Midweek UUpdate 6/4/26

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Proudly Progressive, Boldly Inclusive, Radically Friendly

FYI 

First U Book Club

June meeting is Monday, June 8 at 6pm in the church library. We’ll discuss Democracy Awakening by Heather Cox Richardson. All are welcome, even if you haven’t read the book!

Marti and Kent McDaniel Memorial Service Sunday, July 5, 2:00 pm in the Sanctuary and on zoom (link TBD)

The McDaniel family and First U invite you to join in a celebration of the lives of Kent and Marti, longtime church members who died this year after moving to California in 2020. Reception to follow at church. Cards may be sent to Kirk McDaniel, 59 Carriage Hill Rd, Epsom, NH 03234.

Pride Nite Pizza and Poster-Making Party: June 16

The Justice Center located at All Peoples is hosting a Pride Nite Pizza and Poster-Making Party to prepare for the Pride parade on June 20! It is free to join.

  • Who: Members and Friends of First Unitarian and All Peoples
  • What: Free Pizza and Poster-Making Supplies courtesy of the Justice Center
  • When: Tuesday, June 16, at 6:30 p.m.
  • Where: The Justice Center (a.k.a. “the farmhouse”) located behind All Peoples Unitarian Universalist at 4936 Brownsboro Rd. 40222

Looking for Pride Day Volunteers

Join First U and All Peoples for Louisville’s annual Pride Day on June 20 and we need volunteers! People are needed to help with the Glitter Blessing Booth and the Pride Day Parade! You can help leading up to the event and/or the day. If you’re interested in fun times for a bright cause, please send an email to the office. 

From the Connections Ministry  Click here to connect

Activities Survey Click here. Please participate! As we start the new church year in June, we need information about your interests and activities at First Unitarian. This helps us conduct the events and programs that will help make your involvement more interesting. Let us know what you think!

Join Us This Sunday at 11:00am
 

June 7

Flourishing and
Celebrating Together
Minister: Rev. Liz Weber

June’s worship, Religious Exploration, and Chalice Circle theme is “flourishing together.” In this service, we will celebrate the ways we have flourished together in this first church year with a new minister. What a year it’s been!
The service will be shorter, about 45 minutes, so that our annual meeting can start earlier. We will have lunch between the service and the meeting.
 

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.

June 14

Sarah Grimke’s Uncompromising Struggles
Against Slavery and Patriarchy
Speaker: Michael Tee

We will focus on the life and legacy of Sarah Grimke, the daughter of a wealthy American slave owner. Along with her sister Angelina, Sarah became a prominent Anti-Slavery and Pro-Women’s Rights advocate of the 19th century.

About the Speaker:
Michael Tee is a poet, essayist, playwright and political activist. He is a member of the UU church and has resided in Louisville for the last ten years.

The Annual Meeting of the Congregation: All the Stuff

Annual Meeting Notice: Sunday, June 7, 2026
at 12:30pm (note revised time)

Our next Annual Meeting of the Congregation will be on Sunday, June 7, after the service, at 12:30pm. Before the Annual Meeting, a picnic lunch will be served. Childcare will be available for the meeting.
The stated purpose of this Annual Meeting is the election of two at-large Board Committee members, the treasurer, and the secretary to the Board; and a discussion and vote on the general operating budget for the fiscal year 2026-2027.

Voting at this meeting of the Congregation shall be by active members of the Church as shown upon the membership list. Any member unable to attend the Congregational Meeting may execute a written proxy; forms are available on the volunteer desk.

Proxy Form: A proxy must name a specified active member and should be turned in either to the Board President  or to the Board Secretary in person, completed electronically by completing this link,  or placed in the Board President’s box no later than Saturday, June 6, at noon. A person holding a proxy may vote on any matters that arise at the meeting. No one individual may vote more than one proxy at any one meeting. Proxy votes shall not count as part of the quorum.

Thank you, and please plan to attend.

Devi Pierce, President of the Board
 

The Annual Report to the Congregation will be shared electronically so that it may be read before the meeting as desired. It contains reports from various ministries, groups, and staff members about the past year with goals for the future. It can be read before or after the meeting. The report also includes financial information. It will be shared via email as soon as possible. If you have questions, please contact the office. Thanks.

Brief Questions You May Have:

  • Why do we have an Annual Meeting?
    The yearly meeting offers a chance for the congregation to meet to discuss and vote on important issues. The Board is required to set this up in order for us to elect members of the Board and vote on the Church’s Budget.
  • Can anyone attend? What about children?
    Yes, anyone may attend, but only members may vote. Childcare and activities for children will be available for the meeting.
  • Can anyone vote? What if unable to attend?
    Only members of the church are allowed to vote. If a member is unable to attend in person, it’s possible to name a proxy by June 6 (someone to vote for you) but the proxy must agree to do so, be a member, and can only be a proxy for one person.
  • Will there be a chance to eat between the Worship Service and the Annual Meeting? 
    Yes. The service will be shorter than usual. There will be a picnic lunch served between the service and when the meeting begins at 12:30pm.
  • What is the lunch menu?
    Your choice of veggie or meat sliders, chips, dessert
  • How do I find out what has happened this past year and the plans for the future? What are the groups and what do they do?
    The best way to find out is to read the “Annual Report to the Congregation” that will be available soon. Read what each group shared about their past year and upcoming plans. Read only the parts that most interest you or read about the things you do not know yet. It will be offered online with some print copies. If you do not see it Sunday, contact the office.

