Newsletter - July, 2012
From Our Minister:
Dear friends,
It has been a wonder to welcome my son to the world over these past few months. It didn’t take him long to get involved in church and community life — see if you can spot him, his big sister, and his Grandpa Michael with the UUCCSM contingent at a CLUE-LA action in support of Santa Monica carwash workers [see photo page X].
Many thanks go to our able volunteers and staff for your support during my family leave. I’m particularly grateful to our outgoing and incoming board presidents, Bronwen Jones and Cynthia Cottam, and our Acting Minister, the Rev. Erika Hewitt, for their leadership and care.
If I haven’t run into you at the library, the farmer’s market, or on the streets of Santa Monica recently, I’m looking forward to seeing you on Sunday morning. Please catch me up on the news with you and your families.
See you at church,
Rev. Rebecca
From Our President:
This past month has given us reasons to contemplate our history. The deaths of Gaye Follmer Deal and Maggie Pipes have taken two incredibly active and influential women from our community. It is difficult to really understand the degree to which these two have nourished and shaped the congregation we participate in today. Our memorial services have given us the opportunity to celebrate these remarkable lives; those of us who did not know them intimately have had a chance to learn about them and to consider the miracle that is the span of a human life well lived.
Ernie Pipes, Maggie’s husband and our Minister Emeritus, spoke eloquently at Gaye’s service. After the service, as he was receiving condolences, he said that he has always considered the church his second home. Rebecca Crawford, current Board member, Gaye’s daughter, and an active member of our congregation for years, came to church the Sunday after her mother died. She knew it was a place where she could share her grieving.
Our community is a place for fun, for contemplation, for learning, for discussion, for eating, for music, for crying, and for laughing. It is also a place for marking the most powerful of life’s events — our most meaningful gains and losses. My husband and I were married here by Ernie in 1981. I cannot help thinking about this as I think of the death of Ernie’s wife. Life goes on, in its circular fashion, and we feel gratitude for the connections that sustain us.
So come to church. I think that is the point of this message. Gaye Deal drove her family to church every Sunday from Lancaster for a while, car-sickness be damned, according to one of her sons. She started the choir and Dining for Dollars, among other things. Like Maggie and Gaye we are making the history of tomorrow. As we organize our largest group so far of Gay Pride Parade marchers or supervise the process that leads to the installation of a new roof, we are reinforcing the foundations of our community. The congregation of the future will arise from this work. So come to church. Let us build our relationships as we work and mourn and celebrate together.
See you in church.
-- Cynthia Cottam
Featured Articles:
Nancy Thompson
We are pleased to welcome Nancy Thompson as our new office and finance assistant. She is a long-term resident of Santa Monica and is a graduate of Santa Monica College. She had planned to continue her studies at UCLA, but fate and circumstances led to marriage in 1976. She and her husband, Wesley Thompson, who is an employee of the City of Santa Monica, have four children. Kevin, 31, is a musician. Colleen, 29, received a MSW degree in social work from USC last June. Kenny, 22, is completing his studies at UCLA, where he is majoring in Sociology and Urban Planning. Caitlin, 18, is in the honors program and in the Wind Ensemble at Santa Monica College.
Nancy has extensive work experience, including 34 years in the banking industry and one year working part-time at the Santa Monica Methodist Church. She is looking forward to being part of our UUCCSM family. She can be reached during the week at the church number, extension 102, or by email at assistant@uusm.org
News & Announcements:
Monthly UUCCSM Theme Discussion
with Leon Henderson-MacLennan
@ 11:10 a.m. on the Patio
July 2 — CREATIVITY
Building News:
Roof Update
Because of the generosity of many church members, as well as a large bequest dedicated to the church building program, fundraising has gone extremely well. We have also received a matching grant of $35,000 from the Spirit Level Foundation. Beth Brownlie deserves massive thanks for making that happen. We have enough money to proceed immediately.
Putting a tile roof on the church requires that we investigate the structural implications of replacing the current lower roof levels with something heavier. So we paid for a structural engineering firm to evaluate the safety of our structure with the new roof. This is required by the city, but is a good idea anyway.
After that report, we paid our structural engineers to prepare drawings for a remediation plan. We have those drawings now and will submit them to at least three contractors in the next few days. Bryan Oakes has taken the lead on this and has done wonderful work. We hope to have bids in by the July board meeting so that the board can vote on a contract at that time. It is most likely that we will make the actual roofing work a subcontract to the seismic retrofit. This makes responsibility for performance crystal clear and avoids the possibility that the church could be responsible for a conflict between contractors.
