This Week on the Peak

This Week on the Peak – Wednesday, May 3, 2017


This Week on the Peak
Mission Peak UU – Fremont, CA
The Home of Liberal Religion in the Tri-Cities and Beyond!
May 3, 2017

 

Rev. Jeremy D. Nickel
Happy Birthday to our beloved Mission Peak UU! This week marks the 23rd anniversary of the day fifty brave and wise souls first signed our membership book, and the dream of a home for Unitarian Universalism in Fremont and the tri-cities became a reality.  And this Sunday we will celebrate with a special service in which we will tell several of the stories of the sacred objects that have come into our community over the years.

 

Whether you have been a regular member for all of those 23 years, or found us sometime since, this service is sure to be an unforgettable trip down memory lane, as well as a way for our newer friends and members to hear some of our beautiful history.

 

I hope to see you there!

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

This Sunday’s Service:
Mission Peak
The Story of Mission Peak
On this Sunday, the twenty-third anniversary of our Charter Sunday and the first signing of our Membership book, we will take a look back by telling the stories of several of our beloved objects, and how they came to be with us. Come learn about and help us remember the beautiful story of Mission Peak UU.

 

Leading the service will be Rev. Jeremy D. Nickel and Worship Associate
Barbara Meyers.  Music will be
provided by Jo Ann Schriner, Shauna Pickett-Gordon and Peak Performers. 
Self Awareness, White Supremacy, and the UUA — Sun. May 28
A recent regional leadership hire has revealed that staffing in our Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA) shows patterns of definite white bias. As a result, UU people of color have requested that we address this problem and reflect on how it also occurs in our congregations and districts – not just in the UUA. In concert with more than 600 UU congregations who are taking time to address this issue, Mission Peak is offering a workshop on Sunday, May 28th, after our service. We will examine how our biases are linked to white supremacy, denominational history, and how we can move forward. Each of us has a stake in finding ways into and through these issues. We invite you to come support one another as we look for creative and authentic responses to what some may see as a crisis but others frame as an opportunity for growth. Your participation is strongly encouraged. Self awareness of our own part in this issue, while it may be uncomfortable, will help each of us deepen our humanity and our sense of connection to others in our faith.

Rev. Kurt Kuhwald, UU community minister, and presenter for SURJ (Showing Up for Racial Justice) will facilitate our workshop. Assisting Kurt will be Allysson McDonald, MPUUC Social Justice Chair.

Your presence will help us become a more welcoming congregation and inclusive association. RSVP to Allysson, by May 25
allyssonmcdonald@gmail.com

and notify her if you need childcare. Please bring your lunch.

Bio:

Rev. Kurt A. Kuhwald has served 7 congregations and 3 Community Ministries as a UU minister and has preached and served widely in the PCD (including as Interim/Consulting minister here in SFUU in 2003/04). Racial Justice, Conscious Eldering, Worker and Climate Justice, are ministries that occupy his heart and dedication now in his 73rd year. Working with a community of Interfaith, climate and racial justice activists, he continues to support frontline communities in the Bay Area. He continues to be ecstatic that in October he became a grandpa!!

Immigrant Lobby Day: May 15, 2017, 8:30-4:00 p.m.
For
over 20 years, the California immigrant rights movement has convened annually at the state capitol for a day of advocacy, to champion the rights of the community and celebrate immigrants as part of the fabric of our state. The Unitarian Universalist Justice Ministry of California will once again participate with the California Immigrant Policy Center (CIPC) at this very challenging time for immigrants and refugees.

This day is a centerpiece of our immigrant justice ministry–we are morally compelled to stand with immigrants and their families as a visible and credible voice for our Unitarian Universalist values.
Register here:
http://uujmca.org/advocacy/immigrant-justice/join-us-for-immigrant-day-at-the-capitol/
so we know how many lunches to purchase and can welcome UUs.
We recommend you wear your yellow Standing on the Side of Love shirts!
Book Signing
After the service on May 7, our Minister Emeritus, Dr. Chris Schriner, will sign copies of his books, including Bridging the God Gap: Finding Common Ground Among Believers, Atheists and Agnostics; Your Living Mind: The Mystery of Consciousness and Why It Matters to You; Do Think Twice: Provocative Reflections on Age-Old Questions; and Feel Better Now: 30 Ways to Handle Frustration in 3 Minutes or Less. 20% of the proceeds will be donated to MPUUC.
Mission Peak UU May Monthly Board Meeting

The Mission Peak UU Board will meet Tuesday evening, May 9 at
Steve Wallcave’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

Summer Time
Sunday School – Adult Volunteers Needed!!!
Our spring curriculum for our Mission Peak youth will be ending at the end of May. As we head into the summer months, we will be having
Sunday classes for the children of our community. When our new DRE, JeKaren Taylor begins her work with us in May, we will finalize details for Summer Classes. The CaYRE committee is hoping that many of you will welcome our new DRE with a show of support, and a helping hand. She will not know people yet, and so we need to work together to make her feel welcome and supported. The best way to do that, is to sign up for classes this Summer!

 

JeKaren’s first day at Mission Peak will be on
Sunday, May 7th. Please welcome her warmly, and let her know that you are willing to teach a class or two this Summer! We will be having a fairly laid back curriculum this year from June to August. As we firm up plans,  JeKaren and the CaYRE committee will do our best to keep everyone informed. We are all looking forward to an exciting new year together!
General Assembly Delegates Needed
If you’ve ever thought about attending the UUA’s General Assembly or visiting New Orleans, consider attending this year.  General Assembly is scheduled for June 21st through June 25th at the New Orleans convention center.
This year’s event will be focused on Social Justice and we’ll also be electing our next UUA president. Our congregation is entitled to 3 delegates in addition to our ministers. If you can’t make it to New Orleans, consider attending GA as an “off-site” delegates and participate online. If you’re interested in serving as either type of delegate please let Rev. Jeremy know. Registration fees for on-site and off-site attendees increases after
May 1. Information is on the
UUA.org website.
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.
 

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.
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, May 9
4:00 – 6:00 PM
Suju’s
4949 Stevenson Blvd
Fremont
Mission Peak UU | 2950 Washington Blvd Fremont CA | 510.252.1477 | missionpeakuu.org
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