Weekly Announcements (Printable)
Sunday Services
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This Week:
“Shine Your Light” 11/3/24
The future is a mystery, no matter how much we try to imagine it. How the week ahead will unfold is a mystery! It’s always good to help ourselves manage our fears and anxieties, to try limit the ways we pass them on to others and wear ourselves out in the process. We can support each other; we can practice together.
with Rev. Jill McAllister
Don’t forget: Daylight Savings Time ends early on Nov. 3 – which means an extra hour of sleep or relaxing before coming to the Fellowship.
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Services This Month:
Nov. 3 “Breathe with Awareness” Rev. Jill McAllister
Nov. 10 “The Great Mystery” Rev. Jill McAllister
Nov. 17 “Who Is My Neighbor” Rev. Jill McAllister
Nov. 24 “Thanksgiving or Gratitude” Rev. Jill McAllister
From the Minister
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Between Us (December 2023)
December arrives, with its unique forms of busy-ness and expectations, and I invite you to give yourself time to contemplate this season from as many perspectives as you can. To contemplate means to observe deeply, with focused attention. Perhaps what I’m suggesting is something different – not merely to think about in order to categorize, but to feel – to know by feeling. Maybe ponder is a better word than contemplate. What is this season, for you? What makes a difference? Winter, darkness, lights, Christmas, Solstice, rain or snow, fog, solitude, celebrations, rest?
It is a season of holidays / holy days – each with particular insights to offer – Hannukah, Solstice, Christmas, Kwanzaa, Divali, and others. It is a season on this particular part of the earth – of rain and fog, sometimes of cold and ice, of geese and owls, of bare trees and mud, of creeks full and running fast. It is sadly, still, a season of struggle and strife, here and in so many other places. Of all these insights and occurrences, what nurtures you? What is hard for you? What helps you remember what you are part of?
There’s lots of talk about giving, of course – especially from those who depend on this season to make as much money as they can. “Give our things” they say, and we too easily believe that consumerism is a source of happiness. We know the limits of that habit. What if we could make this a season of generosity more than just of “giving”?
Events and Activities
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Envisioning the New Year with Dream Board Making
Saturday, January 6, 2024
9:00 am to 12:30 pm in the UUFC Fellowship Hall
A fun, creative morning in a supportive environment!
Led by Joyce Marvel-Benoist
Dream Board Making Registration and Information
If you have any extra magazines to donate, please drop them on the front bench by the parking lot double doors with Joyce’s name on them. Thanks!
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Inquirer’s Series – Every Sunday
This week: Roots with Skyla King-Christison. Inquirer’s Series is a series of 9 hour-long sessions designed especially for newcomers seeking more information about UUism and the Fellowship AND open to all others who are interested. Sessions take place every Sunday at 11:45 AM Room 8.
Upcoming session dates:
2024
Jan 7 Principles & Sources* with Skyla King-Christison
Jan 14 Building & Grounds with John Bailey
Jan 21 Minister’s Q&A* with Jill McAllister
Jan 28 Lifespan Faith Development with Dawn Dirks
Feb 4 Worship & Liturgical Year with Jill McAllister
Feb 11 Social Justice, Community Action & Connect Up with Karen Josephson
Feb 18 Care and Support & Chalice Circles with Sandy Piper
Feb 25 Membership 101* with Bobbi Bailey
Mar 3 Roots with Skyla King-Christison
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Free Mental Health Film Screening 1/18 @6:30
The Religious Exploration Staff is aware that our children, youth, and young adults are facing an unprecedented mental health crisis and we acknowledge the lack of mental health resources available to families in our community. As such, we are elevating our commitment to educating ourselves and expanding our program’s capacity to hold space for children, parents, and caregivers to connect with one another in mutual support.
One of the first offerings we present in this a screening of What I Wish My Parents Knew, a film by Tell My Story, designed as a mental wellness tool to help parents better understand how to support the mental health of their children.
The event will be a two-part, 90-minute experience with a group viewing followed by a discussion facilitated by a licensed mental health professional. Pre-registration is requested.
This film is not available for general public streaming, but this event is open to the public. We ask that viewers be over 18. On-site childcare will be provided free of charge by a team of experienced and background-checked adults.
