Editor: Margaret Batschelet, typea45@swbell.net
Nosotros, las congregaciones miembros de la Asociación UU, convenimos en afirmar y formentar el valor y la dignidad propria de cada persona.
Two opportunities to roll up your sleeves and throw away old shoes: Sunday, April 13, after church: We need five hardy souls to help repatch the driveway after church. John Bradshaw will have already prepared the driveway. As he says, this will be an opportunity to learn a new skill and get rid of old clothes and/or shoes. Please let John know if you can help by mailing JANDJBRADSHAW@webtv.net
Saturday, April 26, 2003, beginning at 9:00 a.m. Time for spring cleaning! We will wash windows and thoroughly clean the building. If we have enough help, we will also continue some yard work. If you like to trim trees, please bring your tree trimmer.
This year's edition of the annual CUUCSA garage sale will take place on May 3. Please bring items to church, and store small items upstairs in the ministers study. If you need help, call Steve Boyd, metro 830-606-0636. We need all items before the sale which will be 8:30-3:00.
There will be a soup lunch immediately after the service on Easter Sunday, April 20. This soup lunch is hosted by Sue Minton and Sandi Boyd.
On Mother's Day, Sunday, May 11, there will be a potluck luncheon served at the church immediately after the service. This luncheon is organized to honor those who make our RE Program possible. We are all invited to bring a dish to share. RE Folks, however, are asked to forego their cooking duties for this luncheon.
April 13 - "Sanctifying the Everyday," a YRUU Service
April 20 - Flower Communion, Coordinator: Margaret Batschelet
April 27 - Speaker: Henry Halff
May 4 - Beltane, Coordinator: John Wiesen
May 11 - "Remembering Women Who Have Come Before Us," Speaker: Barbara Coeyman
May 18 - Coordinators: Board of Trustees
May 25 - "UU Lit Lite," Coordinator: Steve Boyd
The Women's Support Group will meet at 7:00 p.m. at the church on April 7th, April 21st and May 5th.
The Remarkable Film Series will be featuring next one of the best films by Woody Allen: Hannah and Her Sisters. The film will be shown at 6:00 PM on Sunday, May 4. Michael Caine won the Best Support Actor's Oscar for his work on this film.
For our Easter service on April 20, we'll have our annual flower communion. Please bring a flower (or 2 or 3) for each member of your family. All the flowers are placed at the front of the church during the service, and then flowers are exchanged as part of our observance of spring and renewal.
RE News: While the CAT program is moving along on schedule, we haven't forgotten our little and big ones and their Sunday morning activities. For the immediate future, I will be using one of our CAT's in a BAG titled, "Inner Space" that involves the teaching of kids Yoga. Easter Sunday will be Intergenerational with the children leaving at an appropriate time to go and decorate hats as they await the arrival of the Easter Bunny for our traditional Egg Hunt. (Steve Boyd is organizing) And, for the remainder of the school year, other activities can be scheduled according to the interests of our membership. See me to schedule or sign-up on the RE poster in the coffee room. REgards. joan bradshaw, coordinator
Just a reminder: Dave tells me that lately people have been putting trash in the recycle bin outside. That container is for newspapers, glass, plastic and aluminum only. Also, garbage bags have been left on top of garbage bins or left in garbage bins without securing the lids properly. This is becoming a problem because the garbage bags are being town open by animals in the neighborhood.
And, finally, please make sure that you are locking up the church if you are the last one there. On Saturday evening Dave found one of the French doors leading to the coffee room wide open. You may not be aware, but the church has been robbed in the past; and, I'm sure this is a most uncomfortable situation for Dave. June Kachtik, Operations Committee Coordinator
Kudos to the entire congregation making George White's departure a positive experience. Sue Minton, Gina Reynolds, John and Joan, Catherine and Bob, Jean and Henry and many others helped to get George back on his feet and well fed as he headed to the next stage of his life. This proves this church can do things when they put their mind to it. Good Job well done. George's new address is P.O. Box 331, 49 Washington St., Rocky Hill, NJ 08553, and his new phone will be 609-921-0874. -Steve Boyd
AN ODE TO GEORGE (an alternative to the Declaration of Independence) - by Joan Raab
When in the course of human events, it becomes self-evident that all men are not created equal, that they are not endowed by their creator to have certain inalienable rights, but are in fact above-equal among men, that is, much too witty, too unique, too interesting, too quirky, to ever be merely equal. (But I digress.) Among those rights being life, liberty and the pursuit of DEVILISHNESS!!! (A brand new word, I just created it!)
