy lionel, rob Packenham, christine Patch-lindsay, stephen schwichow, mia shackelford, lucy smith . alternates: Diana saylor, carla mccasland. Ga: bob bacon, liz cormier, betsy Darr, laura Gilmore,  lizzy Gruner, amy Kelly, laurie moore, amy moses-lagos, alison rittger, stephen schwichow. alternates: robert brownstone, marie Kazan-Komarek, natalie shuttleworth.

Calling all delegates, alternate delegates, and anyone else attending!

Welcom e h o me!

FirstNews 14

Welcome Home to May Family Faith ActivitiesBy Laurie MooreInterim Family Faith Exploration Coordinator

May days are here.

SUNDAY, 1 9:45 – 12:00 p.m. Toddler/Baby care10:00 Youth Choir – your child need not be a member AND Parent Group.10:30 Great Films Great Themes (9th-12th)11:00 All other Sunday School Classes 12:00 Coffee/Beverage Hr. Starr King

SUNDAY, 89:45 – 12:00 p.m. Toddler/Baby care10:00 Youth Choir – your child need not be a member AND Family Faith Committee.10:30 Great Films Great Themes (9th-12th)11:00 All other Sunday School Classes 12:00 Coffee/Beverage Hr. Starr King

SUNDAY, 159:45 – 12:00 p.m. Toddler/Baby care10:00 Youth Choir OR Art for Everyone (1 hour) OR Parent Group (Kincaid) we sup-port each other as we navigate parenting issues.11:00 YUUDA12:00 Coffee/Beverage Hr. Starr King

SATURDAY, 28 – - MONDAY, 30All Church Retreat in Sebastopol. Meals are served, swimming, game playing a talent show, what’s not to like really? Come with your families to meet all sorts of church goers in a casual convivial setting.

SUNDAY, 299:45 – 12:00 p.m. Toddler/Baby care

Each Sunday’s activities are posted on the RE sandwich board in the foyer and in the window across from the Chapel. If your child is 14, or under, bring your child to and from class and sign him/her in and out.

Please encourage any families searching for a community like ours, to come to our programs; for more information, contact at: lmoore@uusf.org or 415.776.4580 ext.232.

FirstNews 15

Ordination

The Ordination of Jeremy D. Nickel Members and Friends are invited!

In June of 2008 I completed my ministerial internship within the loving walls of your community. 

Since then I have been on a cross-continental journey to complete the rest of my process for

ordination and have since been called as the settled minister at Mission Peak UU in Fremont, CA,

where I have been serving since September.  This May 15, at 2 pm, at the same location where our

annual District Assembly is held (the Fremont Newark Hilton at 39900 Balentine Drive, Newark, CA)

I will finally be ordained and installed and I wanted to extend a warm invitation to you all to join

me on this important day that you helped make happen.  The service will be followed by a party at

the same site, and I hope you can stay for that as well.  If you do hope to attend, an RSVP to rsvp@

mpuuc.org would be appreciated, especially if you need childcare, which is available on site.

Thank you for all you have given me, and I hope to see you soon!

Peace,

Jeremy D. Nickel Minister of Mission Peak UU Congregation Fremont, CA. www.mpuuc.org

FirstNews 16

MEMBERSHIP & HOSPITALITY MINISTRY

Calling all Mentors!

Mentoring involves making a new friend and providing the personal contact that makes community building possible. We were all new once, and we know drinking coffee after the service by yourself can be scary! Being a mentor means you are willing to share your story and the story of our faith and community with someone new. It also means making sure your mentee is invited to church events, perhaps inviting them for coffee or lunch following the service, and generally helping your mentee get involved in the many activities, programs, and ministries of the church.

Please consider being a mentor for a new member of our liberal religious home. It promises to be a rewarding experience for all parties and for our beloved community. If you are interested in serving as a mentor or would like more information, please email the Rev. Jeremiah Kalendae, Beyond Sunday Minister, at jkalendae@uusf.org to sign up!

Membership & Hospitality Committee Seeking Members.

Our congregation welcomes the enthusiastic leadership that George Cavage and Jamie Krovontka bring to our newly reconstituted membership committee and hospitality ministry. The membership committee has the important task of welcoming and integrating new members and newcomers into the life of our liberal religious home. We are still in need of members, new and old, who will join in this important ministry. If you are interested in joining the membership committee please email Jamie Krovontka at jkrovontka@gmail.com. We look forward to your presence and participation!

