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First Unitarian Universalist Church of Detroit4605 Cass AvenueDetroit, MI 48201Phone 313-833-9107Fax 313-833-0127December 18, 2005 |
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First Unitarian Universalist Church
Organizational Chart 2005 - 2006 Officers Moderator Jim Harvey Vice Moderator Dan Weist Immediate Past Moderator Colleen Dolan-Greene Board Secretary Leonard Zettel Treasurer Dan Secrest Staff Interim Minister Rev. Diana Heath Minister Emeritus Rev. Larry Hutchison Director of Religious Education Jennifer Teed Music Director Todd Ballou Choir Director Lyle Brown Church Secretary Wendi Winston Building and Grounds Joe Brimmer Trustees Lencha Acker Alicia Biggers Jim Brown Linda Darga Carolyn Ludwig Mary Lou Malone Jackie McNaughtonM/I> Irene Schultz Newsletter Irene Schultz |
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Jim Harvey, in his Moderator’s Column, has described process and many of the tasks of the Interim period in this, your second year of interim ministry. I updated the Board on dynamics I felt were most affecting the quality and success of congregational life, and explained my observations of both driving and restraining forces that maintain balance and allow continued functioning in a church system during a transitional year. My first and foremost observation is that the congregation is very dedicated to a continuing presence in the city of Detroit, and that this mid-city location in the university and cultural center area is an ideal location for the present and future of the church. The church building (sanctuary) is priceless, both as the heritage and spiritual center of the Unitarians and Universalists, who came together to sustain a liberal religious presence in the city. Volunteers here are extremely dedicated and tireless in tending the building, in financial giving – approaching sacrificial levels at times – and providing a “sense of place’ and community through Sunday services, church and community activities and initiatives. This church means a great deal to its members and contributing friends.
In bringing forward issues and successes that the Board and I have covered, it is very important now to share and begin to practice these within the larger congregation. I would say these issues take priority at this time: Communication – I have been doing a “communications survey” as to how information is handled at First Church. How are items of note publicized congregation-wide? Who are the “grapes on the grapevine”? Is communication indirect (talking in the hallways or in corners during coffee hour?) or (direct) individuals taking responsibility to ask questions and clarification from “the minister”, for instance, or is hearsay and gossip, and “the anonymous they” a preferred way of receiving information? Also: what are the “lines” of communication from Board, committee, staff, church office, congregation, other UU churches and organizations, and the community? How does First Church present itself through the Newsletter, website, publicity and reputation?
Healthy Boundaries – Agreements that acknowledge “love and limits” exist for adults, just as they do for youngsters. Abused children often have received few healthy boundaries, and may feel neglected or unsure. What boundaries exist here to balance freedom and responsibility for all who participate in the life of the church?
Systems Functioning – Looking at how the various parts are interrelated: how well they serve to do the business of the church; how the church functions also as a “non-profit corporation chartered by the state; what established patterns of governance help the church achieve its mission and continue to strengthen the organization, or which work against that; what has been the history with former ministers, how are ministers related to now, and how are ministers likely to reflect your behaviors back to you; what strengths do you possess to keep ourselves moving towards financial health and a building size and staff you can maintain? All these and more are interrelated.
Transition Tasks – The tasks, which a congregation works through as the congregation develops its ability to manage the tension between coping with positive change, or maintaining status quo and territory. Change for change’s sake is not helpful, just as staying rigidly positioned is not helpful, to a living organization. The transition tasks help members learn new, positive behaviors, and claim the best of their heritage, even as they look towards building the future.
Understanding Expectations - As to whether they are realistic or unrealistic, what it would take to achieve what we say we want, and evaluating what it will take to get us there; behavioral expectations in a religious community; expectations regarding the new minister, and support for the minister; expectations concerning finances, record keeping and decision-making; expectations for Sunday services, R.E., social action, church activities, and more.
I look forward to conversations within the congregation as we move into the second half of the interim. Have a safe and happy holiday, as we move together into 2006.
Yours in faith, Rev. Diana Heath
Planned evening workshops: Finding and Following a Spiritual Path (Rev. Heath) “Ethical Living” TBA” to be followed by “Simplicity Living”.