Our main problem is that some of the interior walls may be vulnerable in certain types of earthquakes. Plaster is stiff, but brittle. If the plaster cracks, it is possible for the stud and lath structure to resonate with the S-waves of an earthquake. We can fix this problem by removing the plaster, putting a thin sheet of plywood on the wall, and then replacing the plaster. The changes to the appearance of the interior should be unnoticeable. We do not anticipate any disruption of church operations.
These problems exist even if we continue with asphalt on the lower roof sections. The board's view has been that seismic safety is a serious issue. These problems will not go away. We have available dedicated money to fix them now. So in April the board decided we should proceed.
Of course, none of this is written in stone. Our hope is to provide full technical and financial information in July so that the board can make a decision at that time.
-- Tom Hamilton
Faith in Action News:
Interweave Members March in Los Angeles Pride Parade
On Sunday, June 10, over 60 supporters of LGBT rights marched in the annual Los Angeles Pride Parade. Marchers ranged in age from three weeks (Mingus Thompson) to 93 (Sam Polk). Our special honorees were John Fels and Ron Crane, who rode in a red Mustang convertible driven by Geoff Lee.
Parade attendees screamed their support as they read the sign on the car: “Ron & John legally married August 18, 2008.” A special welcome and thanks to the 14 Sepulveda UU Society (Onion) members for joining us this year. In addition to our two banners, they carried their congregational Onion banner and the UUA Standing on the Side of Love banner.
This was our best turnout ever and we hope to have an even stronger Los Angeles-wide UU presence next year.
To view a slideshow of this year’s parade, go to:
http://s1059.photobucket.com/albums/t429/uulapride2012/
Also, be sure to join us on Sunday, July 15 at 11 a.m. for fun, fellowship, and frolic at the Annual Interweave and Women’s Alliance picnic.
Santa Monica Tells Car Washes: Obey Labor Laws!
Our acting minister, the Rev. Erika Hewitt, was among the speakers at an Interfaith Prayer Vigil in front of Santa Monica Car Wash (25th St. and Pico Blvd.) June 10, sponsored by Santa Monica Synagogue and Clergy and Laity United for Economic Justice (CLUE-LA). Church member James Witker, fUUsion’s social justice coordinator, also spoke, along with clergy of several faiths and two carwash workers. At least 11 others from our church participated in the event, which included repeated sprinkling of water onto the car-wash grounds, accompanied by the chant, “Wash yourselves clean!”
The chants were directed at the owners of Santa Monica Car Wash. Workers there , along with workers at two others locations under the same ownership, have filed suit to recover lost wages. Carwasheros throughout L.A. County report that they are regularly subjected to illegal practices, including requiring workers to be at work at a certain hour, but not allowing them to “clock in” until there is work for them; expecting workers to work for tips, not wages; refusing to give them water to drink during hot summer work days; no lunch breaks; and not making legally required payments for overtime. In some cases, workers have even received paychecks that bounce. The workers are represented by lawyers from the Mexican American Legal Defense and Education Fund (MALDEF).
In May, Santa Monica UUers participated in two other CLUE-LA events in support of the multi-year drive to unionize SoCal car wash workers: a press conference May 21 to announce the lawsuit and a Santa Monica City Council meeting May 22.
In order to speak at the City Council meeting, three Santa Monica UUers — Patrick Meighan, James Witker, and Abby Arnold — stayed there until 1 a.m. Their point: that the city of Santa Monica should no longer contract to have its vehicles washed by car washes that violate labor laws.
Their message was clearly heard; the city announced a new contracting procedure June 6. In addition to strict implementation by the city’s Finance Department of existing policies that require those receiving city dollars to comply with laws, the Santa Monica City Attorney’s office, as part of its Consumer Affairs operations, will investigate practices at all four car washes located in Santa Monica.
A community campaign organized by CLUE-LA encourages local residents to bring their vehicles to Bonus Car Wash at 2800 Lincoln Boulevard in Santa Monica, which is the first union car wash in the United States.
— Abby Arnold
P&SJ On Summer Break
Peace & Social Justice Committee will be on summer schedule in July. New members are welcome and
needed. For more information please contact Roberta Frye or Cathie Gentile...or stop by the Faith in Action table in Forbes Hall.
RE News:
From Our DRE
On June 3 we held our annual service celebrating the lifespan educational ministry of UUCCSM, now known as “LRE Sunday,” in recognition of the lifelong growth our congregation offers for children, youth, and adults, and the many volunteers whose gifts of time and self make our RE program what it is. The theme of our service this year was “Courage.”
All gathered at our LRE Sunday services were invited to take a moment to write down on small flower-shaped post-its a way in which their lives have blossomed because they took a courageous step, perhaps through participating in our congregation in some way, or in another aspect of their lives. What a beautiful diversity of stories we have in our midst; friends — I am so moved by the depth of your courage. I wish I had room to share them all here, but here is a representative sample of the responses:
· Going to coffee hour the first time took courage.
