Oct-05
From Our Minister:
I am on sabbatical from September 1 to December 31.
I'll miss seeing you at our ingathering Sunday but know that you will be ingood hands with the Rev. Jim Grant.
I'll be working with Felicity Nussbaum on my book of sermons and travelingto France and Morocco with David.
I am grateful for the timing of this sabbatical. My mother died July 30. Ineed to grieve and take care of family business. I plan to return to my ministryrefreshed, rested, and ready for the next phase of our church life together.
- Judith Meyer
Featured Articles:
During the congregational budget planning meeting in March, the attendees discussedways to bring about a balanced budget. In a discussion about ways to developmore income, Leslie Reuter volunteered to lead an effort to increase opportunitiesfor members to support the church and pledged to bring in at least $5,000 forthis fiscal year. We have Dining for Dollars for the chefs among us, but whatabout someone who needs a recipe to make ice cubes?
Jackie Schwartz connected Leslie with a fellow UU who helped the Costa Mesachurch develop a successful fund raising effort - a goods and services auction.Members donate a variety of goods and services, babysitting, home repair, andleading outings to museums, sporting events or concerts. On September 11, Leslieled a brainstorming meeting that was attended by Katie Gross, representing theyouth in our church; Sandra Trutt, who also works on Dining for Dollars; CarolKerr, our president; Ron Crane, from the board; and Kathy Cook.
We plan to launch our own church program this winter and hope that many ofyou will rush to participate. We will provide copies of the catalogue of goodsand services from the Costa Mesa church for you to peruse to help generate ideas.The program also will include a silent auction for donated goods that can supportan initial bidding price of at least $100 (thanks to Victor Paddock for offeringhis piano) and many services and fun events.
Please think about what you can do to help increase our income and build communitythrough activities that you enjoy. We have something for everyone - help withplanning, volunteer your services, entertain fellow church members, help withstaffing the table, solicit donations of talent/skills/time/items, keep trackof everything, and more. Look for our table in Forbes Hall or the Anderson Courtyardon Sundays during October and November. If you would like to volunteer to beon the task force, please contact Leslie Reuter.
- Leslie Reuter and Kathy Cook
Small Group Ministry at UUCCSM
The new members who signed up in September will meet in their Covenant Groups(CG) in October. The new members will be in newly formed groups or will fillopenings in existing groups.
Pacific Southwest District is sponsoring a day-long workshop to be held atour church on October 29. The workshop will be an introduction to Small GroupMinistry (SGM) with a focus on facilitator training. UU Rev. Mellen Kennedywill fly in from her home in Vermont to lead the Saturday workshop.
The day would be helpful and informative for anyone who is currently facilitatingor who is interested in developing their skills in facilitation, whether theyare currently facilitating or not. It is appropriate for those with existingprograms as well as those just thinking about or in the start-up phase.
Mellen will first explain the power and promise of small group ministry, followedby a review of the basic SGM model of Covenant Groups and the necessary componentsfor a healthy program. Workshop attendees will then form small groups for anactual CG experience, with attention to developing facilitation skills and confidencedealing with difficult members. The afternoon will also provide time to workin small groups on their own issues and challenges with facilitation.
Rev. Kennedy is UUA Small Group Ministry Network Co-coordinator and editorof the SGM quarterly newsletter. Marv Pulliam met her at GA this year whereshe demonstrated her considerable facilitation skills at the SGM sessions. Theworkshop shows great promise for a personally rewarding day, and it is closeto home for us. Watch the Order of Service Bulletins during October for moreinformation about this interesting event.
Do you want to read more about SGM in UUA? There is a fine newsletter at http://www.smallgroupministry.net
If you are new to the church and want to get involved in this grass roots movementcontact Caroljean Teuffel or Marv Pulliam.
- Carol-jean Teuffel
Sociological Association Gives High Honor to Edna Bonacich
Edna Bonacich has received a Career Lifetime Achievement Award from the AmericanSociological Association's Section on International Migration. Edna is a professorof Sociology and Ethnic Studies at UC Riverside, where she has taught for about35 years.
