Parenting Resources for Challenging Times

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With all that is escalating in the world around us, I want to provide a few resources that families have found helpful as they navigate the highly personal decisions about how to talk to their children and youth about the terrible things happening in the world. If you have others to add that you feel would be useful to our Fellowship families, please send them to dre@uucorvallis.org

A primary skill we can all develop and use as our children’s first and primary spiritual leaders is developing our capacity for self-regulation. Whatever it is we need to talk to our children about, whether it’s the news or their chores, the potential for positive outcomes is higher when we enter into it with awareness of our own emotions and how they’re participating in the way we are showing up with our children. Without realizing it, the stress we carry in our own bodies can easily spill into our interactions, word choices, patience levels, and more. Dr. Amber Thornton has loads of resources on self-regulation for parents. Below is just one of her many offerings on the topic.

The Fred Rogers Institute has offered a great PDF about talking with children about difficult things in the news. You can access the full 2-page guide by clicking HERE.

“When children bring up
something frightening, it’s
helpful right away to ask them
what they know about it. We
often find that their fantasies
are very different from the
actual truth. What children
probably need to hear most
from us adults, is that they can
talk with us about anything
and that we will do all we
can to keep them safe
in any scary time.

For an at-a-glance list of things to keep in mind for developmentally appropriate conversations at every age and stage, check out this one-sheet from the Children’s Network and Early Risers.

And finally, the National Child Traumatic Stress Network has offered a guide to Talking to Children About the Shooting, which can be accessed HERE.

My door is always open if you find yourself in need of additional resources or thought partnership through this moment in history. I also encourage all of our parents to take advantage of the Parent Connection Dinner on the second Thursday of each month. Strengthening your connections to the village and having a designated place to talk about what’s hard with people who are fielding similar questions and facing similar challenges can make a world of difference!

Adult Coming of Age Is FULL!

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This workshop has reached its max enrollment. If you’d like to be placed on the waitlist, please email Skyla at dre@uucorvallis.org.

WHEN: Thursdays from 3-4:30 from February 19th through March 26th

WHERE: Room 7

WHAT: Adult Coming of Age is a program designed to help each participant examine who they are at this unique moment in time, look back at the people and events that have shaped them in meaningful ways, and clarify the values, priorities, sacrifices, and gifts that will shape this season of life.

As spiritual beings evolving in a physical world, we are never done becoming who we mean to be, and the Coming of Age program for adults honors that at every age, we are crossing thresholds, seeking clarity, and held by circles of support.

This year’s round of Adult Coming of Age is offered earlier in the day to accommodate those who cannot drive at night. Because this is a challenging time for many with full-time jobs, we will offer the next round in the evening.

Registration is required for this gathering. 

January 18, 2026 – Can I Let You Have Your Story?

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In anticipation of Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, let us consider whose version of his story we know. Widening the lens, let us consider what versions of someone else’s story we are willing to hear. If we truly live our inclusive values, what discomfort comes with accepting a person’s whole story?

Rev. Alex McGee will preach

ICE Out For Good Rally, 1/10

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Indivisible and a broad coalition of national partners are banding together for the nationwide weekend of action!

ICE Out For Good Weekend of Action
This Saturday (tomorrow), January 10, Noon – 2 PM.
At the Benton County Courthouse in Corvallis.

This is a non-violent and peaceful event for all ages!

LEGATO potluck, 1/14

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Love is the power that holds us together and the New Year urges us to begin again. Everyone is welcome to join the choir and band for LEGATO potluck on Wednesday, January 14 at 6:30 PM. Come early if you can help set up tables.

Bring a dish to share (please identify all ingredients), a serving utensil (if needed) AND YOUR OWN PLACE SETTING & WATER BOTTLE – this is a low impact meal.

This is a Connect Up Event with the purpose of building community within the UUFC congregation.

Childcare is available!

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

Partner Church Team, 1/11

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The Partner Church Team is a forward-facing and forward-thinking group that promotes international understanding, social justice, global ethics, and liberal religion through partner church relationships.

Put your faith into action by joining this team. We continue to support the Unitarian congregation in Körispatak, Transylvania, Romania and the Muhira Community Center in Burundi, East Africa; we hope to build relationships with the UUF San Miguel de Allende in Mexico and the UU Church of the Philippines in Manila.

We meet the 2nd Sunday of each month in Room 3. Our next meeting is this coming Sunday, January 11! Contact Heather at this link for more information. See you there!

Childcare is available!

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

Jaclyn Moyer Reading, 1/18

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Corvallis resident Jaclyn Moyer will read excerpts from her book On Gold Hill, a 2025 Oregon Book Award winner. Moyer’s story combines food and culture. In raising wheat and vegetables on a 10-acre California farm, she discovers her Punjabi ancestry and the origins of organic agriculture.

Sunday, January 18, 2026, 12 noon – 1 PM in the Sanctuary.

Childcare is available!

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

Behind the Music: We’ll Build a Land

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Leadership often begins with a call and not a plan; we feel a nudge – or push! – inside of us to step forward. The stories from our Council Chairs provided much food for thought on what fuels our own willingness to contribute and get involved in this community. Today’s piano music all led back to what it means to say yes and pitch in, as we each considered how we are being called to participate.

https://youtu.be/eAR_Ff5A8Rk

There was a touch of the traditional Scottish song Auld Lang Syne to acknowledge the new year, but the heart of this morning’s prelude was Carole King’s You’ve Got a Friend. The lyrics (“When you’re down and troubled, and you need a helping hand…you just call out my name”) remind us of the power of showing up for others and offering steady support. In the same spirit, contributing time, lending a hand, and joining a committee are ways to be a friend to the Fellowship, helping where it’s needed so the community can thrive.

https://youtu.be/nniKY1cTEyY

I played We’ll Build a Land (121 in Singing the Living Tradition) for the offertory…I originally had a different song in mind, but as I listened to Nick, Carl, Scott, and Kathy speak, We’ll Build a Land kept popping in my head instead. This hymn’s message of hope and justice created by shared effort, and its dream of how together we can “build a land where all can dwell in peace” and “make a world of love and truth” were all reflected in the stories we heard. The care, support, and participation from today’s speakers and from every volunteer and congregational leader help shape this “land”, the Fellowship.

https://youtu.be/lXgkuM2NhYI

The decision to use Heroes by David Bowie for today’s postlude may have been influenced by its inclusion in the finale of Netflix’s sci-fi/coming-of-age series Stranger Things, but that doesn’t make it any less meaningful when it comes to the theme of the day. Heroism doesn’t always have to be grandiose or on a large scale – heroes can be people who step forward and give their time, energy, and passion. Even if it simply appears to be everyday participation in congregational life, volunteering, trying something new, and being an active member of this church makes for a better, richer Fellowship for us all.