North Shore Unitarian Church

North Shore Unitarian Church
BELONG WITH HEART.
THRIVE IN SPIRIT.
ACT IN SERVICE
Sunday Services 10:30 a.m.
Mar 3rd: Awe and Wonder: The Limits of
What We Know
Speaker: The Rev. Shana Lynngood, CoMinister, First Unitarian Church of Victoria
Co-ordinator: Leslie Gibbons
We modern folk seek knowledge and
certainty as often as possible. Yet the
worlds' great spiritual traditions all extol
the virtue of appreciating life's mysteries.
How can we hold on to our sense of
wonder and awe at the miraculous in life?
How can we see that a life of the mind is
part of this equation?
March 10th: “Can Eco-Spirituality grow Eco
-Justice?” PLEASE NOTE: the shift to Daylight Savings Time, so Saturday night before you go to bed, spring forward your
clocks an hour so you don’t miss the service
on Sunday!
Speaker: The Rev. Meg Roberts
Coordinator: Vanda Savage
What can we do to make the necessary
shift in our worldview and practices to heal
our eco-system? We begin with our theological grounding, then link our spiritual
practices with our justice work. I will share
some examples from my life and from
some Unitarian congregations.
Guest choir: The Sacred Web Singers
Following the service, The Sacred Web
Singers invite anyone who would like to
join them back in the sanctuary at
12:30pm for a sing-along. They will provide the music, no choir experience necessary, just a desire to sing some beautiful,
inspiring music by Carolyn McDade and
others whose work we sing in this continentwide network of women singers. We will
sing together for an hour. All ages and all
genders welcome!
March2013
Mar 17th:
Walking in Others’
Footsteps: The Inner Journey of
Partner Church Experience
Speaker: Marcia Stephenson
Coordinator: John Slattery
Exchanges between partner
congregations involve voyages in time
and space, journeys across borders of
language, culture and religious
practice. In her book Walking in
Others' Shoes, Gretchen Thomas invites
us to reflect on the interior process of
discovery that partnership evokes. This
morning we'll hear from some of our
own lay members about what the
Partner Church connection has meant
to them.
Mar 24th: There’s No Place Like Home
Speaker: The Rev. Arthur Berman
Coordinator: Andrea Berman
I'd like to share with you some of the
life lessons I've learned from baseball.
From ritual to spiritual discipline,
baseball has it all.
March 31 - “We Don’t Do Guilt: An
Examination of Atonement”
(Easter Sunday)
Speaker: The Rev. Meg Roberts
Coordinator: Rob McGregor
Many Christians understand that Jesus
died on the cross for their sins---this is
one theory of Jesus’ death known as
the Atonement. I don’t agree with this
theory. Come and find out why and
what benefits I offer instead from Jesus’ life, death, and legacy.
All ages will the start the service
together, and after the Story for All,
the kids will go off for an Easter Egg
Hunt.
Special points of interest:

IT’S PARTNER
CHURCH MONTH

ACT IN SERVICE
NOMINATIONS
SOUGHT

ANNUAL LADIES
CLOTHING SWAP
THIS MONTH!

SPRING ADVENTURE
EVENT FOR UU BOYS
Inside this issue:
FROM REV. ROBERTS
SABBATICAL CONTACTS
2
2
PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE
CHILDREN’S PROGRAM
3
4
SPRING ADVENTURE
YOUTH GROUP
5
6
SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY
CUC NEWS
7
8
HEART, MIND, SPIRIT
BULLETIN BOARD
8
9
FUNDFEST
CALENDAR OF EVENTS
10
11
12
DIRECTORY UPDATES
BOARD/STAFF DIRECTORY 12
A Caring Companion
I will be offering an adult program
called “Everyday Spiritual Practice”
on Tuesdays, March 12 and 26.
We’ll gather at 7:00pm and get
settled in so we can start by 7:15,
and go until 9:15. You’ll find details in the Heart Mind Spirit article
on page 8. I hope you’ll join me.
The Reverend Meg Roberts
Pastoral Care Minister (Jan-Mar)
N
ext month, beginning of April,
your minister, Rev. Stephen Atkinson,
will be coming back to you refreshed
after his sabbatical. It has been my
privilege to offer support as a pastoral care minister during these three
months while Stephen has been away.
