~~ New Announcements ~~
SPECIAL MOTHER’S DAY DISPLAY
On Mother’s Day, May 10th, I would like to decorate the Chancel Table in honor of family generations of mothers. To do this I will need about 9 framed photos for the table and am asking members of the congregation to bring photos in. Please bring in a 3-generation picture of your immediate family....grandmother, mother, daughter...to Barbara Neeld ASAP so I can coordinate arrangements and decorations ahead of time. It can also be great-grandmother, grandmother, and mother. We won`t name the people in the pictures, as we will let the congregation guess who they are. The pictures should be 5x7 or smaller. Thanks so much for your help with this! Barbara Neeld, [email protected].
SUN 4/19 PLAYING WITH IDEAS
Playing with Ideas is a group that meets every Sunday morning at 9:30am in the Anthony Room. This next week’s topic is 04/19/09 About Poetry (Ann Guest). Other upcoming topics are 04/26/09 Is Foreign Aid to Africa a Detriment to Them (Theo Lichtenstein).
SUN 4/19 - GREEN SANCTUARY COMMITTEE MEETING
The Green Sanctuary Committee will have its monthly meeting today from 12:30-1:30 in the Fletcher Room. Anyone interested in helping with our efforts to move toward a more sustainable life style for our church and the greater Jacksonville area is welcome to attend.
AIDS DONATION DRIVE!
Our drive to support the Northeast Florida AIDS Network (NFAN) continues each Sunday in April. Toiletries and personal hygiene items are especially needed. These would include soap, shampoo, shaving cream, disposable razors, combs & brushes, toothpaste & toothbrushes, body lotion, deodorant, Depends-type sanitary garments and Maxi pads. Older towels or sheets would also be appreciated. Please drop your donations in the box marked AIDS TASK FORCE just outside of the Sanctuary door. Many thanks for your continuing generosity.
MON 4/20 - OUR GANG
Our Gang will meet at 12:00 noon on Monday 4/20 in the Anthony Room at UUCJ. Bring your own brown bag lunch, drink, and movie snacks. We’ll eat and chat, then watch a video. Let me know if you have a preference on the video.
For our outing in May, Ann Winfree is researching a ferry trip from Fernandina Beach to St. Mary’s, GA, and back. More details to follow.
SUN 4/26 - COMMUNITY OUTREACH COMMITTEE MEETING
The Community Outreach Committee will hold its quarterly meeting from 9:15-10:45 in the Teen Room on Sunday, April 26. Current working groups include UU Service Committee, Sulzbacher Meals for the Homeless, Arlington Food Bank, AIDS Task Force, Interfaith Council, ICARE, Rogero Road Clean-up, Monthly Special Collections, Wage Peace, and Green Sanctuary. If you are interested in knowing more about any of these efforts please attend our meeting. All are always welcome and help with all of the above working groups is always needed and appreciated.
Nominations for Board Officers and Members and 2010 Nominating Committee.
NOMINATIONS FOR BOARD OFFICERS AND MEMBERS AND 2010 NOMINATING COMMITTEE.
The following Board positions will be voted on at the Congregational meeting on June 14, 2009. If you are interested in serving in any of these positions, please contact President-Elect Jorge Navarro, Chair of the 2009 Nominating Committee, or any of the Committee members (Sally Pickard, Jay Huebner, Sharon Scholl and Anne McKennon) by May 8, 2009.
The Nominating Committee will recommend a slate of candidates for the Board to approve for recommendation to the full congregation at the June 14th Congregational meeting. (Nominations will also be accepted from the floor on June 14th, but we suggest that you contact the Nominating Committee by May 8th if you are interested.)
Officers:
- Vice President
- Treasurer
Board Members:
- Community Outreach Chair
- Membership Chair
- At-Large One/Committee on Ministry Liaison
- At-Large Two/Social Committee Chair(the second year of a two year term)
2010 Nominating Committee: (Gregg Miles, President Elect, will Chair this committee)
- Four positions
Green Sanctuary Gleaning Dates: April 18, May 23, and June 27 -- Sign Up Today!
