October 2024

Kim’s October Did You Know? Video

Watch the latest installment of Kim’s Did You Know? video series.

Finance Committee Update

By Sandee Steinberg, Finance Committee Chairperson

Now that the church year is underway, I want to update you on our committee’s work.

The committee consists of chairs and leaders of other committees, as well as members-at-large. Every month, we review the current state of the budget, as presented to us by our Treasurer, Denny Rodgers. We then discuss items of general interest to the committee and updates from the various committee members.

We are only at month four of our fiscal year, so there is little to report. However, we have the final numbers for the last fiscal year ending June 30, 2024. When Denny and Jim Sanders presented the numbers at the Annual Meeting in June, they predicted a surplus. The final surplus figure is $43,000, which was bigger than expected. The larger number is because of slightly fewer expenses, primarily due to not having to pay back the construction loan last fiscal year, as well as slightly more income because of high interest rates on some of our savings accounts and better-than-expected plate contributions.

In Relation, Not in Service: Reflections from a New Board Member

By Chris Marietti, Trustee

It’s been a while since I’ve had the privilege of addressing the congregation. Not that I’ve been clamoring to do so. But I want to take a moment and talk about my experience as a new member of the Board of Trustees.

The last time I shared my thoughts with you all, quite a few years ago, I did so from the pulpit, where I’m far less comfortable than I am here, behind my laptop. The assignment was to discuss “why I give” to UUCWC. Part of the message I shared that day was how this is a congregation of superheroes. I’ve been reflecting on that while thinking about writing this article. It’s still a reason I give to this congregation. Today, I want to discuss how meeting regularly with the Board further confirmed this notion.

In a ceremony in early October, we, the congregation, released Susan Irgang from her covenant as the Congregational Administrator. I’m thankful for the timing of my arrival on the Board this summer because I witnessed at least a few meetings’ worth of what made Susan so special in that role. At that service, Rev. Kim reminded us that Susan’s time in that position was marked by her dedication to be in relation with the congregation rather than in service to it. I loved this reframe because I think it’s easy (especially as a wide-eyed new Board member) to feel we are assembled to serve.

Faith in Action: Supporting UUA Disaster Relief After Hurricane Helene

By Holly Bussey, FEFT Facilitator

As we learn about the devastation wrought by Hurricane Helene, we seek ways to help effectively. We want our money to go where it is most needed.

This month, your Faith and Fund Expression Team (FEFT) Ministry will consider making a donation to support UUA Disaster Relief. Each month we meet to discuss strategy and move towards connections. Sometimes, however, the greatest need is a donation of money.

The Disaster Relief Fund is part of a covenant between the UUA and its congregations, between congregations that can give to those in need, and between the UUA and community partners. By aiding our congregations, their members, and their community partners, we embody our faith and values, while Disaster Relief clearly identifies who receives the funds.

Your generosity with the Sunday plate will significantly help FEFT increase our ability to designate funds for this and other causes as we continue to strive to change the world.

Contact faithfunding@uucwc.org if you have questions or are interested in participating in FEFT.

Giving Thanks

By Susan Irgang

As I end my 14 years at UUCWC, I want to share a few gratitudes.

To those who planned such a thoughtful and overwhelming retirement celebration, please accept my appreciation for a very memorable day. To those who made donations in honor of my retirement to Studio Route 29, a small nonprofit of working artists helping those with disabilities become working artists, your generosity helps keep their doors open.

Thank you to Melo Holstein, who started me on this journey by encouraging me to apply for the job of administrator and guided me through my early months. The torch she gave me has now been passed to Marilyn Gonzalez, the next church administrator, who will skillfully continue this most interesting work.

People had been known to say “Ask Susan” when there was a church-related question: that’s because I have spent the last 14 years listening and learning from those around me. To all those leaders who taught me beyond the edges of my “regular” job duties, from Finance to the Council for Faith in Action, Capital Campaign, Caring Ministry, Stewardship, and many other groups, thank you for sharing your knowledge and expertise.

Sustaining Our Legacy: From Capital Campaign to Endowment Contributions

By Bonnie Gilbert, Co-Chair, Endowment Committee

We are all happy to have the Capital Campaign construction nearly complete and even happier that it is almost paid for. If you have completed, or almost completed, your Capital Campaign pledge, you may wonder what you can do to support the church and keep that tax deduction. Here’s what I’m doing, and you can do it too. When your Capital Campaign pledge finishes, you can save a bit for the end-of-year campaign and send the rest to the Church’s Endowment Fund.

