dre@uucorvallis.org

What do I need to know for children and youth on Sunday mornings?

Nursery aged children can check into the Rainbow Room starting at 9:50. All other children should start in the sanctuary with their families and leave together after the Time for All Ages. OMG! youth will sometimes run long, and do not need to be picked up by a parent. They will fiind you. All other ages must be picked up from their RE spaces at 11:15 OR, if the service runs longer than that, immediately after the service.

Rainbow Room is in Room 4 (downstairs, down the hall on your left, past the bathrooms)

Spirit Play is in Room 6C (downstairs, to the right of the stairs)

Seeker Space meets in Room 9 (upstairs and to the right)

OMG! meets in Room 10 (upstairs and across the mezzanine)

Where can I change diapers or breastfeed in peace?

We have 2 changing tables in the Fellowship. One is in the bathroom right beside the Rainbow Room in Room 4, through the classroom wing doors, down the hall, and on the left. The other is in the main section of the building. If you’re in the foyer, looking at the large, circular piece of art on the main wall, the bathroom with the changing table is through the glass door to the right of the art, and then immediately on your left, before you get to the kitchen.

Parents who are breastfeeding are welcome to attend to their child’s needs in the service, but if you’d prefer a quiet place for breastfeeding, we’ve got two great options for you. You will find a comfortable rocker in the library,which is also to the right of the foyer artwork, but this time you’ll pass the bathroom and go through the door to the right of the kitchen. You are also welcome to use the couches in Room 7, which isn’t generally in use during the service, and can be found through the double doors to the classroom wing, and then a sharp right, past the Business Manager’s office. You may be able to hear the sermon if you leave the library door open. In room 7, all you’ll be able to hear is the sound of the Spirit Play children adventuring.

How do I help my child who will inevitably miss a Sunday when the programming builds week after week?

We know that families have full lives, and no child needs perfect attendance to belong here. BUT our programming for most age groups does build, week to week so that we can go deeper than surface level together.

When your child misses a Sunday, stop by the Wayfarer’s Cache outside the RE office to pick up a Home Quest. You can explore it together at home, over dinner, or whenever it fits your family. Not as homework to catch up on, but as a way to stay connected to the stories, questions, and adventures their group is sharing. Whether your child is here every week or returns after time away, there is always a place for them in the journey. If your whole family is missing on a Sunday, email Skyla (dre@uucorvallis.org) and she’ll send you a digital copy!

What if I want to know what my children are learning or which adults will be with them on any given Sunday?

Maybe your child comes home and tells you what they learned and you’re left scratching your head. What the heck does a blindfolded maze have to do with RE? Or maybe you’ve got an anxious child at home who will feel better attending if they know exactly which adults will be there and what they’ll be learning about. No problem! Parents who attended the Great REspawn event can find the link to the “Scheduling Codex” in their parent welcome packet. Parents who missed or are joining us later in the year can request that link from Skyla (dre@uucorvallis.org). We don’t publish it online because making curriculum that we had to purchase publicly available on the website is out of covenant with the curriculum creators, but we’re happy for our parents to have access to that information. All you have to do is ask! We’re an open book!

Free Childcare for Fellowship Events

Thanks to a generous gift from the Bob Ozretitch Endowment fund, we can offer free childcare for Fellowship sponsored events that happen on UUFC property. Please fill out this form preferably two weeks ahead of the event, to help us have time to arrange a care team. You will be notified by email when a team has been found.

Parents Whatsapp group

Fellowship parents have formed a Whatsapp group for sharing, organizing informal hangouts, and anything else that would be better when shared with other UU families. This informal group can be found HERE. Please note, this group is not sponsored or moderated by UUFC in any official capacity.

Family Breakfast

Once a month, our families enjoy a potluck-style breakfast together. with pancakes, coffee, and usually some bacon provided. REgistration HERE is appreciated, but not required, and we hope you’ll attend even if you don’t bring a contribution. Casual, as you are able, attendance is absolutley fine. We just love being together!

Monthly RE Newsletter

About once a month, usually near the first, Skyla sends a family newsletter with important dates, useful information for families, and usually some fun pictures of what your kids have been up to in their groups. Please open and read these newsletters! They include parent information that does not appear in our regular weekly announcements. For safety and privacy, we don’t publicly share dates and locations for activities where children or youth will be gathering without their parents, such as youth overnights and field trips, so the family newsletter is where you’ll find those details.

All families registered for Sunday morning RE are automatically added to the mailing list. There’s nothing extra you need to do. Just keep an eye out and open it when it arrives!

Safety makes relationship possible.

Children and youth need spaces where they can explore, play, question, take appropriate risks, build relationships, and become increasingly independent. They also need adults and systems they can trust.

UUFC’s Board-adopted policies establish expectations for the adults who work with children and youth, supervision, communication, transportation, privacy, and responding when something goes wrong. Our Standard Operating Procedures and Religious Exploration practices put those commitments into action.

Who works with children and youth?

Adults and youth who work with children and youth at UUFC must be approved by the Director of Lifespan Religious Exploration, agree to a code of ethics, provide current contact information, and must pass a criminal background check. Adults generally must also have attended UUFC for at least six months, although the Minister or Director of LIfespan Religious Exploration may make an exception, particularly for those who have come from another UU congregation and have a verifiable record of serving children well in that other covenanting space.

If a volunteer or program staff member is not acting or functioning appropriately, Board policy gives the Director of Lifespan Religious Exploration and Minister authority to release that person from their role immediately while the matter is investigated.

