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Mission Peak UU – Fremont, CA
The Home of Liberal Religion in the Tri-Cities and Beyond!
April 5, 2017
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Spring is in the air and that means canvass season for Mission Peak UU! Hopefully you joined us last Saturday evening for a rollicking good time in Cole Hall to celebrate our community, and on Sunday morning for our canvass kick-off service.
As you have no doubt heard, this year we are doing an every member canvass, which means that many of our leaders have been trained as canvass ambassadors and someone will be in touch with you directly to meet with you and collect your pledge. As I spoke about in my message on Sunday, now is the time to take the next step with your financial commitment to Mission Peak UU. Our beloved congregation needs your help to keep spreading its message of radical love and acceptance.
If you have any questions about our congregations present or future, please don’t hesitate to ask your canvass ambassador as that is what they are for. And whatever you are able to give, we remain so grateful for all that is shared with us, and we thank you in advance for your contribution to keep our congregation growing!
Rev. Jeremy D. Nickel
Minister of Mission Peak UU Congregation
Fremont, CA.
Cell: 510.936.1632
Preferred appointment times: Tue-Thur
11am-6pm
My preferred pronouns are “He” “Him” and “His” please feel welcome to share yours with me.
Available by appt all days except Monday
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This Sunday’s Service:
Emotional CPR
Come and hear about the next chapter in Rev. Barbara Meyers mental health ministry. Emotional CPR or eCPR is a hope-based approach to building strong, resilient, cooperative communities. It trains people to provide support to others who may be experiencing an emotional crisis.
Leading the service will be Rev. Barbara F. Meyers and Worship Associate Paul K. Davis. Music will be
provided by Eric Niessner.
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Share the Plate for April
This Sunday, April 9th, we will be welcoming Judy Grether from SURJ.
Showing Up for Racial Justice (SURJ) believes in collective liberation — and that none of us can be free until we end white supremacy.
SURJ’s role as part of a multi-racial movement is to undermine white support for white supremacy and to help build a racially just society.
This kind of work cannot be done in isolation from or disconnected from the powerful leadership of communities of color. It is one part of a multi-racial, cross-class movement centering on people of color leadership.
Therefore, SURJ believes in maintaining strong accountability relationships with organizers and communities of color as a central part of their theory of change. To find out more, please visit their website at Showing Up for Racial Justice (SURJ)
If you are interested in donating to this organization, please come prepared to give generously. Checks can be made out to “SURJ” and any cash put in the basket will also go directly to them. If you are putting you pledge for MPUUC in the basket, please make a note of it on the check or envelope. Thank you!
Last month’s Share the Plate was collected for Irvington High School’s spoken word group, “Youth Speaks”. Thanks to everyone who donated! We were able to collect $404 for the students. Thanks everyone!
If you have a local non profit that you think needs to be highlighted, please contact Natalie Campbell at nataliehcampbell@yahoo.com and she will try to get them on the calendar.
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A Beacon of Hope. A Sanctuary in the Storm.
The Canvass season is drawing to a close. Last weekend we had a fantastic congregational dinner put on by the amazing Jen King. A good time was had by all, with delicious food and lots of fun singing and dancing. At the dinner we were treated to a few inspirational speeches from members of our congregation, Cara Madden-Watson, Lisa Newstrom and Melissa Holmes. They reminded us about the importance of Mission Peak in their lives. The following morning, on Canvass Sunday, Jeremy spoke on the same subject. It seems as if the message has been heard from our congregants!
Canvass Ambassadors have been hard at work, talking one on one with members of the church. On Sunday, April 2nd, we had our first tally of the pledges that have been turned in so far. The numbers are really positive. From the people who have pledged so far, 80% of them INCREASED their pledges from last year. We have already received pledges for $100,000, and we still have a week and a half left to collect the remaining pledge cards. The preliminary numbers are promising. If you haven’t spoken with your canvass ambassador yet, please contact Natalie Campbell or DeAnna Alm, and we will make sure your voice is heard. Thanks so much to everyone for your generosity. We can all do this together!
