may 7, 2014 the beacon - unitarian universalist...
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Minister: Rev. Douglas Taylor Ministerial Intern: Charlotte Lehmann Moderator: Shawn Steketee Moderator-Elect: Debby Herman Director of Lifespan Faith Development: Lynn Garman Music Director: Vicky Gordon Organist: Gail Elyse Schmick Office Administrator/Beacon Editor and Lifespan Faith Development Assistant: Karen Armstrong OFFICE HOURS: 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. weekdays. SUNDAY SERVICES: 9:30 and 11:15am HOW TO CONTACT US: 183 Riverside Drive Binghamton, NY 13905 Phone: 607.729.1641 Fax: 607.729.1899 Email: [email protected] Web: www.uubinghamton.org TO SUBMIT AN ARTICLE: Please e-mail to the office address, or a leave a hard copy on the office desk by the deadline printed below. Please include your name & phone number.
THE NEXT BEACON
DEADLINE IS
May 16
The BEACON U ni tar ia n U ni ve rsal ist C ongre gat ion of Bi ngha mt on Ne wsle tter
Upcoming Services: May 11, 2014 9:30 & 11:15am “What Shapes You?” Youth Group Our Annual Youth Group led service is our favorite way to learn from our UUCB youth as we hear the important things they have to say. May 18, 2014 9:30 & 11:15am “Bamboo and the Broken Lotus” Rev. Douglas Taylor The lotus flower is a remarkable plant, a symbol of beauty and peace. It is also a symbol of resiliency. Nature is replete with examples of resiliency including, most remarkably, human beings! May 25, 2014 10:00am “Faithiest” Rev. Douglas Taylor Chris Stedman is the Assistant Humanist Chaplain at Harvard Univer-sity. He is an atheist seeking common ground with the religious. This service will include our annual Flower Communion ceremony. NOTE: We switch to a single service through the summer on Memorial Day weekend.
May 7, 2014
Did You Know? 1872 - Julia Ward Howe, who was a pacifist, a Unitarian, a suffra-gette, and the writer of the "Battle Hymn of the Republic," first suggests Mother's Day in the United States. She suggested it be a day when mothers could rally for peace and justice. For several years, she held an annual Mother's Day meeting in Boston.
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Musings from Our Minister
“The month of May will be an enjoya-ble one for us this year. I could certain-ly say that of every month, but May really will be something special! Several fun fundraising events are planned. On Saturday May 31 we
will have our annual live auction; it promises to be an exciting evening with many interesting items up for bid. Have you submitted an item for auction? It’s not too late! We will also have our second annual Cloth and Clay Art Fest on May 10th and 11th featuring artists and artisans from within the congregation and beyond. And all through the month of May and up to the An-nual Picnic on June 8th, our Dining for Dollars silent auction sheets will be up for you to bid. All of these events raise funds for the congregation to support our mission and vision. Two other events are worth mention. On Saturday, May 17th I will host the “Facilitator Training Workshop” from 9 am to 1 pm (sign-up on the bulletin board). This workshop is the Adult Programs equivalent to the Teacher Training Lynn Garman offers to the teachers of our Sunday school classes. It will give you the tools and resources you need as well as grounding in our Faith Development philosophy. On Sunday, May 18th the Board of Trustees will have Town Hall meetings between ser-vices and after second service to hear any questions about the items coming before the congre-gation at our Annual meeting (which will be on June 8th). The proposed budget, the slate of officers, the Long Range Plan vision, and some Bylaws revisions will be presented. On Memorial Day weekend (May 25th) we will hold our annual Flower Communion ceremony. Everyone is invited to bring a flower with them to service. We build a bouquet up front from all the flowers. At the end of the service, everyone is invited to take a different flow-er home. Also on that Sunday, May 25th, we will switch to a single worship service at 10:00 for the summer. In previous years we waited until mid-June to switch to a single service (and switched back on the second Sunday of September – that part won’t change). The new model is to run one service from Memorial Day to Labor Day. For the week of May 5 through May 11 I will be on vacation. It is customary for minis-ters to take vacation time in the summer. I do take half of my vacation in the summer, but I also have time spent on vacation in the spring and fall so I can be present for the last half of August each summer. That’s how we have been doing it for several years. While I am on va-cation, Charlotte is still available for ministerial support.
