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We were hoping that construction on our classroom wing renovation project would begin in September, or maybe October. It looks like JANUARY is more realistic! The project team received a timetable last week from Gerding Builders, outlining the many, many pre-construction tasks still needing to be done, including several city permits, engineering decisions, final drawings, sub-contracting, and more. The schedules for permits plus the availability of contractors have the greatest effect on timing.

So, we’ll keep going with our preparations for emptying the building, at a slightly relaxed pace. We’re only now becoming aware of the huge amount of work needed to install fire sprinklers in the building – involving installing a new pipe under the parking lot from the street to the RE wing, and building a small “house” to contain all of the connections from that pipe to the interior plumbing. This is what is needed in order for our building to meet current fire safety code!

Thank-you to all who have already volunteered to help with a variety of tasks plus offered short-term storage for the contents of our building. We’ll keep going in making our plans, cleaning out rooms and closest, packing boxes, etc.
This project is going to happen! Please stay tuned.

Are you interested in stories about the Fellowship? About who first gathered, who built our buildings, how RE and justice work and music have been part of this congregation’s life? Do you ever try to imagine folks who came here before you – what brought them, what commitments they made, how they were supported in times of challenge and change? Do you know some of these stories because you are in them? Because the Fellowship has been part of your life, and you part of its life, for many years?

Rev. Jill McAllister is looking for a few people who’d like to help with a UUFC history project in the coming year. Please contact her if you are interested in helping collect and edit some of the stories of the Fellowship. We have many stories to tell and to save, to pass on for those who come after us. We are making stories now, for the future.
The project may include recording oral histories, interviewing folks, writing down memories, creating a journal, and more.

Our theme for the coming year will be about past, present and future – ancestors, descendants and us. It will give us a chance to know more about our connectedness – what holds us together, what nurtures and strengthens us. In the midst of the stories of our lives, being created every day, it may inspire us to know more about where we come from and where we aim to be going.

Thursday August 8, Corvallis riverfront at 1st and Madison Ceremony to mark the bombings of Hiroshima Aug 6, 1945 and Nagasaki Aug 9, 1945.

Registration is now open for the Fall Chalice Circle Sampler Series, starting this September. For details and dates and to sign up, please see the Chalice Circle Sampler Series Sign-Up Form.

Chalice Circles are an opportunity to deepen your ties to others in this community. We do this by meeting on a regular basis with the same small group of people to share how we each navigate the journey of being human. This is done via thoughtfully designed “topics” that offer ideas and questions for reflection. Through authentic sharing and listening, we learn how to voice what deeply matters to us.

Never been in a chalice group? “Test the waters” by signing up for the sampler series which will meet 4 times (once a week for the first 3 weeks plus a final session 2 weeks later). You’re under NO obligation to come to more than these sessions but our hope is that if this experience is something you find of value, you’ll continue with a longer term group that will meet twice monthly for the year.

Any questions? Read our FAQ.

Contact us at chalicecircles@uucorvallis.org, via phone or in person after a Sunday service.

Shikha Ghosh Gottfried and Nancy Sowdon

Memorial Service Receptions give us opportunities not only to contribute to the receptions but also to visit with others—to build our relationships within the UUFC. Typical tasks associated with the reception include set-up and clean-up, contributing refreshments (some people simply contribute finger food), arranging it to serve, monitoring the refreshments, and attending the guest book if needed. We visit as we work and have a good time.

Services are announced ahead of time in Weekly Newsletters and include an invitation for you contact Sandy Piper to participate.

Questions? Contact Sandy.

I’m always willing to talk to you about our memorial receptions. The service and reception for Louise Ferrell, a long-time UUFC member, is August 11 at 2:00. If you would like to help with this reception, please contact Sandy. It would be great to have new people join us.

Contact Sandy Piper

In August we’ll begin a process of planning for the Fellowship — a visioning and prioritizing process, beginning with our grounds and buildings. Conversations around climate change, trees, energy use, building expansion and upkeep, the sustainability of the Fellowship as a community resource and more have led to a need for such a process, which will aim to help us prepare a 3-5 year comprehensive plan. If you are interested in this project – focusing first on our buildings and grounds – please plan now to join in one of two gatherings to share ideas – on either August 24, 9 – 11 AM or on September 14, 9-11 AM.

Clean out your closets and garage and bring your unwanted items to our UUFC parking lot rummage sale on Saturday, August 31 — 10 AM to 1 PM. We supply tables and a cashier. You clean your stuff, price it, display it, and stay and “sell” it. All proceeds benefit UUFC.

Questions? Contact Bonnie Morihara