There is no doubt about it. George White is the most independent man I ever met. He really needed very little from anybody. Even the thought of asking for help was anathema to him. Once when he was in the hospital having back surgery and then recovering, he was so grateful for any visitors. After he went home, he took great pains not to ask for more than the minimal shopping help. And he was most grateful for the help he did get. When he got back to church, he even appreciated the PRODDING he got when he kept falling asleep because he was on pain medication! It was almost impossible for him to focus on the church service because of all that problematic medication. Yet he still showed up every week.
About his past, he told us little. Something about being in the Navy. Something about extended family members living in Brooklyn and in New Jersey, to whom he made annual visits. A sister living here locally in San Antonio. But nothing more than that. One hated to pry to ask a lot of questions.
Then there was the dog named "Blade." He was so cute. That dog just loved George. He also liked to run free. Once when George was away on vacation and Hilda and Gene Marquis were keeping Blade, the dog got loose in the Church's back yard. Trying to capture him was a near nightmare. He ran here, there, and everywhere. Gene was having a cow. He pointed out that George would never forgive them if they let Blade get away. However, we finally cornered him, and he let himself be put back on the leash.
Blade was sometimes put in the swimming pool area. Then we could let him and run freely chase birds, without any danger of him getting loose. We worried also about the peacocks owned by the neighbors. We didn't want any hard feelings caused by possible dead peacocks!
Eventually we asked George to be the self-appointed "greeter" for the Sunday services. He would often greet people with his usual "Thanks for stopping by." Sometimes when we had a summer barbecue, he would bring a huge chunk of meat, enough for two. He was generous to a fault.
In summary, he will be sorely missed by the Church and all of its members. He is truly one unique human being.
To contact the pastoral care sub-committee, please call any of the following individuals: Joan Bradshaw at 341-8506, Sue Minton at 679-7598, Catherine McKee at 681-4197 or Sally Wiesen at 256-9732.
This year's SWUUC Spring Conference will be held from April 25-27 in Tulsa, with the theme "Deepening Your Faith, Growing Your Soul." Workshops will take place at All Souls Unitarian Church in Tulsa, with accommodations at the Doubletree Hotel Warren Place. Brochures will be available in mid-January and can be accessed on the Web.
Rudy Gelsey has asked memorials for Trudy be sent to the Williamsburg, Va. hospice or the Williamsburg UU church.
Blue Moon circle meets the 1st and 3rd Thursday of the month at 7:30 pm.
Next Walden Coffeehouse will be Saturday, April 12. Todd Hoke will be performing at the new folk series held monthly at First UU Church at the crossroads of 410 and IH10. Todd is from Austin and is a wonderful singer, songwriter and just delightful young man. "Todd sings with fondness about the great expanse of West Texas, its friendly people, its mountains, and its deserts. He recognizes the price we've paid for "progress," longing for a time before computers and cell phones, when life moved a little slower and we paid closer attention to the natural beauty around us." Austin Kessler, Director of the Live Oak UU Coffeehouse Concerts--Austin, Texas
The show starts at 7:00 PM, tickets are $10 and coffee and dessert are provided. 25% of the proceeds go to a local charity (TBA). Reservations aren't required, but they help in our food planning--contact Shannon Hawkins at Shannon7@satx.rr.com or call 641-7247.
The idea presented at the retreat was to have a sign up sheet on the new bulletin board for gathering people who like to eat and want stimulating conversation and fellowship. Hopefully, a host as well as guests will come forth and when 6 or 8(or more) sign up the dinner is closed and another sheet can be started. There is no one in charge and no protocol! -Nancy Leake
The first in a series of four CUUC-sponsored colloquia on state, national, and world social justice issues is tentatively scheduled for May 16. Two attorneys from the ACLU will provide a presentation and lead a discussion on the Patriot Act 1 and the proposed Patriot Act 2. These acts are legislative responses to the threat of terrorism. They give the government broad authority to scrutinize individual citizens' behavior. If you're concerned about the balance of individual rights to privacy and the authority of government to protect the public, put this date on the calendar.
