Friday News 10-22-2021

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Happy Friday!

I hope you all are having an absolutely wonderful Friday morning. I know I said last week that the Friday News was full….you can consider this one jumbo sized! It’s so wonderful to have such an active and vibrant community!

A few quick notes:

  • Please do not leave paper bags of yard waste near the dumpsters in the parking lot. If you can, bring them home to dispose of them. If you can’t, please let Dave Richter know so he can collect them. You could also put them in the dumpster. Once the bags get wet, they can no longer be moved. The church has no way to dispose of them.
  • If you are interested in learning more about UU history, please consider registering for our upcoming UU History 101 class. We only have one person registered as of this writing, and will have to cancel the class if we don’t get more participants.
Please let me know of any announcements you would like in Friday News by 8 pm Wednesdays and put “Friday News” in the subject line so I can be sure to not miss your email.

Let me know if you have any questions!

Virtual hugs,

Kelli McNeal
Director of Congregational Life
kelli@firstuucolumbus.org
Announcements at a Glance

(Click the title to go to that group of announcements for more details)
SUNDAYS AT FIRST UU
Sunday Service – World Community
Join us Sunday 10/24 at 10:00 am, for our Sunday service “World Community.” World community with peace, liberty, and justice for all isn’t just a beauty pageant answer. This principle helps us remember that our relationships go beyond our small corner of the world, and invites us to look deeper into one another’s stories, not just our actions. How might we live fully into the soul of our faith, fighting for what we believe in, while cultivating relationships with those different from us?

Service speaker: Kelli McNeal
Sunday Service – Ways to Watch!
1.) Join us In-Person! We will have seating in the sanctuary and Beach Hall. RE will be outside. Masks are required in the building.

2.) Watch our Sunday services via live-stream! The full service will be live streamed on our First UU Youtube channel. Visit firstuucolumbus.org/sundayfor the link, or search First UU Columbus on Youtube.

3.) Can’t watch the service live? You can catch it and all of our services through our website.
October Soul Matters Packets Are Here!
The October Soul Matters Packets are ready for your viewing pleasure! This month, our theme is Cultivating Relationships. We will not be mass mailing the packets this year, but you can find them in digital version in Friday News, printed copies at the Church, or you can request a mailed copy from Marian Garcia.

You can find the digital versions here: General Packet (for all ages); Soulful Home (UU activities to do as a family).
FAMILY UPDATES
Outdoor Family RE This Week! (Sunday School)
This Sunday (10/24) kiddos are invited to wear Halloween costumes, dress-up clothes, or other seasonal finery! Part of our day will include a costume parade! Next week (Sunday, 10/31) we will be hosting family worship outdoors, parallel to our church’s annual Remembrance Service.

See you on the SYC playground from 10-11am! Children are invited to attend with a parent or other adult caregiver. Masks are required! Grown-ups: please dress your family for the weather, bring camp or lawn chairs to sit on, pack extra masks, and consider bug spray. See you there!

Last week we shared our joys and sorrows and read stories together before having a relay race across the playground! Come play and connect with us again soon! – Jenifer, Amber, and Christine

Don’t forget to sign-in when you attend RE or other church events, for contact tracing purposes! Use the clipboard, or scan one of the QR codes around the church building to access the online form! 
Youth Group: Fall Fun Tonight!

Fall Fun Field Trip TONIGHT! – Last Call for RSVPs! More info here!

Next Youth Group Meeting! 11am-1pm Sunday, 10/24

  • Red Oak forest play area, outside First UU
  • Wear bug spray, and feel free to pack your lunch! See you there!! 

Fun events for Youth are happening all year long! Mostly outdoors – for middle and high schoolers, age 12-19years. Masks are required! Add our Google Calendar or ask to join the Youth Group email list!
FIRST UU EVENTS & ANNOUNCEMENTS
Carpe Diem String Quartet & The Whirlybirds
Though our current church concert series is on hold until COVID numbers get better, we want to let you know about two partnerships we are embarking up this year, from which church members may benefit.

We will be hosting throughout the year, five concerts of the Carpe Diem String Quartet and two concerts for Early Music in Columbus. While both of these series require ticket purchases, they are both offering discounts for church members.

Join us Sunday, October 24th at 2:00pm for the first of our concerts featuring Carpe Diem String Quartet! Entitled ‘My Blue Heaven,’ it features music by CDSQ violist Korine Fujiwara, Dvorak and Nicky Sohn. Regular tickets are $35, but church members may purchase them for $25. For those who do not know CDSQ, they are an internationally-recognized string quartet whose home base is in Columbus. Tickets may be purchased here. For more information, please see their flyer here.

