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50 Bloomfield Avenue, Hartford, CT 06105
Tel: (860) 233-9897 / FAX 233-1333
Email: firstunitarian@ushartford.com
Reverend Barbara Jamestone, PhD
Newsletter Content for March 2003
Sunday Worship Services & Religious Education
for Children & Youth: 10:30 AMUpcoming Services
March 2, 2003 “What is the Self?”
Service Leader: Rev. Terasa Cooley - As Unitarian Universalists we place a great deal of emphasis on self-understanding. But what really is the self? Is it a separate “thing” or is it a mixture of influences both material and non-material? These are important spiritual questions both in terms of taking responsibility for ourselves, as well as fulfilling the potential of the self.
March 9, 2003 “Where Do we Go from Here?”
Service Leader: Rev. Terasa Cooley - We've made lots of big plans for our future. Our Strategic Plan has been approved and sets out ambitious goals. But how do we really make it a reality? What are the implications of these plans for the nature of our community? Terasa will offer her thoughts on how we may move toward the future.
March 16, 2003 “Taking Care”
Service Leader: Rev. Terasa Cooley - We expect religious communities to be places where we can find care from one another and nurturance. Knowing that we are not alone makes a huge difference in our lives. Yet are there limits to what we can both do and expect from one another? What does it really mean to be a caring community?
March 23, 2003 " Science and Religion: Friends or Foes?"
Service Leader: Andrew Millard, guest speaker - Society member Andrew Millard will offer his thoughts on the curious relationship between science and religion, sharing the story of his own spiritual journey from research scientist to theology student.
March 30, 2003 "Through Rose Colored Glasses"
Service Leader: Rev. Cheryl Leshay -(Disability Sunday) Several people have asked why I wear my tinted lenses. Many more wonder and don't ask. My disability is a gift, not a fashion statement. We all bring gifts to the world. Let me share mine and help you share yours.
PRESIDENTS
MESSAGE
Last month, we had the pleasure of hearing Mike Durall speak on the issue of “stewardship”. His sermon, followed by a lunch attended by more than 75 congregational members, spoke to the issue of how we should manage and govern ourselves, with a key, but not sole, focus on how we should manage our finances. We decided to hire Mike to assist us in assessing our financial condition and how best to meet the challenges of implementing our ambitious Strategic Plan. Mike is currently working with 13 UU Congregations addressing the issue of stewardship and specifically why the annual pledge drive is becoming less effective.
In working with us, Mike set out to understand our unique financial identity that includes our socioeconomic make-up, our history, attitudes about money, culture, and so on. He is reviewing numerous documents and spent nearly 20 hours from Friday through Sunday meeting with Congregation members. Mike will submit an interim report to all members. He will also be working with our Canvass Committee for this year's Pledge Drive.
Speaking of our Pledge Drive, we are fortunate to have very experienced and distinguished members serving on this committee including: Bill Clegg, Ginny Hedrick, Amy Hines, Sue Kinney, Sara Logan, Peter Meny, Kristen Phillips, Eric Rosenberg, and Joe Rubin. In addition, Rev. Terasa Cooley, Shai Cassell, Carolyn Soutter, and I are involved. Kristen, who is new to our Congregation but not to UU, has agreed to “convene” the Committee. She comes to us from Houston, TX where she was President of her UU Society and member of its Stewardship Committee. Her leadership and experience are greatly appreciated, and I hope everyone introduces themselves to Kristen to welcome her to our community. The Canvass Committee has two charges. First, it is to run the FY 2003/4 (July 1, 2003 – June 30, 2004) pledge drive which we hope to complete in early May. Second, it is to make recommendations as to the establishment of a Stewardship Committee responsible for looking at financial issues on an ongoing basis as opposed to yearly pledge drives.