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Saturday, April 8, All-Church Work Day on the FUMC Campus
The First United Methodist Church has scheduled an all-church work day to prepare the campus and buildings for Palm Sunday and Easter. They plan to work on the grounds, in their Sanctuary, Cole Hall and in the Ockerman Building.
FUMC invites Mission Peak members to join them on
Saturday April 8, between
9 am and noon, to do lawn mowing and trimming, weeding and pruning, work cleaning Cole Hall or the classrooms in Ockerman.
Please contact Bob Delp for more information or to sign up to help, at 510-707-9935, or
bdelp@earthlink.net.
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Congregational Vote
We held a Congregational Vote on Sunday, March 28, to decide whether to have a one-year or two-year interim minister period prior to calling our next Settled Minister. After lengthy discussion, a motion was introduced for a two-year interim minister period. This motion passed and we will have an Interim Minister for two years prior to calling our next Settled Minister.
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Stand Up for LGBTQ Kids
On Wednesday, April 12th, Dianne Jones will be speaking before the Fremont School Board. She is planning to donate a copy of It’s OK to Sparkle
(http://averyjackson.rocks/product/its-okay-to-sparkle/) to all of the elementary schools in Fremont. As this book is written by and about a transgender child, Dianne is expecting pushback and resistance. She is also speaking up about the lack of support Fremont schools have shown to our LGBTQ kids, including the fact that they have removed information about the existence of LGBTQ people from the planned health education curriculum for the elementary grades. This is despite the fact that California Educational code requires that all health education include information about gender identity and sexual orientation. Dianne is likely to be given more time to speak if she can show that she is representing a large group of people, and our presence will also make a statement to the Fremont school board that we are here to support our LGBTQ kids. Too often, the voices of opposition and fear make themselves the loudest voices in the room. This is a chance for us to stand on the side of love and to show that we believe in the worth and dignity of all people.
If you are able to attend, please fill out a speaker card and give it to Dianne (or give it to me, and I will hand it over to her.) Holding a larger number of cards may encourage the board to give Dianne more time to speak, because she will be able to show that she is representing a group. She will also be asking those who are there to support the book gift and more inclusive health and sex education curriculum to stand up.
The Fremont School Board is located at 4210 Technology Drive, Fremont, CA 94538. Meetings start at 6 PM, and the public comment time usually begins at 7 PM. Dianne and I will be there by 6:30. Please email me at deannaalm7@gmail.com if you are able to attend and show your support, or if you have any questions. If you would like to contact Dianne Jones directly, her email is
robndianne@sbcglobal.net.
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Mission Peak UU April Monthly Board Meeting
The Mission Peak UU Board will meet Tuesday evening, April 11 at Michealle Havenhill’s home at
7:00 p.m.
Members of Mission Peak UU are welcome to attend. For a copy of the agenda, please contact President Melissa Holmes at
president@mpuuc.org
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Worship Associate Training
Are you a good story teller? Do you enjoy speaking in front of people? Have you ever considered that you may have something to add to the worship at Mission Peak UU? If so, please also consider joining Rev. Jeremy and some of our veteran Worship Associates after the service on
Sunday, April 30 to learn what the role entails. There is no commitment necessary to come to this event, just check it out and see what you think. If you are interested please RSVP to
minister@mpuuc.org before
Sunday, April 23.