New Rose Window Visitor Buttons to Be Unveiled.

Do you have a difficult time identifying visitors on Sunday morning? Do you recall what it’s like to visit a congregation for the first time? To help our community identify and welcome visitors, our Membership Committee and Hospitality Ministry are providing buttons with informational cards to visitors on Sunday mornings before and after the service. The buttons are small (1/2”) and depict our stained glass windows. So if you see anyone wearing a button depicting our beautiful rose windows, be sure to engage and warmly welcome them to our liberal religious home!

Beyond Sunday Programs

FirstNews 17

Support the Human Right to Water in California!By Linda Harris, UUSC Local Rep.

There is nothing more basic to sustaining human life and health than access to clean, safe, affordable water. Unfortunately, contamination with chemicals from industry, agriculture, leaky septic systems, or natural sources leaves many Californians, especially in the Central Valley and Central Coast, without reliable access to this essential resource. In contrast to San Franciscans, who enjoy high quality, relatively inexpensive tap water, Californians in some of the poorest communities around our state are left, in the best case, paying more for their water in order to fund expensive treatment. At worst, they end up without safe drinking water because they cannot afford treatment and have no alternative water supply. In addition, families who cannot pay their water bills during these hard economic times risk losing their water service altogether and having their homes deemed unfit for human habitation.

We have a real opportunity to change this situation. The UU Legislative Ministry of California and the UU Service Committee are co-sponsors of the California Human Right to Water Bill Package - AB 685 (Eng), AB 938 (V.M. Perez), AB 983 (Perea), AB 1187 (Fong), AB 1221 (Alejo), and SB 244 (Wolk). These bills would establish the right to clean, safe, affordable water for basic human needs as

the policy of the state of California and make substantive changes to existing programs to begin to realize this right.

Our thanks to all of the members of our church who signed letters of support that we brought to the legislative committee hearings regarding these bills this April. Your continuing support is critical in passing these bills. We invite you to stop by the UUSC /UULM tables after the Sunday services to find out more about the bill package, to sign letters to your legislators urging them to vote in support of the bills, and to find out other ways you can assist with this important effort.

Please help us move California forward toward a day when everyone in our state can safely fill a glass of water from their tap and drink it without fear of becoming sick.

Linda HarrisUUSC Lo\cal Rep.UULMCA Water &

Climate Team

FirstNews 18

FirstNews 19

Beyond Sunday Programs

SOCIAL JUSTICE MINISTRIES

May Food Pantry Two opportunities to participate

By Joan Labby 

This month offers twice the Food Pantry fun. May 14 (UUSF in

charge) kicks off a new program – the All Faiths Pantry – when

4 volunteers from each of the five participating churches will

serve together. May 28 (All Faiths Pantry) is all UUSF – and we

will be looking for 20 or more of you to help out on that date.

Please consider joining us on one of these dates to serve our

less fortunate neighbors.

 

The Interfaith Food Pantry is located at Old First Presbyterian

Church (1751 Sacramento Street at Van Ness). It is open on

Saturdays (excluding holidays) from 9:00am -11:00am. Early

bird volunteers arrive by 7:30am to help unload groceries; all

others are needed by 8:00 to set up. If you would like to be

part of this important community ministry, please contact

one of UUSF’s food pantry coordinators, Joan Labby (jlabby@

yahoo.com) or Garland Kyle (415-885-6088). This is a great

opportunity for families with young children to do good to-

gether. We are also looking for a couple of Cantonese speakers

who could volunteer from time to time.

FirstNews 20

SO WHAT IS INTERIM MINISTRY ALL ABOUT ANYWAY?

From the Unitarian Universalist Transitions Office

In the time between called ministers, the congregation has the rare opportunity to take advantage of a breathing space – to take stock of who you are now, how your programs are faring, what worthy challeng-

es you face, and how you are getting on together as a community. It is a time to do whatever needs doing to get ready to welcome a new called minister with enthusiasm for the possibilities of new paths, new ways, new ideas.

You might say that the work of the intentional interim minister is to help you make sure the next called min-ister is not an “unintentional” interim – that is, one who does not last long because the interim work was not done before the new called minister came.

