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Mission Peak UU – Fremont, CA
The Home of Liberal Religion in the Tri-Cities and Beyond!
April 4, 2018
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This Sunday’s Service:
“People, Places and Things I Didn’t Know I Loved”
What happens when we approach the world, one another and ourselves with a holy curiosity? Why does Parker Palmer warn us about efforts to “build community?” What does match.com have to teach us about how we approach relationships? Rev. Jan reflects on these and other questions.
The Rev. Jan Christian serves as our Primary Contact on Congregational Life Staff for the Pacific Western Regional of the Unitarian Universalist Association. Before taking that position over two years ago, she served our congregation in Ventura, California for 13 years. Prior to entering ministry she worked for several decades in Arizona’s juvenile justice and social service systems and taught in the College of Public Programs at Arizona State University. She lives with her partner, Norm, and two cats in Atascadero, California. She enjoys being in, on or near water, reading fiction and spending time with her “little brother” Angel, who is 12.
Our second Sunday offering this month will go to Fresh Lifelines for Youth (FLY), a Milpitas based non-profit working in the Bay Area. FLY is committed to working with youth who have been involved in the juvenile justice system or are at-risk of going into the system to inspire them to change their motivation and behavior, build their assets and skills, and heal from past trauma. FLY’s innovative programs include legal education, leadership training, and one-on-one mentoring. Here’s a link for more info.
http://flyprogram.org/our-programs/
All cash and checks made out to Mission Peak UU Congregation (unless noted otherwise) on April 8 will be tallied and an MPUUC check for the total issued to FLY. Please be generous for this award winning organization! Help youth FLY! See you Sunday! – Allysson
Rev. Jan Christian will lead the service and assisting will be Rev. Benson. Drew Wilson will lead the Time for All Ages and Jay Steele will provide our music.
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PLEASE PARTICIPATE IN OUR TRANSITION SURVEY – ASAP
Your Transition Team is conducting a survey of MPUUC congregants in order to get detailed feedback for the search for a new Interim Minister, as well as get a feel for where we as a congregation want to see MPUUC going in the next few years.
It’s important that we do this quickly
(by April 8),in order to inform the search process, and it’s important that we hear what you truly think and feel, so that leadership can move forward with full awareness of the “state of the congregation.”
Here are two ways you can participate:
1. Attend services and/or the congregational meeting on Sunday, April 8. Printed copies of the survey will be available upon your arrival to Cole Hall for you to fill out and turn in that same day, before you go home.
2. See the survey NOW at “this link”. Print and fill out the survey, and return it by April 8 by:
* giving it to any Transition Team member on Sunday, April 8, OR * mailing it (ASAP!!) to:
MPUUC Transition Team
Mission Peak Unitarian Universalist Congregation
P.O. Box 545
Fremont, CA 94537-0545
We want to hear your heartfelt truth, not what you think you should say, so please respond honestly and add comments. We recognize the survey is rather long, and that we are asking you to turn it around rapidly.THANK YOU for taking the time and for sharing your insights and opinions. The more people who participate, the more useful this will be.
If you have questions or concerns, reach out to any Transition Team member. THANKS!
Transition Team Lay Members:
Beckett Gladney, Terri King, Mark Rahman, Tiffany Longfield, Shaun Klopfenstein
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Greetings from Gayle Tupper, your new-ish chair of Mission Peak’s Membership Committee! My husband, Eric Dittmar, and I discovered Mission Peak more than four years ago and found this to be “our” congregation. In such challenging times in the larger world, Mission Peak provides us a sanctuary in so many ways. My personal way of giving back to this community is to do what I can to help newcomers entering Cole Hall find the same sense of sanctuary, which is why I joined the Membership Committee.
The Membership Committee welcomes newcomers to Mission Peak and
helps them explore this supportive, loving community that supports the growth and practice of Unitarian Universalist principles. Especially during this exciting period of change and transition, there are many opportunities for our friends and new members to connect with our congregation via our Sunday Services, small group ministries, religious education/ exploration classes, social justice work, musical groups, and fun social activities.
What can you do to help welcome newcomers to Mission Peak? Lots of things!
- Wear your name tags, avoid “forgotten name syndrome.”
- Avoid acronyms that exclude the un-initiated.
- Guide newcomers to our Welcome table for the opportunity to sign in and receive our Week on the Peak, and other communications as they wish.
- Listen to newcomers, hear their interests and suggest connections with our various activities.