If you plan to attend, we recommend watching this talk by the creator of the film to prepare. PLEASE NOTE: themes of self-harm and suicide are present in both the talk and the film.Direct questions to DRE@dreuucorvallis-org
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Monthly Hikes
Last Saturdays of the month, meet with Jim Wagner and other Unitarian friends for a casual hike in the Corvallis area. These are suitable for all ages. The intensity and difficulty of the hike will vary depending on interest. Meeting time will vary. Contact us to sign up and join the group! Connect@uucorvallis.org
March 2024 Hike Info:
March Connect Up will be the northern leg of Section 36 Loop in McDonald Forest. This is mature forest along the upper part of Calloway Creek. Early spring wild flowers can often be seen along this trail. Walk is about 4 miles and gains about 600′. About 1/4 of the distance is on trail and the rest on forest road. So, keep Saturday, March 30 (day before Easter) open! More info will be sent to the email list.
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Brilliant Minds Workshop 1/20
The Brilliant Minds Workshop on January 20th, will invite participants to explore and share their personal experiences with neurodivergence and psydivergence. Please consider taking this very brief survey to assist the planning team in their efforts to meet the most immediate needs of our community.
News and Announcements
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MANY HELPERS NEEDED for our Holiday Fair, 12/7
ALL UUFCers: Do you have two hours to help make our 2024 Holiday Fair a success? We need flyer distributors, greenery swag makers, at-home bakers, furniture movers, greeters, and cashiers. You’re needed and we have a job for everyone.
Note for at-home bakers: Do you have some wonderful breads, cookies, brownies, or candies you can donate for the Baked Goods table?
Contact Elaine Kahn about requirements for selling to the public (list of ingredients, nothing that requires refrigeration, more).
Please deliver your donations to the Social Hall on Friday, December 6 between 3:00-5:00.
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November Birthday Club
Members and friends with November birthdays, you are invited & encouraged to join the UUFC Birthday Club by making a donation in the amount of their age. Ex. On turning 74, make a $74 donation. Please donate via check to UUFC with memo “Birthday Club.” At the end of the financial year, contributions to the Birthday Club are split 50% Operations, 20% Endowment, 20% Reserves, and 10% Justice Outreach.
Questions: Michael Hughes
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Justice Outreach Offerings in November – Corvallis Daytime Drop-In Center
Our November Justice Outreach offering will support the Corvallis Daytime Drop-in Center (CDDC). CDDC is a community-based resource hub providing information, referral, and direct services for people experiencing homelessness and poverty in Benton County and beyond.
To learn more about their work, visit the CDDC website.
Donations can be made in person on Sundays, or on the UUFC website, uucorvallis.org/donate
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Family Sabbath
Developing a satisfying spiritual life requires that we regularly set aside time to grow our spiritual muscles with intention rather than always sliding through life on autopilot. Observing a sabbath is one way that we can craft a spirituality that nourishes and sustains us when times get tough. What elements go into a meaningful sabbath practice? What even is a sabbath? Let’s explore together!
Wayne Muller wrote, “We meet dozens of people, have so many conversations. We do not feel how much energy we spend on each activity, because we imagine that we will always have more energy at our disposal. This one little conversation. This one little, extra phone call. This one quick meeting….what can it cost? But it does cost. It drains yet another little drop of your life. Then, at the end of days, weeks, months, years, we collapse, we burn out. We cannot see where it happened. It happened in a thousand unconscious events, tasks and responsibilities that seemed harmless on the surface, but that each one after the other used a small portion of our precious life. And so, we are given a commandment, which is actually a gift- ‘Remember the Sabbath’”
An updated, family-focused version of his list of life-sucking small things might involve carpools, Instagram scrolling, and cleaning up dog barf before setting the table, but the reality is the same now as it was when he wrote those words. We need a Sabbath. We need it for so many reasons. Parents and children, alike.
A Sabbath is a reset and a return to the things that matter most. It does not involve productivity or tangible results, but rather centering connection with ourselves and our values rather than rushing through every minute to get the most things done. Yes, traditionally the Sabbath or Shabbat has taken place on Sundays for our Christian neighbors and Friday evening through Saturday for our Jewish friends. And maybe one of those days works best for you and your family. The spirit of a sabbath, however, can be enacted any day of the week which makes it a sustainable practice for you and your household. Ever since the Spiritual Practices workshop in Adult RE last year, I’ve been engaged in a Sabbath practice on Wednesdays, because I work every Sunday. Choose a regular day of the week, or hour of the week if it’s all you can manage, and make a sabbath plan that serves you and your family.