-douglas
Reverend Taylor is in the office most Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays and can be reached at 607.729.1641 or [email protected]
Annual Report Time! It’s that time of year again where we get ready for our yearly wrap-up! If you are a committee leader or chair, please get your committee’s report to Karen in the of-fice by May 16, so that she can assemble the annual report in time for the annual meeting.
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“The Spiritual is Nothing Without the Physical”
April has been a month full of things to do for me, and tremendous activity within the walls of our building and now spilling out on-to our grounds. It is not unlike what is hap-pening in the environment around us as April’s showers are bringing May’s flowers. I
am delighting in the day-to-day transformation of the world around me from the monochromatic palette of winter grays and browns to the full spectrum of tree leaves and blossoms, forsyth-ia, daffodils and scilla. Wild things are emerging from winter hi-bernation and shelter, including our selves. There is so much col-or and beauty bursting forth!
I catch glimpses of people I recognize out walking or running. And it has been great to see significant numbers of UUCB members at community events. There were a half dozen folks with a range of connection to our congregation at the “Working with Transgender Individuals and their Families” Provider Training Day sponsored by the Lesbian and Gay Family Building Project on April 25th, including one of our youth. This youth saw the connection between a prior youth chaplaincy training and this the transgender provider training, in giving her the skills to better minister to her peers.
On May 1st there were a handful of UUCB members at a lunch talk given by Kim Bobo, the founder and executive director of Interfaith Worker Justice (IWJ), a Chicago-based national net-work working on challenging wage theft, raising the minimum wage, and mobilizing communi-ties around the country to enhance economic conditions for working people.
During the Long Range Planning visioning process, one of the strong desires expressed is to have UUCB known and seen in the larger community as Standing on the Side of Love. What better way to accomplish this than for us to show up in significant numbers at interfaith and so-cial justice happenings throughout the Greater Binghamton area and beyond. As individuals we are involved in important and worthwhile work. As a congregation we are growing institutionally and sharing our success by sharing what we are learning. Are you aware that a half-dozen members of the congregation will be involved in a series of three workshops on our Threshold Congregation experiences at the UUA’s General Assembly (June 25-29) in Provi-dence, RI? There is still time to register and there is still housing available (http://www.uua.org/ga/). General Assembly is something that every UU ought to experience at least once in their life. Why not go when it is fairly close by? The theme this year is “Love Reaches Out.” We are a con-gregation that reaches out in love, and desires to reach out even further with our love to engage around our shared values with others who have different beliefs.
Truly, the spiritual is nothing without the physical. Blessings on our journeys,
Charlotte Lehmann
Call For Young Musicians If you have a young musician (instrumental or vocal) in your family who would like to participate in our June 1 Faith Development Celebration Service (10 am only), please
see Lynn Garman or Vicky Gordon. Please note that Elaine Laramee will also lead a Youth Chorus presentation for that day.
Charlotte Lehmann,
Ministerial Intern, ca n
be reached at 607.729.1641
or emailed at
Charlotte is generally in the
office Tuesdays through Fri-
day with office hours on
Wednesday and Thursday
from
2-4pm. You are encouraged
to schedule an appointment
in advance.
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We’re on TV: Our services are cablecast on Time Warner Cable channel 4 at 1:30 PM Sundays. The Joys and Sorrows portion of the service is never broadcasted on television. Lawn Care Help: Beginning in May, we need volunteers to help with maintaining and mow-ing our lawn at UUCB. Please sign up for a shift on the volun-teer sign-up sheet. Thanks! Needed-- Dining for Dollars: Would you like to host a dinner in your home, at a park, or even at the church? It can be as fancy or casual as you like. You can be creative! Hosts are needed for our Dining for Dollars church Fund Raiser. Call/Email Renee Taft 754-7839 or Susie Ravage 741-9993/[email protected]. Forms are available in the church office. Labyrinth Spruce-up Party Saturday, May 24 10am-2pm Join us as resurrect our beloved labyrinth from the earth and give it a Spring face-lift. Refreshments and a sense of community will be provided. Contact Ron Clupper at [email protected] for more information, but feel free to just show up.