The American Sociological Association is divided into sections based on substantiveinterests. For example, there are sections on the Sociology of Medicine, SocialPsychology, Political Economy of the World System, Race and Ethnicity. One ofthem focuses on International Migration.
Edna's nomination by Ivan Light for the award states, "Dr. Bonacich's long-termresearch contribution to migration studies changed the whole field for the betterin decisive ways that continue to mature and emerge today, and that the nextgeneration's migration scholars will find inspiration and guidance in her workto date."
Edna received her doctor's degree in sociology from Harvard University in 1969,and joined the faculty at the University of California, Riverside, shortly thereafter.She has written 60 research articles and four monographs, and edited three books.All her publications have dealt with race and ethnic relations and/or internationalmigration. She has served as an associate editor on important journals includingthe American Sociological Review, Social Science Quarterly, Social Forces, AmerasiaJournal, and Ethnic and Racial Studies. Professionally active as well, she wasvice president of the American Sociological Association, a mem- 8 October berof the ASA Council, president of the ASA's Marxist Section, and chair of theASA Section on Political Economy of the World System.
The nomination letter adds, "When Dr. Edna Bonacich took an interest in thetopic, back in 1966, immigration was a matter of historical interest only. Thosefew who addressed it appropriately used historical methods because the subjectwas strictly historical. Few in professional sociology gave a hoot about immigrationin 1966. Of course, now that immigration has come roaring back in the UnitedStates and also worldwide, professional interest in the topic has hugely expanded.Currently governments and peoples are gasping for intellectual guidance aboutimmigration issues. Happily, sociology has new and useful ideas to provide themthanks to the prescient scholars whose study of the immigration began decadesago when the topic was unfashionable and unfunded. Among the new and usefulideas that sociology can offer the troubled world today, split labor markettheory and middleman minority theory, both appropriately expanded and updated,are very prominent and obvious. We should not take these resources for granted.As I have maintained elsewhere, 'demand does not explain supply.' We have theseintellectual resources now thanks to the contribution of Dr. Edna Bonacich,whom I am honored to nominate for our illustrious and distinguished section'shighest professional award."
News & Announcements:
We'll Help Camp De Benneville Pines with Work Parties, Money
UUCCSM wants to show support for Camp de Benneville Pines and its ConferenceCenter and plans to assist with time and/or financial support. There are twowork weekends during the year - one in the spring and one in the fall. Freefood and lodging are provided in exchange for participating in the clean-up,fix-up work parties.
Annual financial support is through "Share the Vision" and endowmentfunds are accepted by "Campfire Lighters" with pledges of $100 peryear for eight years. Help keep de Benneville strong. To join supporters LeslieReuter, Sue and Jerry Moore, Greg Coleman, Linda and Dan Marten, Marv Pulliam,Kathryn and Craig Lee, Carol Agate, Greg Wood and Linda Van Ligten, or to getmore information, please contact Jerry Moore.
Where to Send Newsletter Subissions (Hint: It's Not Carol's "Baby"Any More)
Many people think of this newsletter as Carol Agate's "baby." But over theyears that Carol has been working on it, an editorial team has developed. Today,the newsletter is put together by a lot of people, and Carol is only one memberof this team. But old ideas die hard, and stories keep getting sent to Carol,even when she's not involved in the issue's production. And when Carol doeswork on an issue, her job is not the first step. If you send an article to her,she might not get it in time to forward it to the appropriate person.
All submissions should go to newsletter@uusm.org,an address that will automatically forward your message to everyone involvedwith putting the issue together. You don't have to remember the address; justremember to check our masthead - usually on page 10 - where the address andrules of submission appear every month.