- Share the joy, optimism, and inspiration of being part of a congregation of people with varying approaches to putting actions to our shared values.
Finally, join us on April 15 for an Ingathering to welcome new members into our congregation
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Congregational Meeting – April 8, 2018
As most of you know, Rev. Benson will not be returning to Mission Peak for our next church year. As the Board discussed how to move forward with a minister for next year, we carefully considered the benefits and drawbacks of whether we want one more year of interim ministry (the second year that we originally planned on) or if we want to have two more years interim ministry (for a total of three years of interim ministry). The Board is recommending that we have two additional years of interim ministry, for a total of three years of interim ministry. Per our By-Laws, the length of time of our interim ministry shall be decided by Congregational vote.
There will be a Congregational meeting on Sunday, April 8, right after the service, to vote on the length of our remaining interim ministry period. Jan Christian, our liaison in the Pacific Western Region, will be joining our Congregational meeting on April 8th to answer any questions about the options for moving forward through our interim period.
Absentee ballots are available using this link. Please return your absentee ballot to Sandra Lange, our Office Administrator, at
office@mpuuc.org
, hand it to a Board member or drop it off before the meeting starts. Your absentee ballot must be turned in prior to the start of the Congregational meeting.
Please plan to attend this meeting and help determine how we move forward with our ministerial choices.
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LET’S SELL OUT!
BUY ONE/GET ONE RAFFLE?
Yes, if you buy at least one ticket to the Will Durst fun/fundraiser for MPUUC happening at Niles Discovery Church
April 22 (doors open
6:30 pm, comedy begins at 7) you may enter the raffle to get one FREE ticket. There will be up to 4 winners! Bring a friend or someone with whom you’d like to become more friendly!
C’mon people! To buy tickets for yourself or for a friend in need of a good laugh but short on $, go to
mpuuc.org/durst. Let’s sell out!
**you can buy tickets in-person this Sunday between the service and the annual meeting at the $25 rate, no fees!
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A few words from our minister in the interim…
Belonging. One of the most important aspects of a good, a full life, is having a sense that one belongs in a community or group. That sense of being a
part of something bigger than oneself when it comes to one’s core values is essential.
As a member of this religious community, we strive to be inclusive of all souls, not some souls. There is no quid pro quo in being a member, not always a something you can point to and get and say, “this is what I got as a member of MPUUC,” like a door prize at a carnival. This is no carnival here. When you get down to it, our community is a community of a powerful love. We aren’t perfect at expressing it, no; we are a community of human beings. But we know, to a person, that being a
part of means we come together and do our best.
When we fall short, we help one another up, and carry forward to live more fully into our values, our mission and vision for MPUUC and for the larger circles of community in which we live. As with any community, we depend upon one another to do tasks, to give and help raise funds, to participate in the ministries and activities that make our community strong.
If you are a current member, please let us know more about your skills and interests. Can you initiate a survey monkey? Can you design a flyer? Have you skill and interest in aiding in the religious, the ethical education of our children? Are you a good listener? Can you bake a cherry pie, or any other food item for someone in need of food or cheering up? Can you offer a ride to church or a medical appointment or support group session? Can you set up chairs or take them down on Sunday mornings? What will you contribute of yourself in these or other ways, as part of being a
part of?
Share with me, your minister in this interim year, or with Gayle Tupper or other membership committee folk, or seek out committee chairs or council conveners Paul Davis (president-elect of the congregation and convener of the Ministries Council), Melissa Holmes (past-president, and convener of the Personnel Council), or Michealle Havenhill (president, and convener of the Operations Council). Get more involved, engaged, if you are not yet making a good stretch in this way. Commitment matters and its rewards can be beyond your expectations!
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A Message from Your DRE
This Week Teaching:
Next Week Teaching:
K- 8: Megan McMillen, Patrick Myers All ages in service
Youth: Summer Lander, Alexa Sarten
Dre: (substitute) Shyno Chacko Pandeya
“Death of Sunday School” Webinar and Discussion
April 15th 11:30 Room 3/4
Join us as we take a look at the future of RE and what it means to have
Sunday School with the changing dynamics of congregations. This is a great opportunity for parents teachers, and anyone interested in sharing ideas and contributing to the future of Religious Education. Click the link below to read ahead of that day to make the most of the opportunity:
Earth Day Family Movie Night
April 28th 6 pm
Movie: Wall-e
Join us for another free family movie night! In honor of earth day, we will be showing Wall-e. For more information about the movie click here:
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0910970/
Summer Camps
There will be two amazing camps for children this summer! Attend both or choose one! Both will offer experiences they will never forget!