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Carpenter Needed
Our beloved Candle Table has a boo-boo and need
s the help of a skilled carpenter. If that is you, please contact Rev. Jeremy by
clicking here
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Baseball Sunday Fundraiser
This year our annual Baseball
Sunday celebration will be
Sunday, June 18 which is also Father’s Day. What better way to celebrate than an afternoon at a baseball game? We will be heading south this year to see the San Jose Giants play the Visalia Rawhide at
1:00 pm. And it’s not just a fun baseball afternoon, it’s also a chance to support Mission Peak!! We’re making this event a fundraiser and for each $12 ticket we sell we get to keep $5. What could be easier? So invite all your friends and family for a fun, family friendly afternoon at the ballpark and support Mission Peak at the same time. We have an initial lot of 75 tickets, but can get more if we sell out. Jen King will have tickets available most Sundays, but is also willing to mail out tickets. Please make all checks out to MPUUC. If you have any questions or want to order tickets, please contact Jen King at 510-299-2825.
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Save the Dates for this year’s Denominational coming events
Registration:
Advance registration
is open through April 22: $65 for adults, $25 for youth/children. Minors must be registered by April 22. After advance registration closes, adult registration will be available on site for $75. Walk-in registration will be open Friday evening and early Saturday morning.
District Assembly Program:
Friday evening offers an informal chance to gather, watch a film, and participate in a discussion afterwards.
Delegate details and links to business meeting materials will be sent to congregations in early April. As materials become available, they will be posted on the
District Assembly website
. Also, look for the workshop options to be posted to the site soon. Friday, May 5 – Staff Development Day:
Staff Development Day
is designed to connect both role cohorts and staff teams around common blessings and challenges and boost your ability to work as a team with a covenantal network of support. Ministers, DREs, DLLs, music directors, membership directors, administrators, and other staff members are encouraged to attend. Plan to bring your full staff team for this day-long event on Friday, May 5. Registration for Staff Development Day
is separate from District Assembly registration.
District Assembly Lodging:
Lodging is available nearby and a
Google Map of hotels and motels
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Opportunity to Serve!
Nominations for Ministerial Search Committee – The Board is now accepting nominations for MPUUC members who would like to be on the search committee to identify our next minister. If you are interested in being on the search committee you can ask someone to nominate you or you can nominate yourself. If you think someone would be a good fit for the search committee then please nominate them. All nominations are due by April 21. Once the nominations are closed the Board will hold informational meetings to let the nominees know what exactly is involved in being on the Search committee and nominees can indicate if they are still willing to be considered for the committee. The Board will then select the Ministerial Search Committee from those nominees willing to serve. Nominations should be sent via email to Jen King by April 21. If you have any questions please feel free to contact: Jen King, Melissa Holmes, or Michealle Havenhill
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You are welcome to a special exhibit!
The Welcome Home Project at the John O’ Lague Galleria in Hayward City Hall.
May 26-July 28th, 2017. Opening night will be June 9th from 5:30-7:30 PM. A panel will feature several of the participants in the Welcome Home Project. Refreshments will be served.
The Welcome Home Project exhibit is a powerful and compelling collection of photographs and stories of formerly incarcerated Alameda County residents that have turned their lives around after many years of involvement with the criminal justice system. The photographer, Ruth Morgan, is a nationally acclaimed local photographer and her work was in the The Sentence Unseen show on Alcatraz. The
Project Coordinator,
Micky Duxbury,
is an
author and the interviewer/editor of the stories. The Welcome Home Project humanizes the formerly incarcerated while adding a deeper understanding of the challenges of reentry.
These stories are testimony to the power of resilience, hope, and determination in the face of the barriers that most formerly incarcerated individuals face.
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Community Office Hours
Rev. Jeremy’s upcoming dates
I am always interested in suggestions for new places, times and ways that this could work better for you, so if you have an idea, please drop me a line, it is as easy as
clicking right here. And of course I am also always available by personal appointment all days except Monday.
Tuesday, April 11
11 AM – 1 PM
Slap Face Coffee and Tea
37324 Fremont Blvd
Thursday, April 27
4:30 – 6:30PM
Mission Coffee
151 Washington Blvd
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Mission Peak UU | 2950 Washington Blvd Fremont CA | 510.252.1477 | missionpeakuu.org
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