50 Bloomfield Avenue, Hartford, CT 06105 Tel: (860) 233-9897 / FAX 233-1333 Email: firstunitarian@ushartford.com Reverend Barbara Jamestone, PhD

Home Page- Link Central Questions and Comments	USH-Enews September 3, 2009 Jump to: Sunday Service; Calendar; What's Happening; Feature Articles; USH Needs You!; External Events; Further Down the Road; Social Justice Journeys; Green Topics ; A Matter of Opinion; Text only Printer Friendly Format
	Before the Seasons Change - Bridge of Flowers, Shelburne Falls, MA Photo by Gail Newton USH-Enews is a weekly email newsletter produced for members and friends of the Unitarian Society of Hartford. The USH web address is:  http://www.ushartford.com/ Check at the end of this USH-Enews for information on submissions, subscriptions and escape from the mailing list. And, to read the monthly Meetinghouse Messenger (newsletter) on the web or to find past issues of the weekly USH-Enews click here. Office hours: Rev. Jamestone: Phone: 860 233-9897; Email: RevBJ@USHartford.com - Rev. BJ office hours by appointment.
	Worshipping Together Since 1830 Summer Schedule One Service 10 AM (Next week 9/13 new schedule 10:30 AM) Sunday - 6 September - The Ordering Our Day: Annual Poetry Sunday - Does some “ North Star” or ‘invisible hand”  guide our decisions regarding the use of our time and money? What priorities organize the ranking of our investments of time, money, and other resources? If  checkbooks and schedule calendars were our sacred texts, what would they teach us about ourselves? And how do we manage all the things that crop up, which we had not planned, so that they are not obstacles but rather, sacred interruptions?    Join Rev BJ and new member Joan Sereda for reflection on these and other questions, through the writings of great poets. Canadian by culture, Joan Sereda  and her husband Lorry  came to the US and to Bloomfield in 1963, where  Joan later  taught in the Bloomfield school system for 32  years. Now widowed, she lives at Seabury Retirement Community, where she is an avid gardener, sings in the choir, and enjoys participating in theatrical events. She plays tennis and bridge, snow skies, belongs to a book club, enjoys cooking for friends, and  travels extensively visiting friends and her three sons.  She is a docent at the Wadsworth Atheneum.   For several decades Joan has kept a journal of her reflections and activities supporting the “ordering of our  days--’ though she confesses that she has even used ‘White Out” to keep her journal in good order! She  is also keenly sensitive to the "sacred interruptions" that can quickly change our plans, as she is a survivor of cancer, only recently completing a series of treatments.  In addition, hers was one of the homes badly damaged by  a recent fire at Seabury. Music - Entrance Voluntary:  Prelude in B flat - Johann Rinck MCW: The Call - Ralph Vaugh Williams Offering: Prealudium - Herbert Brewer Postlude: Lied - Louis Vierne REflections on Children's Programming Harry Potter Summer Program Ending This week will mark the end of our summer programming, so join us for one last magical lesson!  We will explore the mystical horses of the Harry Potter universe, and the other magical creatures featured in historical mythology.  Come experience the magic!   Multigenerational Ingathering Service Next Sunday, September 13th, will be our annual multigenerational ingathering service and water communion.  There will be childcare, but no religious education classes.  Bring some water from a lake you visited, a pond you explored, or from the family tap to add to our common bowl.  Come celebrate the beginning of another church year and your membership in the circle of care.   Registration for 2009-10 RE Classes Classes will begin on Sunday, September 20th.  All children and youth must be registered for classes. To fill out the electronic registration form, you may download a Word document or PDF. Email the Word document back as an attachment or print the pdf , complete the hard copy and send it to the office. Electronic returns to DRE@ushartford.com. What Else is Happening USH Needs You! Building and Grounds plans Workday - The Annual fall B&G Workday will be on Saturday September 5th 9 AM to Noon. There will be a general clean up of the grounds and Building preparing for the coming season. It will help in the planning if you give Ed Sax a call 860.286.9688 and tell him you will be in attendance. Classroom Clean-up - help needed on Saturday, September 5th from 10:00 AM to noon. The Building and Grounds folks will be doing the heavy lifting for the premises, and the RE folks would love some help to get the classrooms ready for the Fall RE programs. We are especially looking for small hands to make sure markers still work. Please join us! - Sheila Ward Chapel Sing - The first Sunday of every month, beginning in October,  join Rev. BJ and staff musicians  for a half hour  post service “Chapel Sing,” which will begin 15 minutes after the worship service ends. You’ll have the chance to call out your favorites, and to get better acquainted with our “Teal UU Hymnal Supplement” as well. - BJ Need For Food Greater Than Ever - We have collected cans for the food pantry for many years, with mixed results.  