Anyone can contribute to the Endowment Fund at any time. There is no need to wait until your will kicks in to contribute. Our growing Endowment Fund bolsters our church’s future financial security and also makes funds available every year for special projects such as speakers for special events, guest musicians, improvements in our Zoom technology, plantings around the grounds and special technology for an Earth and Climate Ministry project. Just indicate on your check, PayPal, or Venmo that your contribution is for the Endowment Fund or End of Year campaign. Thank you for keeping this in mind and acting on it.

A Season of Gratitude: UUCWC’s 2024 Thanksgiving Offering

By Jane Root, Stewardship Committee

As your Stewardship team considered a theme for our UUCWC annual December giving opportunity, we realized that giving thanks for all we have experienced and shared this year was what we wanted to celebrate. Here are a few examples of the vitality and commitment of our congregation for which we are thankful:

• The new construction and renovation of our beautiful church building
• The talents, energy, and commitment of our ministerial intern, Lisa Schilansky
• The return of Welcome Table Wednesdays
• Our Vespers service
• The marker acknowledging the land on which our church resides
• The arrival of Marilyn Gonzalez as our new church administrator
• Susan Irgang’s 14 years of dedicated service at UUCWC
• Welcoming five new members to our church family
• Continuing to share joys and sorrows
• The joy of new choir members and talented guest musicians on Sunday mornings
• The vitality and commitment of our congregation
• A meaningful annual General Assembly
• Rev. Kim’s inspiring leadership.

Nourishing Our Community: Food Ministry’s Outreach and Upcoming Events

By the Food Ministry Team

The Food Ministry Team is off to a busy start doing what it can to help reduce food insecurity in our local communities. Thanks to the generous donations from members and friends to the first food drive in September, we delivered canned and boxed food with an inventory value of close to $700 to Fisherman’s Mark in Lambertville. Starting in October, the Food Ministry will provide a monthly meal for the Monday night Home Front Tutoring program. It will also continue making a monthly supper meal bag for Home Front’s Joy’s, Hopes & Dreams program students.

The team also plans to host another chili fundraiser on Sunday, December 15th, the day of the South Philly Jazz Band concert. Members and friends will have several more opportunities to donate to food drives over the year. The Food Ministry’s work is supported by the Faith Expression Funding Team arm of the Council for Faith in Action, which relies on donations to the Sunday plate for its funding. Your generosity matters.

Food Ministry members are excited about the new kitchen, which will soon be operational. We will resume meal preparation for Luther Arms Senior Housing in Trenton, our annual Loaves and Fishes weekend in March, and other planned meal preparation projects. Food Ministry members are Serv Safe certified, meaning they have studied for and taken a test to be certified in safe commercial kitchen practices.

Many organizations the Food Ministry has worked with or donated to need volunteers. If you want to contribute to the community outside UUCWC, click here for information about a few organizations the Food Ministry works with.

If you are interested in joining the Food Ministry team, monthly meetings are on the second Tuesday of each month at 10:00 a.m. Email foodministry@uucwc.org for more information or with your comments or suggestions.

Wearing Our Mission: New UUCWC T-Shirts Amplify Our Advocacy and Community

By Victoria Locane, Racial Justice Ministry

At a recent Racial Justice Ministry (RJM) meeting, the team came together to answer the question: How do we show others the mission of UUCWC? Inspired by other advocacy groups, we were inspired to show the UUCWC mission in the world via a T-shirt. We thought that, as a group, seeing a sea of UUCWC members and friends wearing the same shirt in crowds performing social justice actions would highlight our church’s heart right on our sleeves.

RJM, with the help of funding from the Council for Faith in Action (CFA) through the Faith Expression and Funding Team (FEFT), ordered Carolina Blue advocacy T-shirts in medium, large, and x-large, featuring the UUCWC mission. You may have seen this design before, and now is your opportunity to shine in Carolina Blue. Now you can attend Faith in Action activities, New Jersey reparations council meetings, pride parades, UU the vote canvassing, postcard writing campaigns, or any of the “good trouble” we get into while sporting your UUCWC shirts that show the community who you represent!