Heartland Interim District Executive Rev. Lisa Presley Meets Board in December
Rev. Presley met with the Board at its December meeting to describe something of the functions of our Accredited Interim Minister, Rev. Diana Heath. I wanted to share some of what Rev. Presley described so that our congregation will have a greater awareness of what the Board and Diana have been working on this fall.
The general purposes of an Accredited Interim Minister consist of 1) performing the regular duties of a parish minister, 2) to review the past history of the church in order to clarify our successes, problems, challenges and failures, 3) to assist in the mission and vision issues of what we want to become, 4) to analyze and assess our organizational structure (how we have been doing things and coincidentally, how we may want to operate in the future), 5) connect with outside resources both in the UUA community and within our more immediate neighborhood, and 5) to help prepare the congregation for a newly settled minister (this latter item might be referred to as making the church “safe” for a newly settled minister).
Lisa clarified that part of Diana’s role this year has been to do deep work with the Board to identify areas where we can improve the way we act as individuals, Board, a congregation, and ultimately as a church. Lisa points out that this can be an arduous process for the interim minister and for the Board and congregation since it requires examining behaviors/attitudes/beliefs which may be deeply ingrained in the church fabric and which may or may not be helpful to future success of the church.
My observation is that Diana and your Board have been diligently working on the issues described in the first paragraph. We have looked carefully at how we should expect to be treated by other members of the congregation as well as how we should treat each other. In addition, we are looking at how the congregation should respectfully receive a new minister. Also, we have spent time on the issues of creating a safe congregation for our children in Second Story Church (both because it is the right thing to do and because there is the potential of liability against the church for failing to take these actions). The Board has suggested that a congregation-wide discussion on a Covenant of Right Relations should occur. This will, in fact, occur in connection with the Holy Conversation discussion scheduled for January. The Board, in its December meeting, also determined that as part of the effort to clarify our current status, we should proceed with a financial audit. Further work will need to be done before this determination is undertaken, but it is reflective of the effort to create some greater degree of transparency within the church structure.
The Board has reviewed issues of supervision of staff by the minister in order to clarify who is in charge. Similarly, an organizational chart has been produced as it relates to church functions with Board members assigned to specific tasks. We have had the benefit of a consultative visit from Rev. Edwin Lynn, a UU minister and a certified architect. His report is expected to be coming in any day. That report likely will be folded into the Holy Conversation we expect to have about our future.
Diana arranged for a Past Moderators’ Evening in October so that we could review some of First UU’s history together. This has been helpful to Diana, Vice-Moderator Dan Wiest and me in clarifying that some of the problems/issues that we have today are similar to issues/problems that we have faced in the past. I believe, though, that there is a greater impetus to effectuate some needed changes. I regard this as a good sign.
We have experienced some differences in service style, minister style, as well as differences with respect to Board actions. It has not been an entirely smooth course, but this should be an anticipated part of Diana’s consultative services to our congregation. I commend Diana for her unstinting efforts to evaluate our church, and help us create a healthier congregation/church. I am appreciative to the Board members for their willingness to attend long meetings to cover significant territory. There are many other church members who volunteer their valuable time to make our church, our neighborhood, and our city a better place. I regret that we may have occasionally created hurt feelings. That was not the intent. It is a natural by-product of engaging in the important work that the church is undertaking.
Best wishes for the New Year.
Jim Harvey, Moderator
Mark your calendar: “UU Originals” Sunday is January 29th. Bring items you have made, brought into being by thought and a passion for inventing; creating; a painting, a poem, a framed patent; a quilt or weaving; decorative foods, pottery, photography, your children. There are many things that this gifted and talented congregation can bring to share. An exhibit in McCollester Hall will be held following the service. All invited.
Happy Holidays from your church staff.
We will be meeting on January 8, 2006 at 1:00 p.m. in Memorial Hall and will be discussing The House of Sand and Fog by Andre Dubus III. Please come prepared to discuss the book selection and bring a snack to share. Please note – we are meeting the second Sunday in January because of the holiday.
Based on ideas offered by Ed Lynn, Church Consultant, the Building and Grounds Committee has recommended an experiment for our Sanctuary. Beginning January 15, 2006 the Sanctuary will be “roped off” to one half its current size. One of his recommendations to help us deal with our inability to financially support all of our physical plant is to divide the Sanctuary in half and build offices and meeting rooms in the north end. By roping off the Sanctuary we will approximate how that might feel if we were to approve changes of that sort. Another advantage will have us all in closer proximity to each other, thereby creating more intimacy among us. The Board of Trustees has approved this experiment to extend from January 15 – April 15.