If, during this third month, you want to
come by for a chat, or call and book
some time with me, I will be in the minister’s study at the church:




Friday, March 8, from 10:00 am
to 12:00 pm
Tuesday, March 12, from 4:00
pm to 6:00 pm
Saturday, March 23,
10:00 am to 12:00 pm
from
Wednesday, March 27, from
9:00 am to 11:00 am
If you would like to meet and the
above times are not suitable, please
contact me and we can find another
mutually convenient time. Just so you
know, I will be out of town Friday,
March 1 to Tuesday, March 5, for my
consulting ministry with the Comox Valley Unitarian Fellowship. I can always
be reached by cell phone and can access email while away:
778-870-9015, [email protected]
There is a wonderful book of meditations put out by the Unitarian Universalist Association, called “Voices
from the Margins” (edited by Jacqui
James, and long-time co-minister of
the Toronto First congregation, Mark
Morrison-Reed). These voices of UU
ministers of colour offer a rich diversity of multicultural perspectives
about how to live life fully. Here’s
one by Monica Cummings:
Take time each day to remember
you are a part of the interconnected
web of life. Bless a stranger with a
smile. Tell the people in your life
how much they mean to you. And
take a moment every day, beginning today, to give thanks for all
that you have.
May you have the strength, courage,
and commitment to begin or continue
the rewarding journey of selfunderstanding. May you have the
wisdom to forgive yourselves, the
grace to ask for forgiveness, and the
compassion to forgive others.
You are the co-creator of your life.
It’s up to you. Forgive your trespasses as you forgive those who trespass
against you. May you live your beliefs and feel at one with everyone
and everything.
Blessings upon you,
Blessings upon me,
Blessings upon every living thing,
Blessed Be.
SABBATICAL CONTACT
INFORMATION
During the sabbatical, you may contact: Greg Huynh, our Board President, about any congregational business matters; Lynn Sabourin for any
help you need from church staff; or
Rob McGregor, Chair of the Sabbatical Committee, for any other issue
about which you would have contacted Stephen. And Meg is also available to assist you in Pastoral Care issues.
Pastoral Care Minister: The Rev. Meg
Roberts: 778-870-9015 or [email protected]
Church Office: Debbie Leslie:
604-926-1621
Board President: Greg Huynh:
604-988-7078
Sabbatical Chair: Rob McGregor:
604-377-4307
Senior Staff Person: Lynn Sabourin:
604-926-1621
Lay Chaplains: Jasha Ramsay-Latter:
604-988-9931
Barbara Moore: 604-985-6596
Care & Concern: Liz Moffitt:
604-924-1449
Sunday Services: Andrea Berman:
604-913-1991
Buildings & Grounds: Office:
604-926-1621
Happy Spring!
Page 2
President’s Message
Greg Huynh
T
he heading used in the Beacon
Church newsletter is “President’s Ponderings”. I like it. While the following paragraphs will be strong in message, I present them to you more as
provocative ponderings. The Beacon
church is celebrating their congregation’s 30th birthday. Their first year
got started with the help of one Rev
Robert Latham. Rev Latham returned
from Colorado, where he calls home,
for a weekend of festivities including
an all day Saturday workshop on
growing churches.
It was a well attended workshop that
brought together about sixty odd
(double entrendre acceptable in this
instance) Unitarians from the four lower mainland churches. And while about
half were understandably from the
Beacon church, each of the other
churches had a table of representatives. I am pleased to say that our
table was comprised of four of our
board members, our religious ed director, our interim minister, and two
members from the congregation at
large. It was very good to be in the
company of our church neighbors AND
it was a delight to spend the day at
table exploring the big questions in
life with our own gang. You know,
questions like, “When’s lunch?”, and
“What do you make of Latham’s suspenders?” – that kind of thing.
Thought i would get specific here so
you know that your leaders are working hard for you.
Robert Latham was a teenage
preacher born out of the Baptist
tradition. He had a very impactful
Viet Nam experience (who ever
went that did not) and upon his return in 1969 “converted”, or, if I
may, transformed to Unitarianism.
He was a very engaging and provocative and compelling orator. He
came right out of the gate with the
premise: IF YOU ARE DOING YOUR
MISSION YOU CAN’T STOP
GROWING and, commitment to
religious mission will effectively address every issue a congregation
might face. Wow. So guess where
we spent a goodly portion of the
day – looking at Mission! Some
directives: gotta be 20 words or
less, must be reviewable at least
every 5-7 yrs. And don’t forget that
it is a religious mission. And as such,
we did religion exploration as well.