Splinters From the Board
Here’s the latest news from your Board of Trustees. For more in-depth information, stop by the Board Table in the Social Hall between services on the second Sunday of each month, or sit in on a meeting – all are open, except when the Board meets in executive session.
Town hall meetings will be held immediately following both services on May 18th. Board members will be available to discuss the proposed 2014-2015 budget, proposed by-laws changes, vision statement and the revised schedule for the Long Range Plan. Copies of relevant documents will be available for your review – please take the time to familiarize yourselves with these important issues, ask questions and offer your suggestions, in advance of the vote at the Annual Meeting on June 8th.
UUCB will officially complete the three-year CERG (Central East Regional Group of the UUA) Threshold Congrega-tions Program this month. Our congregation has been held up as a Threshold Program success story by regional lead-ers, and we will celebrate our accomplishments during ser-vices on May 25th.
The Board has now authorized the Personnel Committee to fill five staff openings – 2 nursery positions, the custodial posi-tion, Sunday Services Coordinator and organist. The Board liaison to Personnel has also been working with the commit-tee to update staff retirement plans.
The Board is consulting with the Endowment Committee to clarify the differences between memorial gifts and endow-ment gifts.
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SUNDAY SERVICE COORDINATOR Position Available
The Sunday Service Coordinator prepares the sanctuary for two Sunday worship services each week at the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Binghamton (UUCB) and is responsible for the set-up, clean-up, and coordination of volunteers for the two coffee hours that take place after each service. For a complete job description and application, please visit our website at www.uubinghamton.org. Applications are also available in the hanging folder right outside of the church office. Please forward your resume to Karen Arm-strong, Office Administrator, UUCB at: [email protected] , or by mail to UUCB,183 Riverside Drive, Binghamton, New York 13905. Please specify that you are interested in the Sunday Services Coordinator Position.
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NEW Youth Chorus Com e join in the fun! If you would like to join the UU Youth Chorus and you are between ages 6 and 18, please contact Elaine La-ramee at 727-8352. Practices will be on Sundays from 10:30am-11am. First practice will be Sunday, April 27. Our goal will be to sing for the Religious Education Service on June 1. No prior music experience needed. Needed-- Dining for Dollars Hosts: W ould you like to host a dinner in your home, at a park, or even at the church? It can be as fancy or casual as you like. You can be creative! Hosts are needed for our Dining for Dollars church Fund Raiser. Call/Email Renee Taft 754-7839 or Susie Ravage 741-9993/[email protected] _____________________________________
Coming Soon! Summer Children’s Program
Gather the Spirit The world's religions provide a variety of examples of how water has been re-garded as part of a sacred life process, not simply another product for con-sumption. At the same time, our in-creased comprehension of the story of evolution as understood by science gives us a renewed appreciation for the
role of water in sustaining life. To see water as a source of life, not merely a resource, is the challenge of a new synthe-sis of science and religion in our times. — Mary Evelyn Tucker
Perhaps, today, there is no more compelling focus for our stewardship than the clean, drinkable water all life on Earth requires. Through a lens both scientific and religious, using activities a wide range of ages can do together, this program addresses the importance of water, the inequity of access to clean water, and actions we can take as Unitarian Universalist stewards. With our riverfront location, we are uniquely situated to ex-plore these questions and more! More information, including registration and leader sign-up, is coming soon!
Reminder: Please rem em ber to use only our two main entrances when you enter our building. Our commitment to our congregation as a safe place for all requires that we are able to see who is entering our fa-cility at all times. Please refrain from using the back door entrance that is marked for Riverside Drive Nursery School.
Book Group-All are Welcome Wed. May 21 at 7 pm, book to read will be "Portnoy's Complaint" by Phillip Roth. The Book group meeting will be in the UUCB Library, & all are welcome. Contact Chris Niskanen or Janet Landow for further information.
