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Community
News April 2016
To launch the annual pledge drive, our own Joe Wolfarth presented a message on March 6th, 2016, about "The Church as Sanctuary," in large part based on the impact this church has had on him. Joe's unique flair for self-expression shines through his thoughtful messages.
Click on photo to view video.
Newcomer to our pulpit, Rev. Michelle Sullivan, a Buddhist teacher and candidate for a master's degree in counseling, spoke in March on the relationship between Buddhist practice and mental health.
Click on photo to view video.
On March 20th, our own Laurel Moehring, a long time student of Celtic spiritual traditions, celebrated the return of spring with the exploration of ancient vernal equinox celebrations.
Click on photo to view video.
Thanks to all our wonderful speakers! You have enhanced our church experience.
To view more videos go to our web page. Click here.
A Month of Sundays
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April 3
Building Fund Sunday
Dr. Phillip Lucas will speak on modern day Cassadaga, a 120-year-old community of spiritually-minded people located right here in Central Florida. The Southern Cassadaga Spiritualist Camp Meeting Association is the oldest, active religious community in the Southeastern United States. Spiritualism holds something for everyone, no matter what their religion or where they are on their spiritual path. Laura Chilkott will be the service leader.
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April 10
Scholarship Fund Sunday
Our own Reverend Lloyd Dunham will look at the life of eighteenth century doctor and Universalist clergyman, George de Benneville, (1701-1793). His beliefs stressed that all people everywhere are loved by God, and that culture, race and gender have no bearing on the worth of a human being. Laurie Dunham will be the service leader.
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April 17
HUM Fund Sunday
The Reverend Dr. Donald Musser will join us. The topic will be "The Bane and Blessing of Doubt." Lloyd and Laurie Dunham will be the service leaders.
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April 24
The Reverend Morris Sullivan will join us with a discussion on "Searching High and Low: Buddhism and Japanese Psychology." Among the forms of Buddhism present in Japan are Zen and Shin. Each focuses on a different approach to liberation: Zen stresses jiriki or "self-power," while Shin or Jodo Shinshu focuses on tariki or "other-power." On the surface, the concept of gaining spiritual freedom through one’s own efforts may seem to clash with the idea of attaining enlightenment with the help of others. However, the core principles of Japanese psychology derive from these two approaches to living the Buddhist path. We will consider how to apply these methods of self-reflection to living more constructively. A study will follow Reverend Sullivan’s presentation. Julie Zakrewsky will be the service leader.
May 2016
May 1
Dr. Christopher Bell. "Models of Divinity in Tibetan, Chinese, and, Japanese Gods." Debbi Zill will be service leader.
May 8
Rev. Laura Baskett. Topic: TBD. Julie Zakrewsky will be the service leader.
May 15
Annual Meeting service.
May 22
Dan Gribbin will join us with a discussion about “The Meaning of Life”. Joe Wolfarth will be the service leader.
May 29
Gail Radley will join us with a presentation entitled “Virtues and Civility in Discourse”. Laura Chilkott will be the service leader.
April Events April 1
Potluck with a purpose. 6:00 PM
April 13 Board of Trustees Meeting. 6:00PM Social 6:30PM Meeting. All welcome.
Location : Bud & Pat's home
April 13 PFLAG 7:00PM United Church of Christ, NSB
April 16 Church Picnic with BBQ chicken. 5:00 PM. Let Laurie know what you will be bringing. Location Lloyd & Laurie's home.
April 23
Drumming Circle and Bonfire. 7:00PM
Location: Esther Street Beach, NSB.
President’s Message
Dear Members and Friends:
Spring time is joyful. It is wonderful to wake up to green grass, colorful blooms and new beginnings all about.
CUUC will soon welcome a new Board of Trustees. And, although some long serving members will be leaving the board their devotion to CUUC still prevails. For instance, Nancy McCormick will be leaving the board after serving for many years and will take on the challenge of developing a class for leadership training, offering it not only to CUUC members but will reach out to neighboring UU churches. This exciting process has already begun.
I am confident that, in the not too distant future, we will find a home of our own and become a real full fledged church. Our search team is constantly checking out properties and we are working on fund raising ideas, and getting our finances in order. Increasing our annual income is an important part of this equation.
Help us to reach our potential: Volunteers are needed to complete the new board. Please contact Lloyd Dunham, Al Fregin or Pat Cullison, Members of the Nominating Committee. And, if there is a person who has an interest in helping the search committee, we are looking for someone who is willing to concentrate on looking for suitable property to lease while the other members of the team are searching for property we can afford to purchase. With this kind of concentrated effort, we will have success. To become part of the search team as the Lease expert, contact Anna Grainger. Sharon Herr is having some quiet time at the moment, recovering from surgery.
Let’s all do our part. Thank You !
As always I look forward to seeing you in church.
Sincerely,
Audrey Barcelo, President
CUUC, BOT
All-Church Cookout/Picnic
Saturday, April 16 at the Dunhams’ home, 5927 Aruna Drive in Port Orange, at 5:00 PM we will gather for our annual cookout. If you wish to swim in our pool come a 4:00. Main entrée will be barbequed chicken. If you need an alternative entrée please contact us. Contributions of potato salad, baked beans and deserts are needed. Please contact the Dunhams about what you may bring.