Pegasus Early Music will perform at First UU on Sunday, Nov. 14 at 4:00 pm. Their concert, “The Panther and the Rose”, will feature pieces by Ciconia, Landini, and Donato da Firenze. While regular tickets are normally $30, they are giving church members a 50% discount, so tickets for you would be just $15. You can purchase tickets on their website, earlymusicincolumbus.org. In order to get the discount, type in the code EMCFRIEND before you pay. You can also let them know at the door and get the same discount.
Upcoming Faith Forward Classes

Please Register Online for the Zoom Link!

Roots is a brief introduction to Unitarian Universalist ideas & history, and is recommended for anyone who is new to Unitarian Universalism, or who would like a brief refresher. This is a one session class and will be offered on October 25th.


UU History 101 is a 7 session introduction to concepts & people from our history. In this series, we approach history from the starting point of compelling stories & personalities. We will explore the questions those people faced, & make connections with our own lives & the world around us today. The overarching question is: how can history be translated into our religious life & practice? In addition to learning about history, we hope you will learn about yourselves. Classes are November 1st – December 13th. We have two class times on Mondays, so sign up for the one that works best for you.  Sessions are:

  • November 1st – A Question of Conscience
  • November 8th – A Question of Love
  • November 15th – A Question of Experience
  • November 22nd – A Question of Resilience & Courage
  • November 29th – A Question of Identity
  • December 6th – A Question of Calling
  • December 13th – History of First UU

Learn more about the Faith Forward Adult Religious Education curriculum, register for any of our classes, and receive the Zoom information (closer to class) on our website.

 
First UU Atheists, Skeptics, Humanists Group Meeting
October ASH Meeting: Celebrating Women Freethinkers

Join us Tuesday October 26th at 7:00pm, on Zoom! Karen Thimmes, Brenda Penn, Marge Lynd, Alice Faryna, Cathy Elkins, and Anita Bucknam will present this program about women freethinkers from the 19th and 20th centuries.

As freethinkers, they based their belief on reason and not faith, tradition, or authority. They were frequently opposed by the church and the patriarchal structures in the US and Britain.

Zoom Info:
Meeting ID: 873 4649 3519
Passcode: 043465
Or click this link
Wednesday Women’s Book Group

Join us on the 4th Wednesdays of the month at 1:00 for our book group. This group is open to anyone who identifies as a woman. Email Sylvia Howe for Zoom information.
Congratulations to Amanda and Jim!
Our First UU Justice Coordinator Amanda Hays and her husband Jim, welcomed their beautiful new baby River to this world on Tuesday. If you are interested in sending them a congratulations card, you can either bring it to the church or send it to First UU and we will collect them and make sure they get to the Hays family. We hope to get the cards to them in about two weeks.
Fall Engagement Catalog
Looking for ways to get involved and connect with other First UUers? Check out our Fall Engagement Catalog here!
More Community News on Facebook!
Want to see what those in our community are doing, how to support each other, or looking for personal connections? Check out our First UU Facebook page. Just search for First Unitarian Universalist Columbus OH and join the group!
FIRST UU JUSTICE OPPORTUNITIES
YWCA Dinner
The YWCA Family Center serves homeless families and connects them with resources to obtain stable housing. While at the center, families receive 3 nutritious meals per day, along with job search, transportation, and child care support. On the 4th Friday of each month, a small crew of First UUer’s prepare and serve a meal for the families. Currently, the time commitment is 2 1/2 hours, from 5-7:30 pm.  You don’t need to be a chef, just willing to work as a team and get food ready to serve. Service credits are available for high school and college students who need them.  Contact Tim Hooks, hookstj@gmail.comto be added to the email list.  Any questions, contact Sharon Hammersley 614.395.9440 (cell) or 614.451.3719 (home).
UU Justice Ohio Webinars

Trying to Get from Here to There: Transportation & Environmental Justice

An Education & Action Event from the UUJO Environmental Justice Renewal Team

Sunday, Oct. 24 at 5:00 p.m. Eastern

Register by clicking the link below: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZ0tce2vqDosGdz9CFg3j0s9hxdHfLwEgciO

Many Ohioans are kept from full participation in our communities because they lack a car. Citizens will share their stories of attempting to use the existing transit options and how the lack of efficient public transportation is impacting their lives.