On a separate, but equally important topic, I want to place a spotlight on Rev. Cheryl Leshay, our Assistant Minister. Cheryl has approached her work with our congregation with energy, vision, and creativity, which is necessary considering the broad spectrum of responsibilities that we have asked her to perform. Not only is she managing the children's education program, but Cheryl is also responsible for working on adult programs. She is very effectively shifting our focus on education to make it truly “lifespan.”
If that is not enough, Cheryl is also responsible for conducting worship services in her capacity as one of our ministers. Sometimes I wonder how she does it all, but she does, and I want to thank her for her great work and for the support she provides our community.
Faithfully,
Bart Bracken
RE VIEWS: Committee Focuses on Curriculum Update
One of the top priorities for the RE program is to update the course curriculum. Current and former students and teachers have told RE committee members that, while the current RE offerings expose students to many other religious traditions, there is a desire to build a stronger foundation in understanding Unitarian Universalist principles.
Reverend Cheryl Leshay has spent the past several months reviewing the RE curriculum, observing classroom instruction, and talking with teachers and students. She will be leading a task force, to be organized this spring, to update our curriculum and develop creative ways to introduce the meaning of Unitarian Universalism into each child's RE experience.
Want to learn more? At the April 27 RE Fair in Fellowship Hall, interested persons are urged to stop by and
Find out what we are up to: meet the RE Committee members live and in person.
Find out what the kids are up to: review the curriculum, samples of classroom projects and, perhaps, view an actual child (weather permitting).
Find out what you could be up to: serving on the RE Committee? Curriculum Planning Task Force? Helping out with Festival of Lights '03?
Adult Programs News
The Adult Programs Committee is looking for new members. Please contact Ginny Hedrick (523-9896) or Rosie Rindfleisch (674-8277) if you're interested,
The committee reports that the winter/spring season is well underway and “participation has been above expectations both in terms of numbers and enthusiasm.”
The committee extends its thanks to those who have donated books for the library and reminds everyone to use the book cart in Fellowship Hall as a reference for ordering books and supporting the UUA Beacon press.
Caring Network News
A special Caring Network service will take place on Sunday, March 16. All volunteers are urged to attend so that they can be recognized during the service. Terasa's sermon will touch on creating a caring congregation. A recipient of one of our comfort shawls will give a testimonial.
An audio book collection is available to everyone in the USH library. Assembled by the Caring Network, the tapes may be borrowed on an honor system and provide great entertainment at home or in the car.
Additional volunteers are needed to occasionally deliver Sunday service flowers to the ill and shut-in, to do weekday driving, to sponsor a comfort shawl knitter for $15, and to serve on the Committee as the co-chair of the Support and Sharing section.
Please call David or Janice Newton (677-1121) to offer to help and/or to request Caring Network assistance. Those needing assistance may also call the USH office at 233-9897.
COME MEET, GREET, EAT
All women of the Society are invited to an R&R supper at 5 pm on Wednesday, March 5. Sponsored by the Women's Alliance, no reservations are required and no fee is charged. A chance to relax, enjoy a light supper and some good company are all on the menu.
An Alliance cabinet meeting at 2:30 pm will precede the R&R supper.
Contact Ellie Revill (529-9254).
M'ship Committee Offers Newcomers Choices
Wandering around the Meeting House recently, we found a very impressive document at the newcomers' table. Although it's small (three pages), in black and white and without any pictures, there's an amazing amount of information in it.
Titled Unitarian Society of Hartford New Member Opportunities, it asks “Do you like...” then lists all sorts of things to consider. It describes a wide range of things to get involved in, and gives names and telephone numbers to call for more information and/or to volunteer.
We recommend this document not only to newcomers, but also to the groups consultant Mike Durrall (see associated articles in this newsletter) called “old oldtimers” (30+ years in the Society), “new oldtimers” (15-30 years), “old newcomers” (3-15 years).
Dick Morton is in Hartford Hospital following major surgery. He appreciates our notes and cards (80 Seymour Street, Hartford, CT 06102) but would rather not have calls or visitors.