UU Mosaic Peace Camp
First Unitarian Church of San Jose
June 18-22
Chalice Camp
First Unitarian Church of Oakland
August 6-10, 2018
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YOUNG ADULTS: OWL TRAINING
(Our Whole Lives sexuality training)
UU San Francisco is hosting 4 Young Adult OWL Workshops, a tester to see if we might offer the full curriculum next year. Young adults interested, contact Joe Chapot, UUSF Young Adult Coordinator @
youngadults@uusf.org
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Get Involved: Opportunities for Service
Volunteer Bakers Needed for Will Durst Event
To help raise money for Mission Peak, we will be selling refreshments during intermission at the Will Durst Event on
April 22. We need your baking talents to make sure we have enough goodies to sell. We are expecting 175 people at the event, so we will need a lot of baked goods and several bakers to make them. Please email Ilze Duarte (
ilzeduarte@earthlink.net) as soon as possible to let her know if you can contribute baked goods to the event.
Once a Month, Be Part of Something Special: the
Sunday
Service team!
Our services are held in a space that is transformed each
Sunday. There are a number of opportunities for you to get involved with making our space welcoming and worshipful.
With your involvement, chairs will be set up or put away; hymnals will be set on chairs or put back in the cabinet; people arriving will be greeted and handed an order of service; there will be coffee afterwards. So, what do you say? This is our shared religious home and we aim to do Sundays well!
Sign up for a monthly assignment or find a friend to share with and each of you serve every other month! Sign up
here
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Ask what committees can use new members or specific tasks done: contact Gayle Tupper, Membership or Jen King, Leadership Development
It’s your community. Be a part of it with a little time and talent, too!
Right Now:
OUR Tri-City Interfaith Council MPUUC is now a member organization. Only individual members can vote and anyone from the congregation may join for a $25 dues, and attend whether a member or not. Rev. Benson is a member. Join in!
*Our friends at Temple Beth Torah will once again host the annual
Yom HaShoah, or Holocaust Remembrance Day Service:
April 15th at 7:30 pm. Interfaith participation is in the planning through our TCIC.
*LGBT tobacco prevention project
: Contact Tri-City Health Center, Brian Davis, for more
information. HIV-infected individuals and Trans women on hormones have increased negative health consequences if they smoke. Help with this education project.
Call your Elected Officials!
Calls can make a difference! Contact your representatives to alert them to your views!
Congressperson Eric Swalwell 510-247-1388 or go to
house.govSenator Kamala Harris
(202) 224 – 3553
Senator Diane Feinstein (202) 224-3841
Make it a full and most wonderful day April 22!
Before you go to our benefit with Will Durst, head over to join us at the LEAF event in the afternoon! It’s to be held at the Leaf Center
from 10 am to 3 pm at LEAF Center 36501 Niles Blvd at Nursery Ave California Nursery Historical Park. LEAF’s mission is to promote and teach sustainable agriculture and environmental issues and Earth Day is the perfect day to do this. LEAF will be
sharing ideas and information
about growing healthy food and environmental sustainability
with our friends, our partners and our community
. LEAF will be selling plants grown in their nursery and honey from their bees, have informative booths with games and/or giveaways,
live music to sing your heart away and good food to satisfy those hunger pangs. MPUUC will have an information booth at the event.
Admission FREE. Please click here for flyer.
Regional Assembly Delegates Needed
If you’ve never attended one, consider taking the opportunity to be with hundreds of other UUs from around the region at the Pacific Western Regional Assembly. Nothing like getting the feel of our larger UU community, how we’re part of something bigger than just MPUUC!
This exciting gathering is coming up in Portland, Oregon
April 27-29. Because of
the added travel costs for attending, the Pacific Central District is providing funds to each congregation in
the district to help offset some of the costs.
This year’s theme is
Stories of Hope, Courage, Resistance and Resilience. One of the featured speakers is
Rev. Susan Frederick-Gray, the new president of the UUA. Complete information and schedule is available at
https://www.uua.org/pacific-western
Mission Peak is entitled to 3 delegates (in addition to our ministers who are automatically delegates). If you think you might be interested in attending let Holly Ito or President Michealle Havenhill know.
Also, if you’re not already receiving the regional newsletter, you can go to this same website to signup.
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