Developing a modern public transit system is essential for Ohio’s future. From Ohio Statewide Transit Needs study in 2015. “In 2013, Ohio had the 14thhighest transit ridership in the country with 115 million trips per year. By 2025, demand is expected to increase to more than 250 million trips. Demographic shifts contribute to increased need: An older population, increased poverty, and many millennials’ preference for public transit over owning a car.”  Ohio ranks eighth lowest in the nation on spending for public transportation.

https://www.policymattersohio.org/research-policy/sustainable-communities/transit/how-ohio-funds-public-transit

 

Join us as we discuss ways of encouraging our state and local government to plan and fund public transportation.
Turn Out for Fair Districts
First UU Columbus: Let’s make Tuesday Oct 26th a UU Turn-Out for Fair Districts Day.  We will meet in the Church Parking Lot (Weisheimer side) at 11:15 am to carpool to the Riffe Center.  We have invited UU’s from North Church to join us!  Of course, you can go other days as well, especially the final day, Thursday Oct 28th.

When: M-Th Oct 25-28, Noon to 1pm (attend any date/s you wish)

Where: 77 S High St, crn State and S High, in front of the Riffe Center

What to wear: Fair Districts shirts, buttons, and masks. (We will have a limited quantity on hand as well)

What to bring: Your signs, your testimony (to read aloud), and your friends!

10/28 will be a bigger event! The last day’s event will  will be a bigger event with speakers and special guests. It will take place on the west side of the statehouse.
Single Payer Action Network
Justice Action
SPAN Ohio reports that the Ohio Health Care Act has been formally introduced to the House as HB 446, and to the Senate as SB 253.

We urge our members to:

1. Call the office of House Speaker Bob Cupp (614-466-9624) and urge him to place it under the insurance committee rather than the Health committee since payment issues are the major consideration.

2. Contact their elected officials and urge them to support these bills. Use this helpful pdf to find your representative.

(SPAN is our Share the Plate partner for the month of October.)
COMMUNITY EVENTS
Trans Faith Matters
First UU member Jessi will be a faith panelist for this exciting event!

Trans Faith Matters, a hybrid interfaith event inspired by the religious movement for LGBTQ equality and by the generosity of local congregations, will aim to advance equality and inclusion for transgender, non-binary and gender diverse people. This event with COVID precautions focuses on experiences, information and insights from community leaders and multiple faiths to provide opportunities to become better informed and more empathic and effective allies.  We will examine problems and identify action-oriented solutions.

WHEN: Sunday October 24, 2021 (one week before Halloween) at 2:00 p.m.

WHERE: Hybrid. We invite everyone not fully vaccinated to join via livestream at www.tiferethisrael.com.
In person at Congregation Tifereth Israel, 1354 E. Broad St.  All attending in person must wear masks and show COVID vaccine records consistent with guidance from the synagogue’s committee of medical professionals.

Presenters include: TransOhio; Buckeye Region Anti-Violence Organization (BRAVO); Kaleidoscope Youth Center; an interfaith panel; and Mozaic, OSU Lesbian, Gay, Bi and Transgender Student Services, OSU Ethnic Student Services and Stonewall Columbus Pride Festival Family and Teen Area.

Primary organizer:  Eric Peters (jericpeters@yahoo.com or 614-GAY-7423 / 614-429-7423).
Connecting the Dots: Planet, People, Power
This month Connecting the Dots calls for action on the urgent need for transportation equity and environmental justice. Many Ohioans are kept from full participation in our communities because they lack access to transportation. Equitable public transportation lowers fossil fuel usage, reduces carbon emissions, creates less waste and decreases pollution in our communities. Developing a modern public transit system is essential for Ohio’s future.

At our October meeting, citizens will share their stories of attempting to use the existing transit options and how the lack of efficient public transportation is impacting their lives, along with a presentation of the environmental benefits of rail, bus lines, and biking in both rural and urban neighborhoods. Ohio legislators have an opportunity now to act on this bipartisan issue of environmental justice and transportation equity.

Join us on October 24 at 5pm as we explore ways of encouraging our state and local governments to plan and fund public infrastructure projects to address transportation equity and environmental justice.

Please register here.
Interfaith Association of Central Ohio
Join the Interfaith Association of Central Ohio (IACO) either virtually or in person to learn and experience Pragmatic Buddhism. Attendees will be introduced to the faith and its practice. There will be an opportunity to ask questions.

In-person registration by noon on Friday October 29 via email: office@iaco.org
Online registration via Zoom: https://bit.ly/IACOVisit