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Fiscal Year Change Leads to “Interim” Annual Meeting in February
The Annual Meeting of the Unitarian Society of Hartford took place on Sunday, February 16, and was in the nature of an “interim meeting,,” according to Society President Bart Bracken. The change in the fiscal year from a calendar year to a July 1 – June 30 fiscal year caused this.
Copies of the committee reports and a financial report were distributed but, due to copier problems, there were not enough reports to go around. All reports are posted on the USH web site.
Minister's report: applauded Strategic Plan, told of staff changes, pleased to have Rev. Leshay, feels that faith development community has really been enhanced.
Christmas letter: raised $6000.
Membership remains steady; Society expects a small growth in members and is looking to do more outreach.
Trustees are assisting with the operating budget and are also helping with Rev. Leshay's salary.
Pros and cons of some suggestions made by Consultant Durral will be discussed by the Council. These include donating 10% of our operating budget to the community, donating Sunday collection to specific organizations, and not announcing sermon topics in advance.
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Information on conscientious objectors can be obtained at the Social Justice Table or by contacting Betty Garvais or Rev. Cheryl Leshay.
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Forget the Groundhog - Think Music and Spring
Please mark this in your calendar, now. On Saturday evening, June 21, 2003, the Unitarian High School Choir from Kolozsvar, Translvania will be singing at our Meeting House. The choir, sponsored by the UU Partner Church Council, will arrive in the U.S. on June 4 and will work its way up the East Coast, singing along the way. Their performance here is the only one scheduled in Connecticut. They will also sing at the UUA General Assembly in Boston.
Everyone will be invited to a pot-luck supper on Saturday to meet this remarkable group of students. We will be arranging an activity with youth from our local UU churches. Sunday plans are not yet complete.
As their hosts for two nights, we will need the support of many families to home-stay the group of 30 students and four adults. They all speak some English and are eager to practice our language and learn about our culture. Ideally, host families should have children in junior or senior high school or students home from college. However, we know this is not always possible, and we will gladly accept any family with a bed to spare for two nights. We will also be happy to arrange sharing if you are a family with an interest but no beds. Help will also be needed with activities and transportation.
Watch the April Newsletter for more details and instructions on how to sign on as hosts and helpers. Louise Schmoll
Changes in Office Staff
You will be seeing some different faces in the Meeting House office.
Administrative Assistant Lori Sullivan left at the end of January.
Signe Martin has joined us in that capacity. She will be in the office Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday from 8:30 am – 5 pm and on Sundays as well. Please stop by and meet her.
Stephanie Spearman, our Society Administrator for the past two years, will be leaving as of March 21. We thank her for her dedicated service.
We have decided to shift the emphasis of that position and are now advertising for a Business Manager. Peg Horne, Personnel Committee Chair, has been assessing our office needs during this interim period and would welcome feedback on our changing needs. Please call her at 693-8143 with ideas, comments, or suggestions.
Sound System Changes
Within the next two weeks, we should see and hear a significant improvement in the sound system. Two speaker columns will appear at the front of the sanctuary near each exit. These columns will house 24 Bose speakers which will blanket the sanctuary with a clean sound. Some experimenting with mics and new recording equipment will also take place.
Future improvements which the Chancel Improvement Committee is hard at work on include installation of a chancel handicapped access lift (next summer). Phase I of the organ upgrade should be completed by September 2004. A “new” 3-manual organ console will be refurbished and necessary electronic components added.
The dedicated Chancel Improvement Committee is optimistic about these significant improvements.
Bill Willett
ORGANIC FARMING GROUP
CONFERENCE AT MEETING HOUSE THIS SATURDAY
The Northeast Organic Farming Association of CT will hold its End of Winter Conference Saturday March 1 from 8:30 am – 4:30 pm at the Meetinghouse, co-sponsored by the Social Responsibility Committee.
