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Child Care and Nursery

The Childcare Rooms are open from 10:00 am to 12:30 pm each Sunday morning. (10:00 am to 11:00 am for childcare for any adult programming happening and 11:00 am to 12:30 pm for worship.) 

Childcare will be taking place in the nursery and attached preschool room.

Please note: There will be no child care for the Christmas Eve 7:00pm service.

First Unitarian Cares!

If you (or someone you care about in our community) would like a caring card, a ride, a meal delivered to your home, a prayer, or a pastoral visit, please fill out a pastoral care request form on our website: https://1uc.org/connect/pastor... or contact Rev. Diana or Susan Bishop (chair of the Befrienders).

Please contact Rev. Diana directly if you need financial assistance. The Minister's Discretionary Fund is available for anyone who needs emergency financial support. In the past, the fund has been used to help cover rent, groceries, fuel, home repairs, medical costs and other needs. Allocations from this fund are completely confidential.

Requests for support from this fund have risen significantly. If you have financial capacity, please consider making a gift to the Minister's Discretionary Fund. Thank you!

The Tuesday Adult Ed. Discussion Group will be taking a break during the holiday season.  They will resume classes on Tuesday, January, 16, 2024.  

If there is something you would like to present on a future Tuesday, please let Ron Wasson know at wassonr@sbcglobal.net.

CHANGE FOR CHANGE needs your help. Did you know that anyone can suggest a worthy local non-profit in our community? Do you know how?

• Check out the 1uc.org website and click on the justice tab
• Then click on Community Partnerships and click on the application in green in the middle of the page.
• Submit the application to Deborah Shinn or Anne Murray, or leave it in the office Social Justice mailbox. Or you can email the completed application to them. They can be found in Breeze.

UPCOMING EVENTS

JANUARY 15TH: MARTIN LUTHER KING CELEBRATION: There will be a breakfast, followed by a Silent March to the Capital, and a parade/celebration.

JANUARY 20TH 7:00 pm - 10:00 pm: BOHEMIAN CAFÉ NIGHT! Mark your calendars now to join in a celebration of all the social justice teams to the musical entertainment by Ms Brown to You. Come join us for a night of dancing, eating, and having fun. There will be raffle prizes as well.

NEWS FROM UUSC (UNITARIAN UNIVERSALIST SERVICE COMMITTEE) . Our partners in Eastern Europe are on call, answering hotlines and connecting women facing violence with resources for safety — including shelter, medical and legal assistance, employment, and other critical care for survival. UUSC is working hard to provide protections and dignity for asylum-seekers as they migrate to Mexico and the United States. Community support can make a significant difference for people trapped in a cruel immigration process. UUSC funding helps partners to create more welcoming spaces and provide safe pathways to freedom.

FROM UU MINISTRY FOR EARTH: Dr. Susanna Wu Pong Calvert, Board Chair, writes, "We join with you now at this turning point... we honor all of Earth’s beings while creating a powerful invitation for healing for all."

From engaging worship resources to supportive monthly gatherings, from spiritual care with activists and advocates to skill building with UU Young Adults for Climate Change, Unitarian Universalist Ministry for Earth empowers Unitarian Universalists to engage in climate justice using an embodied and spiritually grounded approach.

FROM THE POLICY INSTITUTE: A $15 minimum wage would help millions of struggling households in small and mid-sized cities achieve self-sufficiency. According to the Congressional Budget Office, a $15 federal minimum wage would boost the earnings of low-wage workers and decrease poverty. In its absence, a national policy agenda focused on raising wages is still urgently needed. For now, at least, increasing the minimum wage will remain a bottom-up exercise led by local and state policymakers. In a new report, we argue that raising the wage floor can not only help reduce poverty (a worthy goal unto itself), but it can also support individual and family self-sufficiency—the ability to cover living expenses without relying on public subsidies. [Brookings]

1UC Recycles! Look for the blue bins lined with plastic bags throughout the church. Deposit your paper, cans, and plastic bottles. The kitchen and Daniel Hall have compost buckets that can take food waste including meat and even napkins! There is a separate blue bin for glass in the hallway west of Daniel Hall.