GA (The Yearly General Assembly of the UUA) 

Our national Unitarian Universalist conference is coming to Louisville!

Register here to attend the meetings. 

General Assembly worship services and workshops are June 19-21, with national business sessions June 14-16. It will be at the Galt House. Some highlights:

  • Get to know UUs from around the region and country
  • Keynote from Bishop Mariann Edgar Budde of the Washington National Cathedral
  • Multiple worship services with our faith’s best preachers
  • Interactive “Meet the Moment” workshops both in person and online
  • Lots of webinar-style workshops you can stream all summer

Interested in FREE Registration for GA Sessions? click here

If you are interested in representing First U

as a delegate for the business portions of the conference, June 14-16, let me or a Board member know. The business agenda is here. Broader information about General Assembly is here.
If you have questions, contact the office.

Loaning and Volunteering for the UUA

  • Volunteering at General Assembly (June 15-22 at Galt House): Anyone interested in volunteering at the studio site – doing a combination of greeting, counting attendance in our breakout rooms, assisting ushers in the ballroom, and/or other support as needed – should contact LaTonya Richardson. 
  • The UUA offers complimentary General Assembly registration for volunteers.

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

Adult (RE) Contact: Adult Religious Exploration

Are you curious about RE? Click here
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 for information about  Adult RE.

Children’s RE Contact: Loren Crawford

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. They will join the older children in Summer RE as appropriate.

Summer RE for Kids!

JUNE

  • 14  Water Day I: Prepare to get wet! Bring a towel and extra clothes
  • 21 Remote Control Vehicle Day:  Bring a remote control toy to share if you have one. We’ll have races and obstacle courses in the courtyard.
  • 28 Cooking Day I: Create goodies for a donation-based lemonade stand. All proceeds go to CLCM

JULY

  • 5 Painting Day: Body portraits, chalk murals, finger painting. It will get messy. 
  • 12 Water Day II: Prepare to get wet! Bring a towel and extra clothes!
  • 19 Board Game Day: A wide assortment of games for all ages
  • 26 Build a Fort Day: Build a fort in the Raccoon Room and have a spooky time

AUGUST

  • 2 Solar Oven Day: Build a pizza box solar oven to make s’mores
  • 9 Peace Stone Day: Paint flat rocks with kind words to hide around the neighborhood 
  • 16 Cooking Day II: Create goodies for a donation-based lemonade stand. Proceeds go to CLCM 
  • 23 Jar Day: Decorate jars for Water Communion. Give to the congregation at coffee hour.
  • 30 Water Day III The Last One:  It’s Water Communion Day!

September 6: RE Classes begin

Justice Information

Congress Do Your Job!

Want to send a message to your Congressman?  Does their inaction leave you frustrated and speechless? League of Women Voters can remedy that for you.  We will have postcards ready for you to write  your message on the back (we have message prompts and suggestions).  And don’t worry about postage unless you want to take them home to complete. After service look for our table in the social hall. We have the power!

UU the Vote

We’re writing postcards to encourage Louisville Metro Council to fully fund Safe & Stable Housing for All. You can write a postcard as a member or friend of First U, and/or if you work or volunteer in Louisville, even if you don’t live in Louisville. So everyone can write at least one postcard! Let’s follow the lead of other cities and end homelessness now!

WaterStep Shoe Collection

The shoe collection boxes remain in several locations at church: lobby, library, etc. Your donation of gently-used shoes are brought to the WaterStep headquarters 1 mile away from church. This supports clean drinking water projects in communities all over the world.

Green Sanctuary Update

During Earth Month at First U, the Seventh Principle Team introduced the UUA’s Green Sanctuary 2030 program to the congregation.  We’re looking for and supporting congregation-wide efforts to actively support environmental justice work. We also encourage:
  • minimizing First U’s carbon footprint,
  • supporting our members and friends to bring these efforts into their own homes.

Every time you reduce consumption, re-use items and recycle, you’ve shown your love for our natural world. You’ve probably also saved yourself some money.  Thanks, friends, for your commitment to more fully live our principles. Thanks for your activism and partnership. And thanks for being open to re-imagining our community thriving!

Resolution on the Climate Crisis

First Unitarian Church of Louisville acknowledges the imminent threat of the climate crisis to both human civilization and the other species with which we share the planet. We join with All Peoples and other UU churches to call on all members of our community to take action to reduce the threat and mitigate the consequences of the climate crisis.
Adopted by the congregation of the First Unitarian Church of Louisville
at the Annual Meeting, June 2022.