- Thanks from the editorial team
Building News:
Kudos to the Capital Campaign canvassers: Rob Briner, Shirlee Frank, Bob Dietz,Don Jameson, Jeff Greenman, Laurel Bleak, Gretchen Goetz, Natalie Kahn, StevePaddock, Arvid Knudsen, Judy Federick, Kris Langabeer, Karen Canady, Marv Pulliam,Dan Kegel, Nels Hanson, Michele Pritchard-Lane, Diane Fletcher-Hoppe, EllenLevy, Greg Wood, Ren Renshaw, Jennifer Westbay, Florence Chapgier, Jim Cadwell,Ed Hession, Dave Hallinan, Shannon Murphy, Beth Rendeiro, Debbie Fryman, DanMarch, Greg Poirier, Dan Teplitz, Leslie Reuter, and all of the "Lemonade Sunday"participants. You have helped us reach the three-quarter mark in the 2005 campaign.We are at $750,000 and counting.
Kudos to our congregation: You have been gracious and generous in meeting our$25,000 matching grant and approaching our $1,000,000 campaign goal. You havebeen especially generous in this, our second Capital Campaign. We are realizingour first choice - continuing our church on the property next door to us. Wehave more to do. We are still getting questions, such as: "Why haven't I beencalled about the Capital Campaign? I want to pledge, too." "Have we raised enoughto complete the building project?" "How can I help in the rest of the buildingproject?"
If you are one of those not yet contacted or if you have any questions, pleasespeak with Ofelia Lachtman, Carol Kerr, orRon Crane.
- Ron Crane, Chair, Capital Campaign
From the Archives:
Still Working for Us Through All the Years
On Sunday, August 28, the Rev. Judith Meyer acknowledged Warren Mathews forhis full-time office work this summer. Twenty-four years ago Warren and anothercurrent member, Stuart Moore, were thanked for designing a new lighting systemin the sanctuary. The July 16 to 31, 1981, newsletter noted that "the entiresystem, complete with electronic switching, cost nearly $2,500 . . . ." We'redue for an upgrade in the next year or two, but have enjoyed flexible, focusedlighting due to Warren's and Stu's efforts a long time ago.
The July 16 to 31, 1981, newsletter listed Ernie Pipes as our minister (nowminister emeritus) and current member Joyce Holmen as the administrator; newmembers in July 1981, included Marjorie and William Anderson, who are thankfullystill with us. Bill Anderson served as president from 1984 to 1987, prior toRay Goodman and Len Adler, all of whom are still participating and contributing.
- Rob Briner/Historian, Archivist
Splinters from the Board:
At the September 13 meeting of the board, Alison Kendall, chair of the BuildingCommittee, presented her plans for a presentation to the Santa Monica City Councilin response to the appeal of the approval of our building permit by the PlanningCommission. The appeal was scheduled for November 8 but has been postponed.Alison pointed out that residents complain about street parking problems onweekday evenings as well as Sunday. She has a strategy to increase use of theUCLA 16th Street garage on Sundays and has contacted other possible alternativeparking resources.
Since Alison needs to be able to show good-faith efforts at the council hearing,the board voted to authorize the Building Committee to enter into agreementwith UCLA to use its garage after 6:30 p.m. on Monday evenings and on otherdays and evenings when meetings with a large attendance are scheduled. The churchwill be required to pay for the attendant at the garage; however, plans willbe made to share those costs with renters.
Costs continue to escalate for the building project. Alison presented a revisionof the phases of the plan:
Other UU News & Events:
Eleventh annual event sponsored by the UU Church of Rutland, VT. Enjoy thespectacular beauty of a Vermont Fall, select fro a wide range of tours and activitiesguided by UU hosts, stay in the home of a church member, all meals provided.For more information, e-mail uufoliagevermont@yahoo.com.
RE News:
From the Desk of the DRE
In the RE teacher orientation on September 10, we spent some time talking aboutwhat it means to create a radically welcoming classroom: a classroom where everyteacher, every child, every person in the room feels deeply committed to creatinga welcoming, supportive place for all who enter. A subset of the conversationcentered around ways we create an intentionally welcoming environment for childrenwith special needs, which is important in its own right. But the larger questionis the one that most tickles my fancy. I sense that if we did this well, theother would fall into place as a matter of course. So how do we create a classroom(a program, a church, a world