PLEDGE DRIVE ANNOUNCEMENT:
The 2022-2023 NW pledge drive is underway! Thanks to the generosity of our members, we have already received pledges totaling $71,000 towards our goal of $200,000. To those who have already pledged, our deepest thanks! Your name will be added to our pledge poster located in the NW lobby. The commitment of time and resources makes NW great for us all! If you want to get involved, please go to the pledge tab on the NW website or fill out the pledge form available in the lobby. We appreciate all that our members do for our “home in the woods.”
NWUUC Financial Update
My dear NWUUC community, thank you for your generous giving to NWUUC over the last couple of years at a time when most of the contact has been through phone and Zoom. As of the March Board meeting, we have received 79% of the pledges made this year (about $139,000 of $175,000 pledged), which is excellent given there are still 3.5 months left in the fiscal year. We still need all pledgers to complete your giving.
During the last two years NWUUC has received a now-forgiven PPP loan and legacies from generous friends and members, which helped bridge us when other historic sources of up to 25% of our income like rentals were very low. These funding sources are not unlimited or renewable, and while we hope the income from rentals and eventually a pre-school will rebound and become assets to NWUUC, it will take time to build these resources.
As we come back to in-person worship and fellowship, we would like to have an engaging community which requires people and resources. As you probably know, we’ve started the pledge drive for the upcoming fiscal year. Our goal is $200,000 and it is important to the NWUUC community that we meet or exceed this stewardship goal. Please think about your personal financial situation, the importance of your NWUUC community, and be generous in your financial pledge and volunteering your talent to this beloved community.
Grier Page,
Finance Trustee
Circle Supper
Dear Circle Supper People ~ FORTY-TWO of us are getting this message, because all of us have attended at least one Circle Supper, and a few of you have attended every one. Since invitations went out to 204 UU members and friends originally, we 42 represent approximately a 5th of our members and friends! What great participation! Thanks for supporting this Community Ministry effort to deepen our connection within our congregation.
Feedback has been enthusiastic and positive. With these strong indicators, Kat and I certainly will continue to coordinate the dinners. We hope you will continue to attend and will spread the word that these get-togethers are very little work and much fun.
So far SIXTEEN of us have hosted at least once. Thank you for taking this step. Might you be willing to do so again? If you haven’t hosted yet, perhaps you will consider trying this important role. It’s the easiest party you’ll ever throw! just tidy up a bit, set the table, maybe put the coffee on, and open the door when guests arrive.
You should have received your invitation by now to our next dinner on April 9th. We hope you can come; and if you are willing to host, that would be most gracious of you. In the meantime, thanks again for this endorsement of our UU congregation.
Fondly ~ Judy McKinley & Kat Benoy
Community Ministry Co-leaders
Please welcome our new members who recently
signed the membership book!
Jim and Dorothy Green
Jim, a native of Michigan, worked in aerospace in Florida and California. He enjoys working on cars and likes science in general and he likes walking with the guys, but some medical issues make it hard for him to pursue other things he would enjoy.
Dorothy grew up in Germany, married Jim while he was in the air force and worked 38 years as a nurse in Florida and California. She is a quilter and a member of the Assistance League of Atlanta. She walks every day, enjoys cooking and gardening and likes to play Mah Jongg.
They both enjoy traveling and have been to 68 countries! Jim and Dorothy have 2 married children.
Liz and Russ Martin
Liz and Russ have been attending NWUUC since August 2019, soon after they came to Atlanta from Salt Lake City for Liz to attend seminary at Emory’s Candler School of Theology (as her midlife crisis). You might recognize Russ from his dedication as a tech/producer for Zoom services.
They have two “adult” offspring, and enjoy ATL’s vegan dining scene, going to concerts, and taking road trips to explore Georgia and the rest of the South.
Liz and Russ signed the book after learning that UUs can be bigamists, as they are still also members of South Valley UU Society in Utah. (And Liz finds it very amusing that her Northern church family is South Valley, and her Southern church family is Northwest!) They both come from Mormon backgrounds and have been UUs since 1996.
