🍰 Join us for coffee hour after the church service on Sunday March 19 to help celebrate Rev. Christian's 10-year ordination anniversary!
(Your WT editor is told there will be cake!) 🍰
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Next week! March 23-25 - Annual Used Book and Art Sale.
March 26 - New Member Meet and Greet
March 28 - TED Talks Discussion
March 30 - Introduction to UU and MVUC Class
April 9 - Easter Egg Hunt
April 16 - Earth Day Creek Clean-Up
April 16 - Muzikanten Choral Concert at MVUC
April 22 - Concert for the Earth - Faith Alliance for Climate Solutions benefit
April 22 - Adopt a Highway
April 23 - Spring Workenanny - MVUC Grounds
April 30 - May 7 - "Candidating Week" for prospective new minister
May 7 - Congregational meeting to call a new minister
May 21 - MVUC Annual Meeting
June 21-25 - UUA General Assembly - Pittsburgh and Online
October 15 - Fall Workenanny - MVUC Grounds
November 18 - MVUC Holiday Shop
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Thanks and Applause to all of those who performed at our Annual Lasagna Dinner Variety Show and Fundraiser on March 4 and to all of those who attended and supported our performers! The lasagna, deserts, and beverages were delicious and the performances were entertaining - and they included everything from hula hoops to Taylor Swift to Langston Hughes to original poems and musical compositions!
If you missed it, make a note on your calendar for next year!
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MVUC Ministerial Search Process
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 Where are we in the ministerial search process?
The Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA) has set out a careful process that both congregations and ministers follow to help ensure successful pairings of ministers and congregations. For congregations, the process is divided into roughly four steps:
- Reflecting is the first step, where as a congregation we consider who we are and our vision for the future ministry of the church.
- Sharing that vision with potential candidates, telling them who we are and the important facts about us that will guide their decision to engage with us.
- Evaluating potential candidates and selecting three or four ministers we wish to engage with more deeply.
- Candidating and Call, an in depth process where the search committee meets with and evaluates the candidates and selects one person to present to the congregation. Our candidate will spend a full week serving as the minister at our congregation, and at the end, if all goes well, we vote to call them as our new settled minister at our congregational meeting on May 7.
The MVUC Search Committee is currently engaged in the fourth stage of this process where we are engaging with pre-candidates to learn much more about them and where they can learn more about us. It is a process of mutual discernment since all of us want to make a good match.
What are the next steps in the search process?
Between the end of March and mid-April, the Search Committee will extend a tentative offer to the best ministerial candidate and, upon that candidate’s acceptance, we will announce the selection to the MVUC Congregation. That person will serve as a “candidate” minister at MVUC for a week - this is appropriately known as Candidating Week. This week will occur between April 30 and May 7.
What can you expect during “Candidating Week”?
The ministerial candidate will preach two consecutive Sundays; interact with and minister to MVUC congregants, lay leaders, and staff in a variety of gatherings during the week; further explore housing options in our area; and, importantly, find times for rest. Following the May 7 Sunday service, a special congregational meeting will be held to determine whether to call the candidate to be our settled minister. Our bylaws require a favorable vote of at least 90% of the members voting in order to call the minister and 50% of our membership needs to vote.
***Please plan to attend the meeting to call the new minister after church on Sunday May 7 or make sure another member has your proxy!***
What follows after successfully calling a new settled minister?
We celebrate! The new minister returns to their ongoing ministry to wrap up. Our interim minister continues his ministry with us until August 1, when the new minister arrives and we begin a new chapter together in the congregational life of MVUC!
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Musikanten Choral Concert at MVUC - April 16
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 Celebrate the masterful choral work of DC/MD/VA composer Russell Woollen (1923-1994) with Musikanten chamber chorus and professional 12-piece orchestra, directed by Kerry Krebill (former artistic director of the Alexandria Choral Society), at MVUC on Sunday, April 16 at 4:00 p.m.
Tickets are $30, available at the door, cash or check, with general admission seating. Don’t miss this unique opportunity!
Special note: MVUC members Mimi Stevens and Trish Waters are both singing in the choir at this concert!
