Midweek UUpdate 2/18/26

•

Of Note:

FYI 

LSURJ Training Session at First U: This Sunday, February 22

We at First Unitarian Church – in partnership with Louisville Showing Up for Racial Justice (LSURJ) – are offering a training session for folks interested in joining Louisville’s growing Community Defense Network (or CDN). This training session has limited enrollment. It is open to members and friends of First Unitarian Church and All Peoples Unitarian Universalist Congregation.

  1. Sunday, February 22 from 12:30 to 3:00 pm in the Social Hall at First U.
  2. Light food and snacks will be provided. You will be able to eat during the training. If you want a full meal, you are encouraged to bring your own with you.
  3. Many thanks to Rev. Liz and the other groups making this possible! If you have questions, please contact the office.
Registration:
Check your email for this weeks Midweek UUpdate. Registration will close Thursday at 6pm. If you want to attend, but miss the deadline, contact the office, Walk-ins welcome, though registration is preferred.

Membership at First U Lou

We’re celebrating membership this season! If you’re new to the congregation and thinking about formally joining, here are two opportunities. Contact the office  or Rev. Liz  with questions.

  • 3/1 at 12:30 – Membership Quick Q&A
    Our Connections Chair and Rev. Liz will be available after service for questions about membership and to help you discern whether you’re ready to join.
  • 3/15 at 12:30 – Sign the Book! 
    This is your chance to formally join First U Lou as a member. We will gather in the library after service for a time to sign the membership book.

A Fun Way to Support First U: Friday, March 6

(and volunteers are welcome to sign-up to help!)
We’re 2 weeks away from the St Paddy’s Day Kickoff event featuring local Celtic band Guilderoy Byrne and the McClanahan Irish Dancers.  The proceeds of this event will 100% support First U!  The event is at First U on Friday March 6 – doors open at 6:30pm and the show begins at 7. Irish-theme foods will be sold – this is a family-friendly (alcohol-free) event.
For us to be successful, we need YOUR help. Make plans to attend, and spread the word as widely as you can (to your family, friends, neighbors, co-workers and on social media). Sign up to help set-up, clean up, in the kitchen, at the door. Look for posters at church to purchase tickets using the QR code – $10 in advance, $12 at the door. Have questions? Contact the office.

Interfaith Coffee – Monday, February 23 at 9:30am

Jewish Culture of Controversy  The Temple Women of Reform Judaism invite you to join them. Each  year they welcome friends from area churches, mosques, and other faith communities to learn about Judaism and to share in a delightful breakfast, Please RSVP on the website or call 502-423-1818. The Temple is located at 5101 US 42. The zip is 40241.

No Other Land Viewing: Sunday, March 8  at 2:30pm at First U

First U Adult RE will be joining the Jewish Louisvillians for Peace (JLP) and the All Peoples Justice Center to host a screening of the film No Other Land. A trailer for the movie can be viewed here.  Sign up for tickets here.
No Other Land won the 2025 Oscar for Best Documentary at Academy Awards – See acceptance speech here.
Made by a Palestinian-Israeli collective, this film shows the destruction of the occupied West Bank’s Masafer Yatta by Israeli soldiers and the alliance which develops between the Palestinian activist Basel and Israeli journalist Yuval.
Suggested donation: $10/person/film

New Date! (Think warm, spring-like thoughts)

Women’s Alliance Winter Meeting – Saturday, February 28

Join us for our second quarterly general meeting. As always it will be held in the First U Social Hall from 10-11:30 am. Refreshments will be provided.  Annual dues of $10 for 2026 will be collected at this meeting. Cash and checks are accepted, and checks need to be made out to the Women’s Alliance.Our guest speaker will be a fellow WA member. She is a librarian at the Louisville Presbyterian Theological Seminary, which is one of the more progressive seminaries in the area. She has been fortunate enough to have the opportunity to work on collection and create web pages on a variety of inclusive topics such as black church studies, queer theology, reproductive justice, progressive Christianity and much more. She will give an overview of this research, inclusive collections and discuss progressive Christianity in general.

There will also be a business meeting when we will be hearing more about the plans for our Spring Retreat at Mt. Saint Francis Retreat Center in Floyds Knobs, Indiana, on May 23, 2026.