What is it and why did society create it. Some ideas that carried
weight as we bandied this about
were, that humans have a need to
1. feel safe and 2. to look for answers to the big questions (much
bigger ones than the examples I
gave earlier!), and 3. that Religion
points to giving meaning to the Mystery. Science seeks to figure out
and explain the how of a thing.
Religion explores the why.
And his message went on. Creating
religion is one thing but sustaining
religion is another. Part of doing
that is, and I quote, “Being witness
to one’s faith”. Who-hoo! Share
the good news, put your mission
statement on a T-Shirt, etc. Oh and,
it is time to let go of the dance we
do around many words. Words
like, let’s see if i can remember...oh
yeah, words like - God. There’s a
small example.
How we doing here; still reading?
One more topic to lay out in case
your feathers have not been already suitably ruffled. Unity vs Diversity. We have a long and proud
Page 4
tradition of being a religion that supports the individual – every voice
being heard and respected. Latham
posits that in fact, this attitude has
been taken too far and actually can
paralyze a congregation if it becomes a primary focus. While the
consensus model is still quite useful,
having a requirement of achieving
full agreement before moving forward just cannot be the standard.
Too much focus on diversity and the
individual , he argues, is a very limiting tack. It is through attention to
unity and having a clear mission, coupled with strong leadership that is
supported by effective caring and
committed ministry, that churches will
thrive moving forward. Ministry is
everything it does to fulfill Mission.
Reverend Latham also gave a no
holds barred sermon Sunday morning on Spirituality.
He titled it
“Frolicking in Mystery”. But I had
best save that one for another day!
Our group was feeling pretty good
about our reasonably freshly minted
mission statement. To fine tune it a
bit we felt that the first sentence is
really the whole statement: To empower people to live with greater
depth, meaning, and purpose. The
second sentence is really what we
covenant: We welcome all to our
caring community – Foster spiritual
growth free of dogma – And inspire
actions in the service of life. Our
mission statement continues to get
strong positive responses from other
Unitarians as it did again at this
workshop.
We’ve got something a goin’ here,
folks. Let us hold our Mission up high.
Let us take courage to lead the way.
And let our ministry shine bright!
Signed,
Ponderings of your Pres
PS- ok, if you should choose to think
that the ponderer is rather likely
aligned with the message, you might
not find much of an argument
Children’s Program
Lynn Sabourin
F
ebruary was brightened up considerably with our annual Talent Show
on February 3. Our gracious emcee,
Barrie Forbes, introduced a variety of
acts that enthralled us all following
that evening’s potluck. For those who
were not in attendance imagine, if
you will, Jasmine and Sian singing a
lovely duet, Alicia, Quinn and Amelia
reading their own amazing poetry,
Emily singing an original song with
guitar, Ross and Jackson cracking us
up with their wild rumpus, Maurice,
aka Henry V, quoting from the prologue, more poetry than most of us
can remember in a lifetime, River
making magic, the Cronies with their
hilarious poem, John Biasucci taking us
back in song to Camelot, Elizabeth
Cheng playing a heavenly classic and
accompanying Barb Brolly who had us
laughing to her rendition of Memories,
Drae and the youth making funky
percussion with glasses while Sofia
and Samantha sang in perfect harmony and, topping it all off, Leslie Gibbons vamping it up so well. Marlene
Dietrich would have thought she was
looking in a mirror. THANKS to all
who entertained us so heartily. Well
done!
I really should turn the writing of this
column to some of our young people.
I sat in for a few minutes in the Intermediate class while the kids were
writing and reading their Where I’m
From poems (based on a poem by
George Ella Lyon). The poetry that
emerged was amazing; permission
was given to include two here.
I am chocolate milkshakes from
McDonalds and Wendy’s.
I am from the Ferrari of my grandparent’s house.
I am from the flame of the sun, the
water of the ocean.
I am from celebration and Sikh religion, from Gramma and Grandpa
and Mom.
I am from caring and wonderful
family.
From please and thank you.
I am from the sense of the earth.
I am from Canada and India.
From bright serpent, the cautious
lamb and brave lion.
I am from the mantel of my family
history.
-Ethan Gill
I am from pushpins, Lysol and
Kleenex.
I am from the yellow chair that sits
in my Grandma’s retirement home.
I am from soil and snowdrops in the
grass.