The following is the rehearsal schedule for the rest of 2005. All rehearsals begin at 9:30 and are in McCollester Hall unless otherwise noted. All are welcome.
December 24 – rehearsal and performance
Rehearsal time is 4:00 P.M
Following are TENTATIVE choir rehearsal dates:
January 8, 15, 22
February 5, 19, 26
March 5, 19, 29
April 2, 16, 23
May 7, 21, 28
June 4, 11, 18
The job entails leading an 18-member volunteer choir in (3) one-hour rehearsals and (1) performance per month from September through June. There is a professional accompanist available. Salary: $300 per month for 10 months. Qualified candidates will possess choral education or experience, diverse musical skills or interests, and ability to adapt to Unitarian-Universalist principles. Please send resumes to: Music Director, Todd Ballou at 1st UU Church of Detroit, 4506 Cass Avenue, Detroit, MI 48201 or fax (313) 833-0127. For inquiries, please call Todd at (734) 276-2110
Thanks to all who bought and contributed to the Christmas and Winter clothing sale. The sale raised $110.00. I have two Entertainment Books for sale at $25.00 with $5.00 going to the church. I am planning a theater party at the Detroit Repertory on Saturday, January 14 at the 3:00 matinee to see Going to St. Ives by Lee Blessing. Tickets are $15.00 each. We are also planning to have dinner at the Traffic Jam after the play. For more information about the play or to purchase tickets, see Margaret Beck
The church voted $9000.00 in the budget this year for fundraising. Margaret Beck sales this year, so far, brought $1700.00 to the budget. Faye Colling raised $600.00 from the antique sale bringing the total to $2300.00 – a far cry from the $9000.00! Please help by buying a theater ticket and inviting a friend or two. You can exchange it for another time if January 14th isn’t convenient. Many of you who voted the budget have not bought an Entertainment Book, theater tickets, purchased or donated items or time to any of these fundraising events. We have six months left in this fiscal year to raise a mere $6700.00 – let’s see if we can reach our goal.
Thank you from Women’s Alliance
Women’s Alliance wishes to thank everyone who helped make our bake sales held on Election Day and Noel Night so successful! We greatly appreciate the time and effort of those who donated items, assisted in selling and, of course, all who purchased our treats.
Our next meeting will be January 18, 2006. Lunch will be served at noon, to be followed by a talk on Community Services for Young Parents. The cost of the lunch is $6.00. Please make reservations by calling the church at 313-833-9107 or Eiko Takemoto. The deadline for reservations is noon on Monday, January 16.
At its December meeting, Women’s Alliance President, Helen True, presented to Church Moderator Jim Harvey a check in the amount of $1500.00 to support the work of the church. Jim gratefully accepted this generous donation on behalf of the Church Board and congregation.
In addition, Women’s Alliance was kind enough to consider sponsoring an auction, which would be used as a fundraiser for First UU. A committee was formed to study the potential for going forward with a plan to sponsor an auction. The committee is expected to report back to Women’s Alliance at its next regularly scheduled meeting in January.
The Church is deeply appreciative of the efforts expended by members of the Women’s Alliance to help sustain our church. The Alliance’s December donation and agreement to study sponsorship of an auction for the benefit of the church are only the most recent actions in a continuing effort by the Alliance to support the Church.
Irene Schultz – Administration/Personnel Co-Trustee
The Board was advised at its December meeting that UUCP is on a course to bring closure to UUCP. It is important that we note the benefits for the church in the work of UUCP even though the Board had concluded that UUCP should be encouraged to dissolve because of the recent irregularities.