Other colloquia in the series will be chosen and scheduled to meet the interests and needs of the congregation. If you have suggestions or questions, contact Sue Minton (210-679-7958, minton22@yahoo.com).
The UUA's General Assembly, our denomination's annual gathering of the clans, will take place in Boston on June 26-30. It's important that our church be represented, and we're looking for volunteers to make the trip. An information folder can be found on the literature table in the coffee room. Information is also available at http://www.uua.org/ga/reg.html. If you are interested in attending please let the board know (cuuc-board@yahoogroups.com or Henry Halff, 210-493-7501). Scholarships are available. We would like to hear from you before May 1 since registrations are cheaper before that date.
The men's group is starting an experiment on regularity. Instead of meeting whenever they feel like it, they've decided to meet at the church, from 5:00PM to 7:00PM, on the second and fourth Sundays of every month. Their next meeting is on April 27th.
The men's group welcomes all male members of the church. If you're in this category, drop by for beer or soda, guy food, and maybe even a little conversation. Henry Halff (210-493-7501, henry@quiensabe.com) can answer, often correctly, any questions about the men's group.
We've just completed another successful retreat, thanks to our tireless and talented Long-Term Planning coordinator, June Kachtik. Each of our three retreats has resulted in major changes in the way that we do things. For the most part, I've been unable to keep up with these changes, and this retreat was no exception. This column is devoted to what I can see through the fog of retreat hangover.
First, and in the best of Unitarian Universalist traditions, we want to keep moving. My old church in Arlington Virginia had a clerestory, a window all around the perimeter of the building between the walls and roof.** The building's architect, not a UU, was once asked whether the clerestory had any symbolic significance. He replied that he intended the building to represent a tent because he saw us as a religion always on the move. The same thought may occur to you the next time you gaze out of the windows above the north wall of our sanctuary.
What interests me in particular is that we yearn for closer ties to the denomination, both the UUA and the Southwest District. We also yearn to regain lost ground in the area of social justice and to plow new ground therein as well. This is a good thing. Last week I wrote about religious education, "...unless we imagine that our work on this earth, either as individuals or as a community, will be complete within our lifetime, we need to pay at least as much attention to how our posterity will carry on that work as to how we do." Well, if RE is the shadow we cast on the future, in time, then social responsibility and denominational affairs are the shadow we cast in space. They make us larger than a single community and embody our recognition that our work must extend beyond our community.
Why has the church seemed to lose ground in social responsibility and denominational activities over the past couple of years? One obvious reason is that yours truly hasn't made them a priority. I'm an introverted kind of guy who finds it somewhat uncomfortable to get out and forge relationships with those far from home. It's been easier for me to shovel social justice and denominational activities opportunities into someone else's inbox. In addition, it's been easy to bury both social responsibilities and denominational affairs in our new organizational structure. Within that organization, there is no existing set of directions or roadmap for either of these functions. Finally, neither social responsibilities nor denominational affairs have a strong forcing function. There are no immediate consequences for the community for neglecting either function. Life goes on without them. Life would not go on for us if either worship or RE were similarly neglected. How can we make that the case for social justice and denominational affairs?
First off, I think that we need to recognize that these areas have something very important in common. That is, they both deal with the relationship of CUUC to the outside world. In addition, the two are synergistic in that the denomination offers both opportunities and support for social justice activities. So, lets call these two functions together "External Affairs."
Second, we have to have enough chutzpah to think that External Affairs activities will be attractive to a large segment of our congregation. Hence, we need to form an External Affairs committee. And, someone needs to draft a statement of External Affairs roles and responsibilities. Something like the following might do.
