Please join Director of Religious Education Adia Fields-Udofia, Director of Music Dr. Philip Rogers and Justice Ministry Team Leader Dave Zenner this Sunday as we explore Juneteenth and Father’s Day through words and music. The Zoom login is bit.ly/NWUUC”.
RELIGIOUS EDUCATION
CALL FOR CHALICE LIGHTERS!
WE ARE SEEKING CHALICE LIGHTERS FOR JUNE AND JULY. PLEASE SIGN UP! NWUUC welcomes children’s participation in the weekly Sunday service. Options to participate include lighting a chalice live via Zoom during the service or submitting a video to re@nwuuc.org that can be played during the service. LED lighting options can be used instead of a flame. Please use this link to sign up: http://www.signupgenius.com/go/8050f4aaeac2f4-nwuuc
MUSIC MINISTRY
An End of the Year Retrospective by Philip Rogers, D.M.A., Director of Music
Our church year is coming to an end amid a series of expected and unexpected changes and adjustments. In August, when the Northwest Music Ministry began our journey we experienced growth on several levels.
Northwest Passage officially came under the creative leadership of Jim Pearce.
Traci Montgomery contributed both her guitar and vocal skills to Northwest Passage as Stephanie Bullard returned to Atlanta to recommit her vocal gift to the ensemble.
The Northwest choir adopted the name, Voices of Northwest and welcomed the addition of David and Kat Benoy, Larry Helferich and Dail Edwards.
Choir member, piano teacher and visual artist, Sally Mitchell consented to share her tasteful piano artistry with the congregation along with Jim Pearce and Edward Lawrence.
The untimely death of Voices of Northwest choir member Robert Thacker was a shock from which we are slowly recovering. Bob was a light to the ensemble and a true servant of and ambassador for the success of the choir. There are so many wonderful memories of his smile and performance enthusiasm. His clever wit continually caught me off-guard during rehearsals as we all burst into collective laugher… or groans. Bob Thacker’s spirit and presence will certainly be missed.
Because of the growing national concerns of the Coronavirus pandemic we were required to adjust our music programming and submit to a virtual presence format. In early March we skeptically chose to cancel weekly Voices of Northwest rehearsals and discovered that it was indeed an absolute health necessity to do so. To our dismay the cancellation of Sunday services caused Northwest Passage rehearsals and participation to be put on hold indefinitely.
With Zoom services in place we decided to utilize the vocal and piano talents of the Voices of Northwest and various talented youth to fill the music portions of each Sunday service. Jim Pearce and Sally Mitchell recorded various piano pieces while Jim, our congregation and choir accompanist, recorded multiple accompaniment tracks of standard hymns for various singers who performed from home. In addition, Traci Montgomery graciously shared varied songs with her guitar.
Since my service agreement as Director of Music and Choir Director ends in June I needed to pre-schedule hymns and soloists for Summer Zoom services. With piano works previously recorded for use in the summer when needed, Jim Pearce and I collaborated on preparing Summer accompaniment tracks for assigned soloists whom we scheduled for services through August 9.
Finally, we thank you Northwest community for your ongoing support and words of affirmation throughout the past ten months. We bid an optimistic short term farewell to Jim Pearce with the hope that he will be able to return once the Covid-19 pandemic and the budget permit. It is our sincere hope that each of you remain safe, healthy and in good spirits throughout the summer.
Amen and Ashay!
OUR NWUUC FAMILY (CARE CORPS)
Would you like to schedule a private meeting with Rev. Misha? Please call the main number, 770-955-1408, to set up a time.
During this period of confinement and social distancing the Care Corps Team members are calling to check on our Northwest families. But don’t wait for a call. Please let us know what your joys and sorrows are and if we may share them in the Northwest Newsletter or in our gathered worship space here on Sunday mornings.
Joys and Sorrows
Ryan Wilson, nephew of Marti Wilson, is on the mend. Marti was surprised by a call from Ryan who has been on a ventilator for many weeks but is now up and relearning how to walk after a long time of no activity. He is mentally alert and eager to recover. Ryan’s mother is also out of the hospital for which the entire family is grateful. Marti sends thanks to all who remembered Ryan and his mother in their prayers.
Sharon Cameron is recuperating from a fall which resulted in a shoulder fracture. She is doing very well with the care and attention of two daughters who live in the area. Calls and cards would be welcomed.
If you have a joy or sorrow you would like to have shared in the UNIverse please call or email Lil Woolf at 404-276-6189 or publications@nwuuc.org.
