AUGUST 2023 Newsletter

 

The term period poverty refers to the fact that monthly menstruation management is a struggle for many individuals globally. Menstruation inequity refers to the need for a public policy to address the safety, affordability, and availability of menstrual products for everyone who needs them.

For some, the cost of supplies are a financial burden or out of reach due to homelessness. Currently, state and federal funds (EBT card) cannot be used to purchase sanitary supplies.

 

Supporting The Period Project Harrisburg aligns with our first UU principal to affirm and promote the inherent worth and dignity of every person.

UUCV Children/Yuuth Homelessness Project

On Sunday August 13th, the UUCV kids will be working on a service project of assembling mini care packages for individuals who are experiencing homelessness. We are collecting the following items: travel-sized toothbrushes, toothpaste, tissues, deodorant, wet wipes, cereal bars, beef jerky, peanut butter or cheese crackers, lip balms/sunscreen. The donation box is on the RE information table in the Social Hall.

 

Please bring in items BEFORE Sunday, August 13th. Thank you for your generosity!

At the monthly UUA-sponsored 8th Principle Learning Community sessions, there has been an effort to educate us about the characteristics of fascism that are already established and spreading in our country. We are encouraged to name this and speak out against it; “people don’t take action when they are comfortable.”

 

The following list of fascist tactics will likely make you uncomfortable:

· promoting hate speech, name calling, repeating and reinforcing lies (the founding of this nation was White Christian and anti-Semitic conspiracy theories)

· targeting minorities

· creating moral panic

· passing discriminatory laws

· criminalizing previously accepted norms

· encouraging citizens to police one another (Florida’s felony charges for those who aid immigrants; Texas criminalizing those who provide assistance to women seeking abortion)

· restricting social services (housing, employment, healthcare)

· neutralizing newspapers and libraries and creating mistrust of science and academics

· promoting the use of violence

· longing for “the golden age of the past”

· targeting women

· politicizing government institutions

· inciting fear and resentment, then turning that power against marginalized groups (trans people and immigrants)

· proposing authoritarian rule as the solution

 

There are many organized far-right think tanks that are well-financed to spread this fascist culture. It’s time for community leaders, ministers, and concerned citizens to speak up in any way we can with Choose Democracy bumper stickers, posters, letters to the editor, and non-confrontational but informative conversations. The UUA encourages artists to

use their platforms to inspire urgent action and to spread hope. Please make use of the following suggested resources to learn more: https://choosedemocracynow.org/

 

View or read the 2023 Berry Street Essay delivered at GA

https://uuma.org/programs/berry-street-essay/

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. said:  “People fail to get along because they fear each other; they fear each other because they don't know each other; they don't know each other because they have not communicated with each other.”

 

Moving Circles’ intention with these community potluck dinners is for us to get to know each other, break bread together, and build relationships. This is a real opportunity to more expansively build "Beloved Community" -- it takes all of us!

 

Community Potluck Dinner Please Bring a Dish or Dessert to Share!  Thursday, August 17th 6:00-8:30 PM Bible Way Hibner Memorial Church, 223 Walnut Street in Carlisle. 

 

Please join us! And please invite all your friends and contacts. 

 

 

Our Summer Sundays carry a theme of service to others.  For example, in July we made greeting cards for our UUCV elders and others to let them know we are thinking of them. One of our service projects this month will be assembling mini care packages for individuals experiencing homelessness.  With the help of generous donations of items and monetary gifts, we will be able to make a good number of packs which we will donate to the Community CARES homeless center in Carlisle. 

 

Please note that the Middles' "Critical Core" game will be on hold for August and will return in September. Our Summer Sundays will come to a close with a special Service for All Ages highlighting our annual Backpack Blessing!  May we continue to learn and grow together.   In faith and service, Lynn Sodora 

 

Below is our Faith Development Sunday schedule for our children and youth for August: 

 

RE Summer Sundays:  We begin our Sundays at 10:30 am in the Sanctuary with the congregation.  After the Moment for All Ages, the children and youth will head downstairs for an All-Ages summer activity.

 

August 6:       Staying Centered (Also: learning about the Bursary in Mozambique)

 

August 13:     Making Mini Care Packs for those who are homeless

 

August 20:  UU REVIVAL in Lancaster: UUCV will be closed today as we join our local UU Congregations for a UU Revival in Lancaster, PA.  This is an event for the entire family!  There will be worship, music, games/crafts, and breakout conversations.  Please bring a picnic lunch and chairs.  Location:  Lancaster County Parks,  Time:  11 am to 4 pm   

 

August 27:  Backpack Blessing - A Service for All Ages:   Join us for this family-focused service celebrating the start of a new school year.  The highlight of this service is our Backpack Blessing ceremony.  Please bring your backpacks, laptop bags, totes, pencil cases, whatever tools help you in your work, for this fun and thought-provoking service.  

 

NURSERY CARE (ages 0-4) every Sunday:  Parents can sign in their babies and toddlers before Service and retrieve them by 11:45 am.  

  

**Please sign out your young children (up to age 12) from the Spirit Play room (and Nursery) by 11:45.** This gives parents the opportunity to socialize before pickup, while respecting the Volunteer Teachers' time as well. 

  

Thank you to all our July volunteers!  Ryanne Mack, Mrs. Candice Holsinger, Susan Green, Susan Rimby, Courtney Wiley, Rebecca Fratantuono, Kim Stone, Laura Soper, Kristen Markley, Katie Clark, Rev. Chris Kapp and Melissa Mattson. Thank you so much for your time and energy! Members of the Congregation are encouraged to volunteer with the Children's RE Program! Please email Lynn Sodora DLFD at re@uucv.net to check in about submitting clearances. 

