March 7: “I Wander Lonely As a Cloud”
Rev. Leslie Takahashi Morris explores loneliness as a condition in our personal lives and in our society. Despite all our opportunities for busy-ness, how is a sense of isolation a part of our contemporary culture?
VIA Summit, Saturday, Mar. 6 from 5:00 to 8:30 pm
- Come share fellowship with appetizers and drinks! (See Kids Info below**)
- Hear new ideas about our congregation’s future!
- Participate in a new way of generating ideas TOGETHER with other people who share your interests and come up with new, exciting ways to take us to our goals.
- Learn more about the goals for our annual canvass which makes all that we do together possible.
- Experience our fabulous community over desserts and (shhhhh!) mystery live entertainment!
This is a potluck event!
Names beginning with A-R please bring hearty appetizers for 8.
Names beginning with S-Z please bring desserts for 8.
Beverages will be provided.
** The kids will have activities of their own, including live Reggae music. Children will have pizza, however all kids should bring a favorite vegetable or fruit for salad! Drinks are needed too.
For those not able to make the March 6 Summit, there will be a follow-up event after Church Service on Sunday, Mar. 14, 12:30 – 3:00 pm. Lunch and childcare will be provided.
Visit our website to learn more about our goals:
http://mduuc.org/about-mduuc-/vision-in-action-via
THIS WEEK AT MT. DIABLO UNITARIAN UNIVERSALIST CHURCH
(an item followed by an asterisk [*] has more information in the paragraphs below the calendar)
Saturday, March 6, 2010
9:00 am Buildings & Grounds Work Party
5:00 pm VIA Goals & Social (All Campus)*
Sunday, March 7, 2010 – Canvass Launch
9:00 am Meditation (Fireside Room)
9:00 am Memorial Committee (Oak Room)
10:00 am Our Whole Lives Grades 7-9 (Owl Room)
10:30 am Our Whole Lives Grades K-1 (Mirror Room)
10:30 am Worship & RE (Sanctuary, White & Gilmartin Buildings)
12:15 pm Children's Choir Rehearsals (Children’s Chapel)
12:15 pm Computer Basics (Owl Room)*
12:15 pm Anti-Racism Task Force (Sequoia Room)
12:30 pm TIE Facilitators (Fireside Room)
Monday, March 8, 2010
6:00 pm Tai Chi (Bortin Hall)
7:00 pm Meditation (Fireside Room)
7:00 pm Winter Nights Site Leaders Orientation (Sanctuary)
7:30 pm Audit Review Team (Oak Room)
7:00 pm Choices for Sustainable Living (Owl Room)
Tuesday, March 9, 2010
9:00 am Newsletter Mailing (Owl Room)
10:00 am Writing Your Memoirs (Oak Room)
1:00 pm Kuderna Music (Bortin Hall)
6:30 pm Executive Committee (Fireside Room)
7:00 pm By-Laws Task Force (Owl Room)*
7:15 pm Finance Committee (Office)
8:00 pm Performing Arts Society Concert (Sanctuary)
Wednesday, March 10, 2010
10:00 am Elder Journey (Owl Room)
10:30 am Arts Committee (Oak Room)
6:00 pm Tai Chi (Bortin Hall)
6:30 pm Musicianship (Sanctuary)
7:00 pm Financial Stewardship (Owl Room)
7:30 pm Music History and Appreciation (Oak Room)
Thursday, March 11, 2010
10:00 am Yoga (Bortin Hall)
4:15 pm Nominating Committee (Owl Room)
5:30 pm Community Dinner (Bortin Hall)
7:30 pm Making Whiteness Visible (Children’s Chapel)
7:30 pm Pastoral Visitors (Fireside Room)
7:30 pm Adult Choir Rehearsal (Sanctuary)
Friday, March 12, 2010
7:15 pm TIE Group A (Fireside Room)
7:15 pm TIE Group B (Oak Room)
Saturday, March 13, 2010
8:45 am Men's Breakfast Group (Children’s Chapel)
10:00 am UU History and Theology (Owl Room)
6:30 pm Potluck & Dances of Universal Peace (Sanctuary)
Sunday, March 14, 2010
9:00 am Meditation (Fireside Room)
9:00 am Nominating Committee (Oak Room)
9:00 am Eastern Religions (Sequoia Room)
10:00 am Our Whole Lives Grades 7-9 (Owl Room)
10:30 am Our Whole Lives Grades K-1 (Mirror Room)
10:30 am Worship & RE (Sanctuary, White & Gilmartin Buildings)
12:15 pm Children's Choir Rehearsals (Children’s Chapel)
12:30 pm LEAP Council (Fireside Room)
12:30 pm VIA Goal Discussions & Social (Sanctuary, Bortin Hall, and
Owl, Oak and Mirror Rooms)
Join the Pacific Central District Chalice Lighters. Anne Staley will have a table in Bortin Hall after the service on Sunday to help you sign up to become a Chalice Lighter for the PCD. It is a program that sends a call out to members to donate $10 or more 2 to 3 times a year to a member church to help it get something needed to help congregational growth. We might want to do it in the future to help us for the cost of going to two services. The last call was for Hayward Church to expand its sound system to include the baby room and to get help for the hard of hearing.