External Affairs will coordinate the congregation's social justice efforts and it's liaison with the denomination. In these roles it will facilitate efforts to help others in the community, congregational expressions of social concern, efforts to educate the community and congregation on social justice issues, dissemination of information about denominational activities, recruiting for conferences, workshops, and other functions sponsored by the denomination, responses to requests for information from the UUA and Southwest District, and local support for denominational projects.
Fifth, and most difficult, someone needs to serve as coordinator for External Affairs. It could be an exciting and rewarding position for someone interested in keeping our church on the move.
**See the photos at http://www.uucava.org/image/WTW_Photos/WorkingTogetherWeekend2002/Service3_JPG.html and http://www.uucava.org/image/WTW_Photos/WorkingTogetherWeekend2002/Service2_JPG.html.
CUUC has a unique opportunity to engage the services of Rev. Barbara Coeyman next year. Rev. Coeyman has been in our pulpit several times. She has talked with the board, the worship committee, and many individual members. The board plans on developing a proposal for hiring Rev. Coeyman, on a part-time consulting basis, using a model developed by the Pacific Northwest District of the UUA.*
We recognize that the congregation, in this matter (as on most others), is not of one mind. To help us decide whether or not to develop a proposal and to determine the shape of the proposal, we are surveying the congregation on the most important aspects of the proposed arrangement.
Please take a moment to fill in this survey and return it to the president. You can copy the survey into a new email document, fill in your responses, and send the message to henry@quiensabe.com. A printable version is also available at http://www.cuucsa.org/coeyman/ministersurvey.pdf>. You can print this survey, complete it with pen and ink, and put it in the president's box at church or return it to
Henry M. Halff, President
Community Unitarian Universalist Church
4818 East Beverly Mae Drive
San Antonio, TX 78229-4936
Printed versions of the survey will also be available at church.
Your survey results will remain confidential. We will discard envelopes and email wrappers before opening any submissions.
You may want to peruse Barbara's bio, below, or her resume, at http://www.cuucsa.org/coeyman/coeyman.pdf, before filling out the survey. If you have any further questions, feel free to contact any member of the board.
WE NEED TO HAVE YOUR COMPLETED SURVEY BY 12:00 ON SUNDAY, APRIL 27. If you feel that the survey is an insufficient or inappropriate vehicle for expressing your feelings and opinions, please feel free to contact any member of the board about this issue. Email to cuuc-board@yahoogroups.com reaches all board members.
*A description of the model is available at http://www.pnwd.uua.org/ConsultingMinD&A51002.pdf . Be advised that we intend to adapt this model to our own situation.
Barbara Coeyman received preliminary fellowship as a minister in the Unitarian Universalist Association in December 2002. During the 2001-2002 church year, she served as intern minister at First Unitarian Church of Portland, Oregon. She received a Master of Divinity degree from Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary in May 2001, in a program which included chaplaincy training at Austin State Hospital and North Austin Medical Center. For several years she served as wedding associate at First UU Church of Austin. She has led a variety of workshops at Southwest District Unitarian Universalists retreats and summer institutes, including programs on her research on Universalism in Texas and the history of UU women.
Prior to entering ministry, Dr. Coeyman was a professor of music and faculty associate in women's studies at West Virginia University. Her work in music included research on French Baroque music and performance on the viola da gamba. She continues to perform in early music ensembles in central Texas.
Her other interests include hiking, swimming, folk-dancing, and reading. She is also the mother of two teenage children, Patrick and Amanda, and has been an avid soccer mom for many years.
The board, in response to your input at the annual retreat has revised the proposed budget for next year. Major changes are an additional allocation of $2,000 for publicity and an additional $1,000 for Social Justice speakers. The proposed total expenses for this revision are $39,676.30. The board anticipates further changes based on your input, particularly with respect to the consulting ministry proposal described elsewhere in this newsletter. The revised budget can be found at http://cuucsa.org/budget034.pdf. A copy will also be available at the church. THE BOARD WILL NEED YOUR INPUT ON THIS BUDGET BY APRIL 30. One way to send such input is by email to cuuc-board@yahoogroups.com.