Supervision and boundaries

During designated Religious Exploration and Fellowship childcare activities, responsibility for supervision transfers from parents and guardians to the guides providing that program. Outside those designated times, children and youth remain under the supervision of their parent or guardian. This means that an adult has a line of sight to their children at all times, or another adult has agreed to be the supervising adult and the children know which adult is supervising them.

We are a covenanting community that takes both welcome and safety seriously. Our community includes people with a range of histories, including individuals with known sexual offenses who participate under specific safety covenants. Because we also welcome visitors, we cannot know the history or circumstances of every person on our property. Active supervision also protects children from more ordinary risks. When children are left unattended, normal childhood curiosity and boundary-testing can create opportunities for interpersonal harm, particularly in private or one-on-one spaces. And running or rough play in shared areas can pose a real danger to people with vulnerable bodies. For all these reasons, children should remain with their responsible adult or within a supervised Religious Exploration program while at UUFC.

All minors participating in our programs are to be directly supervised. Except for parents, adults should not be alone with children in cars or rooms. When circumstances make a one-adult/one-child situation necessary, doors are to remain open and incident reports are to be filled out documenting the scenario that required nonstandard supervision.

Guides and childcare staff are required not to assist children with toileting, and diaper changes are handled by parents or guardians. When a child needs bathroom assistance, they will be brought to the parent or guardian for such care.

UUFC’s policies call for training and support for RE Guides around sexuality, abuse, and related concerns. Annual safety training is required for RE Guides and childcare providers.

The Fellowship recognizes that a religious community may sometimes learn about circumstances in a child’s or youth’s life that require intervention. Board policy establishes our responsibility to provide a safe and nurturing environment; the procedures for responding when abuse is suspected are maintained in UUFC’s Standard Operating Procedures.

An Incident Report is required whenever a safety policy is not followed, an injury or property damage occurs, or a pattern of behavior develops for which documentation may be helpful.

Communication with youth

Our policies are designed to keep communication between adults and minors transparent.

A second adult—such as a parent, co-advisor, or the Director of Religious Exploration—must be included on emails or texts with minors. Adult volunteers do not initiate social-media contact with UUFC minors. If a young person contacts an adult mentor through an online platform, communication stays on the public side of that platform rather than moving into private chat. Adults may not communicate with minors using platforms that automatically delete the record of the conversation.

Transportation

Guides driving children or youth to Fellowship-approved activities must have a copy of current driver’s-license and insurance on file with the RE office. Drivers must be at least 24 when transporting youth to events.

When UUFC staff arrange transportation for a minor, the “rule of threes” applies: two unrelated adults must be in the vehicle with the child or children. Families may instead make private transportation arrangements for their own child and notify the appropriate RE adults in advance.

Privacy and images

UUFC protects personal information from unauthorized use or disclosure. Personal information is not sold, rented, or transferred to third parties without written permission, apart from the information shared with the Unitarian Universalist Association as a condition of congregational membership.

Parents or guardians give permission for image use in the registration form, and permission may be withdrawn by sending an email to dre@uucorvallis.org.

Childcare at Fellowship events

Childcare is part of making congregational life accessible to families. Advance childcare registration helps us make sure adequate care is available. Just like all other times when children are left in the care of non-parental adults at UUFC, childcare will be provided by 2 unrelated and background checked adults.

Want to know more?

These are plain-language summaries of UUFC’s Board-adopted policies and Religious Exploration procedures, rather than replacements for the policies themselves. Up to date and exact language for UUFC Board policies can be found in the filing cabinet section at the bottom of this website.

Help us know and care for your child.

Registration gives our Religious Exploration team the information we need to welcome your child well, communicate with your family, understand important needs and care preferences, and respond appropriately in an emergency.

REGISTER HERE

Who should register?

Please register children and youth who participate in any of our Sunday Religious Exploration programs:

Rainbow Room | Walkers–Pre-K
Spirit Play | Grades K–3
Seeker Space | Grades 4–6
OMG! Youth Group | Grades 7–12

You don’t need to be a member of UUFC to participate in Religious Exploration.

It’s the same form for all ages this year. Children don’t develop according to a chart, and we’re happy to work with you to find the space where your child can most fully belong, participate, and grow. Once they’re registered, you do not need to fill out that form again for the rest of the year. You will also start receiving the monthly RE newsletter that will help you orient to what’s happening for children and famlies, and remind you when to register again next year.

REGISTER HERE

Visiting for the first time?

You’re welcome to try us out before filling out a form.

On your child’s first visit, we’ll ask you to leave basic contact information with their Guides so we know how to reach you while they’re in our care. If they come back—and we hope they do!—that’s when we’ll need a full registration.

Visitor nametags are available at the Welcome Desk, and you’ll find QR codes linking to registration outside each Religious Exploration room and at the Welcome Desk if you decide to register while you’re here. But you can always REGISTER HERE before you arrive.

Why do we ask all those questions?

Some of the information on our registration form may seem more detailed than what we’d need just to put your child on a class list. That’s because registration isn’t really about making a class list.

It’s about caring for actual humans.

Knowing about allergies, access needs, communication styles, family structure, care preferences, and the people authorized to pick up your child helps our Guides respond to the child who actually walks through the door—not an imaginary average one.

Our Guides have access to the information they need to care for the children in their group. We also encourage you to talk directly with them about anything especially important for that particular Sunday. A form can give us useful information; a relationship lets us keep learning together.

Where do I take my questions?

Skyla King-Christison, Director of Lifespan Religious Exploration, is your best resource for answers to all things religious exploration! She can often be found in her office in Room 2 Sunday through Thursday from 7ish to 3ish, but leaves periodically for meetings around town. You can email her absolutely any question, or make an appointment to have a face to face chat using this link.