Russell Woollen was a key figure in what might be considered a “Washington School” of composers that flourished in the 1960s and 1970s (see: Wikipedia) and continued to enjoy an outstanding presence in the local classical music scene into the early1990s. Over the years he held positions at the National Symphony Orchestra, Catholic University, Howard University, Arlington Unitarian Universalist Church, and Adas Israel Congregation, and received multiple choral and symphonic commissions from organizations such as the Alexandria Choral Society, the National Sympony Orchestra, the Coolidge Foundation of the Library of Congress, the Friday Morning Music Club, Gaulladet College, Northern Virginia Community College, and the National Endowment for the Arts.
In celebrating the 100th anniversary of Woollen’s birth, Musikanten and orchestra will explore many of his choral works, including the delightful Alexandria Suite, commissioned in 1987 by the Alexndria Choral Society, based on 8 poems about Old Town Alexandria by Jean Elliot, former poet laureate of Virginia and local arts patron. Also on the program are motets and art songs with chorus, orchestra, and guest soloists soprano Amanda Balestrieri, tenor Thomas A. Gregg, and organist Wendy Yuen as well as Woollen’s Elegy and Divertimento for Strings.
Sponsored and hosted by the MVUC Music Department.
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The Annual Used Book & Art Sale is Finally Here!!
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Both buildings will be full of books, CDs, DVDs, puzzles, and ART! Everything in the Meeting House is individually priced. Everything in Hollin Hall is flat rate: $2/hardbacks, $1/paperbacks, .50 for small paperbacks. CDs, DVDs, & puzzles are all $1. Everything is half-price on Saturday or $5/bag in Hollin Hall.
Our dates/hours are
Thursday, March 23, 1-5pm;
Friday, March 24, noon-8pm; and
Saturday, March 25, 10am-3pm.
Bring a friend! All are welcome.
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A Quick Update from the Board of Trustees
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The Board voted unanimously to recommend that wearing masks be optional in the Chapel effective immediately. If members are uncomfortable or feel they need protection for health reasons, they are encouraged to continue to mask.
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Karen Delmonico, Chair
Richard Roesel, Vice-Chair
Katherine Tobin, Vice-Chair
Christian Evangelista, Secretary
Lila Reidy, Youth Member
Lisa Blair, Program Council Co-Convener
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Caroline D'Aguiar, Member
Sam Longstreet, Member
Robin Roberts, Member
Mai Trinh, Member
Contact: bot@mvuc.org & boardchair@mvuc.org
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10 Ways Your Family Can be UU at Home
from Ann Richards, MVUC Director of Lifespan Spiritual Growth
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- Do you drive or walk by signs that say “Pride” or “Black Lives Matter”? These make wonderful talking points about why they might be there, who may have put them up, and how Unitarian Universalists feel about those issues. Your family may even want to make a sign of their own!
- Meal time is a great opportunity to stop for a moment and think about what is most important to you and your family. Saying grace or lighting a chalice preserves a moment in the day for everyone to pause and reflect.
- After movies or other shows families frequently talk about the plot or the characters they just saw. One interesting question to ask is, “Could that character have been UU? Why?”
- Giving gifts is the perfect time to celebrate the recipient and who they are. Of course there are always UUA gifts like a chalice or a “Side with Love” tee shirt, but choosing entertaining books and movies that support Unitarian Universalist values can be an enjoyable way to add to your celebration of that family member.
- Start the day by suggesting, “Let’s do something UU!” Make a short list of everyone’s ideas and pick one to suit the amount of time you have and the mood. It could mean sending a small donation to an animal shelter, calling Grandpa just to say “I love you,” making a card to send to an important person in your lives such as the school principal or the secretary at your gymnastics gym, or leaving a cheerful chalk message for a neighbor.
- Talk about stewardship as part of your routine. We sweep the kitchen floor because we’re good stewards of our home. We keep a budget because stewardship is important. We’re going to have a babysitter because the grownups in our family are going to a meeting at church. That’s part of our family commitment to the stewardship that’s important to us.
- Spend one evening writing letters, making cards and drawing pictures for a cause the family collectively chooses. Write a Senator about upcoming legislation, send a drawing of what a new community center might look like to the mayor, or email a list of favorite books that support diversity to the local library.