What should go into a sabbath plan? I’m so glad you asked!
The purpose of a sabbath plan is to assist you and your family in spending time in a different mode, intentionally engaged in practices that help you refocus on that which matters most. That’s going to look different for everyone, but here are some common elements to get you started:
~Many find it helpful to reconnect with their community during their Sabbath, so attending a service with your religious community is a common element of Sabbath.
~Appraoching the routine with a heightened level of awareness and awe is another mode of approaching Sabbath. Members of the Jewish community drop everything, light a candle, and share a family dinner on Shabbat. Sure, we eat dinner every night, but changing the lighting, speaking sacred words of prayer, and preparing a ritual food that is reserved for this special occasion all help us slow down and renew our intention as a family made up of spiritual beings.
~Reconnecting with nature is something that showed up in the vast majority of Sabbath plans that were written in our workshop last year. As Unitarian Universalists, we speak to the importance of living in harmony with our natural world, and spending time fully immersed in our beautiful Pacific Northwest forests and streams can help anchor our hearts in commitment and gratitude for the earth’s bounty.
~Schedule time for a slow spiritual practice like contemplative reading, meditation, or a slow cup of tea by the window to watch the rain and nothing else.
The possibilities are endless because it’s the quality of attention and energy given to the actions that make them worthy of your sabbath.
HOMEWORK FOR CAREGIVERS
Giving your children a rich spiritual vocabulary that includes words like the Sabbath is an easy place to begin if you’re new to this concept. You’re already coming to the Fellowship on Sundays, so ask your children what activities make them feel calm and at peace, what foods do they love that take time to prepare, what do they feel in their bodies when they get the chance to slow down, and see if you can add one thing from their answers to your existing Sunday plans each week. Or, if you’re not reliably together on Sundays, choose a different day to imbue with sacred attention. ask yourself the same questions and make sure that you design, little by little, a Sabbath plan that serves your whole family’s wellbeing.
It might be tempting to commit a longer amount of time on a less regular basis to this practice, and retreats do have their place in the Faith Formation Toolbox, but the Sabbath works on us specifically because it’s regular. You wouldn’t go to the gym for twenty hours straight once a month and expect to develop healthy muscles. You’d expect to get a serious injury! The Sabbath is much the same. Smaller and more frequent commitments to devoting your attention to that which is most important is essential. If you’re not regularly engaging in a sabbath practice, you very well might go on a retreat and experience an unbearable amount of discomfort!
Get out a piece of paper, make a plan, and display it proudly in your home. Make sure everyone in your house participates in the plan, and then everyone can help you remember that, “Hey, Dad! It’s our sabbath day, remember?”
I’m always excited to chat with you about your family’s spiritual practices and rituals. If you need any support in owning your role as the primary religious leader of your household, I’m always just a call or text away!
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2024 Holiday Trees
For the third year, we are offering table-top size live holiday trees for sale as a UUFC fundraiser. After the holidays you can return your tree for us to plant, or you can plant it yourself. Trees are $20 each, and we are offering Grand Fir, Ponderosa Pine, Doug Fir, and Sitka Spruce, all in #2 pots. Trees will be available after service, starting Sun 24 Nov.
Questions:
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Breakfasts for the Petts Family
Jamie Petts’ husband is having major surgery on October 30. In response to the Care and Support team’s offer to help Jamie (UUFC Operations Manager) negotiate caring for Dave and their four children plus work and home responsibilities, she suggested breakfasts for the children (delivered the day before) that would be easy for them to help themselves. She has provided a list of suggestions and has an easy way to deliver. Dates are MWF Nov.4- Dec. 6. Please contact Sandy Piper for details if you would like to support Jamie in this way.
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Holiday Fair Café – Calling all soup makers and bakers
The annual UUFC Holiday Fair is coming soon, and a favorite of many attendees is the Café. This year we’ll be serving soups, breads, and beverages.
Do you like to make soup, or bake scones or sweet breads? If so, please sign up at the Fellowship on Sundays, beginning on Oct. 27, or here:
Holiday Fair Soup Makers and Bakers Sign Up
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UUFC Merch Store
Check out the UUFC Merch Store for tee-shirts, hats, coffee cups, backpacks, umbrellas, and more! Support our Fellowship with great gifts for yourself and your loved ones. Find it under the “about” tab on the UUFC website.
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