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Next Steps Weekend, by Bradley Shipps, Governing Board President
The Governing Board is happy to announce that we have invited stewardship consultant Mark Ewert to visit the Fellowship the weekend of December 13-15 to facilitate our Next Steps Weekend.
Mark’s consulting focus is on helping congregations to grow their cultures of stewardship, and the Next Steps Weekend (NSW) is designed to evaluate a congregation’s strengths, challenges, risks and opportunities across the whole community.
Our NSW process has already begun with initial conversations, email exchanges, and the gathering of extensive information about the Fellowship for Mark to review before his visit.
During the NSW, Mark will facilitate meetings with leaders representing several committees and small groups. If you receive an email from Theresa Hannah to schedule such a meeting, please respond ASAP. Your participation is crucial to the success of the process.
Mark will attend both services on Sunday and join us for coffee in the Fellowship Hall after each service with the hope of connecting with as many people as possible. If you have specific comments you would like to share with Mark, you are also welcome to email fvuufboard@fvuuf.org.
Before leaving on Sunday, Mark will share his initial findings with the Governing Board. This will be followed by an extensive written report, which will address several governing board objectives, including:
• Recommendations for what we can do to align stewardship with other areas of congregational life;
• Suggestions for improving the annual pledge drive effort;
• Areas of strength and low-barrier opportunity that we may have overlooked;
• Adjustments that can be made to our data, finance, membership, donation, or communications systems; and
• Looking ahead to more ambitious projects like a capital campaign or a ramped-up planned giving launch.
The Governing Board is excited to engage in this holistic approach to evaluating and growing the Fellowship’s generosity ministry, and we hope you will engage with us!
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Upcoming Services
Sunday at 9:00 and 10:45 am
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October 27
Room on the Broom
Special Halloween all-ages service, costumes welcome!
by Rev. Christina Leone-Tracy
Special Halloween all-ages service! Children and adults of all ages are welcome to wear your costume and join us for a rollicking service of story and celebration! Children can stay in the service and enjoy the quiet sensory activity area, or childcare will be available for children who need it (as deemed appropriate by guardians, up to about age 8). This story about a witch and her many animal guests reminds us to be truly welcoming to all. How might our welcome of others help us heal ourselves and our world?
November 3
The Secret Sits by Rev. Leah Hart-Landsberg
The poet Robert Frost wrote that “the Secret sits in the middle,” taking on a life of its own. Modern psychology agrees that secrets can be unhealthy, sometimes even dangerously harmful. Yet it’s also understandable that we want some parts of life to remain private. We will contemplate the role of our secrets, including what they give and rob us of. Stay after the service for an optional art activity!
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Quiet Sensory Area
During All ages services on Sunday and throughout this year we will be providing a Quiet Sensory Space for individuals young and old who like to keep their hands busy as they listen and engage with the service.
Children are welcome to sit on the mat, and their adults are asked to sit nearby to assist as needed.
We know kids will wiggle and make noise. That’s fine! Please don’t worry too much if your kid is whispering loudly or rustling their activities. If they’re being so loud that others nearby won’t be able to hear the service, encourage your child to use a quieter voice or body.
Worship leaders will make it clear to children when they need to stop their sensory activities so they can participate in the service. This will be during hymns, silent moments, the story, and rituals. Please encourage your children to participate during those times, and then let them use the sensory activities throughout the other parts of the service.
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Breakfast Club is Back!
Welcome to all who are in high school, (or were in OWLs 2018-2019 and current UU Identity students) and recent high school grads. We'll meet in the Legacy Room from 10:00-10:45 each Sunday. This group will work on practicing our UU values in the real world!
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5th and 6th grade RE students- class location change
Due to large class numbers, the 5th and 6th grade class has moved to the Legacy Room during the 10:45 service. Please be sure to remember to sign out your child from this room as you leave the sanctuary.
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Religious Education Registration Open
All children will begin in the service with their families and be excused to their Religious Education classes after the Wonder Box. Classes for 7-8th graders and high school youth are during the 10:45 service only.
Registration forms are available HERE.
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Family Friendly Halloween Party!
Come enjoy some family friendly fun at the Fellowship this Sunday, October 27th, in celebration of Halloween! Event will take place between 2:00 and 4:00 pm. Games, crafts, gift bags, and, best of all, candy! Come in costume and have some fun!
Volunteers for set up, take down, and running of various games/stations would be great! Meet at the Fellowship after the second service. Email Matt Demers (matthew_demers@yahoo.com) or Angie Demers (angiebaby826@yahoo.com) to volunteer or if you have questions..
