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Our Spring meetings are upcoming where members are able to ask questions and are updated on the activity of the Church's leadership--the minister, board president, program council chair, treasurer, pledge campaign co-chairs. We will also vote on new members for the board as well as the slate of committee members selected for the ministerial search committee. Town Hall Meetingd are May 25 and June 1 in preparation for the June 8 Spring Congregational Meeting. 
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UUA General Assembly--the 64th meeting where participants gather to worship, witness, learn, connect, and. make policity decisions for the Association through a democratic process. While anyone can attend, congregations must certify annually to have voting delegates. For more information, visit uua.org/ga  At the 2024 Winter Congregation Meeting on Sunday, December 8 at 11:30AM, members will vote whether to approve the 2024 Spring Congregational Meeting minutes, vote on Nominations Committee candidates and the proposed 2025 Operating Budget. All supporting documents are linked on the GOVERNANCE page of this website.  History of the Mitten Tree & Stranger Share our Fire Researched and written by Erica Birky Rios, she/her/hers The Mitten Tree Sunday tradition of decorating a tree with winter clothing and distributing them to people in need is a long one. During Peter Raible’s ministry, Superintendent of the Church School, Elizabeth Cameron, described a similar giving tradition in the Dec. 11, 1959 edition of the church newsletter. She wrote, “The Church School children are going to help James Cox, Director of Malone Community Center, make Christmas a little brighter for some of the children he knows who won’t have much. We all know Mr. Cox because he is a teacher in our Church School. The children have each been asked to bring a present for a child their own age and sex. It need not be wrapped. It should be something new.” Pat Stephens, wife of Rev. Dr Charles S. Stephen Jr. (who served in Lincoln from 1961 to 1996) reported via her daughter Deb, that the Mitten Tree practice began as a relief effort for Europe in WWII, which then evolved into local relief. The December 20, 1968 newsletter describes a familiar practice, “For many years on Christmas Sunday we have asked our children to help decorate the Christmas tree in front of the church auditorium. The decorations are warm clothes, not necessarily new and not wrapped. We need socks and mittens (hence the name, Mitten Tree) scarves, sweaters and caps. All the children from Preschool - 1 through Junior High will come into the church for the opening service and will participate in the giving of gifts. The clothing will be taken by Marilyn and Roger Welsch when they attend the Omaha Indian Christmas Hand Games that evening.” Kathy Disney documented how the “Stranger Share our Fire” tradition came about in the February 2021 Beacon, sharing the words of our minister emeritus, Rev. Fritz Hudson, “When I came in 1998, the established tradition for the Sunday before Christmas was that it be an "intergenerational service,” organized by the Religious Education Director and that it include a "Mitten Tree" inviting members to decorate the tree with winter clothing to be donated to Lancaster County Community Action. Between 1998 and 2002, Religious Education Directors, Beryl Aschenberg, Kim Beyer-Nelson, and I collaborated to create services maintaining these traditions. Kim partnered with Music Director Sheila Brown to offer a two or three year run of evening Winter Solstice services organized around different themes emphasizing seasonal music and story-telling. The 2002 Winter Solstice evening service was organized around the theme "Stranger Share Our Fire." Kathy went on to write, “The following year, with Winter Solstice falling on a Sunday, Kim, Sheila, and I collaborated to import the “Stranger Share Our Fire” theme into the pre-Christmas Sunday Intergenerational Service, and broadened the gift-giving ritual to include the UUSC Guest at Your Table, and two additional community agencies with whom the congregation had established relationships: Eastridge Food Pantry & Fresh Start Home.” As we continue to celebrate our interconnectedness and draw upon some of the world’s great rituals of Winter Solstice, Christmas, and Hanukkah, we invite members and friends to join in this giving tradition to lift up our fellow community members on Sunday, Dec. 22, 2024. Read on page one of the December newsletter The Beacon about the gifts we will gather and offer to local organizations this holiday season.  DECEMBER SPECIAL SERVICES ************* SOLSTICE SERVICE Thursday, December 19 at 7:00 PM The A Street Band celebrates the winter solstice with a holiday-packed service full of great music. ************** STRANGER SHARE OUR FIRE Sunday, December 22 at 10:00 AM In person and livestream We gather gifts for our partners in the community and manifest the interconnected web of which we are a part. Please consider bringing one or more items: * Packaged foods for Eastridge Food Pantry and Little Free Pantries * Warm winter items for CenterPointe and Community Action Program * Toys and Gift Cards for Voices of Hope *Cash (or check) donations for ECHO Collective ************** CHRISTMAS EVE Sunday, December 24 at 5:30 PM In person and livestream Join us for this annual all-ages candlelight service. Check out the December BEACON Newsletter for more details. Livestream links will be in the Friday all church eblasts. If you are not signed up to receive the eblasts, use the "SUBSCRIBE TO MAILING LIST" button in the footer of this website.  Calling all Unitarian Church of Lincoln (UCL) art makers - December is the month for another ALL CHURCH ART SHOW - all means - all kids, families, individuals, quilters, painters, drawers, photographers, needle-pointers, paper folders, crafters - makers of art! You don't have to be an expert to share your work at UCL during December. The deadline for submissions is Nov. 15. You can submit work through the Google form or find Judy Hart and let her know that you have work to share.  Oct 20 - Oct 27 Collecting in the barrel outside the church office! The Social Justice Committee is partnering with Lincoln Hygiene Network to collect essential hygiene products which are distributed to individuals facing hygiene insecurity through schools and nonprofit organizations. See the October Beacon for more information. Suggested donations: High need items: Deodorant, shampoo and conditioner for all hair types. Other: toothpaste and toothbrushes, lotion, shaving cream and razors, tampons and maxi pads, urinary incontinence pads, bar soap, liquid hand soap, laundry detergent, washcloths, dish soap. Put your donations in the barrel in the entrance hall outside the church office from Sunday, October 20 till Sunday, October 27. A Social Justice committee member will be in the gallery with the barrel on Sundays. You can also contribute cash or checks or contribute electronically by TEXT GIVING or through your Realm account: Giving—Social justice initiative. For details of all of these options: DONATE  Handmade Harvest 2024 is a fund- and friend- raising event at UCL on Friday, Nov. 8 from 6:00 to 9:00 PM and Saturday, Nov. 9 from 10:00 AM - 3:00 PM. This is a great opportunity to shop for the holidays and support our local artists and craftspeople. The vendors pay to participate in the event, and the money goes to the church. Food is available both days: Friday evening - charcuterie and Saturday - youth and family friendly lunch. Each vendor is donating an item for the raffle drawing, so it is going to be AMAZING! There will be an event page on Facebook that you can share with friends and family. Another way to share with others is to give them the link to the newsletter: www.unitarianlincoln.org/newsletter Meghan Stratman's work is featured below. Contact Judy Hart - [email protected]   July 28 - August 4 -- Gallery and outside the office
Believe it or not, it's time to think about school and school supplies We are again collecting supplies for the Malone Center's Back-to-School School Supplies Drive between Sunday, July 28 and Sunday, August 4. We invite you to participate as you are able. Requested items for students 5 - 15 include:
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AuthorThe most recent news at the Unitarian Church of Lincoln Archives
January 2025
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