· At 14 years old, despite my shyness, volunteering at summer camp for adults with disabilities changed my life — gave me a purpose and shaped my career and heart.
· Being a parent.
· Smuggling Draft Resistors into Canada during the Viet Nam War.
· Having the faith to help my family and home be a loving place.
· Saying out loud when a joke isn’t funny; disagreeing with the “crowd.”
· I have had the courage to face my childhood abuser and still love myself.
· A girl in my class wanted to drown my friend’s garden and I stopped her.
· I signed up for a painting class after not painting for 40 years, and now I love to paint.
· I showed courage by being strong for our family during times of challenge.
· I danced with someone with special needs for a play. I thought my friends would make fun of me but I still did it.
· I was brave enough to leave an abusive relationship.
· I took in a 13 year-old girl as my kid.
· Coming out to friends and family.
· I was willing to question, search, investigate, and challenge the beliefs that were dear to me to pursue truth.
· To continue to enjoy life after my child died.
· I participated in the service today.
· RE Volunteer (even though I’m nervous each week).
· Fall 2010: started training for, and then ran, the L.A. Marathon.
· Quitting smoking and getting sober.
· Slept in the dark.
· Really, just joining the church — it allowed me to feed the homeless, march in the gay pride parade, and stand up for gay rights, and tell people I do not believe in God — it all started here.
· Marching in the Pride Parade!
· Courage to be open and loving.
What is your own story of courage? May we all continue to blossom in love, in faith, and in service to one another.
— Catherine Farmer Loya
VOLUNTEERS NEEDED!
Have you ever wondered about the nature of reality?
Have you ever wanted to explore new ways to put our UU principles into practice?
Do you feel that you're still a learner yourself, and always will be?
We need you!
Please consider volunteering in RE.
We are currently recruiting volunteers for the 2012-13 RE program starting in September. We're looking for teachers to lead 1 or 2 Sundays per month, as well as volunteers for many other parts of our large and vibrant program for children and youth.
Do you love spending time with young children as they learn about the world and make friends? Then assisting in our Nursery or Preschool class is the right place for you!
Are you passionate about sharing the core stories of our faith with children as they make meaning of their lives, grow a strong UU identity, and create a spiritual community together that honors multiple learning styles and celebrates beauty in diversity? Then join our Spirit Play team, for 1st and 2nd graders.
Do science and nature fill you with mystery and wonder? Then help our 3rd through 5th graders consider “How Do We Know What We Know?” as they explore the Big Bang and the origins of the Universe, the chemistry of life, the ideas of evolution and change over time, and the interconnectedness of all people from our shared ancestry with each other and every other life form on the planet in our UUniverse Story program.
Does your heart go pitter-patter when you think about helping young people explore their identities, their beliefs, their Unitarian Universalist faith, their relationships with others and their connections to the world? In that case, you'll love being a leader for our 6th through 7th grade Compass Points class.
Is deep exploration of your personal theology, and engaging others in articulating who they are and what their beliefs are within the context of our UU faith most exciting to you? Then join our 8th grade Coming of Age team (9 a.m. only).
Are you a creative, loving, flexible adult who gets a kick out of teens and wants to support them as they grow and develop into young adults? If that sounds like you, consider joining our 9th through 12th grade Young Religious Unitarian Universalists (YRUU) advisor team.
Visit the RE table in the courtyard during coffee hour for more information or to sign up!
Minesterial Theme for July: Creativity
Our ministerial theme for July is creativity. Bettye Barclay has provided this list of daily thoughts about creativity for the month of July.