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Sufi Dancing
Come join us for an hour of UU style Sufi Dancing, Tuesday, October 29, at 7:00 pm at the Fellowship. We will learn simple circle dances that let us interact with each other in calm, affirming ways. No experience needed. These are dances that we learned at the UU Summer Assembly in Lake Geneva and have come to love. Join us! Contact Mary Gerlach at 920.734.5888 or gerlachmz@new.rr.com with questions.
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Connect @ Home! A new Fellowship offering to stay connected
One of our biggest challenges is to provide meaningful ways for you to connect to this Fellowship, to each other, and to the topics we explore. That is particularly hard given the reality of busy schedules, worry about nighttime or winter driving, or needing to get a babysitter. This year we’re offering a way to Connect @ Home! Notice the “@” symbol? It will be a primarily online connection, allowing you the option of connecting from the comfort of home, with a warm drink and your slippers on!
These offerings will take place once during each theme series this year—watch the Scroll for details on upcoming Connect @ Home sessions. The focus of each session will be to discuss the impact of the theme that we’ve been in for a while, and prepare for the theme that will be coming next. We’ll begin with a chalice lighting and reading, and then have some open-ended thought questions to prompt deeper conversation. These sessions will last one hour.
Each time, there will be two chances to connect—once at noon with an option to come to the Fellowship in person or join online (maybe on your lunch break), or that same evening at 7:30pm online only (after the kids are in bed, or dinner is done). The online portion will be a simple Zoom link – To do that, click on the link and you will be prompted to download the software. You may also wish to create an account, but that is not required to participate in a Zoom meeting. You will need a computer or device with a webcam and microphone to participate in a Zoom session.
ZOOM LINK: https://zoom.us/j/5632592019 or call (646) 558-8656 with ID# 563 259 2019
Tuesday, October 29th -- To conclude “Healing Our Bodies” and prepare for “Healing Our Histories”
- 12:00 noon at the Fellowship (BYO lunch) or online (see Zoom information above)
- 7:30pm online only (see Zoom information above)
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Soup Saturday - November 2, 4:30 pm
Soup’s On! Join us from 4:30-7:00(ish) on the first Saturday of the month (October – April) for soup, bread, games, and conversation. Enjoy a hot bowl of soup while you mingle and meet new people, catch up with old friends, play games, or just sit and relax. Jerry Behrendt has agreed to continue hosting a Dungeons & Dragons table for anyone interested in playing. You don’t need to bring anything but your appetite, but if you’d like to bring a crock of soup to share, please let Angie or Matt Demers know so they can plan accordingly email angiebaby826@yahoo.com or matthew_demers@yahoo.com. Breads and desserts are welcome as well. As always, if you’d like to stay behind and help with clean-up, it would be greatly appreciated. Hope to see you there!
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The Immigration Justice Committee is exploring the idea of supporting someone seeking asylum. A person may seek asylum either at the border or within a year of entering the United State if they have a credible fear for their safety in their home country. While authorities are reviewing the request for asylum, which can take months, the asylee (or compa, which means friend in Spanish) may stay in the U.S, but will need a sponsor who is a citizen or legal permanent resident of the U.S. The Fellowship cannot be the sponsor, but we will be offering full support to the asylee and their sponsor. During the review process, the asylee is not allowed to work or receive any federal aid, so this is where the Fellowship’s support comes in. We would offer this support to the asylee: from making sure they have their basic needs met to enrolling in language classes, getting needed medical help and making sure they have transportation to all immigration appointments in Milwaukee or Chicago. If an asylee is granted asylum, they are then able to apply for a social security card and seek employment, and after a year, may apply for a green card. Essentially they would then have the same status as a refugee.
Please join us on November 2nd from 3:30 to 4:30 at the Fellowship when Dottie Mathews will video conference in to share more information about supporting an asylum seeker. Dottie is our former Associate Minister and is currently working with congregations that are offering support to asylum seekers. We will also be available to answer questions after services this Sunday, October 27, outside of the sanctuary doors. Contact Marti Wheeler at mwheeler@new.rr.com with questions or to sign up to help.
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New Small Group
4 Spiritualities and Associated Spiritual Practice
Led by Mary Ellyn Vicksta
Monthly gatherings from November 2019 - May 2020
First meeting is Sunday, November 3 at 12:15 pm
To encourage the development of spiritual practices based upon the four spiritual pathways developed by Peter Tufts Richardson, a retired UU minister. We will take an in-depth look at each of the four spiritual pathways so you not only understand your own pathway but those of others as well. We will deeply explore spiritual practices that are aligned with each pathway and discuss how each person can incorporate these practices into their everyday life. Contact Mary Ellyn at mev500@yahoo.com with questions.
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Love Rally
Monday, October 28th at Appleton East High School
3:00-4:30 pm
Recently a group of people protested at Appleton East High School spouting words of hate: Hate against LGBTQ folx, against Muslims, and against people who make the hard choice of having an abortion. We heard from a Fellowship family that students at East were very upset by these protesters, and are still shaken.