____________________________________ Save The Date: The UUCB Roaring Twenties Auction! Saturday May 31 at 7pm (doors open at 6:30). Join us for a special evening of desserts, cocktails , bidding and winning! We need donations to make this event success-ful! Do you have a special talent or ability that you can offer? Would you like to make a meal for a busy family or mow someone’s lawn this Sum-mer? Would you like to donate a gift card to your favorite restaurant or spa? Would you like to make a basket for our silent auction? Do you have a favorite dessert that you would like to donate? Due to space constraints, we are only able to ac-cept donations on Friday, May 30 from 5-8pm and Saturday, May 31 from 12-2pm. For more information, contact Christine Smith at 607.765-2988 or [email protected]. ________________________________________ 2nd Annual Cloth and Clay Art Fest Saturday and Sunday May 10 and 11 at UUCB ( Sat 10-4pm and Sun 1-4pm) Join us for a Unique fundraising experience! Local artisans, food, crafts and more! __________________________________ UUCB History Group We have been enjoying searching through old records to learn about our congregation’s history. Our next meeting will be on Tuesday, May 20 at 2pm in the Local History Center of the Broome County Library. Please join us. Contact Dolores Elliott for more info,
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Sign Up to Provide the Focal Point Sign up on the bulletin board in the hallway. You can use your imagination and get creative! Supplies are available or you can bring your own. _________________________________________ Join the Journey — Teach! Every day our children go forth into a complex world where they are faced with diverse views, chal-lenging situations, and difficult decisions . Our theme
next year, Faithful Journeys, is designed to provide chil-dren with the spiritual and ethical tools they will need to make choices and take actions reflective of their Unitarian Universalist beliefs and values while also helping them clarify their own beliefs, and empower them to take action. They are companioned on this exploration by volunteer leaders from our congrega-tion.
Teachers in our UUCB Children’s Program… · Serve on a team of four teachers, and teach twice
monthly · Receive all curriculum materials and resources ready
to use · Receive training and ongoing support from the
DLFD · Both teach and learn · Deepen their UU faith · Model/participate in faith in action · Choose the age group and time they prefer · Embark on an adventure of the spirit that is some-
times difficult, often joyful and life-affirming. Our congregation needs adults who can teach in our children’s program, lead Faith in Action projects, who are willing to train as leaders for the Our Whole Lives sexuality program, who are interested in working with high school youth as Youth Advisors, and who can link us to local social justice endeavors that are child-friendly. If you are interested or have questions about any of the above, please see Lynn Garman, DLFD. ____________________________________________
We’re on TV: Our services are cablecast on Time Warner Cable channel 4 at 1:30 PM Sun-days. The Joys and Sorrows portion of the service is never broadcasted on television. _____________________________________ Old Cell Phones or Cell Phone Batteries? Bring them to church and drop them into the box in the coatroom for donation to the SOS shelter. They can use them!
We are Carbon-Neutral for 2014! Many thanks to everyone who helped us to con-tinue being carbon-neutral here at UUCB this year by buying one or more UUCB Carbon Offset Certificates. We have used the proceeds to buy our carbon offsets from carbonfund.org. They sent us back a nice certificate which is now posted on the Green Sanctuary Bulletin Board. We ended up exceeding the $280 we needed by $25, which will go toward next year’s carbon offsets. Carbon offsets are used to help fund projects elsewhere that reduce carbon emissions by an amount equal to our own carbon emissions that we have not yet eliminated. This is an interim solution. Our goal is, over time, to eliminate all of our own carbon emissions. When we reach that goal, we will have become carbon-neutral without having to purchase carbon offsets.
Composting Tim Wolcott included several really key ideas in his composting workshop last Sunday: Com-posting does not have to be complicated – you just need to be mindful of a few simple princi-ples. Composting can be done with little effort and no expense. Composting is great for your garden, your health, your community, and your planet. If you would like to get started with composting or would like a quick refresher, talk to Tim. You are also welcome to take one of the Cornell Cooperative Extension “Home Composting” information sheets. They are lo-cated in the left pocket on the Green Sanctuary Bulletin Board.
Green Quote Frodo: I wish none of this had ever happened. Gandolf: Of course you do. But that is not for you to decide. All you have to decide is what to do with the time you’ve been given. - JR Tolkien, Lord of the Rings
GREEN MATTERS
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Teacher Celebration Brunch Our annual Teacher Brunch is coming up on June 1 at 11 am, following our 10 am worship service celebrating our program for children, youth, and adults. If you are a teacher, please mark your calendar now! If you are not a teacher, and you or someone in your family has enjoyed an offering this past year, I hope you will make a contribution to our brunch. We will be looking for food contributions - Quiche, Muffins, or Fruit Salad – as well as kitchen helpers. Please see Lynn Gar-man or Karen Armstrong, or sign-up on the bulletin board.