I am from Chinese New Year, Easter, from Macmillan and Cheng and
Christopher James.
I am from kindness and loyalty.
From politeness and effort.
I am from Christianity and Unitarian
thoughts.
I’m from British Columbia, pancakes,
steaks and ribs.
From the dim sum, misunderstood
foods and the people who helped
her order her meal.
I am from our albums on the shelf,
the bottom one showing our lives
and our growth, along
with our family’s history.
-Christopher Cheng
At the start of their new curriculum,
Sing to the Power, this class is exploring their connection to the earth
and to their own roots.
The Middle group’s new program,
Love Connects Us , has had the class
exploring the concepts of: covenant
using the Noah’s Ark story, our heritage of love via the story of Judith
Sargent Murray, who believed that
children’s religious education should
embrace the idea of God as love,
the belief that love is richer when
Page 4
given away, as Malvina Reynold’s
song Magic Penny points out, the
Golden Rule also known as the ethic
of reciprocity, which is found in every faith tradition, and that love in
community requires meeting people
where they are, which was wonderfully illustrated in the story of Unitarian minister, Joseph Tuckerman,
whose social work ministry helped
the poor in early Boston.
The Primary class of 7-8 year olds
have had some inspiring stories in
their Moral Tales curriculum which
have focused on the qualities of
faith, empathy, forgiveness, welcome, and respect. This group loves
doing crafts which help then to integrate and remember the lessons
learned each week.
The Spirit Play classes’ latest sessions
have been inspired by our world
religion sources: The Tiger and the
Lame Fox from the Sufi tradition, the
Buddhist tale of the Wise People
and the Elephant, Noah’s Ark from
the Christian tradition and from our
Unitarian Universalist history, the
stories of John Murray and Francis
David. It is wonderful to see how
these little ones have settled into the
routine and ritual of the Sunday
morning experience.
Our pennies are going the way of the
dodo bird and might
as well do some
good on their way
out. As part of their
Faith in Action the three older classes
will be collecting pennies to support
the Free the Children Water initiative. Every $25 raised will ensure
clean water for one person - for life.
Free the Children’s mission is to empower and enable youth to be
agents for change. Let us help our
children be change agents by bringing in our pennies and dropping
them in the containers that the kids
will be bringing around during lunch
hour.
Potluck and Games
Night
Sunday,
March 3,
5-7 pm
Come join your church family for an
informal evening sharing supper and
having some fun together. Bring a
dish and a beverage to share and
gather downstairs at the church. This is
the night that Secret Buddies meet,
but it is for EVERYONE- the more, the
merrier. As Peter Steinke, the expert
on church family systems says, “the
church that plays together, stays together.”
Book Sale Success!
The book sale was a great success.
We collected $520. The money will
be divided in three: $200 to the
church, $200 to Cottage Farm, and
$120 to the library.
Thanks to all the people who brought
and bought books. We are also
grateful to Drae Mulder for letting us
use her part of the office. We could
not have done it either without the
help of the men of the men’s group
who packed, and took away the leftover books. A special mention to the
library committee members, aided
by Eljean Wilson, and guided by
Nora Coates.
Event:
The Spring Adventure
WHO: UU boys ages 9-12
GOALS:
Personal growth and maturity for boys
Build self confidence
Discover their authentic selves
Opportunity to live UU principles
Exercise respect for self, others, and the world around them
Build intergenerational community together
OTHER ASPECTS:
Safe environment, team games, campfires
Follow up activities for one month
DATE: Friday, May 31 through Sunday, June 1
LOCATION: UBC’s Loon Lake Research Centre
Maple Ridge, BC http://www.loonlake.ubc.ca/
LEADERS: Eitan Sharir and Blair Thompson
COST: Early Bird rate: $160 (includes all
meals,
accommodation and fun in a beautiful natural
setting).
REGISTAR: Lynn Sabourin: [email protected]
604-926-1621
REGISTRATION DEADLINE: April 26, 2013
Page 5
Here is NSUC member Dani Cooper,
who volunteered to teach English in a
small one room school in rural Ghana.
Youth Group
“IT’S BEEN A BUSY, BUSTLING
2013 SO FAR!”
Searching for Social
Awareness
Raymur housing project who used
non-violent direct action to get the
city to listen and finally build an
overpass that created a safe route
for their children to walk to school. If
you're unfamiliar with the mother's
of Raymur - you can find the full
story at
<http://
viaducteast.ca/2008/06/25/
militant-mothers-of-raymur/>.
