weekly announcements

UUFC Garden Work Party, 7/26

by

Good news from the Fellowship Grounds Team!  We have been awarded a “Jerry Paul Native Pollinator Conservation Grant” from Benton County Soil and Water Conservation District* and it will be used for a new pollinator garden along our East Boundary. 

We have already begun planting native trees and shrubs in this area where the cedar trees were removed.  The grant will provide funds for adding a bounty of flowering perennials – along with expert advice on how best to support our native bees.

There is much work to be done over the summer, planning the new garden and preparing the site for planting in the fall and winter.  Please come to one of the work days we have scheduled and help this new garden take shape.  Our goal is to create a place of beauty that will not only support our native pollinators, but will inspire us with ideas we can use in our own gardens.  Garden Work parties at the UU on:   

  • Friday, July 11   8-10am
  • Monday, July 14   8-10am
  • Saturday July 26  8-10am   

If you would like to help bring this new garden to life but can’t make any of these scheduled work parties, please email me of your interest and availability and we will figure out a way to include you. Thank you!

Joyce Federiuk
Grounds Stewards Team Leader 

Folk Dancing, 7/13

by

Come try some Dabkeh folk dancing after the service on Sunday, July 13. Adriel Molk will be teaching Palestinian folk dances to all who join. Everybody who can walk, balance on one foot, and is willing to try footwork can join in the dances! This gathering is an opportunity to experience some Palestinian (and neighboring) cultures.

Contact Adriel Molk with questions.

Men’s Retreat, 10/3-5

by

Two things are brand new for the annual Men’s Retreat this fall – 1) it’s in a new location – Camp Harlow, just north of Eugene (barely an hour’s drive!); and 2) it’s earlier than in past years – OCTOBER 3-5. So mark your calendar now!

Our theme this year is “Sharing the Story of Your Life Journey.” Your story shapes you through your challenges, successes, regrets, and lessons learned. It affects how you look at yourself in the mirror, prepare for the day ahead, and engage in your community. Your story connects you with your deepest self and with others. It gives you meaning, purpose, and direction. At this year’s Men’s Retreat we will explore our stories, listen to one another, and consider what our stories teach us about ourselves, our life journeys, and our connections to the wider community.

Registration information will be available in August. For more information, contact one of the Retreat Planning Team: Alan Kirk, Jeff Martin, Nick Houtman, John Swanson, Mike Jager.

Women’s Retreat Workshop Proposals

by

The Women’s Retreat Planning Team is looking for women who would volunteer to lead a 50-minute workshop on a practice that brings them peace. Workshops will be offered at the UUFC on Saturday, October 18 at 11 am, 3pm, or 4pm. We hope to be able to offer a variety of different things, such as:

  1. Spiritual practices – e.g. ritual, music, meditation
  2. Body practices – e.g. breathwork, yoga, walking
  3. Creativity practices – e.g. arts, words, crafts
  4. Climate practices – e.g. sustainability in home & consumer habits, gardening & land work
  5. Economic practices – e.g. data and dollar practices that support agency and peace
  6. Relationship practices – e.g. healthy boundaries, generosity, interaction games

If you’ve got a proposal to offer our retreat community, please submit it before Sept. 21 by clicking the button below and filling out the form.

Proposal Form

You can contact the Women’s Retreat Team at womensretreat@uucorvallis.org.

Greeter Team is Ready!

by

It’s summer time and the Greeter Team is ready for action! If you would like to join this up-beat team, please contact anyone at the Greeter desk, or contact the team lead via the button below. We can all use a helping hand.

Beyond the mechanics of opening the door or preparing a name tag, greeters provide a friendly face, a warm handshake, and a welcoming greeting. We may offer guidance to the sanctuary, distribute bulletins, answer questions, and help with any immediate needs.

See you Sunday!

Contact Greeter Team Lead

Outreach Offerings for July

by

Our Sunday Outreach offerings in July support DRUUMM – Diverse & Revolutionary UU Multicultural  Ministries – which is a Unitarian Universalist People of Color Ministry and anti-racist collective.  As an all-volunteer ministry, DRUUMM continues to  lead efforts to fulfill the aims of becoming an anti-racist, anti oppressive, multicultural UUA, creating space for youth, young adult and our families of color to heal and  work collectively, and steward an effective organization that develops new leadership and manages  consistent communication with members. DRUUMM is a collective of people who identify as People of  Color. Allies are welcome and organized as Allies for Racial Equity. Together we are open to all people.  At the Fellowship, our Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Justice Team works in partnership with DRUUMM.

Meeting on the Landscape Planning Process, 7/6

by

We are people with ideas.  In a congregation-wide series of meetings held last August and September, many of us shared our ideas about what our landscape should look like, the elements it should contain, the purposes it should support and the values it should uphold.  A small group (Joyce Federiuk, Mona Hotchkiss and Ginger Chatfield) has taken the group input and put it into a form that we can more easily consider and prioritize.  

Jill is convening a group meeting on Sunday, July 6 at 4pm at the UUFC to complete this process.  Our goal is to identify our most important priorities so that ultimately, they can be shared with a professional landscape architect to use in creating a master plan for the property.  This will be done in tandem with any building expansion that we may undertake.  

Please plan to attend this meeting if you had interest and input in the prior meetings.  The intention is to vote on the priorities previously identified – rather than add in new elements or lobby for favorite items.  Hope to see you there!

Classroom Wing July update

by

We did it! The volunteer work of painting the interior of the classroom wing is complete!

A HUGE THANK YOU to the ~50 volunteers who helped paint the Classroom Wing – some multiple times! It looks great and you saved the UUFC a huge amount of money! Another thank you to those who lent equipment and materials for this work. Please pick up the items you lent from the counter in Room 6C. If something is broken or missing, contact Wolfgang.

Here’s the plan for upcoming activities:
Professional painters the week of July 7 – 11 to paint the black fire-sprinkler pipes and external siding.

Deep cleaning every room July 12 – 18
Some cleaning by Felicia Torres, our custodian
Other cleaning by volunteers (look for signup forms in July!)

July 19 Move stored items from rental space and Wolfgang’s shed to UUFC

July 20 Move stored items from private homes to UUFC

July 21-30 Restore blinds, bulletin boards, shelf units, cover plates

The preschool will move back into the classroom wing some time in August. Exact dates to be determined.