Our goal was to collect a can for each Sunday attendee every week...urging that it become a routine.  Now the need is even greater. There are more folks than ever waiting for distribution on Thursdays.  It is actually better to donate money direct to the food pantry where it has greater purchasing power.  Perhaps you would rather give a donation.  $30 to a food pantry will feed one person for a month.  Make out your check to USH with Horace Bushnell Food Pantry in the memo line.  Thanks to Brian for passing it on.   Cans will still be collected. - IASC     Sign Up For Small Dinner Parties - Note: The name “Circle Dinners” is bring changed to Small Dinner Parties. There’s an early deadline (9/20) to register for  SDP's.   Register in Fellowship Hall September 6, 13 and 20. (Or call Marion Kelliher, 286-2740 and mail your $2.00 to USH.) Small Dinner Parties are scheduled for October 3, November 7, and December 12.  With advance notice, we can find a substitute if you must miss a date.  Fee is $2.00 per household for mailing expense. Enjoy being with old friends and meeting new ones. Six to 10 adults are randomly assigned in different groupings for each dinner.  Host furnishes the entree, beverage and bread.  Guests are assigned to bring appetizers, salad, side dish, or dessert. Not everyone can host, but we do need hosts, so if your home can seat six, please host one dinner. Fanciness isn’t required--paper plates are fine if more convenient.  Getting together is what’s important! Register in Fellowship Hall during the coffee hours September 6, 13 and 20.  Please note the early registration deadline: September 20! Greater Hartford Interfaith Coalition for Equity and Justice Presents - Health and Race - Justice for All - A panel discussion to: Educate on racial and ethnic disparities in Connecticut; introduce the work of the Commission on Health Equity; share what others are doing to address health disparities and explore the role of Faith communities to eliminate health disparities. The event will be held Thursday, September, 17, 2009 at 7 PM at the Faith Congregational Church, 2030 Main Street, Hartford, CT - Moderator: Rev. Michael Williams - The Forum has been funded by the CT Health Foundation.  Tai Chi is an ancient form of Chinese exercise. It is a type of moving meditation that teaches the classic principles of Relaxation, Emptiness and Fullness, Evenness and Slowness, Balance, Rooting and Sinking, Coordination and Centering, Breathing and Chi and Concentration. We live in a world where nothing is enough and constant demands leave us frustrated and exhausted. Tai Chi not only offers asylum from this lifestyle, but a learning experience that teaches strategies for taking care of ourselves in the midst of it all. Do something good for yourself. The extraordinary health benefits of this ancient art form continue to be revealed to us. Curious? Visit us for one class and see what you think. Wear loose, comfortable clothing.   Dates: 8-week sessions, Wednesdays, beginning September 2 Time:    Beginners’ Tai Chi  5:00-6:00 PM               Ongoing Tai Chi  5:00-6:00 PM Fee:     $50/session Contact: Ginny Hedrick, 860-677-9272, ctginfarmf(at symbol)comcast.net Small Group Ministry for Fall of 2009  - Registration is now open for Small Group Ministry. Please call the office to register. More ADULT PROGRAMS (see feature story) Caring Network - The Duke of Cambridge protested that he wasn't against change. He favored it, but said, when there was no alternative - If you know of any member experiencing some difficulty, please contact Diana Heymann, Chair of the Caring Network heydiana(at symbol)comcast.net 860.461.0908 or call the office so we can provide some assistance. A wide range of community services is also available to those in need by calling InfoLine at 211. Please contact Diana if you are able to volunteer your services. Appreciating Diversity in Music - I just spent a week in Peru, nearly every night in a new hotel. Each evening, after locating the bathroom, I would walk to the window and look out on a new vista – the hummingbird-filled gardens in Aguas Calientes, the cityscape of Lima, the ocean view in Miraflores, the red-tiled roofs of Cuzco.  Each new vista opened my eyes to a new place, a new bit of history, new expectations, even a new way of looking at the world.   This month we are welcoming a new talented musician to play our keyboard instruments: our wonderful organ, our pianos, and perhaps even the harpsichord.  How privileged we have been over the years to enjoy such a roster of artists.  