1 Benevolent St.
Providence, RI 02906
Phone: 401-421-7970
Fax: 401-276-4291
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 news & events
news & notes
Here are just some of the news and events happening at First U this month. Be sure to read the latest newsletter for the most comprehensive information.
Winter Storms and First Unitarian
In case of extreme weather, the minister and staff decide if church will be cancelled. A cancellation decision will be made by 7:00a on Sunday and conveyed to these media outlets: TV channels ABC 6, NBC 10, WPRI 12, Fox Providence, RI PBS and radio stations 630WPRO, 920WHJJ, 1180 CCNX News Radio, WRNI, Lite Rock105, B101, 94HJY, 92ProFM, 98.1Cat Country, 93.3Coast FM, 95.5 WBRU.
If the City of Providence announces a ban on street parking, church will be cancelled.
If church is open during a storm, no one should make heroic efforts to get to church. Use your own best judgment about whether it is safe to drive or come to church on foot during any stormy weather.
Sustainable Generosity: Daring to Dream Dreams
Each year around this time, we conduct our annual pledge drive to raise the funds for the following fiscal year. Over the next couple of months, we will be talking with you about our shared support for the financial health of the church in the 2012-2013 fiscal year.
Our current annual operating budget is just over $600,000, more than half of which comes from the payment of our pledged contributions. In these challenging times, the Budget Committee and the Prudential Committee have had to make very difficult choices to keep our programs going. Non-discretionary items (such as salaries, benefits, utilities, etc.) are a very large part of our budget, and we keep them in line with fiscal reality.
Our theme for the canvass this year is “May we dare to dream dreams.” In order to realize our dreams, rather than just hold our ground, we all need to do what we can to increase the operating income of the church for the coming year. Most have heard us talk about the importance of stepping up to a pledge of 2% to 3% of adjusted gross income in order to pursue our dreams here at First Unitarian. Many of us have taken this step, and over the past few years we have greatly increased the number of pledges over $2,000 (that’s about $167 a month or less than $40 a week). If the 2%-3% goal is out of reach, please consider an additional $10 per week above last year’s pledge. Everything that you can do to help will be greatly appreciated.
May we dare to dream dreams together!
Canvass Committee: Jim Barfoot, Neil Bartholomew (co-chair), Carol Drewes,
Graham Nye, Martha Rice Sanders (co-chair), Phip Wheelock
Coffee Hour Goes Kid-Friendly!
We have an addition to our Coffee Hour this year, thanks to the RE Committee. On multigenerational Sundays, there will be a special “Kid-Friendly Foods” table in the front parlor with donations from the RE Committee and parents featuring treats just for kids. Look for the bear!
Our Coffee Hour is a cooperative effort with donations from our congregation of breads, brownies, cookies, fruit, cheese and crackers, sandwiches, coffee cake, and more. To satisfy the ravenous crowd each Sunday, it takes 6-8 people bringing donations. Sign up with Janet Downing Taylor in the front parlor during Coffee Hour and go home with a reminder.
Installation of Lay Ministers in February
At the Sunday service on February 12, we will be installing our Lay Ministers for the next year. Margaret Balch-Gonzalez will be joining the Lay Ministry team; Martha Manno will be stepping down after serving since the creation of the Lay Ministry program several years ago.
The Lay Ministry and the volunteers in the Care Crew help those in the congregation in need of calls, cards, visits, rides to the doctor’s office, emergency babysitting, emergency elderly companionship, or meal delivery.
The “on call” Lay Minister for February is Mary Frappier. Referrals or calls to the church will be passed on to Mary, who will call upon Care Crew volunteers.
The Lay Ministry Team: Margaret Balch-Gonzalez, Andy Barrett, George Beshers, Mary Frappier, Kate Menard, Rick Richards, Bill Twaddell
A Special Call for 200 Juice Boxes!
Our fourth-grade class is helping to coordinate a Juice Drive to meet our commitment to provide 100 drinks per week for the complete lunch bags requested by Crossroads. Juice boxes, small cans, pouches, or small bottled water are all welcome. Donations may be dropped off in our Atrium Food Pantry barrel or brought to RE Chapel or the fourth-grade classroom.
February Is Crossroads RI Sandwich Brigade Month
Again this year, our Sunday School is participating in the Crossroads RI Sandwich Brigade, preparing 100 sandwiches on each Sunday in February.
The mission of Crossroads is to assist the homeless and disconnected on their journey toward a better quality of life through the provision of essential life services, advocacy and referral. The brigade is a collaborative effort between our Spiritual Development and Social Justice ministries. This year, our seventh-graders, eighth-graders, senior high youth group, and young adults will prepare the sandwiches. Parents from the program help deliver the lunches.
A leader from Crossroads RI will speak with the Coming of Age community on February 5 after church in the Auditorium. All are invited to attend.
Revived History Committee Looks to Bicentennial
A newly reconstituted History Committee is considering how to help make the history of the church a more vibrant part of our community life as we approach the bicentennial of the Meeting House in 2016 and the tricentennial of the congregation in 2020.
The committee held its initial meeting in October under the leadership of Robert O. Jones, a long-time church member and architectural historian, who co-chaired the committee that oversaw the building of the new wing. The committee discussed a number of possible projects, including:
- Conduct research for a public event to celebrate the creation of our third (and current) Meeting House (built between 1814-1816).
- Develop a publication about the five-acre First Unitarian burial ground in Swan Point Cemetery, with a special emphasis on Pastors’ Rest, where several former ministers and their families are interred. The booklet would increase awareness of the historical interest of this site and possibly raise funds for the maintenance of Pastors’ Rest.
- Gather the church archives, which had become scattered and disorganized in recent years, in the History Room (at the top of the Parish House stairs) and conduct an inventory of the materials. Once an inventory is complete, a (volunteer) librarian or archivist would be recruited to advise on how to organize and maintain the archive.
Work has begun on each of these projects. The committee made a field trip to Swan Point to become familiar with the site. The consensus was that there were many people of historical interest at the site.
All archival material has now been collected in the Antoinette Downing History Room and the inventory has begun. Materials relating to our former ministers will be used in preparing the section of the booklet on Pastors’ Rest.
Anyone interested in the burial ground can look for the detailed map that hangs in the Paneled Parlor.
The History Committee: Richard Boober, Elsie Buffum, Mary Finger, Susan Fisher, Helen Haynes, Robert O. Jones (chair), Cy O’Neil, Janet Downing Taylor
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