- Declare a “spiritual practice” day, in which no one has to do chores. Instead, everyone has to engage in a short time of self-chosen spiritual practice such as a nature walk, knitting, reading poetry, yoga or listening to music. The experience can even be enhanced by a discussion of what a spiritual practice is, how you chose yours, and how you benefited that day. Or use the spiritual practice as a reward for completing the chores after all!
- Express yourself as a UU! Jewelry, clothing and accessories let the world know your faith, but it’s also a reminder to yourself every time you get dressed or to your family every time they see you. Treat yourself to a scarf from Etsy, a baseball cap from the InSpirit Bookstore at https://www.uuabookstore.org, chalice socks from https://www.uua.org/genre/apparel, or an item from https://www.redbubble.com/. Or, you can make your own fantastic UU regalia. Don’t forget to compliment family members when they wear UU too.
- Be UU inventory detectives. Ask the question, “If a stranger came into our house and we weren’t here, how could they tell we were UU? Then, using clipboards, look around your house to find evidence. Are there recycling bins in use? Is there a chalice on the table? Is there a stewardship chart that shows how chores are shared? What kinds of movies and music are around? Finish up with a brainstorm of anything else you’d like to have to express your family’s faith.
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 It has been ten months since Liza and her daughters left Ukraine and almost four months since Serhii joined them in Virginia. They are in constant contact with their family and friends in Ukraine. It has been a long cold winter so everyone is happy that spring is arriving. Liza reports that her family has electricity and heat and things are relatively quiet.
Serhii and Liza are enjoying working at Mount Vernon Estates. Yeva and Zlata are doing well in school and they all freque ntly come to MVUC on Sundays. Having a car has made getting around much easier and they have begun to explore the area including a recent trip to the Capitol.
Liza, Serhii, Zlata and Yeva are all very appreciative of MVUC’s continued support and generosity.
Thank you for helping to make this difficult time a little easier for this courageous family.
Refugee Response Committee.
Joan Darrah, Chair, Martha Dyckes, Laura Greer, Lynne Kennedy, Tony Morris
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MVUC Gives!
Our share-the-plate recipient for February was Arcadia Center for Sustainable Food and Agriculture which received $1891.50. Thank you for your generosity!
March Share-the-Plate contributions will go to MVUC's Partner Church ministry.
See our website for more information about MVUC's Share-the-Plate Program.
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Partner Church Sunday was February 26, 2023 (watch on Youtube).
Unitarian and Unitarian Universalist groups exist around the globe, in known and surprising places. This service explored and celebrated our connections, and our differences, with our siblings in faith. Rev. Morgan McLean reflectedt on her own work of unlearning our American expectations and learning anew to center emerging voices. MVUC Board Member Lisa Blair reflected on her experiences with Mt. Vernon’s Partner Churches in Szentháromság, Transylvania (Romania) and Mawlat, India.
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Be sure to get the complete Windmill Times! Many email providers cut off this email due to the length. If you use gmail, AOL, etc, please look for a link to the rest of the newsletter at about this point in the newsletter.
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Denominational News - UUA Presidential Candidate Forums
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From our UUA Central East Region staff:
There will be a series of four presidential candidate forums, starting in March, to allow delegates and members to learn more about Rev. Dr. Sofia Betancourt. Planned in concert with the Election Campaign Practices Committee with support from UUA staff, each forum will offer both on-site and virtual participation. There will also be an additional forum during General Assembly in June.
All Unitarian Universalists are welcomed and encouraged to engage with the presidential candidate forums and the process as a whole, to ensure our next UUA President may establish the foundation for their leadership with broad participation.
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Windmill Times, arriving mid-month - focuses on church life, MVUC programs, and community happenings.
As of January 2023, we reach more than 815 subscribers with news of our congregation and community. Let's keep growing! For more information about our newsletters and to subscribe, see our website.
If you have announcements for This Week at MVUC, please fill out the announcement request form on MVUC's website by noon on Monday of each week.
If you'd like to contribute to Windmill Times or Spaces (ideas, articles, photos, art, links, video, poems, or editing), please contact communicationschair@mvuc.org.
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