The Fox Valley community will come together to show East students that LOVE ALWAYS WINS and that they are loved just as they are. Join us for a Love Rally – bring signs, banners, rainbows and other messages of love. Stay off the sidewalks, and don’t engage with anyone spreading hate. We are there to support the students!
We know that this group has been at Lawrence and at Appleton West too, but we are starting at East, since it is our neighbor. Share our Facebook event: https://www.facebook.com/events/553129585491184/
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We all have times of triumph, and times of tragedy and stress. No one is excluded from the challenges in life, and Chris has found meditation and mindfulness to be very helpful. Therapy Of Sound is a program Chris put together to give people the opportunity to take time out to relax to sound recordings that are meditative and fun, and include sounds of ambient noises and textures as well as some avant-garde sounds. His goal is to perform a sound journey that will be entertaining, create curiosity, and provide relaxation all in one event. The sound journey will last for 20 minutes and then we will come together to talk about our experiences. All are welcome, including children. You may sit on a chair, on provided cushions, or bring a blanket to lay on the floor. Contact Chris for more information.
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Wellspring Wednesday
November 13, 6:30 pm
Gods and Goddesses with Heather Westley and Chester Behnke
Chester and Heather will speak about their relationships with gods and goddesses, and how these interactions have connected them to the divine. They will facilitate a ritual of connecting to your inner Oracle.
Sign up for childcare online HERE or at the Sign Up Spot at the Fellowship. We need at least one child signed up 24 hours in advance in order to have childcare.
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Rev. Roger Bertschausen was the senior minister of the Fellowship from 1990 until 2015. He guided the Fellowship through years of transitions in staff growth, service schedules and practices, building construction, relocation and expansion. This title is honorary and given for his dedication and care of this Fellowship. We also celebrate the story of 64 years of the Fellowship existing in the Fox Valley and the countless lives we have changed. Snacks, drinks, and unstructured activities for kids will be available.
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Fellowship History Tidbits
Last week we asked if you knew when our beloved group, which became the Fellowship, held its first organizational meeting. I happened on Monday, November 28, 1955. The history question for this week is who started the Fellowship and how did that come about? (See next week's Scroll for the answer!)
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New Bookstore Offerings!
Pagan and Earth-Centered Voices in Unitarian Universalism
For Praying Out Loud: Interfaith Prayers
Breathe: A Letter to my Sons
An Indigenous Peoples’ History of the United States (A UUA Common Read book: HERE)
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Potential Email Scam
A couple people have noted that they received a suspicious email from Rev. Christina from a non-Fellowship email address. This is a common scam technique, to email people pretending to be a trusted friend or congregational employee. Please do NOT respond to any email that says it’s from a Fellowship staff person unless it is coming from an “FVUUF.org” email address. If you have received an email that you are unsure whether it’s coming from a staff person, please call the Fellowship office at 920.731.0849.
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Upcoming Child Dedication Ceremony Dates
Dedicating a child at the Fellowship is a powerful and precious ritual, designed to welcome your young one into life and into the loving embrace of our community. Any member or committed friend of the Fellowship may request a child dedication by contacting Rev. Christina Leone-Tracy.
Rev. Christina and Rev. Leah will both be officiating at these services.
December 22 4:00 pm Solstice service – sign up by November 22
April 26 9:00 and 10:45 am services Earth Day – sign up by March 27
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| Click here for the current financial report.
Click here for the current Governing Board meeting agenda.
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Thank you for reading The Weekly Scroll, and pardon any typos.
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| Quick Links
Anti-racism Learning (for home, or groups)
Characteristics and antidotes of white supremacy culture
October: Sense of Urgency and Defensiveness- click HERE
Joys and Concerns
As your faith community, we want to celebrate your joys with you and support you through times of concern.
To share a joy or concern with our ministers and/or at services, please email Rev. Leah at leah@fvuuf.org.
To be added to the Joys and Concerns email list, contact Cyndi Polakowski at cyndi@fvuuf.org.
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Weekly Calendar Friday, October 25
10:00am Photography as a Spiritual Practice
Saturday, October 26
6:30am Joyful Mind Zen Sangha
10:00am Spanish Charla
Sunday, October 27
9:00 & 10:45am Worship Service
10:00am High School Breakfast Club
2:00pm Belly Dance Group
2:00pm Halloween Party
6:00pm Smiling Dandelion Sangha
Monday, October 28
9:00am Goddess Group
7:00pm Green Sanctuary JAM
Tuesday, October 29
12:00pm Connect @ Home
7:00pm Sufi Dancing
Thursday, October 31
7:30pm Fellowship Choir
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Click the image for our mailing address and staff email addresses or call 920.731.0849.
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