December 2024

Kim’s December Did You Know? Video

Let’s end 2024 with one more Did You Know Video? from Kim, recorded earlier this month and highlighting past, current, and upcoming events at UUCWC in December.

Caring for Ourselves in This Time

By Lisa Schilansky, Ministerial Intern

As poet and activist June Jordan said in her work, Poem for South African Women, “We are the ones we’ve been waiting for.” Churches are a radical structure in a time of increased isolation. In our congregations, we show up to honor the joys and struggles inherent to life. In our congregations, we provide meals when folks are in need, listen deeply to each other in small group ministries, and sing together, synchronizing our hearts in rhythm. In our congregations, we name and honor the fact that some are at greater risk than others. And those of us with privilege learn how to wield it, how to be on the front lines, and how to ensure that those most at risk are not also the ones expected to do the most labor.

When the world is pulling us apart, our congregations hold us together. In the wake of the 2024 election, the UUA provided resources for how best to organize and support one another. First and foremost, they shared the importance of clear and ongoing communication within the congregation, the denomination, and our communities. None of us is going through this time alone. UUCWC is here, but churches are not institutions and buildings; they are the congregation within. Rev. Kim and I get to stand before the congregation each Sunday, but the power of church lives with you. Our strength lives with all of us, collective care is how we can best support each one another in this time.

Where Does 50% of the Plate Go?

By Holly Bussey, Facilitator, Faith Expression and Funding Team Ministry

We, The Faith Expression and Funding Team Ministry (FEFT), decide where to send the 50% of Plate we collect on Sunday mornings. Last financial year, funding from the Plate was more than $15,000. This year, we’ve already exceeded $8,000. Thank you.

Our mission is to help communities in New Jersey and Pennsylvania create a Better World. To do this we support four types of charity:

1) Neighbors in Need, such as TASK, and Loaves and Fishes

2) Sustaining groups already reaching out, like HomeFront, and Food Ministry

3) Community events

4) UU Emergency/Disaster relief

Our goal this year is to support groups where we already have connections. Our initial choice is Trenton Micro Loan Collaborative. (TML). It’s a young organization offering business loans and practical guidance to formerly incarcerated people in their quest to start a business in the Trenton community. We aim to create a long-term connection, enabling congregants to share their talents, participate in short-term commitments, and create connections.

From Your Stewardship Team: Mind the Gap

By Jane Root, Stewardship Committee

There’s a story about a woman in London who goes to the underground station every day to listen to the recorded announcement to “Mind the Gap” (the space between the train and the platform). It’s her husband’s voice, recorded in 1950, and after his death, she found that listening to it was a way to feel his presence. But London Transport replaced his voice with an electronic one. Distressed, she asked for a copy of the recording to continue hearing her husband’s voice. The subway company instead decided to restore the announcement at the stop near the woman’s home.

These days, your Stewardship team is minding the gap between our end-of-year giving goal of $25,000 and our current Giving Thanks donation total of $19,928.04 (as of December 12th). If you’ve already made your annual gift, thank you. If you haven’t, please take a moment to donate.

Grateful Hearts: Reflections from the UUCWC Board of Trustees

By Wendy Stasolla, President, Board of Trustees

As another calendar year winds down amidst the holiday hubbub, members of the Board of Trustees weigh in on why they’re grateful to be part of the action at our beloved UUCWC.

In the words of Board Vice President, Karen Kent: “As the world continues to evolve in ways I don’t always understand, I am extremely grateful for my beloved community here at UUCWC. From the moment I first entered the doors, I knew I had found a special place to worship.

“I am grateful that my daughter made friends and learned valuable lessons about being a kind and empathetic human being. I am grateful for our truly caring staff, for our magical tech team keeping our online community connected to us, and for our sexton Roberto who takes great care of us and our facility.

“I appreciate my wonderful fellow board members who deliberately and thoughtfully consider every aspect of how to keep this church running. I am grateful for the ministries that further our values within and outside church walls and I love my job as host because I get to personally welcome everyone who comes through the door. I am grateful for the connections I have made. I love UUCWC, and I’m so glad it’s my spiritual home!”

Allie’s Garden in 2024

By Al Johnson, Earth and Climate Ministry Co-chair

Allie’s Organic Garden is operated by UUCWC’s Earth and Climate Ministry (ECM) to provide produce for local food aid programs. All 2024 produce has now been harvested with the help of children in the Youth Faith Engagement Program in coordination with Julie Rigano, Family Ministry Director.

Growing conditions of excessive heat and dryness made this year challenging, but the yields were decent. A team of volunteers, including our staff, helped with watering. In keeping with UUCWC’s principles and the ECM’s mission, our total produce of 30 pounds of sweet potatoes, 3 pounds of butternut squash, and 60 pounds of carrots has been donated to the Trenton Area Soup Kitchen (courtesy of Denny Rodgers).

Earth and Climate Ministry would like to thank the many members of our congregation who have helped. The kitchen scraps (vegetables only) that many of our congregants have contributed to the compost bin and the Grounds Committee’s contribution of leaves from the church grounds have increased our soil’s organic matter and fertility. Faith Engagement children also helped plant our crops in the spring, while volunteers helped water, weed, and harvest. Thank you, UUCWC, for making this year’s garden a success in providing food to those in need in our area.

At the December 8^th harvest of the carrots, when tasting a small sample of the carrot top greens otherwise destined for the compost pile, Toby Wildszewski and a friend said it best by enthusiastically chanting, “This tastes good, this tastes good!”