Titled “BRINGING IT ALL BACK HOME: Assuring a Sustainable Future,' it offers 18 workshops, with keynote speaker Dr. Joan D Gussow, nutrition educator, author of “This Organic Life: Confessions of a Suburban Homesteader.” Geared to consumers as well as gardeners and farmers, the conference features a potluck lunch, vendors and exhibitors, and free childcare with advance registration.
Flyers on the SR table, or call Kembles, 633-4503, or email or for more information.
USH MEMBER HONORED
Diane Cadrain was recently honored by the Human Resources Association of Central Connecticut for her contributions to the education of human resource managers in her writing for HR Magazine and other media outlets.
Her articles in the magazine have included topics such as employer respect for gay, lesbian and transgender employees, state legislative initiatives to regulate workplace ergonomics and drug test fraud.
Diane and her family are active, long-time Society members. Think choir, Sedar, photography, teaching, front cover of the 1993 USH photo directory, knitting.
INTERFAITH COALTION HOSTS FIRST PUBLIC EVENT
More than 500 people came together on January 30 at Hartford's Center Church to celebrate their commitment to the mission and vision of the Greater Hartford Interfaith Coalition for Equity and Justice.
Leaders of eight faith communities offered supporting statements. Prayers and musical offerings were presented in English, Spanish, Hebrew and Arabic. Each of the 32 member congregations was recognized. Tom Kemble (Social Responsibility Committee) represented the Unitarian Society of Hartford.
Over the next two months, member congregations will conduct “in-reach” interviews. Our own process began in mid-February and will conclude by the end of March. The goal is to talk to a minimum of 100 people about their interest in social justice issues facing our region.
An open forum is planned for Sunday, April 3 to present the results of the interviews and to provide the congregation with a chance to comment. To get involved, contact Kent Childs (243-9503) or Doug Christie (521-5782).
Want To Learn More About Our UU Society?
An orientation will be held on Sunday, March 2 in the Meeting House library from 12:30-2:30 pm. A light lunch will be offered and child care (arranged in advance) is available.
For more information, call Rebecca Judd, Membership Chair (561-8439).
GUEST SPEAKERS ADDRESS SOCIETY AT SUNDAY SERVICES
Liz Petry, Author and Attorney
Liz Petry, author and attorney, said at the January 26 Sunday services that the Hartford Courant published an 80-page special section on slavery in Connecticut after a Hartford teacher and her students at Fox Middle School started research on unmarked graves in the state's burial grounds. Many of those in those graves had been slaves.
Continuing their research, the students found old Hartford Courants with ads to buy and sell slaves. On July 4, 2000, the Courant published an apology for complicity in the slave trade and began tracing the lives of known slaves. The result, Complicity: How Connecticut Chained Itself to Slavery, was published in September 2002 and will be studied in all Connecticut schools.
Ms. Petrie wrote two articles for the publication: “The Lash and the Loom” and “Slavery and the Courant.” She said that today's problems among young African Americans extend back to slavery and that education is one of the answers.
ADDRESS UPDATES
The Phinneys have moved. Please note their new address and send them a note or card:
David and Irma Phinney,
Laurel Gardens, Apt. 209
1177 Hebron Avenue
Glastonbury, CT 06033Doris Cook has also moved. Her new address is:
Avery Heights #32
705 New Britain Avenue
Hartford, CT 06016 (953-5377).Teresa Younger, CCLU Director
Discussion of the 2002 Study/Action issue chosen at last June's GA – Threats to Civil Liberties – began on Martin Luther King Sunday last month with guest speaker Teresa Younger, Executive Director of the Connecticut Civil Liberties Union.
Ms. Younger, in her pulpit address and in the informal lunch/discussion after service, said individuals have a responsibility to prevent “continuing erosion of civil liberties” by talking and writing about issues, by contacting newspapers, organizations, representatives and Congressional leadership, by supporting the Bill of Rights Resolution and by joining the ACLU..