We will gleaning on April 18, May 23, and June 27 and will have a sign-up sheet available today during the coffee hour. All dates are on a Saturday from approximately 8 a.m.-1 p.m. (This includes 1 hour each way driving time, actual gleaning time will be 9-12). Once a list of gleaning participants is established, we will make arrangements to carpool either from the church or a central location, depending on where gleaning participants live. We are also working on a list of small food banks or individuals who would like to be the recipients of our gleaning efforts. Please see me today or email Lynne Paradise at [email protected] if you would like more information. Also, see the Green Sanctuary activities page.
AIDS DONATION DRIVE in April
Our AIDS Task Force will have a drive in April to support the Northeast Florida AIDS Network (NFAN) which provides a variety of social services to indigent AIDS patients. One of the areas of need is a supply of toiletries and personal hygiene item. These would include soap, shampoo & conditioner, shaving cream, disposable razors, combs & brushes, toothpaste & toothbrushes, body lotion, deodorant, Depends-type sanitary garments and Maxi pads. Older towels or sheets that you're not using would also be appreciated.
There will be a box at the Chapel door, beginning in April, marked AIDS TASK FORCE to accept your donations. Many thanks for your continuing generosity.
The Annual Spring Retreat at O'Leno
The event that brings members of our church family together--singles, couples, youngsters, and new & long-time members--for a relaxing weekend on the banks of the Santa Fe River at O'Leno State Park. We will also make new friends and strengthen our church community.
Cost for the weekend includes cabins, 5 meals, and planned activities. Partial weekend rates are for those arriving on Saturday.
ADULTS: $50.00 ($45.00 First-Timers and Partial Weekend) 12 years and older
YOUTH: $25.00 ($20.00 Partial Weekend) 3-11 years old
No charge for babies age 2 and under. Partial scholarships are available for UU's with financial difficulties, by arrangement with the registrar.
Bring registration forms and checks to church March 29 through April 19 at UUCJ, 7405 Arlington Expressway, Jacksonville, FL 32211 or by mail by April 15 to Carlos Fraticelli, the Registrar, 230 Magnolia Street, Atlantic Beach, FL 32233.
Work Crews: Costs are kept as low as possible by everyone's serving on a work crew, which, by the way, is often a lot of fun. Everyone 12 and older signs up for one of the following tasks:
Meal Preparation - prepare one of 5 meals: Friday Dinner, Saturday Breakfast, Lunch or Dinner, or Sunday Brunch. Crews begin approximately 2 hours before mealtime.
Meal Cleanup - clean up for one of the meals above. It takes approximately 2 hours after the mealtime ends.
Final Cleanup - this work crew is at the end of the weekend (starts at approximately 1:00 PM on Sunday) and does not conflict with any weekend activities.
Work crews are filled giving priority to the earliest registrations received.
Be sure to list FIRST and SECOND choices on the registration form.
BE SPECIFIC --NAME THE DAY, MEAL, AND TASK
SUN May 3 -- 2nd Annual PLEIN AIR COMPETITION
Now is the time for you to plan to come watch local artists paint the Church and its surrounds. Or, better yet, to join the Art Committee and help make it happen! Please contact Mindy Hawkins at [email protected] or Bill Devereux at [email protected] and be part of the show!
LABOR DAY UU RETREAT AT THE MOUNTAIN RETREAT/LEARNING CENTER IN HIGHLANDS, NC
Last Labor Day, over 60 UUs from the Jacksonville, Tallahassee, and Gainesville churches attended a retreat at The Mountain in Highlands, NC. About 20 from each church attended. It was a great time and a great opportunity to get to know each other better as well as meet UUs from our fellow FL churches. We enjoyed a variety of workshops, hikes, evening programs (including campfire sing-a-long), and a Sunday morning service.
We are repeating the trip this year and plan to make it even better, including beefing up children’s activities. New members are especially encouraged to attend the retreat as it is a great opportunity to get to know fellow UUs. The Mountain is a truly wonderful UU retreat center. You can learn all about it at: http://www.mountaincenters.org. The retreat runs 4 days and 3 nights. It starts Friday, Sept 4th at dinner and ends Monday morning, Sept 7th (Labor Day) after breakfast.The cost of the retreat is $225 for adults, $78 for children ages 13-17, and $60 for children ages 4-12. This includes 3 nights lodging, all meals, and linens (sheets, towels, blankets). Transportation is not included. Last year several people carpooled, which added to the fun.I have reserved 30 slots for Jacksonville. Full payment is due June 1st. Please contact me to make reservations and get the registration form. Mike Plummer, [email protected], 904-223-5505
~~ Continuing Announcements ~~
Schedule of the Week Ahead: See the UUCJ Calendar of Events.