If you are going through difficult times and would like emotional support or are in any situation where support and caring are needed contact: Rev. Misha Sanders, Minister, 770-955-1408
Rev. Joan A. Davis, Community Minister, 404-275-0236
Maria Drinkard, 678-644-6480
Karen Edmonds, 770-851-1354
Linton Hopkins, 678-938-8858
Valerie Johnson, 470-209-9864
Lil Woolf, 404-276-6189
Construction on Subramanian Hall and the sanctuary is scheduled to be completed in September. The photos here were taken on Monday, June 15, by Dave Zenner.
Finances – Now is the time!
We are scheduling the next payment to the contractor, per our agreement, reducing our cash on hand. All requests for payment are reviewed by the committee and visual inspections made to confirm accuracy of the request for payment. We are very pleased with the process and our relationship with the contractor.
The difference between what is needed to complete the work and the cash on hand is $145,000. Four families are offering loans to Northwest at zero or low interest.
The amount of unfulfilled promises to the building fund total $20,000. If those who promised funds to help pay for the expansion fulfill their pledges before the end of July, it will reduce the size of a bank loan to an amount authorized by the congregation.
While it is a challenge to be headed toward completion of our beautiful new building expansion without the cash in our bank account to pay for everything, we might keep in mind a few things:
The congregation voted to approve loans for the project of up to $150,000, stipulating that payments on such debt not exceed $15,000 per year.
The amount of debt that may be incurred for this project is a small percentage of the value of our property.
Northwest has no other debt.
The amount of rental income we can reasonably expect in the future should increase significantly. Not only will we have a new space but we now have better mechanisms in place to market it and manage the rentals.
Fulfill your Pledge?
Have you paid your 2019-2020 pledge in full yet? Our fiscal year ends June 30 and we hope to close the books on it soon thereafter. There currently remains about $30,000 outstanding. We know it is easy to forget to write a pledge check when we aren’t sitting together in the sanctuary on Sundays but instead are watching our virtual services, yet the bills do not take a holiday.
The new pledge year begins July 1 and we hope you will begin paying on it as well. As you make any payments this time of year it is essential that you designate which pledge to which funds should be applied; 19-20 or 20-21.
There are several ways to make your payments. You can either mail a check to the church, text a payment to 73256 with DonateNWUUC in the text and follow the instructions, go to our website nwuuc.org, click on News and follow the directions there to use Givelify. Thank you for continuing to support our beloved community.
VIRTUAL GA, JUNE 24-28
For the first time ever, the annual General Assembly of the UUA will be entirely virtual. Northwest can have four official delegates based on the size of our membership as well as professional staff delegates. Representing NWUUC this year will be Rev. Misha Sanders, members Hannah Cowart, Jay Kiskel, Allen Rider and Lil Woolf.
Some of the events of this gathering are available only to those who have
paid registration but there are many things available to the general public.
To see what those events are, log into uua.org/ga . Two main highlights of
the events open to the public are:
SERVICE OF THE LIVING TRADITION, Thursday, June 25, 6 pm
The Ministries and Faith Development Staff Group invites you to join us at
this service where we honor fellowshipped and credentialed religious
leaders, remember those who have died, recognize those who have
completed active service, and welcome those who have received fellowship
or credentialed status in the past year. The service includes a collection to
benefit the Living Tradition Fund, which provide scholarships, debt
reduction grants, and financial assistance in times of need to seminarians,
ministers, religious professionals, other congregational staff, and retired
ministers and their loved ones.
SUNDAY MORNING WORSHIP, June 28 10 am
Join the largest annual gathering of UUs joining in worship. This powerful,
communal worship experience will stream on uua.org/ga Sunday, June 28,
2020 at 10:00 a.m. EDT. Members of the public are welcome to view the
service, and NWUUC will stream this service instead of our regular service.
The worship service will include a collection for the Tomaquag Museum, an
indigenous museum featuring an extensive collection and archive of
Southern New England tribal communities.
NWUUC Book Groupies
The NWUUC Book Groupies will not be meeting in June. However, we will meet at 7 pm on Tuesday, July 14th, to discuss The Girl With Seven Names by Hyeonseo Lee who tells the harrowing story of her escape from her birthplace, North Korea, against all odds. North Korea is a country most of us know little about and that also makes this a particularly gripping read. We will be meeting on Zoom so, if you are interested in joining the discussion, please email Penny Raney at raneypb@cs.com, with Book Groupies in the subject line, and you will receive an email to link to the meeting as we get closer to that time. Also, if you would like to purchase a copy of the book from our NWUUC bookstore, give Penny a call at 770 551 8817 and she will get a copy to you.
Information on Bellwether Bookstore
and we are still selling books!
