weekly announcements

Kirtan With Jaya Lakshmi, 1/16

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Join Jaya Lakshmi and her band for an uplifting evening of mantra, kirtan and original sacred music.

Friday, January 16, 2026, 7:00 – 8:30 PM at the Fellowship.

Tickets $25 in advance, $30 at the door. No one will be turned away for lack of funds.

Buy tickets online using this link: https://jayalakshmimusic.com/event/6393721/748516126/jaya-lakshmi-kirtan-and-sacred-music-concert.

Childcare is available!

Free childcare can usually be arranged for any Fellowship event by using this link 1-2 weeks prior to the event.

Can you see yourself in the Choir?

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There’s nothing to be afraid of and all it takes is that first step. Like a New Years resolution, change might be scary – but honest! We’re friendly.

The choir is a welcoming group of singers who enjoy learning music and sharing it with the Fellowship. There is no audition.

We meet every Wednesday at 7:00 PM in the Sanctuary. Contact Director Steven Evans-Renteria for more information at this link.

First day of Postcard Writing to Voters, 1/4

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Get your pens ready! Join the Democracy Action Team in writing to prospective 2026 election year voters. Sunday, Jan 4th is the first day of our first writing project in 2026.

WHAT: News Boosting Postcards to Georgia to educate voters about the impact of the “Big Beautiful Bill” on rural hospitals. You can see the postcards at Informed Voters of America initiative website at https://www.informedvotersus.org/.

HOW: We have 200 postcards to write and mail by Feb 5, 2026. We will distribute them in packets of 10 (with addresses, stamps, and instructions) at the Democracy Action Team table in the Social Hall after Sunday worship (which starts at 10 AM) – starting on Jan 4. Look for us there! Take the supplies and follow the instructions!

Or – you can get the supplies from Claire Montgomery.

Or – you can sign up with Postcards to Swing States at https://secure.ngpvan.com/NPCPSG0VaUqaLw7w6AbNDg2 and have them mailed to you directly. You can choose where to write (Georgia, Iowa, Maine, Michigan, North Carolina) but the minimum order is 100 postcards.

Contact Claire Montgomery (UUFC Democracy Action Team) for more information.

Do hand-written letters and postcards increase voter turnout? YES. Randomized Controlled Trials demonstrate statistically significant increases in voter turnout of 1-3%. That may not seem huge – but swing state elections are close and that could be more than enough to tip the scale. Check out Vote Forward experiments at https://votefwd.org/impact (click on “See Our Tests”) and Progressive Voter Turnout Project experiments at https://turnoutpac.medium.com/a-gateway-to-activism-postcards-win-close-elections-5bf7f45da15a.

Happy writing!

Outreach Offerings for January

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Our January Justice Outreach Offering will support We Care. We Care is a local coalition of faith communities, businesses, foundations and other non-profit organizations which provides emergency assistance for Benton County residents. Each week, We Care helps people pay for rent, utilities, and other expenses to prevent evictions and homelessness or the shut-off of water or electricity. The Fellowship has long been a supporting partner.

To learn more about their work, visit the We Care website.

How to donate to the monthly Outreach Offering

Each month, the Fellowship gathers donations for a certain charitable cause. These are our Outreach Offerings. You can contribute to this month’s offering in a few ways:

  1. Give to the Sunday collection basket
  2. Donate online
  3. Donate to the refreshments during the social hour

The Kitchen team donates an assortment of sweet and savory refreshments, including gluten-free and vegan choices, for our enjoyment at the social hour following Sunday worship. These items are purchased and prepared by the team to encourage donations to the Outreach Offering. Collection baskets are always found at the ends of the refreshments table. The next time you’re eyeing something tasty on the table, consider putting a donation in the basket first to show how much you appreciate having that treat ready and waiting for you!

Post-Poetry Popsicles on Sunday 12/28!

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Post-Poetry Popsicles is a playful, positively purposeful, pleasantly pointless (but practically prudent), pastor-approved party, providing perfectly preserved, previously purchased popsicles for parishioners, participants, poets, performers, parents, and pals.

Please proceed post-program to the pleasantly populated social hall where plentiful popsicle provisions will be proudly presented as a peaceful, playful, palate-cooling payoff for pondering profound poems, processing powerful prayers, and participating patiently in a purposeful, poetic production.

This people-pleasing, pseudo-picnic promotes personal presence and proper popsicle purging while preventing permafrosted freezer paralysis. Please participate!

In plain language, the RE Council has a popsicle surplus, and we need the freezer space for other things, so we’ll be giving away free popsicles after the poetry service on Sunday. Everything must go, so please come enjoy a cold treat on a cold day, and if you’re a popsicle fan who would like to take home any leftovers, please let Skyla know!

Visibility Brigade Bannering Event, 1/2

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Visibility Brigade Bannering for Women’s Basketball Pre-game Traffic

Friday, January 2, 2026
5 – 6pm PST

Gill Coliseum at OSU
660 SW 26th St
Corvallis, OR 97331

Join us to deploy our first banner of the New Year before the January 2 Beaver home game from 5-6 pm. Our banner will read “RESIST ICE” and since there will be a lot of foot traffic, we also will provide a QR code or small flyer for those who want more information. We will be test driving our new banner with lights. Each person will hold a letter shaped from Xmas string lights to spell out the message. Help spread the message of ICE resistance!

The Benton County Visibility Brigade was sourced from the UUFC Democracy Action Team and is now also a part of Benton County Indivisible. The Brigade broadcasts messages in support of democracy by carrying out high visibility actions, including bannering from I-5 overpasses and in high traffic locations in Corvallis. We are totally committed to non-violence in word and deed and very safety conscious. Best of all, we have lots of fun! If you experience despair over the current state of democracy, check us out as a great antidote. For more information, email visibilitybrigadebc@gmail.com.

2025-2026 Pledge Drive Feedback Survey

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We are collecting feedback on the 2025-2026 pledge drive! Fill out the survey to share your thoughts by clicking the button below.

Survey

Your feedback will used to make improvements in how we communicate about pledging, record key pledging information, and share the importance of pledging with the congregation. Survey responses are anonymous so please share what is on your mind and how we can make this process better in the coming years. Contact Rachel McGrath (who is helping to support the stewardship team) with any questions regarding the survey.

Special Christmas Eve Service, 12/24

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Invite friends and family to this gentle, reflective service in which we honor the gifts in the age-old message of people travelling with hope. We will enjoy the lighting of candles, with appropriate candle options for all ages!

Rev. Alex McGee will preach

This service will be broadcast on Zoom using the same link as the Sunday Worship Services.

UUA Scholarships for College

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Do you know any UUs attending or considering college? The UUA offers scholarships to help fund college degrees in certain fields! You can read about the available scholarships and their requirements here: https://www.uua.org/lifespan/re-sources/college-scholarships/legal-art.

Finding available scholarships can be a daunting task for students. If you think someone may benefit from knowing about these options, please share this with them!