Dear Members and Friends of CUUC:
The annual pledge drive is the means by which Community Unitarian Universalist Church establishes its budget and meets its financial obligations for the coming year. For this years pledge drive it appears that we have an exciting and fulfilling year ahead. The church now has a minister, Barbara Coeyman providing service approximately once per month and advising us, we have new energy directed at conducting Social Justice, and we have some new energy in the member services area plus all the things that have been part of the church in the past years. The coming church year, June 03 through May 04, has been envisioned by the Board of Trustees and will be possible due to the hard work of the people involved in committees, worship programs, religious education, church operations, and all the other things that make the church function. One other thing in addition to active people and hard work that is needed in order for CUUC to function is money in the form of pledges that will be paid during the coming year. Eighty eight percent (88%) of next year's income needs to come from pledges paid by our members. A small amount of church income is derived from the annual garage sale, the service auction or equivalent, the collection plate, soup lunches, and other fund raising activities. However, the bulk of the money needed to allow the church to function must come from our members. What do you want from CUUC? Money is required to pay our fixed costs such as the mortgage and utilities, to pay the UUA dues, to maintain the building, to have speakers and music for our programs, and to do the things we want. What do you want CUUC to do more of or to do better? Do you want more professional speakers at our worship services, more adult education curricula, more music, more church dinners, or social justice activities that reach out to the community? If you want these things you are invited to pledge. We can only pay for all things that the church must do and normally does and for the new wishes if sufficient pledges are collected.
The total budget projected for next years is $39,600, which compared to last years grand total of $32,700 is a 21 percent increase. The church's total expenditures are divided into four basic categories as follows with the fixed cost including the mortgage, utilities, and UUA and district dues being the largest category.
A detailed budget will be developed by the Board of Trustee and presented at the annual meeting. To meet the planned budget for next year, pledges need to increase by 27 percent on average. The church needs at least this much or more so that we can pay our bills and pay for the new thing that as a community we all want. The average pledge last year was approximately $720 dollars per voting member. This is less than the national average for UUs across the country so we need help to increase the average pledge and raise enough money to support the church's planned budget. It is understood that some people cannot give as much as the average while some can and do give more. We also understand that the increase cannot come from just a few people so we need every member to increase his or her pledge and we need people who are friends or non-voting members to become voting members. As you consider a realistic pledge for yourself, remember that a significant increase (27%) is needed in order to meet the goals that CUUC has set for the coming year. You can pay your pledge all at once, in monthly or weekly installments, or any way you would like, but we do need a pledge that we can count on in order to make a reasonable and responsible budget.
Pledge cards will be distributed following the Fellowship Dinner and will be due by April 27th. If you do not return your pledge card by April 27, you will receive a friendly reminder call. Remember that next years budget and what the church can accomplish next year will be based on the pledges received. If you have any questions please call Robert McKee at 681-4197 or contact any member of the Board.
April 13 - "Sanctifying the Everyday," YRUU Sunday
April 13 - Workday: Recover Parking Lot, after service
April 17 - Blue Moon Circle, 7:30 p.m.
April 20 - Flower Communion, Coordinator: Margaret Batschelet
April 20 - Soup Lunch, Sandi Boyd and Sue Minton
April 21 - Women's Support Group, 7 p.m.
April 25-27 - SWUUC Spring Conference, Tulsa, Oklahoma
April 26 - Workday: Spring Cleaning, 9:00 a.m.
April 27 - Speaker: Henry Halff
April 27 - Men's Group, 5 p.m.
May 1 - Board Meeting, 7:00 p.m.
May 3 - Garage Sale
May 4 - Beltane, Coordinator: John Wiesen
May 4 - Remarkable Film Series: "Hannah and Her Sisters," 6:00 p.m.
May 5 - Women's Support Group, 7 p.m.
May 11 - "Remembering Women Who Have Come Before Us," Speaker: Barbara Coeyman
May 11 - RE Soup Lunch
May 16 - Social Justice Colloquium, The Patriot Act
May 18 - Coordinators: Board of Trustees
May 18 - Annual Congregational Meeting
May 25 - "UU Lit Lite," Coordinator: Steve Boyd
June 26-30 - UU General Assembly, Boston, MA
If you'd like to receive the e-mail version of this newsletter every month, send a message to Margaret Batschelet, the newsletter editor.