And how fascinating it is to realize once again that there’s a wide array of tiny subtle choices that an organist or pianist must make, usually not obvious to the congregation, but noticeable when things are different.  Things like… --How fast does each Hymn go? --How long is the slight pause between hymn verses? --What should serve as the Introduction to the Musical Dedication?  The first few measures or the last?   Such tiny issues! Yet expecting such things to go a certain way gives us ease and contributes to the feeling of nurtured serenity we feel each Sunday. Every time a new organist or pianist moves in, there’s an adjustment to new ways of doing things. It is when we encounter such changes, particularly with feelings of discomfort, that we realize: we too have responsibilities.  Each of us can contribute individually to our own sense of comfort and ease – by being open to alterations, by being flexible in adapting to new norms, by being grateful for new vistas. And then we can shift our focus to the bigger gifts a new musician brings: a rich variety of wonderful music, wonderfully performed, in the context and for the purposes of our worship services.  As we welcome Mark Child to our keyboards and our midst, let’s enjoy the many ways he’ll be opening our ears and hearts to the music of the spirit. - Mattie Banzhaf	From the Editor:Suggestions for Contributors. This Week’s Feature Articles (see below) Adult Programs For Fall Announced Directory Publication Different This Year GHICEJ Seeks Support Appreciating Diversity in Music 2009 Fall Programs for Adults and Families - It won't be long before the USH Fall Programs will be starting! You may have already read about some of the programs in the USH-Enews, including Small Group Ministry, The Women's Alliance Retreat, and the movies selected for the Friday Dinner and Movie Series.(All program listing are now available on the web) On September 6 stop by the Programs Table in Fellowship Hall to take a look at the New Notebooks that will include the programs offered this fall. During coffee hour on Ingathering Sunday, September 13, you will be able to register and ask questions at the Programs Table. Your favorites -Small Dinner Parties (formerly Circle Dinners), Friday Dinner and Movie evenings, Artist's Way, Small Group Ministry, and Tai Chi will be back!   New offerings to look for: Compassionate Communication Practice Group, 2nd and 4th Thursdays, starting September 10, 5:00 - 7:00 PM. Paul Quinn will facilitate this program to provide a safe space to give and receive empathy using the Non Violent Communication process. Participants must have a basic understanding of NVC by reading Nonviolent Communication: A Language of Life by Marshall Rosenberg and/or participation in a NVC workshop. "Menu for the Future," Mondays, every other week beginning October 5, 4:30 - 6:00 PM. Our Chosen Faith, 2nd and 4th Wednesdays starting October 13, 7:00 PM. Directory Plans Different This Year - We are saving postage and printing costs by producing the Directory in electronic form.  It will be a PDF (A form of electronic document) you can leave on your computer desktop for reference as needed, in color! We desire to make only the number of paper black and white copies needed for those with no computer/internet available resources. There will be two ways of obtaining the electronic directory.  It will be made available through a password-protected file on the web for a very limited time (for security reasons).  You will be sent information about this and you can download a copy.  Should this access fail, you may request a copy from the webmaster sent to you as an email attachment. If you require a hard copy of the Directory because of lack of computer/internet access, or if accessing this information on your computer screen is difficult for physical or electronic display reasons, then please complete the information required on a form obtainable from the office or as handout. You will be requested to return the document by September 15th. Please note, only those completing this information will receive the printed copy.  Prompt response to this request will be greatly appreciated, as we will print only the number of copies needed. Paper copies for those who have requested them will be available Sunday, September 27th and thereafter in the office. - The Office Crew and Webmaster GHICEJ Seeks Support - Dear USH Members and Friends, As you know  USH is a member of the Greater Hartford Interfaith Coalition for Equity and Justice (GHICEJ). Many of our members have been involved over the years in several of GHICEJ's advocacy and issue efforts: healthcare, more funding for affordable and quality early school education, urban anti-violence initiatives and, most recently tutoring and volunteering at Noah Webster and Rawson Schools, K-8 public schools in Hartford. GHICEJ is sponsoring a very exciting Concert for Justice on October 4th at 4pm at the United Methodist Church on the