T
The rest of the youth have been
buzzing like bees too:
Drae Mulder
he youth in the Coming of Age
Program participated in the much anticipated Social Awareness Scavenger
Hunt down Commercial Drive, through
Strathcona, the Down Town East Side,
Chinatown and finally up Granville
Street, with a list of interactions to
pursue.
They sang songs for people, told and
received stories, and learned about
community services from those who
access them. Youth arrived back at
the church with some wonderful stories
and insight wise beyond their years
about the interactions they had on the
way.
On a more fun- for fun's sake oriented scavenger hunt, they went out on
the town with Paul and parent volunteers Heather and Bill to gather
some silly pictures in a friendly competition for the highest scoring photos. Here are a few of the gems
from that evening:
Teaming with Talent
In the first weekend of February, a
group of youth also participated in the
congregation wide Talent show. We
were wowed by some of the congregation’s younger folks, who had clearly
worked hard preparing their songs
and poems. We weren't so prepared,
but we had some good fun throwing
together a number. singing and using
plastic cups for percussion. A few youth
also performed on their own, demonstrating that they are far better at
overcoming stage fright than I am!
Here's What We’ve Planned to Keep Us
Moving in March
Sunday Mar 3rd
Youth Adult Committee Meeting
5-7 PM
Youth Group Spirituality Night
7-9PM
Sunday Mar 10th
Youth Group - Community Dinner Night
6-9PM
Monday Mar 11th
Grade 12 Meeting 4:30-5:30PM
Wed Mar 13th
Parent and Youth Sexual Health
Jeopardy/Fishbowl 6:30-9PM
Sunday Mar 17th
Coming of Age - 5-7 PM
Youth Group - Social Action Night
7-9PM
Sunday Mar 24th
Youth Group - Games Night 6-9PM
They took this photo for the questions
which asked them to "bring back
something that represents this experience for you" - It is a picture of them
in front of some string art which offers
up thanks to the mothers of the
Sun Mar 31st
Easter Sunday - No Youth Group
Page 6
Social Responsibility
JANUARY OUTREACH COLLECTIONS FOR NORTH SHORE
March: It’s Partner
Church Month!
VOLUNTEERS FOR SENIORS TOTALLED $1,154.25
against all obstacles and all odds.
In fact, make sure you’re at church
on March 17th to hear Marcia Stephenson’s story of what that trip
meant to her. We’ll celebrate the
19th year of our partnership with
cake after the service.
W
ell, it’s actually Sunday the
17th of February and we’re at my
brother’s place near a small town on
the Baja peninsula where my niece
and family have been living for nine
years looking after orphans and
abused kids sent to them by Mexican
social services. Now that only two of
their own kids are still at home they
are down to just fourteen living in one
rented house. We were there for dinner the last two nights and it’s obviously a big challenge to care for this
huge crew and they certainly couldn’t
do it without the support of their families, their home church in Abbotsford
and people from several churches
across Canada. A partnership, you
say?
I wouldn’t say that our Partner Church
in Hodmezovasarhely, Hungary couldn’t survive without our support, but
they and certainly we are the richer
for it. Ask any of the choir members
and friends who went on the tour to
Hungary and Transylvania in 2010
how it felt to be in the cradle of Unitarianism amongst those that have
been preserving our chosen faith
Each time one in our congregation
reaches out to one in our Partner
Church, the bond gets just a little
stronger. Each time we get an email
or card from the minister, Rev.
Mihaly Kiss and wife Tunde, the gap
between us narrows. Their brand of
Unitarianism is very different from
ours and yet both partners want
virtually the same things for their
families, their congregations and for
the world. The main focus of Rev.
Kiss’ ministry continues to be the children and youth and our continued
support has helped them to rebuild
the physical structures that allow
that work to take place. But, even
more important according to the
Kiss’, is the assurance that our
friendship and caring is mutual and
lasting.
Each year there are several travel
opportunities offered by the Unitarian Universalist Partner Church Council for trips of various kinds to Transylvania as well as often to Hungary, Czech Republic, India and the
Philippines. The two tours that Kay
and I have been on have been
good value, very well run and a lot
of fun. Ask me about these opportunities at any time and I’ll tell you
how they will enrich your life.
All of the Sunday offerings for the
month of March will go to support
our Partner Church so please be
generous!
