Tuna Roast

tuna roast

Join us on Labor Day – Monday, September 4th for the return of the Tuna Roast. This is a family friendly picnic gathering at the Lions Shelter in the SE corner of Avery Park. Come for games and visiting at 4:00 pm, food at 5:00 pm.

Grilled Fresh Tuna, potatoes and corn on the cob will be provided. Please bring a side dish or dessert to share. You are also encouraged to bring your own picnic plates, silverware and cups to reduce waste, along with lawn chairs. There will be games and activities for all ages! 

There will be no Sunday service on August 3 – the Tuna Roast therefore serves as a kind of in-gathering. Reverend Jill will lead us in song and words of intention around 5:00 pm.

Volunteers are needed in a variety of roles: help marinate and grill tuna, clean and cook corn on the cob, help with set up, pick-up truck(s) needed to haul tables and extra grill, assist with activities, help with tear down and clean up. 20-30 people will be needed to help make this event the best one ever! Set up begins at 3:00 pm.

Sign up to Volunteer

Email greet@uucorvallis.org with any questions.

This event is for UUFC members, friends and their loved ones. We welcome a small donation of $5 per person, although no one will be turned away.

Energy Upgrades for Homes

Energy Upgrades for Homes with Fossil (Natural) Gas. Nancy Evenson, a retired architect who offers Home Retrofit Clinics through the Corvallis Sustainability Coalition, will speak from personal experience to both the:

  • Technological advances that make heat pump and induction
    technology incredibly clean and efficient.
  • Homeowner experience in navigating the switch from fossil
    gas to electricity.

Monday 7 August, 6:30 – 7:30 PM in the UU Social Hall, also available by Zoom, Contact michael.a.hughes1951@gmail.com

Hosted by the Faith Based Climate Action Team

REMOVAL OF INCENSE CEDAR TREES

Affected areas marked in red.

Sadly, many of the tall cedar trees along the east boundary of UUFC’s property will have to be removed this summer, probably in August. After 4 years of discussion, consulting, and much review the Board of Trustees has approved the removal of 30 trees from our east property line for safety reasons. The removal will start sometime in August, 2023. No oaks or other hardwoods will be removed. This is reduced from the proposed removal of 47 trees that was recommended by Corvallis Arborist LLC in 2022.

Because of the danger of the tall Incense Cedar trees falling on our or our neighbors’ buildings we have had to make the hard decision to remove them. We hired Corvallis Arborist LLC (JonPywell) to evaluate all of the trees on our property and he produced a detailed report in November of 2022.  The bottom line is that he recommended that we remove 47 trees because they are a threat to buildings. The threat is that as the trees get bigger, they are more likely to be blown over by strong winds.  Many are already leaning. The UUFC Board of Directors has reviewed this recommendation and had discussions with many of you and settled on a plan to remove 30 trees that appear to be the most threatening.  This is not something they have done casually.  These trees were planted in 1952 by two of our beloved congregants and have been a valued part of our campus for over 70 years.

We have contracted with a very experienced tree removal contractor, Mid-Valley Woodsmen (Josh Cantrell), who will have to climb each tree and cut small portions from the top and lower them down with ropes.  Josh is very aware of our desire to have as little impact on the remaining trees and vegetation as he can.

Because these trees have to be cut into small segments to get them down safely, we will not be able to sell the wood as sawlogs.  Most of the wood will be chipped and sold to a paper mill or used for landscaping.

Links to documents

YOUTH EVENTS CALENDAR

Mark your calendars for fun! Bring a friend! All registered youth in grades 6-12 are invited to join us for our monthly events.

Updates to the calendar will always be posted here. Registration links will be sent 2 weeks in advance of the activity. To receive email updates, please register for YRUU here.

Please contact the Director of Religious Exploration, Skyla King-Christison, for more information on this or any other UUFC program for children and youth.

Women’s Retreat 2023: Save the Date (updated)

The UUFC Women’s Retreat 2023 Planning Team asks that you Save The Date of October 13-14 for our upcoming Fall retreat at the UUFC building. Attendees need only identify as women in a way that’s significant to them. Our theme this year is “Mindful Compassion” and our keynote speaker is Jana Svoboda. We will share lunch and dinner on Saturday, and there will be three workshop hours for smaller interactive sessions. 

We look forward to being together again as a sisterhood!

Amy Ayers, Priscilla Galasso, Kris Egan, Ann Marchant, Joyce Marvel-Benoist, Kimi Mayo, Bonnie Morihara, Sharon Seabrook, and Heather Thomas. 

Email: womensretreat@uucorvallis.org

Daily Practice, June 30th, 2023

Good morning friends – Between our house and the neighbor’s there are ten Douglas Firs and one small redwood.  A very small forest that we share and enjoy. This morning I watched awhile (breathing in the beautiful perfume of those firs) as the rising sun lit one side of the highest branches, and turned them a golden green. Meanwhile, a convention of crows was gathering in the field, then flying to high branches and back.  Once again the morning sky is bright and clear – this particular summer day,  another chance to be alive and thankful. 

On this last day of June we begin again, just as we are called to do every day. We are called to wake up from our assumptions and opinions into appreciation of the miracles of life.  We are called to be aware of the breath which makes us alive.  We are called to recommit to a path of compassion and peace, to create more justice, to choose to bless the world, knowing how blessed we are. 

A prayer for today, to encourage us to choose this path once again:  “Blessing of Hope”  by Jan Richardson.

“So may we know that hope that is not just for someday but for this day—here, now, in this moment that opens to us:

Hope not made of wishes but of substance, hope made of sinew and muscle and bone, hope that has breath and a beating heart, hope that will not keep quiet and be polite, hope that knows how to holler when it is called for, hope that knows how to sing when there seems little cause, hope that raises us from the dead—

Not someday, but this day, every day, again and again and again.”

Jan Richardson

Thank-you to all of you for being part of this circle of practice!  Next week Daily Practice will  transition to the UUFC website, where I’ll post it at least once a week, maybe twice sometimes.  More information about how to find it will be coming.  Until then, and always, I’m sending love to you all!     Jill

Communication Changes

We will soon be transitioning toward a ‘hub-based’ communication system, where the UUFC website – uucorvallis.org – will be the primary place to find information about what’s going on at the Fellowship. We will phase out the monthly newsletter and information will instead be published on the website, in a blog-like format where new information appears at the top, and you can scroll down for previous posts.

All who are interested are invited to join an open discussion on Fellowship communication in general on Sunday, June 18, after the Sunday Service. Come with questions, concerns, and ideas. Communication is always in need of improvement! 

Jigsaw Puzzle Exchange

Bring your unwanted jigsaw puzzles and pick out some new ones to take home as we gather and share conversation and drinks.

Wednesday Aug 2, 2023 from 4-6pm, hosted by Bobbi Bailey. In the UU Social hall and patio.

connect@uucorvallis.org

Neurodivergent Discussion

A group for people, both neurodivergent and not, to come together and discuss issues faced by neurodvergent people. Led by Anthony Acquilano.

12:00 pm – 1:30 pm

Saturday, June 24th, 2023. In Room 9 at UUFC.