corner of Whitney Street and Farmington Avenue . The purpose of the concert is to raise money for GHICEJ so that it can continue its justice work. Our very own Anhared Stowe, Principal Second Violinist with the Hartford Symphony, will perform with pianist Pi-Hsun Shih. The concert will also include klezmer music, folk music, a jazz ensemble and more, and promises to be a very eclectic musical adventure! We are putting together a program booklet that will include ads. (We are NOT charging for the concert. We will take a free will offering at intermission). If you desire to place an ad -particularly on behalf of your work, business, place of employment or just because you want to express your support for GHICEJ's justice work, it is easy to arrange. Simply send an email to USH member Shai Cassell at shaileen@sbcglobal.net and let her know. She will be back in contact with you. Ad costs range from $10 (to be a "friend" and have your name listed) to $120 for a full page. Half page, quarter page and business card size are $60, $30 and $15, respectively. More Thanks! - Shai Cassell On the Calendar Saturday, September 5 Meeting House Work Day 9 AM - Noon Sunday, September 6 10:00 am  Worship, Sanctuary 11:00 am  Coffee Hour, Fellowship Hall 3:00 pm  Rental, Chapel   Monday, September 7, Labor Day Holiday Building Closed   Tuesday, September 8 5:00 pm  Caring Network/Lay Listeners, Fellowship Hall 5:30 pm  Finance Sub-Council, Library 6:00 pm  Rental, Chapel 7:00 pm  Board of Directors, Library 8:00 pm  AA, Fellowship Hall Wednesday, September 9 10:00 am  UAMW (Alliance) Cabinet, Library 5:00 pm  Green Sanctuary Sub-Council, Library 5:45 pm  Meditation and Dharma Gathering, Emerson 6:00 pm  Choir Potluck, Fellowship Hall 7:30 pm  Choir Rehearsal, Sanctuary   Thursday, September 10 9:30 am  International Women’s Circle, Fellowship Hall 5:00 pm  Compassionate Communication, Emerson 5:30 pm  Membership Sub-Council, Servetus 7:00 pm  Rental, Ballou   Friday, September 11 3:00 pm  Seabury UU Gathering, Seabury, Bloomfield Saturday, September12 9:00 am   Leadership Retreat, Fellowship Hall 10:00 am  Wallace Stevens Walk, meet in MH parking lot 7:00 pm  Tierra Mestiza   Sunday, September 13, Ingathering Sunday 9:00 am  Building & Grounds Sub-Council, Murray 9:00 am  Comfort Shawl, Lower Lobby 10:30 am  Worship, Sanctuary 11:30 am  Coffee Hour, Fellowship Hall 3:00 pm  Rental, Chapel italicized entries are non-USH events. Please notify Brian Mullen of all additions or changes to the calendar. Follow this link to all our scheduled events! Further Down The Road (About 30 Days) The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society - Have you read this charming novel of  WWII, set on the isle of Guernsey?  It will be the focus of a discussion during the Women's Alliance Retreat Oct. 23-25 this fall. More Music for You to Give and Receive at the Meeting House—This Fall! More Social Justice Journeys (From the UUA) And from USH Green Topics - Green Sanctuary Sub-Council - the Green Sanctuary Sub-Council will have our monthly meeting Sept. 9 from 5-6 at USH. Anyone interested in checking this fun environmental group out, please join us! - Bev Prager External Events and Educational Notes Printer Free to a Good Home The RE program recently acquired a Lexmark printer/copier/scanner combo that we do not need.  It is fully functional, although currently out of ink/toner.  If this would be of use to anyone, I am happy to pass it along.  Please contact me at: dre(at sign)ushartford.com if you are interested, first come, first served. Jason & Demarco in Concert 10/25/09: Center Church - The First Church of Christ in Hartford An Open and Affirming Congregation of the United Church of Christ More A Matter of Opinion:
	Nuts and Bolts: The member congregations of the Unitarian Universalist Association covenant to affirm and promote: the inherent worth and dignity of every person; justice, equity, and compassion in human relations; acceptance of one another and encouragement of spiritual growth in our congregations; a free and responsible search for truth and meaning; the right of conscience and the use of the democratic process, within our congregations and in society at large; the goal of world community with peace, liberty, and justice for all; respect for the interdependent web of all existence, of which we are a part. Generally, USH-Enews will be posted on Thursday.  Send email related to the USH-Enews to dcnewton at ushartford.com  If you have announcements or articles you wish to be published, send them along  with the subject line USH-Enews by 4:30 PM Wednesday evening. Comments are always welcome. If you wish to have your name removed from the distribution list or have learned of the electronic publication and wish to have your email address added, just ask. © Unitarian Society of Hartford
	Let us know of any comments, errors and corrections - thanks (revised 09/02/09 7:40 PM)