In partnership,
Brian Welwood, Chair, Partner Church
Committee
Page 7
T
he role of ‘Networker’ involves
facilitating and maintaining connections between 160 Unitarian churches
in North America and their congregational partners in 9 countries. A Central Partner Church Office, in Boston
Mass., coordinates the over-all program.
My work involves assisting, encouraging, and supporting the connections
between six pairs of the Unitarian
churches.
The “Partner Church” department, of
our overall Unitarian Church movement is, to me, as a ‘Networker’, an
exciting, and interesting part of
‘being a Unitarian’. It is very gratifying to know that there are others
around the world who hold similar
beliefs and principles—and there is
great joy in connecting with those
‘others.’
Kaye Wagner, Networker,
Partner Church Committee
Dying with Dignity
Rally in Vancouver
Monday, March 4, 2013.
Wanda Morris, executive Director of
Dying with Dignity Canada, invites
all of us to come. The Gloria Taylor
Appeal Case for the Right to Die
starts on that day. We need you to
let your voice be heard. Here are
the details.
Place: Vancouver Court House Steps
(SW corner) Time: Rally starts at 9am.
Please call and let us know if you
plan to attend. DWD office 1-800495-6156. If you are able to help
with the planning, please let Galina
Coffey Lewis know:
[email protected] or 250-386-7772
Heart, Mind, and Spirit
Adult Programs
Two Workshops with Carolyn Koehnline,
visiting NSUC March 9-10
Carrie impressed many participants
at Eliot Institute last August with her
presentations on clearing many types
of clutter in our lives. She holds an
M.A. in psychology, is a Licensed
Mental Health Counsellor, a clutter
specialist, a Certified Journal to the
Self® Instructor, a workshop leader
and a writer, illustrator, and musician.
She lives in Bellingham and attends
the Unitarian fellowship there. In
March, Carrie will offer the following
workshops to our congregation and
the wider community.
Continuing to Clear the Clutter (Saturday,
March 9, 10:00-11:30 a.m.)
This workshop will be specifically
geared to folks who attended the
Aug 2012 Eliot camp and would like
to check in with other “alumni” about
their progress with clutter. Carrie will
be reminding them of the basics and
helping them to find their next
step. Cost: $10. (Please note change
in time and fee from program format
announced earlier.
Clearing Clutter: An Introductory Workshop (Sunday, March 10, 1:15-4:15 pm)
Everyone is welcome, no matter how
much or how little clutter they may
have in their homes, heads, hearts
and schedules. Carrie will be providing people with fresh perspectives,
tools and information to help them
effectively address clutter that is
bogging down their lives. Invite your
friends from circles beyond the congregation. Both workshops will be
interactive and include some writing.
Cost: $20.
SIGN UP for programs on the Heart,
Mind, Spirit bulletin board downstairs
or by phoning or emailing Debbie
Leslie in the church office.
Everyday Spiritual Practice:
Two evenings with Rev. Meg
Roberts, our pastoral care minister
Tuesday, March 12, and Tuesday,
March 26, 7:15-9:15 p.m.
Many of us want to deepen our spiritual lives but are not sure how to do
it. Having a regular spiritual practice
helps you connect with what inspires
and challenges you---whether that
be a divine power, inner wisdom,
and/or nature. This workshop introduces you to some different practices
as well as helps you explore what
might enrich your spiritual connections. I will draw from various faith
traditions as well as different theological perspectives, so whether you
believe in God or not, or are still
exploring your options, there will be
something for you---just come with an
open mind and heart.
Rationale: This workshop explores
spiritual practices from the mind
(contemplation), heart, body, creativity, applying the will to actions for
justice. So, it will address practices
for heart, mind and spirit.
Special Note: Please register for this
program by Sunday, March 10, as a
go/no-go decision will be made on
that date if the minimum number of 6
participants has been reached.
Thanks again to John Slattery for
leading the ongoing program on
“Bible as Literature” and to Inga
Puhlmann for facilitating the. Awakening Joy book circle.
Canadian Unitarian
Council News
Annual Conference and Meeting
2013
Registration Now Open
Registration is now open for the CUC’s
2013 ACM in Calgary, Alberta. The
conference runs May 17 – 19, 2013,
with some pre-conference events happening on May 16 and 17. If you
are interested in attending, please
contact Leslie Gibbons and be sure to
check the CUC website for details.