UUCP was created as a separate 501c3 non-profit organization in 1998 as an umbrella organization for activism and funding source. UUCP has supported First UU in a variety of ways: 1) helping to obtain donations of $21,000.00 since 1998, 2) improving the physical facility by renovating more than 4 rooms, 3) completing an environmental safety report for the complex. A number of church members and friends have been active in supporting UUCP Although this is not a complete list, the following have actively supported UUCP: Janet Thompson, Earl Harvey, Alicia Biggers, Alma King, Donna Walker, Larry & Nancy Hutchison, Gwen Winston, Dr. Ivan Cotman, John Strauther, Betty Huster, Cal Delor, Susan Miller Anderson, Marilyn Mitchell (advisor), Janice Berry (advisor), Njia Kai Kaza, Mary Galvin, Geri Larkin, and Jendaji Saada.
Various organizations have benefited from UUCP’s existence, including: Cinema Café, Learning Center, Black Folks Arts, DV Studio, Detroit Summer, Food Not Bombs, Center for Women’s Culture, Detroit Women’s Coffeehouse, Wisdom Institute for Teenage Mothers, Urban Visionaries, and Blue Triangle.
We salute those who have been involved in UUCP and appreciate their assistance in helping to create a positive identity for First UU Church of Detroit.
Earl Harvey, as current President of the UUCP, indicates that the organization is moving to close its operations by the end of this year. Earl also notes that any groups that may have used UUCP in the past in regard to seeking grants should stop using UUCP for this purpose. UUCP will not be involved in administrating grants after the end of this calendar year.
Join us on December 30 at 11:00 a.m. in Memorial Hall for an afternoon of music. Bring instruments, your voice – or not – just come and enjoy the afternoon. Light refreshments will be served. To R.S.V.P. by December 28 call Lee Thume at 313-567-4532 or the church office.
January
Birthdays
1. Alexandria Stevenson
11. Len Zettel
13. Eiko Takemoto
16. George Waterman
19. Anne Pawlik
20. Colleen Dolan-Greene
21. Richard Thomas
22. Joy Dreifus
24. Faye Colling, Marlyn Meyer
The last time it was reported, the new sermon sign would be installed on the corner of Cass and forest by mid-December. However, there was a delay. The sign contractor did not submit all required specifications to the sign cabinet manufacturer. Then bad weather shut the cabinet manufacturer down for two weeks. The latest timeframe for installation is early January. Earl Harvey and Dan Kosmowski, volunteers of the Building and Grounds Committee, are determined to see this project through even when it requires working in the snow. At the December Cleanup/Fix Up Day, Earl rented a trencher machine. The machine has a long blade with teeth that gnaw into the earth. As it crunched through the frozen ground, Earl directed it between the sign foundation and the buildings electrical connection then Dan knelt in the trench and installed electrical wire in a protective metal pipe in the trench, per code. The wires will eventually power the lighting within the new sign. This project is one of many contributions Dan and Earl are giving to the future of our sanctuary at Cass and Forest as we explore the adaptive reuse of the Church House and McCollester Hall.
ave
the Date…Community Ministry Movies will be shown on January 22, 2006 from 1-3 P.M. The featured movie(s) for this date will be The Open Road (The Boomers Retire) – America Looks at Aging. In honor of Martin Luther King’s birthday there will also be a civil rights related movie. For information call Barbara Stevenson at 313-863-6891.
- Saint Nicholas of Myra, the original Santa Claus, was the patron saint of children, thieves and pawnbrokers.
- Based on previous surveys, 17 percent of you will embarrass yourselves in some way at your office Christmas party.
- A Mongolian wild ass can run 8 mph faster than a reindeer.
- It's Donder, not Donner.
- Christmas pudding should be stirred from east to west.
- 56 percent of Americans sing holiday carols to their pets.
- 53 percent of Americans plan to "re-gift" this year.
- 1 in 3 men will wait until Christmas Eve to finish their shopping.
- 1 in 6 men would like to get rid of all the "gift-giving nonsense."
- A traditional Christmas dinner in early England was the head of a pig prepared with mustard.
- On Christmas Eve in 2001, the Bethlehem Hotel had 208 of its 210 rooms free. Ed. Note – It’s not clear if the meaning is free as in no cost, or free meaning empty.
- There are 1.76 billion candy canes produced every year.
- Kris Kringel, a man in his 40s, lives in North Pole, Alaska, and delivers pizzas for a living. He drives a 1984 Ford Tempo.
- Based on a 1999 estimated population count of North America and Europe, on Christmas Eve of that year Santa Claus had to visit 42,466,666 homes in a 12-hour period -- that's 983 homes per second.