First Unitarian Covenant of Healthy Communication

“We need not think alike to love alike.” One of our Unitarian Universalist ancestors, Francis David, spoke those words more than 400 years ago to describe the foundation of our unity as a religious community. To this end, we, the people of the First Unitarian Church of Oklahoma City, agree to the following:

* I tell my own story and let others tell theirs.
* I use “I” statements when expressing my own views, always mindful that my thoughts, opinions, and experiences may not be shared by others
* I check the accuracy of my perceptions and assumptions.
* I avoid “awfulizing” negative experiences.
* I say what needs to be said to the one who needs to hear it.
Communicate directly with the person or group involved, instead of gossiping or speaking negatively about others in the wider community
* I devote at least as much energy to careful listening as to careful speaking.
Listen actively and seek to understand the perspectives and opinions of others
Be curious, appreciative, and informed about perspectives that differ from my own.
Recognize and honor the diversity of beliefs and spiritual paths within our community, including the words and ways people choose to express their spirituality
Honor the contributions and needs of those who have been historically marginalized in the larger world and in our congregation and seek growth in our ability to be welcoming.
* If something prompts anger in me, I report it honestly in a way that invites positive solutions.
Be forgiving and loving when I or others make mistakes
Apologize, when warranted, and seek to make amends
Call on congregational resources when help is needed
* I refrain from blaming and shaming.
Assume that others act with good intentions
Be respectful and kind in our words, tone, and body language
Use email, social media and other forms of electronic communication with respect, kindness, and special care.

Note: Most meetings continue to meet via Zoom but some groups may elect to meet in the building. Please contact the meeting organizer directly if you are uncertain of the location.

• Sunday Morning Meditation – Every Sunday at 10:00 am, Meditation Room - Corley Commons (contact Lori Jervis for information - see article above)

• Tuesday Discussion Group – Every Tuesday, 11:00 am (contact Ron Wasson for information - see article above)
  

• Bell Choir Rehearsal – Every Wednesday, 5:45 pm, Sanctuary (contact LaDonna Hunt for information)
  

• Wednesday Night Meditation - Beginning January 3 - Every Wednesday, 6:00 pm, Meditation Room - Corley Commons (contact Larry Little for information)

• Choir Rehearsal – Every Wednesday, 7:00 pm, Sanctuary (contact 'Ebuka Ezeakacha for information)

• New Year’s Eve Zoom Bingo – Sunday, December 31, 10:00 pm (contact Becky Tallent for information)
  

• UU Book Club – Thursday, January 4, 7:00 pm (contact Steve Gryglewicz for information)

If you have a newsletter article you would like to submit please email your article to mgrogg@1uc.org no later than Tuesday (the day before the newsletter goes out) by 5:00 pm.

Did you know that you can access all church policies and procedures as well as Board meeting minutes on our new website? Just go to 1uc.org, and click on the "members" link in the upper right-hand corner (just to the left of the Facebook and other social media icons). This will open a page that says "Protected: Members." The password is @600NW13thSt [Note: the password is case-sensitive; do not put in additional punctuation or spaces.]

From here, click on "church documents." All official policies and procedures can be found in the "policies" folder. The bylaws and Board of Trustees meeting minutes are in the "governance" folder. Please disregard the "website SOPs" folder, which is for administrative use only.

CHURCH STAFF

Lead Minister - Rev. Diana K. Davies

Director of Lifespan Religious Exploration - Tim Atkins

Choir Director - Chukwuebuka ('Ebuka) G. Ezeakacha

Accompanist - Steven Elkins Kennedy

Office Administrator - Marlies Grogg

BOARD OF TRUSTEES 2023-2024

President of the Congregation – Marcia Woodward

President Elect – Cathy Webster

Immediate Past President – Marshal Gimpel

Clerk – Deborah Shinn

Treasurer – Ron Wasson

                Clare Auwarter               Emily Hildebrandt              Lorriana Lee-Knapp                          Larry Little                          Ann Meeks                            Doug Vincent

Committee on Ministry

                Rebecca Daniels                Lori Jervis                             Liz Pillar-Little                                                         Tom Peryam                 Derrick Wagner