Hawk’s Hoop CUUPS
“Ostara Ritual” 2022.
Do you feel the need for balance or centering in these troubled times? The Sun is about to cross the Equator on its way back to the Northern Hemisphere on the Spring Equinox, the time of equality between day and night. Those who feel a spiritual connection to Mother Earth may find solace in this year’s ritual to be held on Sunday, March 20th at 1:00 PM in person (masked) on site at NW and on Zoom (nwuuc.org/zoom click on ‘Sunday Services’). It’s the official start of Spring, heralding a time of renewal and increasing warmth, physically and spiritually. Those interested in or curious about earth-centered religious spirituality are invited to attend. For more information, contact Harry Trendell (geogprof97@gmail.com).
Virtual Documentary Night
The next Virtual Documentary Night will be SUNDAY, March 20th at 7 pm. We will be discussing the documentary, They/Them. This film follows Lor, a trans climber, into the sandstone canyons of northern Arizona, on a journey to piece together one of the hardest and most inspiring routes of their life. By embracing the strength in vulnerability, Lor has found the space to thrive and build a climbing community that others like themself can call home. Here is a link to where you can watch it for free. https://youtu.be/ahuiQT4xMdw.
To participate in the zoom discussion, email Adam Hicks at communitydocumentarynight@gmail.com to receive the link.
Backstage Busy Bees
Gardens and Spaces
As we slowly emerge from COVID we thought it might be a good time to update the congregation on activities, projects and accomplishments being made by and for the congregation. We appreciate all who continue to help maintain our Gardens and Spaces and invite others to join us as we will soon be using the buildings regularly!
What we’ve done so far:
The entire exterior of the Chalice House was pressure washed.
Trees in the playground were downed during a recent storm. One tree fell on the playground fence and damaged it. Dave Zenner and John Hagler cut up the fallen trees and repaired the playground fence.
Three very large trees in the playground were identified as dangerous – they were leaning dangerously and had the potential to fall on people or our building. They were removed from the playground by a tree company. Donations from several members of the congregation helped to defray the costs of this project. There is additional work on the trees in that area that will need to be done soon.
The keys that were kept in the key safe that is on the wall beside the door to the office disappeared. Despite many pleas for their return, we were unable to find the keys. Therefore, all the exterior door locks had to be rekeyed and new keys made. As a precaution the code to open the key box was also changed.
A leak in the old section of the roof over the sanctuary was detected. Several roofers were called to provide bids. The solar panels on this roof added considerations and questions about warranties. Most of these items have been resolved and you should soon see the roof being repaired. Help from the Endowment Committee and several members resolved the costs.
We desperately need more Internet bandwidth than we have. Using Zoom the way we are, with at least 4 Zoom sessions going on during the service-one for the producer laptop, one for the Zoom participants laptop (connected to the big screen TV), one for the mobile phone placed as a camera at the podium, and one for the mobile phone used as a mobile camera–requires more Internet bandwidth than we have. There are other things we will need to get to keep producing the service via Zoom but, the most important one right now is that there is an urgent need to get a much faster data pipe into the building that provides more upstream and downstream traffic.
We have successfully contracted with Comcast to do an installation that will increase our speed from 18mb down/768 up to 1gb/35 mb. It will take a month or more for this installation to be complete.
Moving forward there will be many opportunities for volunteer involvement.
Following is a list of what we still need to do:
For the Chalice House:
*Repairing a cracked window and broken screens
*Replacing rotted wood on the structure and exterior walks
*General cleaning of building interior
*Replacing slide structure in playground
*Washing all windows and doors
For the Main Building
*Repairing/replacing siding
*General cleaning of the grounds
*Hanging door for Green Room
*Washing all windows
We had a great time last Sunday for Pi Day! Thanks to all the parents and friends who donated pies–and many thanks to all who purchased pies for this fundraiser for the youth group, which brought in $379! During the service Anthony Kahn regaled us with a full recitation of Pi (3.14159265359…etc) before we recessed to the social hall!