So the interim minister comes –

• to hold up a mirror so you can see some things you have had no particular reason to notice for a while;• to help you come to terms with your history, celebrating glories, grieving losses, letting go;• to work with your lay leaders and staff to unstick stuck places and get the kinks and tangles out – in

other words, to give the operating system a tune-up;• to enable you to experience a different model of ministry and worship so you can see that more than

one style can be effective in meeting your needs and enriching your spiritual or religious life; and • to give you a chance to try out some new ways and greet your future in the spirit of adventure.

Ralph Waldo Emerson wrote: “People wish to be settled. Only insofar as they are unsettled is there any hope for them.” You are invited to share your congregational life with an interim minister in an exciting and fruitful time of being unsettled – in between times!

Rev. Barbara Child Rev. Keith KronChair, UU Interim Ministry Guild UUA Transitions Director

FirstNews 21

“Happy to Know You” GameThe deadline for this congregational game has been extended to June 4th. Cards will be available in the foyer at church and, all week-end at the retreat. Join the fun and vie for fabulous prizes. They’ll be awarded in June.

Brought to you by Laurie Moore, Interim Direc-tor of Religious Education

FROMLAURIE I’m Laurie Moore and for now, I am in charge of the Sunday School and Interim is part of my title. That’s because I never wanted to be the permanent Director of Religious Education (“DRE”). I want to be clear about this so that no one thinks there’s any conspiracy to reject me.

Originally, the Family Faith Committee (of which I was a parent member) Board and I set a goal to hire the permanent DRE by August 1, 2011. But, as anyone who has ever applied for a job knows, sometimes things take longer than one would hope. The goal hire date has been pushed back to June 1, 2012. That way, the search will be thorough and the DRE hire will be able to help plan the 2012-2013 year.

For those who don’t know, I am a trained lawyer and high school English teacher, and I never contemplated becoming an Interim DRE. (Forget the longer title – if you ever knew it – we’re going back to IDRE.) That said, I find that all of the skills I bring in from previous jobs/volunteer work, as a coach, tutor, janitor, secretary, office manager, etc., are relevant to this work.

I have enjoyed doing this job and look forward to working with others so that we can hand-off the great program that our parents created and have supported this year, and that I have been privileged to lead since December 2010.

Laurie MooreInterim Director of Religious Education

Interim Director of Religious Education

FirstNews 22

Bios for Nominating Committee:Alison Rittger, Otto O’Connor and Carrie Steere-Salazar.

Otto O’Connor Phone: (415)-235-1505 Email: oconnor.cs@gmail.com Joined: 2007

Church involvement: Nominating Committee, Young Adult Group, Coming of Age Mentor.

Profession: Database & Volunteer Manager at Equality California (LGBT Rights Organization) and part-time seminarian at Starr King School for the Ministry.

Other community activities: Treasurer of the student body at Starr King School for the Ministry, member of UULM’s Young Leaders Project Steering Committee.

I am eager to continue my service on the Nominating Committee for a second term. I believe that it is important to have a wide range of people involved in the decision making at our church and I bring a balance to the nominating committee as an active young adult.

Alison Rittger Phone: (415) 205-9963 Email: alritt@sbcglobal.net Joined: 2003

Church involvement: Small Group Ministry, Adult Religious Education, Intern Committee, Planned Giving, Worship Associates, Board of SCW, co chair of programs.

Profession: Educator

Other community activities: Health Related Seminars and Workshops in San Francisco

Carrie Steere-Salazar Phone: (415)-566-4285 Email: carriess@sbcglobal.net Joined: 1991

Church involvement: Sing in the choir, Board secretary for two terms, chair of Music Committee, member of Music Committee since 2000, Flower Committee, Policy Gover-nance Committee (sub-committee of Board) and co-chair of SCW Scholarship Commit-tee, Personnel Committee.

Profession: Director, Student Financial Services Office, and Interim Director, Interna-tional Students and Scholars, both at the University of California San Francisco

Other community activities: Non-federal negotiator for the Department of Educa-tion (2008 and 2009); chair, California Student Aid Commission Loan Issues Committee; chair, Committee on Student Financial Services for the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC), committee member, Graduating Questionnaire (AAMC).