Parking: Our drive will accommodate six cars if properly used. Otherwise please park on one side of the street.
Reflections
I couldn’t help but notice a freshness in the air. There’s lots of color popping up, like greens, and pinks and yellows. It’s really becoming a feast for the eyes. It’s springtime in Florida. As I see flowers starting to bloom, I am reminded of this little passage that I came upon ;
Flowers...have a mysterious and subtle influence upon the feelings, not unlike some strains of music. They relax the tenseness of the mind. They dissolve the rigor,” (Henry Ward Beecher). Like music can renew our spirits, flowers can do the same as we linger on them with our eyes. I can understand the meaning, finally, of “stop and smell the roses”; a phrase often said to me as I rushed through the multi-tasking speedway of my day. It is so nice to stop and take in the vibrant color of the azelea, or the deep hues of the hibiscus. And it’s not just flowers; grass and trees, are coming into their own with lush greens that bring us joy.
We are in the season of rebirth. Most of us have a cherished story that we relive each year to convey this feeling. It’s a time of awakening from the dead of winter, and embracing the brightness and color of new life that bursts out all around us. It’s a time of optimism and hope. Let the colors of nature in this Florida spring be inspirational to you. Hear the music in it.
P.S. Let the seasonal allergies stay away !!!
-Rosa Lake
“Welcoming Congregations” in Unitarian Universalism
In Unitarian Universalist circles, the term “Welcoming Congregation” is used to describe congregations that welcome and support people from the LGBTQ (sometimes described as LGBTQQIA – the letters have multiplied!) community… Don’t know what all that stands for? You are not alone. Originally the term was “lesbian and gay” – then LGBT came into use, to stand for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender. The “Q” was added and some folks translated it as “Questioning” while some younger people decided to “rescue” the word “Queer” from the dustbin of history, making it their label of choice and saving it from being used only as an epithet. For clarification, the acronym was enlarged to include 2 letter Qs, making it more inclusive. Then “I” came along – it stands for “Intersex” (because typically, “intersex” humans dislike being called “hermaphrodites” as much as Little People dislike being called “midgets!” Did you know that! Well, now you do!) And at last the “A” came along – it stands for “Allies.”
When our pulpit hosted transgender activist Gina Duncan in February to share her story and enlighten us on the status of transgender Americans’ quest for full civil rights (including freedom from discrimination in housing, employment, and other matters) I felt the strength of our congregation’s commitment to social justice, in the warm reception she received from us. Former CUUC Board of Trustees President Connie Baker asked, “How long has it been since our church revisited its commitment by renewing our Welcoming Congregation status (the Unitarian Universalist Association recommends renewal every 5 years, as changing cultural and socio-economic factors affect congregations and their members continually)?” An online search reveals that CUUC has not participated in such a renewal since 2002. I am offering to lead our congregation in a workshop – or short series of workshops – to bring us “up-to-date” on the issues facing GLBTQQIA Americans today. Current BOT President Audrey Barcelo asked me to poll the congregation to determine if sufficient interest exists to proceed with creating such a manifestation, in actual time. Please share your thoughts – in person with me or Connie, or via email to joewolfarth@netzero.net. Will you participate?
Namaste
Joe Wolfarth
Reflections
I couldn’t help but notice a freshness in the air. There’s lots of color popping up, like greens, and pinks and yellows. It’s really becoming a feast for the eyes. It’s springtime in Florida. As I see flowers starting to bloom, I am reminded of this little passage that I came upon ;
Flowers...have a mysterious and subtle influence upon the feelings, not unlike some strains of music. They relax the tenseness of the mind. They dissolve the rigor,” (Henry Ward Beecher). Like music can renew our spirits, flowers can do the same as we linger on them with our eyes. I can understand the meaning, finally, of “stop and smell the roses”; a phrase often said to me as I rushed through the multi-tasking speedway of my day. It is so nice to stop and take in the vibrant color of the azelea, or the deep hues of the hibiscus. And it’s not just flowers; grass and trees, are coming into their own with lush greens that bring us joy.
We are in the season of rebirth. Most of us have a cherished story that we relive each year to convey this feeling. It’s a time of awakening from the dead of winter, and embracing the brightness and color of new life that bursts out all around us. It’s a time of optimism and hope. Let the colors of nature in this Florida spring be inspirational to you. Hear the music in it.
P.S. Let the seasonal allergies stay away !!!
-Rosa Lake
Home is Where Your People Are
I read an article written by a woman who had to face the difficult situation of needing to sell the family home. She felt that selling this legacy would somehow violate her birthright. More importantly she felt that it would betray her late mother’s love. But the house had to be sold. So it was sold.
After the sale she realized that the house itself was not at the center of her dilemma. At the center was her need to respect her family. And beneath that was her love for her family, and the story of their shared history. The memories of times spent in the house kept her mother, and others who had crossed over, alive in her heart. The memories were speaking to her, and they needed to be made available to others. So she began to write. I understood her compulsion. I, too, have stories to tell.