JULY 1
Creativity requires the courage to let go of certainties. Erich Fromm
JULY 2
The things we fear most in organizations — fluctuations, disturbances, imbalances — are the primary sources of creativity. Margaret J. Wheatley
JULY 3
It is the tension between creativity and skepticism that has produced the stunning and unexpected findings of science. Carl Sagan
JULY 4
Conditions for creativity are to be puzzled; to concentrate; to accept conflict and tension; to be born every day; to feel a sense of self. Erich Fromm
JULY 5
Listening is a magnetic and strange thing, a creative force. The friends who listen to us are the ones we move toward. When we are listened to, it creates us, makes us unfold and expand. Shel Silverstein
JULY 6
If I were to wish for anything, I should not wish for wealth and power, but for the passionate sense of potential, for the eye, which, ever young and ardent, sees the possible. Pleasure disappoints, possibility never. Soren Kierkegaard
JULY 7
Creativity is a natural extension of our enthusiasm. Earl Nightingale
JULY 8
The new meaning of soul is creativity and mysticism. These will become the foundation of a new psychological type and with him or her will come the new civilization. Otto Rank
JULY 9
Creativity is just connecting things. When you ask creative people how they did something — they just saw something — they were able to connect experiences they’ve had and synthesize new things. Steve Jobs
JULY 10
Creativity is piercing the mundane to find the marvelous. Bill Moyers
JULY 11
A hunch is creativity trying to tell you something. Frank Capra
JULY 12
Being creative means: not numbering and counting, but ripening like a tree, which doesn’t force its sap, and stands confidently in the storm of spring, not afraid that afterward summer may not come. Rainer Maria Rilke
JULY 13
I firmly believe that all human beings have access to extraordinary energies and powers. Judging from accounts of mystical experience, heightened creativity, or exceptional performance by athletes and artists, we harbor a greater life than we know. Jean Houston
JULY 14
Living creatively is really important to maintain throughout your life. And living creatively doesn’t mean only artistic creativity, although that’s part of it. It means being yourself, not just complying with the wishes of other people. Matt Groening
JULY 15
Mystery is at the heart of creativity. That, and surprise. Julia Cameron
JULY 16
Make an empty space in any corner of your mind and creativity will instantly fill it. Dee Hock
JULY 17
Our senses are indeed our doors and windows on this world, in a very real sense the key to unlocking of meaning and the wellspring of creativity. Jean Houston
JULY 18
The creative mind doesn’t require logical transitions from one thought to another. It skips, jumps, doubles back, circles and dives, from one idea to the next. Bonnie Goldberg
JULY 19
You must not for one instant give up the effort to build new lives for yourselves. Creativity means to push open the heavy, groaning doorway to life. Daisaku Ikeda
JULY 20.
The chief enemy of creativity is “good sense.” Pablo Picasso
JULY 21
True creativity often starts where language ends. Arthur Koestler
JULY 22.
Whatever creativity is, it is in part a solution to a problem. Brian Aldiss
JULY 23
To create, you must empty yourself of every artistic thought. Gilbert
JULY 24
Creative minds have always been known to survive any kind of bad training. Anna Freud
JULY 25
It is the creative potential itself in human beings that is the image of God. Mary Daly
JULY 26
Surprise is where creativity comes in. Ray Bradbury
JULY 27
But if you have nothing at all to create, then perhaps you create yourself. Carl Jung
JULY 28
Self creation is an art of fire. M. C. Richards
JULY 29
If you are seeking creative ideas, go out walking. Angels whisper to a person out for a walk. Raymond Inmon
JULY 30
To create is to touch the spirit. M. Cassou, S. Cubley
JULY 31
Our creativity does not consist in being right all the time, but in making of all our experiences, including the apparently mistaken and imperfect ones, a holy whole. Matthew Fox
Fun for All Ages
July 21 Crafty Afternoon
Another hot summer Saturday afternoon. Boredom is setting in. You’ve done Disneyland and Knott’s Berry Farm. The beach is too crowded and the Coast Highway traffic is impossible. Come to church! We’re going to spend the afternoon working with clay, making dolls, knitting, sewing, making great structures from wood, creating art from junk, and more. There will be people to teach you how to do it and you can go home with something wonderful. Everyone from toddlers to teenagers to our eldest members is invited to join the fun from 1 to 5 p.m.
Getting Ready For DeBenneville Pines
Watch for the date in the order of service. We’re going to spend a Sunday afternoon in August playing camp games, doing camp crafts, singing camp songs, eating camp food, and making s’mores around a fire on the patio outside Forbes Hall. Join us!
ADULT DOINGS
Now’s the time to stop by the Lifespan Table in Forbes Hall to tell us what workshops, classes and discussion groups you would like to attend or facilitate starting in September. We want to know what you want to know. Help us to plan another exciting year in Adult Programs at UUSM. Talk to us about it at the table or contact one of the committee members: Emmy Cresciman, Judy Federick, Karen Hsu Patterson, or James Witker.
Patio Chat
Monthly UUCCSM Theme Discussion
with Leon Henderson-MacLennan
@ 11:10 a.m. on the Patio
July 2 — CREATIVITY
SHARE UUR STORY
Summer Interviews Now Being Scheduled
Check in at the Lifespan table in Forbes Hall to volunteer to share your story with us or to interview a storyteller.
Share UUr Story volunteer opportunities: 1) Share your story with us; 2) Interview those who want to share their story!
Contact Judy Federick if you'd like to participate.
Music News:
Town Hall Meeting: Sun, July 8, 11:30am. Come brainstorm about our music program. Organized by the Music Director Search Committee and the Music Committee. Sanctuary, c/o Rob Briner and Rima Snyder.