I care deeply about this church and its members. In the 16 years that I’ve been a mem-ber, I’ve had the opportunity to meet people with a wide variety of interests and pas-sions. It’s important to have a balanced slate of candidates and to keep the interests of the entire Society front and center; I’ll try to do that!

(Left: Carrie)

FirstNews 23

Bios for Board of Trustees:Julia Wald, Margaret Pearce, Stephen Schwichow, Stephanie Gowin and Laura Gilmore.

Julia Wald Phone: (415) 482 7555 Email: Julia@waldlawyers.com Joined: 1992

Church activities involvement: I have chaired the Social Justice Committee and been a volunteer with important outreach projects with homeless children, most notably at Hamilton Family shelter and Clara House; I have been active in SGM both as a participant and as a facilitator; I have been on the Board of the Faithful Fools and have participated in their difficult street retreat programs, including doing 2 four-day retreats. I am co-chair of the Planned Giving committee with Joan Rost. I have worked in support of gay marriage and care passionately about this issue. I am very pleased and thankful that the church awarded me the Rheiner award.

Profession: I am a lawyer practicing in the area of estate planning, probate, conservatorship and trust law. My social justice passion is embodied in my practice.

Other community activities: Member of the Marin Estate Planning Section of the Marin Bar and I lead a discussion and learning group where I both have interesting discussions with my peers and mentor beginning professionals in the field.

The church is my primary community and the place that captures my heart and soul. I want to serve on the Board because for the moment we have a crisis, really two that I identify: the inability to maintain a relationship with the minister. This churning needs to stop if we are to reach our potential. First we need to have community-wide open discussions about why this keeps happening. If you don’t want open discussions, don’t vote for me.

Margaret Pearce Phone: (415) 567-4750 Email: Pearcesf@comcast.net Joined: 1978

Church involvement: SCW (Acting President, Past President), Green Committee (Chair), Food Bank, Personnel Committee, Board of Trustees two separate terms (Treasurer two times), Membership Committee (Chair), Team for the Nineties, Library Committee (Chair), Search Committee (for Victor Carpenter), Adult RE Committee, PCD Delegate from UUSF, Women and Religion Task Force (Co-chair)

Profession: Accountant

Other community activities: Conservation Committee at St. Frances Square Co-operative Apartments, Inc., NOW, State Board of NOW, SF CASA, Children’s Multi-Cultural Museum Board.

I am willing to serve on the Board of Trustees at this time because I believe my long experience with the church will be helpful during this transition. I’ve been around for the process of selecting a new minister several times and I hope to contribute a sense of history and stability as we move forward. I will bring my vision of what a UU church can be, accompanied by an ability to be flexible and work with others to achieve our common goals.

FirstNews 24

Bios for Board of Trustees continued

Stephen Schwichow Phone: (415-680-0848 Email: schwichs@gmail.com Joined: 1997

Church involvement: Moderator of the LGBT Bulletin Board, Denominational Affairs, Worship Associate, member of the Board of Trustees, Inter-Faith Outreach Committee, General Assembly and District Assembly delegate.

Profession: Human Resources Administrator for The State Bar of California

Other Community activities: 8-year member of Outreach Workgroup of the LGBT Advisory Committee to the S.F. Human Rights Commission, S.F. Regional Esperanto Organization, member Rissho Kosei-Kai Dharma Center & Nichiren Shu Temple, planning council of the Gay Buddhist Sangha.

Over the past few years our Society has successfully become the voice of progressive religion in San Francisco, while also working through significant financial and staffing challenges. The coming years will be ones of transition as we begin an interim ministry, hire a religious education director and ultimately call a new full-time minister. I hope that my previous years of board service will be of use to our congregation as we meet these challenges.

Stephanie Gowin Phone: (415) 467-2665 Email: stephanie.gowin@gmail.com Joined: 2001

Church activities involvement: Religious Education Teacher from 2000 – 2005, Rite of Passage Teacher, 2001-2002. Ministerial Relations Committee, Religious Education Committee, Workshop Organizer for the All-Church Retreat every year since 2003, Nominating Committee, Winter Fair Volunteer, Parent Discussion Group Facilitator

Profession: Instructional Design Consultant creating training materials and eLearning for a variety of corporations.

Other community activities: Elected site council representative of Metropolitan Arts and Technology High School, Elected Co-Chair of the Parent Association of Metropolitan Arts and Technology High School, Director of Fundraising at Sunset Youth Orchestra, Member, eLearning Guild, Volunteer fostering and placing abandoned dogs.