Lynn Sodora Pronouns: she/her

Director of Lifespan Faith Development

Unitarian Universalists of the Cumberland Valley 

www.uucv.org

(717) 249-8944 
Office Hours:  W, Th, F  9-2      Days of Rest:  M & Tu

Join us on Sunday August 6^th starting at 12:30 PM for a planning session where we will decide upon the discussion topics for our next series of Adult RE classes.  The meeting will be held in the board room on the lower level of the church and will last approximately one hour.  Bring a packed lunch or enjoy some pizza (to be provided).  Can’t make the meeting in-person?  You can join via Zoom using this link: https://zoom.us/my/meetingsuucv.

 

But wait.  What exactly is the Adult RE Discussion Group?  The Adult RE Discussion Group typically meets for about an hour twice per month during the Spring (Feb. – May) and Fall (Sept. – Dec.).  The group provides participants an opportunity to live out UUCV's motto of "seeking truth together".  Rooted in UU's six sources and guided by the principle of a free and responsible search for truth and meaning, the group is open to exploring a wide range of topics from life's big questions to the smaller ones too. This is a participant led group in which we draw upon and learn from the knowledge, beliefs, wisdom, insights, practices. and lived-experiences of one another. We seek to learn not as an arcane academic exercise, but in an effort to better understand our world and ourselves and to live life more deeply and fully.

Help us create a weekly welcoming coffee hour by joining us at our first ever Coffee Hour Bake. Come join in as we bake goodies to freeze and have ready for our Coffee Hours over the next few months. You can make/bake whatever you’d like in the UUCV kitchen (BYOI – bring your own ingredients), or make at home and drop off.

 

Suggested items: cookies, coffee cake, muffins, quick breads, cinnamon rolls, brownies, puppy chow, box mixes no- bake cookies, candied nuts. Anything freezable works! You can also bring pre-portioned dough and we can bake off on Sunday mornings and let the smell of fresh baked cookies waft through the building!

 

If you would prefer to help stock pantry items with pretzels, crackers, nuts, et cetera, that would be appreciated.

 

Our baking/drop day is August 5th, 9:00 am – 2:00. Come join the fun and support our Coffee Hour!

 

Contact Deb Genet, 717-460-7844/dgenet1227@gmail to let her know you’re coming or with questions.

Watch for them on sale in the social hall before and after service or contact Lynn re@uucv.net to place an order.  T-shirts are $20 each....discounts provided for families.

 

Be sure and wear your T-shirt to the UU Revival, PRIDE events and any community outing and represent UUCV.

And....if you couldn't make it, there are still events with spots available for you to sign up for.  The list of events will be displayed in our Social Hall until they are full or the date has passed.  You can sign up, or contact Pam pam@uucv.net or Cindy cyagood4@gmail.com and ask them to sign up for you. 

 

Mail a check to UUCV, PO Box 207, Boiling Springs, PA  17007 for your event with a note what you are signing up for and "Birthday Bash" in the memo line of your check.

 

 

Upcoming events with space:

 

August 12 - Campfire at Kapp Cottage $20 (Chris Kapp)

 

August 15 - Hershey Gardens & Hershey Story Museum $65 (Cathy Dewalt)

 

August 26 - Cards Against Humanity (Adults only) $20 (Chris Kapp)

 

October 14 - Evening in the Moonlight $35 (Cathy Dewalt)

 

October 14 - Casual Supper & Smores $20/pp or $30/per family (Fratantuono's)

 

October 21 - Beatles Songbook Night $25 (McPherson's)

 

 

Dates to be determined between attendees and the host:

 

German Translation $20 (Gisela Roethke)

 

Filled Dumpling Lessons $50  (Chris Kapp)

 

Hot Pot Demonstration $50  (Chris Kapp)

 

Drawing of your favorite D & D Character $30  (John  Simcoe)

 

Game Night and Snacks $20 (Lisa Balog)

 

Bents, Bumps & Bargains $15 (DeWall's)

 

 

 

UUCV is partnering with RaiseRight for Gift card fundraising, the #1 fundraiser for nonprofit organizations across the U.S. for more than 25 years.  Earn simply by buying gift cards to use for everyday purchases, instead of cash or credit cards.

With RaiseRight, nonprofits and other community-based organizations earn money simply by shopping for their favorite brands—turning daily or weekly purchases into the opportunities that matter for their favorite organizations. 

How to Get Started:

Visit http://uucv.info/raiseright to Sign Up from your computer

 

Set up your banking or credit card preference.

  

You can then shop anytime by visiting https://www.raiseright.com/brands and see the daily bonuses and specials which will earn more money for UUCV.  Check the % for each card to see what your donation will be to UUCV….with a very minimal fee to you. 

 

How to Pay:

When you are done selecting your cards, check out at your shopping cart.  You can pay by your own Credit Card (getting points on your card) or LINK to your bank account

 

How you Receive your Cards:

• You can choose ecards (which will show up in your wallet on your APP or in your wallet on the main website http://www.raiseright/shop
• You can choose to receive the actual card be sent to your home address
• DO NOT select your card to be sent to the Coordinator….any cards sent to the coordinator will be cancelled and your sale will be VOID

 

Contact Pam pam@uucv.net if you need help in getting set up or if you have questions about this program.