• September 28 Sunday’s Sermon Reflections on Belonging
  from “The Book Women of Troublesome Creek” by Kim Michele Richardson
  Speaker: Rev. Ben Burton
• October 5 The Blessing of the Animals and First Sunday Lunch
• October 12  Service Auction: Silent and Live Auctions; Lunch
• October 16 CLCM Coat Drive
• October 18 Earth Walk – join the First U Team!
• Adult RE – 10am Click here for opportunities
• Children’s RE – Following the Moment for All Ages.
  Click here for class descriptions.

Send in your Pet Photos for the Slide Show!
But as always, if they can’t come, you can share a photo of your pet(s) as well. Send a photo of your pet to the Volunteer Desk by Wednesday, October 1 and Trish will add it to the slide show. Be sure to include the pet’s name. If you’ve shared a pet’s photo in the past, contact the Volunteer Desk to see if it is available.

Coat Drive: Coat Donations Needed by Thursday, October 16
Central Louisville Community Ministries is now collecting clean, gently used winter coats for their annual coat giveaway.You can drop off your coats on Sundays, or Monday-Thursday 9:30am – 1:00pm here at First U. Help keep Louisville warm!

Mark Your Calendar: Church Auction, Sunday, October 12
For 20+ years, auctions have raised significant funds to benefit our church’s programs. They’re fun and exciting and offer something for everyone!
12:00pm: Lunch and Silent Auction in the social hall
1:15pm: Live Auction   (Child care provided; ending time by 3:00pm)

For this auction, we’re especially seeking donations of dinners and events hosted by church members and friends. Bidders will buy individual spots at these.

We’re also looking for donations of services!
– drive someone to the airport?
– let someone use your cottage or timeshare?
– donate theater tickets?
– get a gift certificate from a hotel, restaurant, hotel, other?

Can you cook a meal? Repair a lamp? Paint a portrait? Babysit? Teach a skill? Rake leaves?

• For the Silent Auction, we’d like donations of items that are new or in excellent condition. This is a great chance to pass along things you’ve been meaning to regift or that you bought and have never used!
• To donate goods or services, contact the office. And save the date on October 12!

Strong Paper and Plastic Bags Needed for the Food Pantry
The food pantry volunteers pack bags and bags of groceries to be given out every week and need a lot of bags. If you shop at a store that uses paper bags, could you double-bag and grab a few extra bags and forward them to the food pantry? If you do food pick up or delivery, those strong plastic bags are also needed. As always, we need and appreciate the non-perishable food items donated every week. Place them in the blue basket. As cuts are made to safety nets, the need for food is growing.

Save the Date: Earth Walk October 18
The 2025 Earth Walk is Saturday October 18 at 10am at beautiful Shawnee Park.  First U is a sponsor of this event, and members of the Seventh Principle Team will be staffing a table.  This 2K walk event is family-friendly, and the proceeds from the walk supports 9 environmental nonprofits.
Join the First U team! Register here.

Central Louisville Community Ministries: Bikes for Kids
Got kid bikes?  Cochran Elementary and Pedal Power are joining forces in a Bikes for Kids Christmas Drive.  They have a goal to collect 150 bikes for elementary-age children (age 5-11).  Do you have any no-longer used bikes for these children? Your donations can be dropped off at Cochran (500 W Gaulbert Ave) or at Pedal Power (4100 Shelbyville Rd – drop outside the garage). Pedal Power will refurbish the bikes and make them available in time for the holidays to the families who have children attending Cochran.

Parking Lot Tree Update
The newly planted tree in the parking lot close to the entry is doing great! Thanks to weekly waterers Joe Kremer, Kathy G and Kathy T!  The other tree toward the back of the lot….has been dead since it was planted.  The Trees Louisville folks plan to replace it with a hopefully thriving tree in December or January.  These willow oaks are intended to provide shade for parked cars and eventual shade for First U  building;  food/shelter for birds, insects, wildlife; beautification; lower the parking lot surface heat in the summer; help purify the air – remove CO2 from the atmosphere; help absorb stormwater and limit flash flooding. The city has a goal for 30% tree canopy in each neighborhood – downtown’s canopy currently is 11%.

Do you like to sing? The Choir wants to welcome you…
Rehearsals are Thursday nights in the sanctuary from 7pm to 8pm. E-mail our music director Ethan or find him after service on Sundays for more information!

An Easy Way To Support First U – Free Money!
You need groceries, right? As you shop at Kroger, you earn points that earn you discounts on groceries and gas. But there’s more! Kroger sets aside a percentage to share with the place of your choice – which could be First U! It doesn’t cost you a cent, but it adds up. Each quarter, Kroger sends a check to First U for this money. Click here to sign up or ask questions.

to learn more about the history of the rural book distribution program

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.

October 19: When Compassion is Hard
Speaker Rev. Liz Weber
Sometimes it’s easy to have compassion for others. But sometimes it’s a lot tougher. What do we do when compassion is hard to find? How do we cultivate compassion for people we dislike or strongly disagree with? How do we have self-compassion for the parts of ourselves that we dislike? Come explore these questions in the service.

(RE) Adult Religious Exploration – contact Jim H.

• Every Sunday – 10 am – in the Library / Check-ins start at 9:45
• All are Welcome: Members, friends, visitors, curious people, and people lost in the building are all welcome.
• Click here  for more information

Adult RE September 28  
We will get down to our Belonging brass tacks this Sunday as we examine what “belonging” means in a faith community – or at First U specifically. What are the experiences that you’ve had in the past where you felt like you belong? What are ways that you help create an atmosphere of belonging at church? What are some needs you have that would make you feel more like we all belong together?

Adult RE in October
The Anti-Racism Challenge (ARC) returns. We will explore ways we can lean into anti-racist practices and thinking collectively…and we will also come together to process together our individual efforts and explorations. We’ll poke at the racism all around us, from food deserts to incarceration and beyond. You can subscribe to the four weekly ARC e-mails via Listen. Learn. Act. If you have suggestions for our own First U ARC activities, share them with Alexis, Jim and Matt.

Children’s RE    contact Loren
Children’s RE begins in the sanctuary at 11:00 with the Moment for Ages. They leave during the Song for the Children.

• Click here for Fall Children’s Classes and Registration Forms. Registration information is required for each child, including those in the nursery.

The Nursery will be open for babies and pre-k  from 9:30am-12:15pm on Sundays.

La Casita News: La Casita Center works intentionally to build a thriving community based on mutual support and respect built on the vision of connecting people through solidarity, to be one community. Priority needs; ways to give; jobs, internships, and volunteer opportunities.