It would be an honor to serve with our dedicated Board. I hope to add value with my leadership and strategic planning experience, to promote the core values of our spiritual home. Our Church is in a transitional period, and I’m wildly enthusiastic about ushering us into our next phase. In doing so, I’ll take into account your vision and goals for the future to see that we’re always working to meet our full potential. Thank you.

Laura Gilmore Phone: (415) 933-0050 Email: lagilmore@gmail.com Joined: 2008

Church activities involvement: committees or group involvement: I am currently the Secretary of the Board of Trustees, a Co-Leader in the Young Adult Group, and a member of the Choir. I was elected Young Adult Caucus Co-Moderator for General Assembly 2011 (Charlotte) and 2012 (Phoenix), and will be serving on a General Assembly 2012 Advisory Group to prepare for our Justice General Assembly in Phoenix. Previously I have been involved in: Membership Committee, PCD Delegate and GA Delegate in 2009 and in 2010, Worship Associates, and UU Young Adult Advocacy Task Force (C*UUYAN Task Force)

Profession: Land Program & Stewardship Associate at Save the Redwoods League

Other community activities: volunteer or professional activities: Urban policy and planning

FirstNews 25

Beyond Sunday Programs

SPIRITUAL MINISTRIES

Spiritual Counseling

Prayer Shawl Ministry

Are you interested in joining our highly successful Prayer Shawl Ministry? We provide shawls to members of our congregation who are terminally ill or facing great physical, emotional, and spiritual challenges.

If you are working on a shawl, you can donate it to the church by bringing it on Sunday and giving it to the Rev. Jeremiah Kalendae. If you’ve already donated a shawl, please email Jeremiah so he has an accurate record of all of our donations.

If you would like to join this ministry of caring, you can email jkalendae@uusf.org and find additional information at www.shawlministry.com.

We look forward to your participation!

Our Beyond Sunday Ministry offers the opportunity to meet with a minister for three sessions to spiritually reflect upon their lives.

This winter, one-on-one Spiritual Counseling was offered to five individuals who wanted to explore challenges, grief, vi-sions, spiritual questions, and other concerns during the week. This isn’t psychotherapy, medical advice, or coaching, as much as it is spiritual companionship on your path.

If you are interested in participating in the new cohort, please email our Beyond Sunday Minister, the Rev. Jeremiah Kalendae at jkalendae@uusf.org.

FirstNews 26

Pagan Interest Circle Full Moon Service Saturday, May 14, 7 pm in the Fireside room

Newcomer Orientation

Up On Top

Respectful participants of all ages welcome to this open circle. Bring finger food or refreshment for a light potluck following the service. The Pagan Interest Circle is a chapter of the Covenant of Unitarian Universalist Pagans (CUUPs)

Would you like to learn more about Unitarian Universalism? Or are you just new (or not so new) to this congregation and want know more about the programs of the church? If yes to either, then join us for this one-hour orientation where you will have the opportunity to ask any questions that you may have and view the short film “Voices of a Liberal Faith” which covers our history, diversity, and basic principles. Newcomer Orientation happens every first Sunday, so if you can’t make it this time, we hope you plan to come next month.

We look forward to meeting you.

All of us at Up On Top are blowing bubbles of joy for the gift of $568.83 that was collected from two church services in April.

Thank you to the members and friends of this church for your generosity and commitment to Up On Top.

Starting May 1 Up On Top is looking for an office volunteer to assist Nan Parks McCarthy with data entry, letter writing and other admin tasks - one morning or afternoon per week would be ever so helpful.

FirstNews 27

Our Worship Service 52 Sundays a Year

An audio recording of each worship service is available online each Tuesday afternoon.

You can download it from our website or subscribe to our iTunes Podcast.

