News

Feb 26: Celebration Sunday

Come celebrate with us on Sunday, February 26, 2012. There will be food, entertainment, and music as we each make our Giving Hands – Caring Hearts pledge to the Fellowship for the fiscal year July 1, 2012 through June 30, 2013. Our pledges provide approximately 80% of the funds needed to sustain our Fellowship and, where possible, to expand the many acts of kindness we do for our community. Our pledges cover the salaries of our minister and staff, our costs to maintain the Fellowship, and our programs and activities.

This is truly a caring community of people. We are the Fellowship and our generosity is what makes our spiritual, social, and service activities possible. So please review the suggested fair share amounts, and pledge generously on Celebration Sunday, February 26. Let your giving hands and caring hearts continue to expand our horizons.

During the last year from our Fellowship General Funds we have:

• Started a Youth Choir
• Begun the Building the World We Dream About classes
• Begun a second Men’s Group
• Designed and implemented a new web site

Our accomplishments extend beyond our congregation. In addition to the above, we have:

• Built two homes for families who were living in dramatically substandard conditions
• Delivered to people in Mexico over 50 truckloads of home goods and building materials including all the lumber from a Solana Beach home that would otherwise have ended up in a landfill
• Enabled home additions for kitchens, bathrooms and even an expansion of a medical clinic
• Supported seven different community centers, including the installation of electricity and bathrooms in the Canon Carretas community center
• Donated backpacks and school supplies for children in both Encinitas and Mexico
• Performed the Vagina Monologues to raise funds in support of Carol’s house and to create domestic violence education and therapeutic interventions in Canon Carretas
• Sent holiday cards to veterans
• Donated food each week to the Encinitas Community Resource Center food bank
• Volunteered as staff at the CRC
• Worked on the CRC Holiday basket program
• Hosted the Interfaith shelter for the homeless, providing meals, and chaperones for the guests
• Through the Interfaith Shelter Network, our fellowship committed to adopting a family and supporting an apartment for victims of domestic violence

Imagine what more we can do with our Giving Hands and Caring Hearts in the coming year.

For more information, contact John Sherman, Stewardship Chair or Lisa Shaffer, President Board of Directors

Forms and other info:

Pledgecard for Fiscal Year 2012-2013
PledgeByDirectDebit(VANCO)
Pledge Brochure 2012
Pledge FAQs

Note that our Annual Pledge Campaign is our annual fund raising drive and a separate and distinct campaign from the Capital Funding Campaign that you have also been hearing about. Celebration Sunday is all about the Annual Pledge Campaign. Later this year we will turn our focus to the Capital Campaign, which will raise funds strictly for much needed improvements to our physical structures and campus.

Feb 11: Restaurant Valentinos!

Saturday, February 11, 5:30 p.m. – Founders’ Hall
An evening of delectable dining and dancing await you when you come to Restaurant Valentinos! Appetizers start on the patio at 5:30 and dinner is served starting at 6:30. Service will continue through until 7:30 or 8:00 and dancing begins at 7:30! The menu is amazing and includes a salad, soup course, two different pastas, including lasagne and dessert! Our DJ is Talon Thrasher a YRUU, whose penchant for the “oldies” will be sure to get your feet tapping. Bring the whole family for a wonderful evening!

Start 5:30-6:30, appetizers and libations in the Courtyard
Dinner 6:30
Dancing 7:30
Cost is 25$ for a family of four, 8$ for individuals or 9$ at the door.

Contact Alison Crotty at alison@uufsd.org

Feb 5: Drawing Lesson and Tidepooling

On February 5th there will be both a drawing lesson, led by Linda Luisi at the Fellowship immediately after the service, followed by a tide pool walk at Swami’s beach, led by Steve Bartram.

For the drawing lesson, bring a sack lunch. For the tide pool walk, join us at the fellowship for car pooling, or meet at Swami’s Beach at 1 p.m. The walk will last about 90 minutes. Bring clothes that can get wet, shoes to walk on rocks and slippery stuff, your imagination, laughter, and curiosity. Give yourselves some extra time as parking at Swami’s Beach might be hard.

Sunday, February 5, 11:00 a.m. Drawing Lesson – Founders’ Hall
Sunday, February 5, 1:00 p.m. Tidepooling – Swami’s Beach

Contact Bev Conner at joyandfellowship@uufsd.org

Jan 22: Two Doors to Healthy Congregational Life

Rev. Jim Grant: The 4th UU principle honors a “free and responsible search for truth and meaning.” Truth and meaning in healthy congregations are related to two concerns: religion and organization. In some UU congregations the room assigned for the minister has two doors, representing two aspects of healthy congregational life.

This sermon is available in the following formats:

• Click here to watch this sermon as a video on Vimeo.
• Click here to listen to this sermon in MP3 format.

Dreamcatcher update

Thanks for sharing your dreams. On January 14, about 50 members of our Fellowship came together for a facilitated forum on our future. This was an important step in our Dreamcatcher strategic planning process. From the energy, inspiration, and vision shared by the participants, the Dreamcatcher team has prepared a report to the Board with recommendations for a mission statement and next steps.

The Fellowship is its membership. We encourage everyone to stay engaged in this process. Please invest your time and your money in sustaining and expanding the Fellowship so that we can see our seven UU principles made manifest in the world.

Contact: Lisa Shaffer

Jan 22: Congregational Meeting

There will be a congregational meeting immediately following the service on January 22nd.

Please mark your calendar to attend!

In addition to a brief update on the state of the Fellowship, we will be voting for our new slate of candidates for the board: John Atcheson, Don Jones, and Sarah Wright; for board officers: Lisa Shaffer, president and Caroline DeMar, vice president; and for the nominating committee: Steve Bartram, Alejandra Chan, and Caroline DeMar.

Contact: Sara Appleton-Knapp