The Women’s Alliance is an independent, non-profit organization in association with First Unitarian Church. Any member or friend who is an active participant in First Unitarian and identifies as a woman is invited to participate in the Women’s Alliance meetings and activities.

Lunch with the ROMEOs – Monday, March 9 at 11:30am at Locals

Join the “Retired Old Men Eating Out” at Locals on the southwest corner of East Broadway and Logan Street. They plan to meet on the second Monday of every month. Contact the office for more information.

Join Us Sunday at 11:00am
 

February 22

Immigrant Rights

Guest Speaker: Ron Russell

Mr. Russell will speak regarding current government attacks on immigrant rights, the fightback to protect basic immigrant rights and freedoms, including the need for immigration reform, which last occurred in 1996.
 
About the Speaker: Ron Russell
Ron Russell has been practicing immigration law since 1988.  Currently, he is semi-retired, mainly providing pro bono legal consultations to individuals without status. Ron started his firm in 2000 and it grew to four attorneys and seven paralegals.
His practice covered many areas of immigration law, especially asylum relief.  Ron served on the national Board of the American Immigration Lawyers Assistance (AILA) and the MidSouth Chapter of AILA for a number of years. He has spoken about numerous issues at national and regional conferences. In the past eight years he has provided free consultations to undocumented individuals who are seeking legal status.
 

For the zoom link, Click here. The Meeting ID is 4508929882 if you can’t attend in person.  You will not need a password. Contact the volunteer desk if you have trouble getting online.
The Nursery: The Tadpoles Room will be open for babies and pre-k  from 9:30am-12:15pm on Sundays. Registration Forms. are required for each child, including those in the nursery.

Upcoming Services: Sundays at 11am
 

March 1

Growing the Light

Speaker: Rev. Liz Weber
 

What does First U Lou mean to you? You mean a lot to us! On this pledge kickoff Sunday, we’ll celebrate our collective power and our hopes for how we’ll grow our light in the coming year.
 

March 8

From Suffrage to the Living Covenant
by the First U Women’s Alliance

March is Women’s History Month, and we begin it
with an introduction to our own Women’s Alliance
of First Unitarian Church.
From its beginnings as the Ladies Sewing Society to its embrace of all persons who identify as female, members will share the ways the Alliance has committed to “our great covenant: to dwell together in peace, to seek the truth in love, and to help one another.”
 

March 15

Songs for the Moment,
Songs from the Movement
Speaker: Rev. Liz Weber

Singing can keep our spirits high when the struggle for justice gets tough. This service will highlight songs from movement and justice circles, from Minneapolis and from around the world.
Come for songs of solace, celebration, determination, and strength.

RE: Religious Exploration
Contact Loren Crawford, Director of Religious Exploration (DRE)
Learn About More RE Opportunities Here
Families Welcome / Childcare Available beginning at 9:30
 

Children’s RE Contact: Loren  

This begins in the sanctuary at 11:00 with the Moment for Ages. They leave during the Song for the Children.

The Nursery: Tadpoles will be open for babies and pre-k  from 9:30am-12:15pm on Sundays. Registration Forms. Registration information is required for each child, including those in the nursery.

Adult (RE) Contact: Adult Religious Exploration

  • All are Welcome: Members, friends, visitors, curious people, and people lost in the building are all welcome.
  • Check-in begins at 9:45. Class meets in the Church Library at 10am.
  • Click here (or see above) for information about the

Justice Information
 

Resources for Resistance

Be sure to view the list of resources above and share with those that need them.

Save the Date: No Kings March : Saturday, March 28

Legislative Monitoring

As you know, the Kentucky Legislature is in Session. To find out what laws and regulations are being considered, to get contact information for your representative, or monitor the process, you can go to this website.
 
 
 

Room in the Inn Louisville

First Unitarian volunteers will once again have the opportunity to participate in the Room in the Inn (RITI) Louisville winter shelter program, January-February 2026.  There are opportunities for men and women to volunteer. If you are interested in volunteering or donating, please contact Suzanne.  Suzanne Meeks of our Congregation is the President of its Board of Directors. Feed Louisville will be providing dinners at both sites Mondays through Fridays, while congregation volunteers will provide the meals on Saturdays and Sundays.