She was particularly disturbed by the October 26, 2001 passage of the USA Patriot Act (Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism). She said many of those who voted for it admitted they had not had the time to read all of the provisions of the 300+ pages of the Act. What the Act does, she warned, is to “take bites out of the checks and balances in our legal system” and is eroding our personal privacy.
About Giving
By Carolyn Soutter
About Schmidt ... and the shock of giving to the unknown.
Shock is good sometimes. Three shocks in a twenty-four hour period and you become a bit unsure of the seat underneath you. That tingling electrical feeling tells you you're about to be transported to a new place, and you may not be quite sure how you got there.
Shock #1: 7:10 PM Saturday, February 1, 2003
Having read that the new Jack Nicholson movie, About Schmidt, was about a man so depressed from having lost practically everything important in his life, that Jack Nicholson said he kind of let himself go physically when he was playing the part, not seeing any point in making himself undepressed after shooting a scene only to have to go back and act depressed again the next day, and sometimes wondering "Will I ever get out of this?"... I never imagined that such a story could be so inspiring.
It was the miracle of giving that saved Warren Schmidt. Newly retired, flipping through the daytime TV channels for something to relieve his boredom, he came across one of those Angela Lansbury commercials inviting viewers to save a starving overseas child for just $22.00 a month. The next scene has Schmidt almost guiltily sneaking off to the post office to put his check into the mail. When the Save The Child Organization informs him that the child he's supporting would like to hear something about him, he finds himself unable to stop writing ... about his disappointments in his wife, his daughter's fiancé, his career, his life ... and soon enough we're hearing his deepest concerns through these letters to an illiterate six year old child he's never met, who lived at least 6,000 miles away, and didn't speak a word of English. And, by the end of the story, the privilege of giving this $22.00 monthly gift to someone outside of his life has become the most important thing in his life.
Shock #2: 10:45 AM Sunday, February 2, 2003
Listening as our guest speaker, Michael Durall, author of Creating Congregations of Generous People, began by announcing that our morning cash collection would not be used by our congregation at all, but instead would be given to Hartford charities, I was thinking ... can we really afford to do this? What about our bills? What about our roof? What ever happened to waiting to see if we have enough money for all the things we want before we start giving money away to people we've never met? It took a moment for his logic to hit me ... he was challenging our congregation to do what it hopes we members will do! To NOT wait to see if there's anything left over after we've gotten everything we want before we make our gift to the Society ... but to make that gift FIRST. In his book, Durall writes about a banker who handled the family finances by dividing the bills into two categories – those he had to pay, and those he chose to pay. In a category by itself, the first check he wrote wasn't to pay a bill at all – it was to the church. This made him very happy. (It was later announced that we took in over twice as much as usual that Sunday.)
Shock #3: 2:00 PM Sunday, February 2, 2003
After church, we drove to Massachusetts to visit our daughter, Alexis, who'll be graduating from Tufts Vet School in May. She's passed her boards, has lined up a job with a Veterinary Hospital in Farmington, and soon will be making the first real money in her life. I was still processing Mike Durall's sermon, trying to think if such an odd-feeling change could actually be right for our congregation, when Alexis said she'd been giving the matter of charitable giving a lot of thought recently. As soon as she gets her first paycheck, she plans to give a generous percentage to an organization that trains rescue dogs. Starting out in life, there are student loans to pay back and a million things she needs to buy, but she said that she wants some portion of what she earns to count for something other than herself. It seemed to her that her work will probably be more meaningful if she always budgets for a charitable gift before she pays her other bills.
Wow!
CONNECTIONS
Reverend Terasa G. Cooley
My husband received an anonymous phone message the other day. He's been doing a sermon series at the church he serves in New Jersey on perspectives on war, specifically looking at Holy War, Just War, and Pacifism. The church has been advertising this series in their local paper, and the caller had obviously seen the ad and wasn't pleased. He said, in part, “I know everyone doesn't support this war, but this is what we're going to do, and you should just keep your opinions to yourself. America: love it or leave it.”