Fundraising Notes | Swipe, Support, Sustain: Growing Our Raise Right Program

By Steve Saddlemire

The Raise Right program has been available to UUCWC members and friends for several years but hasn’t grown beyond the 6-8 people who use it monthly. We need and want to see it grow.

The Raise Right program raises funds for the church. Congregants purchase cards that are used in lieu of cash or credit cards at hundreds of businesses throughout the area. You don’t need cash or checks, and it’s as simple as swiping a card. After purchasing the card, a small percentage of the cost is returned to the church for our use.

If you want to learn more about Raise Right, click on https://www.raiseright.com/. Once you’ve selected the vendors, email raiseright@uucwc.org and let me know what you need. Cards are received and distributed by the second Sunday of the month. It’s easy. Join the fun and help the church at the same time.

UUCWC Volunteers Help Smith Family Foundation of Trenton

By David Thomas, Trustee

UUCWC partners with several social justice organizations, but there is one that you may not have heard about. Smith Family Foundation (SFF) of Trenton was created in May 2016 when the Smith family received what they call a “substantial financial blessing” after winning a large lottery prize. They decided to use their good fortune to make a difference in the community. SFF, a faith-based nonprofit, focuses on helping people by supporting education, homeownership, and leadership development and offering training on things like grant writing and starting a business. They also sponsor various community events.

UUCWC volunteers have supported SFF in several ways for the past few years.

• Volunteering at three of their Kwanzaa celebrations
• Donating toothbrushes and toothpaste for their college care package program.
• Packing and distributing these care packages to incoming college freshmen
• Assisting with the IAMTRENTON Scholars Dinner
• Assisting in the Bridging the Gap: Blacks In Philanthropy Conference
• Sorting books at Dunn Elementary School

SFF has always been warm and grateful for our support in their mission to change lives in “Our City.”

Our involvement with SFF was initiated under the auspices of the Social Action Ministry. You can join this noble cause the next time SFF needs assistance. Each event is a one-time commitment, but SFF knows they can count on us when they need volunteers. If you want to lend a hand, watch for announcements concerning the next volunteer effort. To learn more, contact David Thomas or the Social Action Ministry email SocialAction@uucwc.or

Jessica Alaimo

Parker Cohen

Murray Grove’s Homecoming 2024: A Day of Community, Inclusivity, and Legacy

By Jessica Alaimo, Executive Director, Murray Grove & Parker Cohen, Murray Grove Board Secretary

On Saturday, October 5, Murray Grove hosted its annual Homecoming celebration. Homecoming 2024: Earth Justice! It was a wonderful and successful event, during which community members and supporters gathered outdoors for moving speeches, great music, and standup comedy.

Murray Grove, the birthplace of Universalism in the U.S., is known for being a historic and sacred location in Unitarian Universalist history. Now a retreat center and event venue, MG welcomes all to share in the beautiful and calming scenery offered here

Talking About the December 2024 Ge- Ge- Generations Service

By Scott Cullen, CrossCurrents Editor

This is the time of year when I start planning the end-of-year Generations Service, scheduled for Sunday, December 29. It’s been a privilege to present this service for the past eight years, and I look forward to doing it again. For new members unfamiliar with the service, this is an opportunity for members of the congregation, each one representing a different decade (20s, 30s, 40s, 50s, 60s, 70s, 80s, etc.) to share their insights about a specific theme, which varies depending on the year to keep the service fresh.

Because last year’s theme was so well received, we are doing it again: Discovery through the Arts. Each participant will reflect on a work of art that has moved and/or influenced them, provided them with insight or comfort, or brought them joy. Perhaps it does all of those things.

It may be a poem, a novel, a short story, a movie, a piece of music, a song, a play, or a work of art, such as a painting or a sculpture. Whatever the form, it has inspired them and shaped who they are and/or their perception of themselves or the world around them.

If you want to participate in this service or learn more, email me at scott_cullen@verizon.net. Don’t be shy about reaching out whether you are a new member, long-time member, or have participated in this service before. And don’t be surprised if I reach out to you first.

October at UUCWC

10/20 – Outdoor Adventures Hike

10/26 – Cosmic Crossings Concert featuring Todd Skinner aka Dreamware and George Wallace

10/27 – Super Sunday

10/30 – Fall Council Meeting

Click here for additional details on these events and more calendar listings.