Announcing our 2014-15 Children’s and Youth Program
*Faithful Journeys: Putting Our UU
Faith in Action* Our Children’s and Youth Program aims
to provide children with spiritual and ethical tools to make choices and take actions that re-flect our Unitarian Universalist beliefs and val-ues. We encourage one another’s search for truth and meaning, and we strive to be active in peace-making and other efforts to improve our world. We endeavor to provide our children and youth with tools that will help them to dis-cern what is right and true, to hear and follow the call of Love, and to turn their moral beliefs and ethical concerns into concrete action.
We know that children and youth grow in faith by putting their faith into action. And we see how most children and youth have the impulse to help and serve others in the com-munities around them. As part of our Faithful Journeys year, we strive to provide an oppor-tunity each month for our children to participate in a meaningful Social Justice activity.
Children and teachers alike enjoy this opportunity to “give life the shape of jus-tice.” We need adults who will engage in this program with our young folks. Here’s how you can help:
Help us research and plan Social Justice ac-tivities appropriate for children
Sign up to teach Join our Children and Youth Programs
Committee To learn more about supporting our congrega-tion’s program for children, you may visit the table in the Social Hall during Coffee Hour, or contact Lynn Garman.
Program Calendar May 8 – SoulCollage Continuing May 11 – Youth Group leads worship service May 18 – Last Day of Children and Youth Pro-gram Classes May 25 – All Ages activity June 1 – Multigenerational Worship June 1 – Teacher Brunch
Position Available Nursery Care Provider
The Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Binghamton is accepting applications for a Nursery Care Provider responsible for ensur-ing a safe, nurturing environment for young children, infants through age 5, on Sunday mornings. The successful applicant will have prior experience caring for children in a group setting, knowledge of child develop-ment, familiarity with Unitarian Universal-ism, and CPR and First Aid certification For further information, please contact Lynn Garman at [email protected]. Applica-
tions available on our website or in the church office. Please see Lynn Garman with any ques-tions or con-cerns.
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Your UUCB Endowment Fund at Work! The Endowment Committee of the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Binghamton met recently to review grant proposals and to make grant determinations. There was $8,407 in available funding and as of this date $7613 has been awarded. There is a grant of $750 that is still under consideration. We received nineteen grant proposals requesting approximately $28,000. All of the proposals submitted were to support worthwhile projects and the committee regrets being unable to meet all grant requests and greatly appreciates the efforts off all applicants. The following is a list of the grant recipients, includ-ing the amounts awarded. PURPOSE PERSON APPLYING AMOUNT AWARDED Rainbow Alliance Potluck Denise Rampulla-Whirlwindhorse $275 Aphrodite Medical Access Libby Anderson $1,000 Fund Family Planning of Libby Anderson $755 Central New York UUCB storm windows Wes Ernsberger $370 Johnson City High School Rachael Miller $500 Pathways Program UUCB “Perpetual Plaque” Catherine E. Stuckart $141 for names of Moderators Support for GA attendance Jeff Donahue $500 Support for GA attendance Addie Deacon $2500 by UUCB Threshold Committee UUCB wireless microphone Jeff Donahue $1572 system TOTAL $7613
Rainbow Alliance Picnic Sunday, June 1
1 p.m. to 4 p.m. at UUCB ALL are Welcome!
There will be a Rainbow Alliance meeting on Saturday 5/17/2014, in room 10. We will be discussing our upcoming Rainbow Alliance Picnic. Bring your great ideas!
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The BEACON
UNITARIAN UNIVERSALI ST
CONGREGATION OF
BINGHAMTON
183 Riverside Drive
Binghamton, New York 13905
RETURN SERVICE REQUESTED
Cloth and Clay Art Fest
May 10-11, 2014
“We offer a spiritual home where we explore,
celebrate and cherish our interconnectedness,
encourage growth and transcendence, and act
with justice and compassion.”