I've often wondered what America such people are talking about when they say such things. Obviously not the same America that I am dedicated to: the America of free and open discourse; the America of the marketplace of ideas; the America which is under girded by our participation and involvement. What America are we protecting if not this vision of America?
I ran into Marion Richardson the other day coming out of the Meeting House. She was delivering some supplies for the Women's Alliance. We chatted for a moment and then she told me that I wouldn't be seeing her in church for a few Sundays. I asked why, concerned that there may be something wrong in her family. But her reason was simple: she wanted to attend the anti-war vigil held each Sunday in Glastonbury center.
Now you must know that Marion is hardly the classic protester type. She's made her views known to me from time to time, but always thoughtfully and quietly. But she explained why she felt she had to do such a public thing: “I feel so powerless,” she said, “And I want to make sure my views are counted.”
I told her that was as good a spiritual experience as church could be for her, and thanked her for telling me. And I've been thinking ever since about what our religious tradition offers in the way of guidance in such times. For it is clear that we are hardly of one mind about this war we are poised to enter. We have no set dogma or doctrine to fall back upon to “tell us what to do.” But what we do have is a set of principles which not only allows, but even insists, that we make our views known and participate fully in the democratic process. It is perhaps for this reason that Thomas Jefferson called Unitarianism the most quintessentially American of the religions.
As you read this, we may already be entered into armed conflict with Iraq. If so, I hope that will not mean that we feel we must be silenced or of one monolithic view to be patriotic. I am an American and I am here to stay. And to me that means being called to exercise the values of freedom that we have long professed.
Calendar for March
23 24 25 26 27 28 1 9:30A
N.O.F.A. (whole building)2 9 A Great Decisions (Servetus)
12N Member Orientation (library)
3 6:30P Tai Chi (fellowship)
7P SR (library)
7P Welcoming Congregation Workshop (Servetus)
7P Comm.
4 7P Circle of Simplicity (Murray)
7P Religious Education (library)
5 2:30P Womens Alliance (library)
6:20P Worship (Servetus)
7P Tai Chi (fellowship)
7:30P Choir
6 7 8 11A Memorial Service–Jessie Huston (Carol Shoemaker's mother) (library, sanctuary)
9 9A Great Decisions (Servetus)
9A Comfort Shawl (library)
9A RE Train (Channing)
9:30A B&G (Priestly)
12N CEJ (lib.)
10 6:30P Tai Chi (fellowship)
7P Welcoming Congregation Workshop (Servetus)
11 12 1P Loss (David)
7P Tai Chi (fellowship) 7:30P Choir (sanctuary)
13 9:30A International Women Circle (fellowship)
7P Caring Network (Servetus)
7P Council (library)
14 5:30P Dinner and Movie (fellowship)
15* 16 9A Great Decisions (Servetus)
12N Welcoming Cong. (library)
17 6:30P Tai Chi (fellowship)
7P Welcoming Cong. Wkshp. (Servetus)
18
7P All Committee Chairs (library)19 6P Membership (library)
7P Tai Chi (fellowship)
7:30 P Choir (sanctuary)
20 21 22 23 9A Great Decisions (Servetus)
1P Loss (David)
24 6:30P Tai Chi (fellowship)
7P Welcoming Cong. Wkshp. (Servetus)
25 26 10:30A Villge. Fam.&Child (sanctuary, fellowship)
1P Loss (David)
7P Tai Chi (fellowship)
7:30P Choir (sanctuary)
27 9:30A International Women's Cir. (fellowship)
6P Adult Prog. (Servetus)
28 29 30 9A Great Decisions (Servetus)
12N CEJ (library)
1P Loss (David)
31 6:30P Tai Chi (fellowship)
7P Welcoming Cong. Wkshp. (Servetus)
1 2 3 4 5
Let us know of any comments, errors and corrections - thanks (revised 2/21/05)