In 1988 I lost my grandmother; by 1990 I had lost my Aunt Helen. My dad died in 1991.
In 1993 my sister Sally died suddenly in a vehicular accident while driving north on I-95. She was only 31, and her early death scarred our family as the loss of the others had not. Those who preceded her had been retired folks, enjoying their “golden years.” We grieved to see our mother bury the daughter who looked so much like her that Sally was unsurprised when a stranger would approach and say, “I went through school with your mother! How is she doing? I haven’t seen her in years, but I looked into your face and it was like a time warp!” I witnessed this once at Daytona Beach’s Volusia Mall during the winter holidays. Our mother had been Mainland Senior High School’s Homecoming Queen for her graduating Class of 1944 – so my sister took this comment as a compliment, knowing Mom would be pleased to hear it.
When Sally left us, the house my parents had bought when I was six months old was partly renovated. Sally had made an agreement with our mother, who’d given her ownership of the property, and Sally, an attorney, had agreed to finance the renovations so that they could live in the house together. The “mother-in-law-suite” or “side apartment” had been completed already, and work was in progress on the main living, kitchen and bath areas. Sally was living in the side apartment while the construction went on, and Mom was living ‘temporarily’ in a small travel-trailer parked in the back yard, for which my brothers had constructed a screened porch that was equal in square footage to the trailer itself. My mother loved our Florida lifestyle and relished sitting on that porch, sited where she could enjoy the river view as she had from our patio.
Two years passed. Finally, my sister Bonnie said to Mom, “You need to make a decision! Sell the house, or finish the work! If you want to sell it after it’s finished, then it would be worth more… but that’s your decision. If you do decide to complete the work, we can help you. Don’t forget you raised four sons with experience in construction trades!” So my siblings saw to it that the necessary work got done (I was the fifth son, the one without such talents. Nonetheless, I helped a little, when I was in Florida; my partner, Lee, and I lived in Chicago at the time, but I travelled home and did what I could while I was here.) My mother selected the colors and finishes for her home, fulfilling a desire she’d had since I was a baby, when our family moved into the house.
When the renovations were finished at last, we placed a brass plaque on the front door to dedicate it to Sally’s memory. My brother Jahn was living in the side apartment; my brother Brian and his sons moved into the “big” side of the house with Mom. Two years passed.
After Mom was diagnosed with terminal cancer we all knew she felt cheated. Her greatest joy in life came from being our “matriarch,” and no one wanted to see her robbed of this position, Mom least of all. Is it any wonder that she was on hospice care for nine months? The nurses said, “She had a fighting spirit.” I replied, “You know it! My mama was born in the Year of the tiger!” Consolation came from my belief in the afterlife. I knew that Sally was waiting to be reunited with mom; their souls would rejoice. When my mother died in the summer of 1998, it felt like a family reunion; we all shared our stories, and I felt that the spirits of our relatives were pleased to be remembered.
Five years passed before the last of my mourning for my mother surfaced. I hadn’t known there was unexpressed grief still inside of me, until one day I found myself on my knees weeping beside the roses my mother had helped me plant as a thirteen-year-old. By this time my brother Ned owned the house. I was glad for this turn of events.
At first it had seemed that the house must be sold. As executor of Mom’s will, I’d listed the house for sale a year or so after her death. But I was then living in Minnesota and felt disconnected from my siblings and our legacy. I upset our realtor when I countered the first (and, as it turned out, only) offer we would receive for the house; the prospective buyer then got “cold feet” and fled. The realtor I’d selected stated, “I told you to take the money and run! But you countered, and now he’s gone!”
After that, the ‘for sale’ sign had stayed in front of the house with no offers coming. But I’d had a prophetic dream about my brother Ned, and when he told me he was interested in owning the house himself, I’d felt happy to know that it could stay in the family, and my dream would come to fruition. In the year 2000, I had returned to Florida with the intention of helping my brother become a homeowner. He’d owned a single share in the property; after obtaining financing, he became the sole possessor.
Is Sally Still Alive? Yes! She lives on in my heart. As do the rest of my relatives named above, and now my two brothers, Brian and Jahn, who left this earthly plane in 2008 and 2010, respectively.
My mother knew the house held memories that would keep the spirit of our family alive.
I know that our church has weathered the passing of many members – some have moved away, some have moved on with their lives, some have reached the end of their lives. But the spirit of our group – our church ‘community’ – lives on. The story of CUUC has not ended; it has surged like the tides, but it lives on. My mom would understand this. Home is where your people are.
Namaste!
Joe Wolfarth
We Need Your Old Stuff For a Garage Sale /Flea Market to Benefit Our Building Fund
Start saving items for our garage sale / flea market. Anna and Sharon will be collecting items to sell at the Port Orange Flea Market as soon as the temperatures warm up. Recycle, reuse and reduce! What better way to save the planet. Help will be need to load, unload, reload, mark prices and man the booth. Left overs will be donated or sold on Ebay. Let Anna or Sharon know if you can volunteer items or your time. Date to be determined.
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Dudley Memorial Chapel
1108 North Dixie Highway (US Rt. 1)
New Smyrna Beach, 32168 (386) 767-4189