RECIPES NEEDED!
Remember to send any local food recipes that you are willing to share with other members of the congregation to [email protected]. We would like to have these available by April 26 to pass out to interested members needing help to prepare for our “Local Foods” potluck on May 31. Recipes do not have to be vegetarian, but the majority of the ingredients should come from a radius of 100 miles and be in season during the month of May. An excellent site to look for recipes is www.florida-agriculture.com. Click on the “info. for consumers” side bar which brings you to seasonal availability of Florida crops and recipes.
Do you have gently used large items you would care to donate to help raise funds for the Church? If so, please contact Alice Ricker, email [email protected], or phone 745-1840.
CFL PROJECT:
Congregation members donate CFL (Compact Fluorescent Light) bulbs to replace the existing incandescent bulbs.
- Good for the church financially
- Save energy and last longer
- Help the environment
- Cause less pollution (greenhouse gases)
- Less trash to fill landfills
Recycle old bulbs:- Congregation bring old CFL bulbs to church to recycle bin placed near the office on Sundays
- Keep poisonous Mercury out of landfills
- Class gathers spent CFL bulbs from recycle bin and delivers them to recyclers for proper disposal
The new UUCJ Announcements mailing list is now active. UUCJ members are already subscribed, or if you are not a member but would like to receive announcements at least weekly, feel free to subscribe at the Welcome page. And do check your spam/junk mail folders in case our Announcement messages are filtered out.
UUCJ on YouTube
David Paul's 'Songs for the Children' at UUCJ Sunday, August 24, can be seen on YouTube, thanks to videographer Rob McKennon. Go to: www.musicbydavidpaul.com and click on
'Mr. David's Music Class' which takes you to the YouTube site. Mr. David's Music Class takes place in the RE Kindergarten class at UUCJ the third Sunday of every month; next class is October 19. David is available to teach piano and violin privately at UUCJ and may be reached at 904-294-7219.
Beacon via the Web Site
To save money, staff time, and a tree, our "first choice" method of distributing the Beacon is now via the Newsletter page on this site. Each month, when the new Beacon is ready, subscribers to the UUCJ Announcements mailing list will receive an email with a link that will automatically open a PDF copy of the newsletter - that's all there is to it, one click and you are ready to read or download your Beacon. To let us know if you prefer a hard-copy mailing of the Beacon, we will soon be sending out a form that you can return to notify us of your preference.
BE A GREETER
Want to smile and meet others? Sign up to be a greeter on the list at the back of the Sanctuary on the greeter's table.
This is a great way to get to know others and have them experience you!
UUCJ MEMBERS
Thanks to all of you for your participation in welcoming others to our church community. Please meet and greet our visitors in the sanctuary and later at coffee hour. Our friendly community will keep them coming back!
UUCJ has a Course in Miracles (ACIM) study group, led by UUCJ members Mike and Joanne Kirkpatrick. The group meets on Wednesday from 7 to 8:30pm in the High School Room at UUCJ. While not trained teachers of the Course, Mike and Joanne have studied ACIM for many years and want to bring the Course to those in the church who are interested. To learn more about A Course in Miracles, please visit, http://www.fipdata.org/index.html, or contact Mike or Joanne, [email protected], Phone: 448-8913.
Child Care Sunday After Service -- Attention all parents of children under 4! Did you know that every Sunday, from 12:30-1:30 our incredible Child Care Provider, CoCo Dean-Bush will be here for Toddler Play Hour? Ever wanted to go to Social Hour but were concerned about your child running around downstairs? Falling in the marsh? Simply being too little to navigate the stairs? Well have no fear! CoCo is here for you! Please note: This is a cooperative effort. Parents will be asked to take turns providing support to CoCo.
Jennifer Riley
Church Administrator
Unitarian Universalist Church of Jacksonville
7405 Arlington Expressway, Jacksonville, FL 32211-5999
904-725-8133 - [email protected] - www.uujax.org