Page 8
The NSUC will be sending 5 delegates to the AGM: Leslie Gibbons,
Jon Slattery, Joy Silver, Yetta Gram
and Karen Epp. Both Lynn Sabourin
and Rev. Stephen Atkinson will be
attending. There will also be a bus
traveling from BC to Calgary which
should defray costs and prove a joyful and song filled experience for all.
Quebec Close to Legalizing End-ofLife Choice!
An expert judicial panel appointed
by the government of Quebec released their report January 15, 2013.
This report moves the province one
step closer to legalized medical aid-in
-dying by the summer of 2013.
Murray Enkin, Friend of Capital UU
Congregation, awarded Order of
Canada
Dr. Murray Enkin, Friend of Capital
UU Congregation and a professor
emeritus of McMaster University, was
made a Member of the Order of
Canada by Governor General David
Johnston for “his contributions to maternal care and the development of
midwifery as a recognized profession
in Canada.” Dr. Enkin and his wife,
Eleanor, are long-time friends of Capital UU Congregation. Dr. Enkin’s father, Maxwell Enkin, was also a Member of the Order of Canada.
“Act in Service”
Nominations
Sought
The Mary Segal Distinguished Service Award and the North Shore Unitarian Church Service Certificates will
be awarded at a Sunday Service in
May. This year, for the first time,
any Member of the congregation,
Staff or Youth Member may nominate recipients of these honours. If
you can think of individuals or a
group who should be recognized for
volunteering, please print the nomination form sent out with this newsletter or obtain one from the display in
the foyer. Nominations will be kept
confidential and must be submitted
by Friday April 5th.
Bulletin Board
Clothing Swap for All
Ages, All Sizes
sweaters, blouses, pants and of
course jewelry of all kinds are most
appreciated! All left-over clothes
will be donated to various charities.
To volunteer to help sort donations
the week before the swap, and/or
help set up on Friday the 22nd,
please contact Jasha Ramsay at
604-988-9931 or [email protected]
So ladies of all sizes and ages and
interests – start looking through
your closet with a critical eye…
“Will I really wear this again, or is
it time to pass it on?”
Saturday, March 23, 10am to 2pm,
with donations being accepted during
the week leading up to the sale. With
the $10 entry charge you are welcome to take whatever strikes your
fancy at no extra cost. We will be
serving coffee, tea and light refreshments to revive your strength after
“bagging some bargoons”, so plan to
come early and shop till you drop!
We welcome women’s or children’s
clothing items in clean and good condition – no missing buttons or nonworking zippers, please.
Coats,
scarves, hats, gloves, purses, shoes,
Cronies
We meet at the church in the fireside
room on the second and fourth Thursday
of every month: March 14th and 28th, at
12:30. Bring your lunch, we make tea.
We are looking for elder women to join
our happy group. Bring a topic for discussion!
“Life is not measured by the number of
breaths we take, but by the moments that
take our breath away.”
Artarians
This month the sanctuary will display the art work created at the
art workshop on February 24th
2013. The two themes of the works
are valuing the earth and a celebration of Spring.
The Artarians are a group of North
Shore Unitarian artists. Biographies
of the artists can be found at the
back of the church. We are an
active and fun committee who is
always looking for new members.
If you are interested please contact
Jilly Watson at 604-947-9604 or
[email protected]
Page 9
Don’t Forget
Sunday announcements can often
be included on the yellow insert in
the Order of Service if you send
tem to the Office by Thursday
afternoon.
Bulletin Board
GET YOUR FROLIC ON!!!!
DON’T FREAK OUT!!!!!!
IT’S TIME FOR
FUN FEST
d
Saturday, April 13th
??? IS THIS DATE in your calendar ???
IT’S ONE MONTH AWAY!!!
Step in to the wild side
Get your thinking caps on!!!!
OUR FRIENDLY
FUNdFEST FORCES WILL BE ‘F’ONING YOU
How are YOU going to contribute to our RADICALLY INCLUSIVE EVENT???
Use your imagination!!!!
Find what you FANCY and make it FOR REAL!!!
YJU do NOT want to miss this opportunity!!!
Please contact us with your
CONTRIBUTIONS
and questions
604-988-7224
WE NEED YOU!!!!!!
BE PART OF FUN……….dFEST!!!!!!
We WILL be phoning YOU!!!
From our hearts to yours!!!