Info: audio.podcast@uusf.org.FirstNews 28

Calendar of Events Unitarian Universalist Society of San Francisco May 2011

1 2 3 4 5 6 71:00 PM Needleworkers

6:30 PM Bridge Club

5:00 PM Green Committee

7:00 PM Addiction & Recovery

7:00 PM Amma Satsang

7:00 PM Finance Committee

7:00 PM Forum Planning

9:30 AM Forum

11:00 AM WORSHIP

12:30 PM Budget Informational Meeting

12:30 PM Newcomer Orientation

1:00 PM SF Primetimers

2:00 PM Asperger Meetup

2:30 PM Sunday Afternoon Fellowship

6:00 PM Buddhist Group

8:00 PM AA Live and Let Live

9:00 AM Men's Breakfast

7:00 PM Jef Caers

7:00 PM SF Lyric Chorus

6:00 PM Bell Choir Rehearsal

7:00 PM ARE Beginning Meditation

7:00 PM SOA Watch

7:15 PM Choir Rehearsal

8 9 10 11 12 13 146:30 PM Bridge Club1:00 PM SCW Board

1:00 PM SCW Board Retreat

6:00 PM Hinduism class

7:00 PM Addiction & Recovery

9:00 AM Senior Action Network

6:00 PM Bell Choir Rehearsal

7:00 PM ARE Beginning Meditation

7:15 PM Choir Rehearsal

9:30 AM Forum

11:00 AM WORSHIP

12:15 PM Retreat Planning

12:15 PM Young Adults Gather for Lunch

2:00 PM Sngletarian Potluck

6:00 PM Buddhist Group

8:00 PM AA Live and Let Live

9:30 AM ARE Beginning Meditation

7:00 PM Full Moon Ritual

7:00 PM SF Poetry Center

15 16 17 18 19 20 216:30 PM Bridge Club11:00 AM SCW

Business Meeting

12:00 PM SCW Luncheon

12:15 PM Gray Panthers

6:00 PM Denominational Affairs

6:00 PM Hinduism class

7:00 PM Addiction & Recovery

7:30 PM Board of Trustee Mtg

6:00 PM Bell Choir Rehearsal

7:00 PM ARE Beginning Meditation

7:00 PM Starr King School Graduation

7:15 PM Choir Rehearsal

9:30 AM Forum

11:00 AM WORSHIP

12:00 PM Artists' Reception

12:30 PM Invitation to Membership

2:00 PM SF Primetimers

2:30 PM Sunday Afternoon Fellowship

6:00 PM Buddhist Group

8:00 PM AA Live and Let Live

7:30 PM Occidental College Glee Club

Sunday FridayThursdayWednesdayTuesdayMonday Saturday

First Unitarian Universalist Church Newsletter Calendar

May 2011

EMS Professional4/27/2011 4:49 PM Page 1 of 2

If you have any questions concerning this calendar please contact Jay Roller at jroller@uusf.org (415-776-4580 x202)

FirstNews 29

Calendar of Events Unitarian Universalist Society of San Francisco May 2011

22 23 24 25 26 27 286:30 PM Bridge Club6:00 PM Hinduism class

7:00 PM Addiction & Recovery

9:30 AM Forum

11:00 AM WORSHIP

12:15 PM Young Adults Gather for Lunch

12:30 PM Budget Voting Meeting

12:30 PM Movie and Potluck

6:00 PM Buddhist Group

8:00 PM AA Live and Let Live

6:00 PM Bell Choir Rehearsal

7:00 PM PDA/UU's for Peace

7:15 PM Choir Rehearsal

29 30 317:00 PM Addiction & Recovery

9:30 AM Forum

11:00 AM WORSHIP

6:00 PM Buddhist Group

8:00 PM AA Live and Let Live

Sunday FridayThursdayWednesdayTuesdayMonday Saturday

First Unitarian Universalist Church Newsletter Calendar

May 2011

EMS Professional4/27/2011 4:49 PM Page 2 of 2

A special thank you to Sonnie Willis for all the wonderful

photographs in this issue of The FirstNews Newsletter.

Lifespan Religious Exploration Calendar is on page 15.

FirstNews 30

Sunday Service begins at 11:00 am

MayWorship

“Healing From the Heart” By The Reverend

Fred RabidouxSunday, May 1

“Coming of Age” By The Reverend

Denis Letourneau PaulSunday, May 22

“A Man Divine as Myself” By The Reverend

Denis Letourneau PaulSunday, May 29

“If Life is like a Rollercoaster, Where Do I Buy My Ticket—or Not!”

By The Reverend Fred Rabidoux

Sunday, May 15

WELCOM E H O ME!

“Go ye Into All the World!” By The Reverend

Gregory L. StewartSunday, May 8