Sing…sing…sing… Please support our youth representing MDUUC in the General Assembly Children’s Choir. After the service on Sunday Maraena Spencer, Maddie Tuning and Liam Takahashi Morris and their friends will be offering Washable Produce Bags (no more plastic!) – 6 reusable bags – for a donation of only $10. Thank you for helping us get to GA in Minnesota this summer. ¯
You are welcome to enjoy our Community Dinners held every Thursday at 5:30 pm. Sign up at the Universal Signup book in Bortin Hall today or call the church office by Tuesday. Please note if you wish a gluten-free, low sodium or vegetarian option. The menu for Thursday, Mar. 11 is Chicken Teriyaki, Rice and Japanese Salad.
Please join us for Vespers, a casual and meditative service held on Thursday, Mar. 11 from 6:45 - 7:15 pm with quiet gathering at 6:30 pm. The theme will be “Listening.”
MDUUC is happy to provide free childcare for the Community Dinners and Vespers Worship, in addition to Religious Education classes on Sunday mornings. For questions or to arrange childcare, please contact Heather Hsieh at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .
HELP WANTED for a Religious Education Work Party on Friday, Mar. 19 from 10 am to2 pm. Please come help Heather Sawyers, Director of Lifespan Religious Education, to organize supplies, books, and curricula. Bring a finger food to share. Contact Terese McGregor to sign up for one or both days. The MDUUC teachers and children thank you!
The MDUUC Intergenerational Seder on Thursday, Mar. 25 at 6:00 pm is open to all members, family and friends. We will provide a Seder plate for everyone, matzos, Matzo Ball Soup, wine, juice, and a special dessert for the regular Community Dinner donation of $7/adult and $4/child. For this dinner we ask that you bring a dairy-free dish to share. SIGN UP by Thursday, Mar. 18 at the Community dinner table in Bortin Hall or call the church office. Also sign up for infant/toddler care and/or to help with setting up the Seder Plates beginning at 5:00 pm on the 25th.
Calling all Winter Nights Volunteers (Mar. 29 – Apr. 12)… We now have an online sign up form on our church website. Go to http://mduuc.org/social-justice/winter-nights and look for the "Sign Up" link. The form will allow you to identify what dates you are available to help and what tasks you are interested in. The Winter Nights Team will compile your input and produce a master volunteer schedule. You will be contacted by a Team Leader/Coordinator to confirm your availability. We will also be signing up people for specific jobs after Sunday service at the SAC table. We hope to have a hard-copy of the schedule as we build it so you can see what openings still need to be filled. Questions? Email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it . Thank you, Your Winter Nights Team
We’ll need a variety of items not ordinarily stocked when our church hosts homeless families for two weeks starting March 29, such as diapers (sizes 2 and 5), food in bulk, pre-paid gas cards, bus tickets, $5 BART tickets and $10 Target gift cards. Check the church web site: www.mduuc.org, click on Winter Nights under social justice for the Wish List food items needed. They can be deposited in the two BIG Blue Bins in the Children’s Chapel. The diapers, prepaid cards and tickets, marked for Winter Nights and with the donor’s name if you want a receipt, can be left at the church office. At last count, the Interfaith Council which sponsors the shelter program, reports that there are 10 parents and 17 children enrolled, the latter ranging from 8 weeks to 16 years old. The families undergo both a telephone interview (for computer nerds, this is that old-fashioned instrument which you touch numbers, listen and then talk) followed by an interview in person.
On Sunday, Apr. 25 after church, we will hold an open meeting to discuss the proposed UUA governance changes. Our Pacific Central District trustee on the UUA Board, Linda Laskowski, will be here to present the UUA Board's view, and we will have a speaker to articulate the main concerns or oppositions to the proposals. It's likely to be a lively discussion. Please hold the date.
The artwork on display was created by Carol Firth Baxter, a member of the Sacramento UU Church and Leslie Hovey’s mother. Carol studied art for many years and has received many awards for her oils and watercolors since she began exhibiting in 1991. Carol’s intent is to capture and share the magic rapture of discovery and appreciation over and over.
Review of Church By-Laws. The current by-laws have not been reviews as a whole in more than ten years. The Board created a By-Laws Task Force and charged them to undertake a comprehensive review of the by-laws to reflect current MDUUC operations and culture. The Task Force is soliciting ideas and suggestions. Please contact any member of the task force: Bob Olson, Laura Fischer, Ed Lampo, Doug Schuster and Kathy Teplitz.
HOSPICE FOUNDATION OF THE EAST BAY ESTATE SALE, 4540 Alhambra Way, Martinez on Friday 3/5 9:00 am – 3:00pm; Saturday 3/6 9:00 am – 2:00 pm. We are liquidating this beautiful older Martinez home. Items include Florentine figurines, antique china including Shelby, tea cups, Lenox, sterling flatware, lots of books, tons of tools, fishing equipment, outdoor pottery, knick knacks, lots of glassware, furniture including bedroom, office, and dining room, antique glass, fine and costume jewelry, and much more!!! All high end items are brought in each day of sale. Proceeds to Benefit Hospice of the East Bay. Everything 50% off Saturday (with few exceptions).
GREEN QUOTE OF THE WEEK
“RESTORE – REPAIR - REUSE”