Leslie Gibbons, Joanna & Bob Vaughan, Jim Stephenson,
Greg Huynh, Leanne Warner, Dan & Juliana Leahy
Page 10
March 2013
Be sure to check the weekly Calendar posted in church for building use, including private rentals and
room allocation, and refer to the church calendar on our website www.nsuc.ca for the most up -to-date
information.
S UN
M O N
T UE
WE D
T HU
3
10:30am Sunday Service
12pm Music Focus Group
5pm Intergenerational
Potluck and Games Night
5pm YAC meeting
7pm Youth Group
4
5
12:30 Staff Meeting 7pm “Awakening
7:15pm “The Bible Joy”
as Literature”
7:30pm Meditation
6
7pm Coordinating
Council
7
6:15pm Choir
10
10:30am Sunday Service
12:30 Sacred Web
Sing-along
1pm “Clearing the Clutter”
6pm Youth Group
11
12
7:30pm Meditation 7:15pm
Everyday Spiritual
Practice with Rev.
Meg Roberts
13
14
6:30pm Jr. High OWL 10am Meditation
Closure
12:30pm Cronies
6:15pm Choir
17
10:30am Sunday Service
4pm Coming of Age
7pm Youth Group
18
7:15pm “The Bible
as Literature”
7:30pm Meditation
F R I
S AT
1
2
8
9
10am “Clearing
the Clutter”
7:30 Andrew
Weaver Talk
19
20
7pm “Awakening 7pm Board Meeting
Joy”
7pm Men’s Group
21
10am Book Club
6:15pm Choir
15
Newsletter
Deadline
16
22
23
Set-up for Cloth- 10am –2pm
ing Exchange
Women’s Clothing Exchange
Texas Hold’em
Poker—
a FUNdFEST
Event
24
10:30am Sunday Service
6pm Youth Group Games
Night
25
26
27
7:30pm Meditation 10am Children’s 6:30pm Jr. High OWL
Program Committee Meeting
7:15pm
Everyday Spiritual
Practice with Rev.
Meg Roberts
31
10:30am Sunday Service
(Easter)
Page 11
28
10am Meditation
12:20pm Cronies
6:15pm Choir
29
30
Mission Statement
THE
NORTH SHORE UNITARIAN CHURCH IS TO EMPOWER PEOPLE TO LIVE WITH GREATER DEPTH,
MEANING AND PURPOSE. WE WELCOME ALL TO OUR CARING COMMUNITY, FOSTER SPIRITUAL GROWTH FREE
OF DOGMA, AND INSPIRE ACTIONS IN THE SERVICE OF LIFE.
MISSION OF
Directory Updates
Please see Debbie in the church office if you would like a church directory. The directory is for our church members, RE Parents, and friends. The
addresses, phone numbers, and e-mail addresses listed are for use to
help facilitate communications within the congregation and not for any
unsolicited mailings or e-mails.
North Shore
Unitarian Church
370 Mathers Avenue,
West Vancouver, BC
V7s 1H3
New address:
Sharon Bowen
1590 Lawson Ave.,
West Vancouver, BC V7V 2C9
Phone: 604-926-1621
Fax: 866-450-9852
E-mail: [email protected]
Judith Gordon
#801, 195 21st Street,
West Vancouver, BC V7V 4A4
We’re on the Web!
www.nsuc.ca
Please note: to protect against spam, we will no longer be publishing
email updates in the newsletter.
STAFF AND BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Minister: The Reverend Stephen Atkinson
(on sabbatical Jan 1—Mar 31, 2013)
Pastoral Care Minister during Sabbatical:
The Reverend Meg Roberts (see pg. 2 for office
hours and contact information)
Affiliated Community Minister:
The Reverend Arthur Berman
Lay Chaplains: Jasha Ramsay-Latter,
Barbara Moore
Director of Religious Education:
Lynn Sabourin
Music Director: Alison Nixon
Accompanist: Tom McPherson
Youth Program Coordinator: Drae Mulder
Financial Administrator: Kay Welwood
Office Administrator: Debbie Leslie
Custodian: Tom Fullerton
Newsletter:
Editor: Norma Elrod
Layout and Production: Debbie Leslie
Webmaster: Malcolm Mallory
Board of Directors:
President: Greg Huynh
Vice President Congregational: Kathryn Nicholson
Vice President Denominational: Leslie Gibbons
Treasurer: Brian Funt
Secretary: Brian McConnell
Members at Large: John Biasucci, Marga Hanna, Sean
Kelly, Pat Meyer
Page 12