Bellwether Books was started in 1985 by Esther Jensen and Penny Raney at a time when NWUUC was having financial problems not unlike what we face today. We knew that our members were intelligent and active readers who might be willing to donate their used books to raise some extra cash for NWUUC. The space that is now the kitchen had been the minister’s office and was vacant so we dove into that prime area to start our used book selling. Soon we had enough cash from sales to buy books from the UUA bookstore and Beacon Press as well as other popular and requested new books so that the profits which go 100% to NWUUC became hundreds of dollars each year. Then along came Amazon and the gradual erosion of sales over the years. Now Amazon is struggling with delivery issues as are some other large booksellers but we little guys can get books to you often more quickly and we are willing to personally deliver to you with gloves, masks and books in paper bags often at a discounted price as well as free delivery in the metro area. Just call 770 551 8817, leave a message and Penny will get back to you.
ALERT****ALERT****ALERT****ALERT
Friends: Please be aware that the scammers are at it again (still??) and are sending texts, pretending to be Rev Misha asking for immediate help. They will ask you to send gift cards to make purchases on eBay or other sites. Remember–and we can’t emphasize this enough–REV MISHA WILL NEVER TEXT YOU ASKING FOR MONEY. If you get a text like this just delete it. Do not respond.
IT HelpDesk
We have a new IT Help Desk that is available to help members with issues of getting on line with Zoom, Realm or our Facebook Group page. This desk is managed by Cameron Moore, Katy Lockhart, Kuru George, David Morgen and Russ Martin. To reach one of them email your questions to techhelp@nwuuc.org.
Office Closed for Staff Training
Tuesday and Wednesday
June 23-24, 2020
JUNE BIRTHDAYS AND JOINING ANNIVERSARIES 2020
June Birthdays June Anniversaries
Laura Kearns 06/03
Kat Benoy 06/04
Linda Irving 06/04
Jay Kiskel 06/12
Sally Mitchell 06/17
Constance Dierickx 06/26
John McManus 06/30
Cathryn DuBow 06/02/1993
Richard DuBow 06/02/1993
Tammy Clabby 06/28/2009
Hannah Johnson 06/09/2013
Valerie Johnson 06/09/2013
Gregg North 06/09/2013
Melanie North 06/09/2013
Kristan Wagner 06/23/2013
John Maynard 06/23/2013
Alison Williams 06/01/2014
Brian Williams 06/01/2014
Jamie Williams 06/01/2014
Jesse Williams 06/01/2014
Jessa Fagan 06/08/2014
Marc von Mandel 06/16/2014
Tom Couch 06/07/2015
Verna Barrett 06/14/2015
Jay Hall 06/14/2015
Julie Medlin 06/14/2015
Michael Cain 06/12/2016
Kester Chau 06/19/2016
Sonny Chau 06/19/2016
Kathy Miller 06/19/2016
Kuruvilla George 06/24/2018
CALENDAR
Sunday, June 21, 10 am, virtual Worship
11 am, Coffee following worship
NORTHWEST LEADERSHIP
Board of Trustees 2019-2020
President David Stewart
President Elect Lil Woolf
Finance Trustee Pam Freeman
Secretary Sandy Davis
Trustee at Large Katy Lockhart
Trustee at Large Larry Wallis
Trustee at Large Chloe Morgen
Imm. Past President Hannah Cowart
Ministries Team Leaders Adult Learning Marilyn Matlock Adult Learning Greg Pattison Communications David Morgen Community Kristan Wagner
Community Brian Freeman
Gardens & Spaces Beryl Grall-Petty
Justice Dave Zenner
Stewardship Cameron Moore
Worship Vacant
Staff
Rev. Misha Sanders, Senior Minister
Rev. Joan Armstrong-Davis, Community Minster
Adia Fields-Udofia, Religious Education Director
Dr. Philip Rogers, Music Director
UPDATED UNIverse Weekly June 12-18, 2020 June 12-18, 2020 WORSHIP June Worship Theme: Mistakes Join us on Sunday, June 14, at 10 am via webinar. Worship this week will be lead by our former DRE Christina Branum-Martin. Beginning September 1 Christina will be the interim minister at the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of
The UNIverse Weekly June 12-18, 2020 June 12-18, 2020 WORSHIP June Worship Theme: Mistakes Join us on Sunday, June 14, at 10 am via webinar. Worship this week will be lead by our former DRE Christina Branum-Martin. Beginning September 1 Christina will be the interim minister at the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of
The UNIverse Weekly June 5-11, 2020 May 29-June 4, 2020 WORSHIP June Worship Theme: Mistakes Our guest speaker this Sunday is Mathew P. Taylor, who was born and raised in San Bernardino, California. He has a Bachelor of Arts in Communication Studies and over 15 years’ experience working in his local community organizing and serving