General
Information Small
Groups
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EASY WAYS TO EASE INTO IT! Sunday
Greeters: Meet and greet on Saturday or Sunday. No need to
know every one before you become a greeter. Those of us who’ve
been around awhile still find ourselves saying, “Are you new here?”
when the answer is “No.” Contact Mark Alleman.
Got a Voice you’d like to share? Join the choir. Contact
Cynthia Spiegel.
Provide Special Music: Talk to Susan Conant.
Make Coffee: Jim and Linda Burke will be happy to help you
learn how to set up coffee, tea, etc., for a successful social hour.
Game
Night: See more details under “Lifespan Religious Education
– Monthly,” or contact Ryan Wheeler.
Small informal groups meet around shared interests. So far, the following groups have evolved, and all of them are open to new persons. Church telephone directories are available in the Common Room for reaching facilitators. Theology Study Group: 2nd and 4th Wednesdays, 7p.m. at UUSG: Reading about and discussing religions and religious and moral issues. Contact Kathy Meier. Simple Living Circle: 4th Thursday, 9:15 – 11:15 a.m. The group meets most months to share ideas on how to live our lives with intention. Facilitator, Gail Tattersfield. Arts Ministries Covenant Group: 3rd Tuesdays, 7:30 – 9:00 a.m. Each person brings an art or craft project to work on as we share our lives. No project is necessary to attend. Facilitator, Elba Karim. Second Sunday Covenant Group (Story Tellers): 7:00 p.m. We pick a theme to explore for our next meeting and tell stories from our lives—experiences as they relate to or spin from our topic. Facilitator Pam Tilbrook. Big Ideas Covenant Group: Every Sunday, 11:00 – Noon. Our focus is on ideas that are so big they can’t be contained anywhere else in the universe! Our ideas transgress the normal boundaries of conversation and no topic is off limits. Facilitator, Larry Bartoszek. Reiki Covenant Group: 2nd Mondays. The goals of this group are to provide an opportunity for practitioners to share information and experiences, and an opportunity for people who want to learn about Reiki. Facilitator, Roger Tilbrook. WomenSpirit Rising: On the 1st and 3rd Thursday evenings of each month during the church year, women gather to share their journeys and to explore women’s spirituality. All earth-based traditions are honored. Contact Pat O’Malley or Magdalena Zimmerman. Sunday Forums: One-time gatherings scheduled to discuss issues and ideas, led by a facilitator with expertise in the area. Watch the Pioneer for schedules. Women’s Guild: Monthly meetings of mostly retired (but hardly retiring) women who gather in the Common Room for fellowship, discussions and dessert. There is no age restriction or requirement. Contact Helen Hawkins. Sacred Harp:meets 1st & 3rd Tuesdays 7-9pm. A new group that is learning the practice of shape-note singing. Contact Ryan Wheeler.
These suppers are a wonderful, easy and appetizing way to get to know your fellow UUSGers. The coordinator is Jim Burke who prepares sign-up sheets which are available in the Common Room each December (or which may be obtained directly from Lou). He then puts together groups of 8 to 10 persons who will dine together. The groupings are changed for each of the four suppers each winter, and participants are assigned a specific task for each supper. If the numbers of participants permit, everyone will rotate through the tasks and have to perform each task only once. You may host a supper or provide one of the three parts of the supper (Entrée, salad or dessert). Extras may be assigned another task – such as a side dish or hors d’oeuvres.
Christmas Cookie Walk: During Geneva’s annual Christmas Walk on the first Friday of December, members and friends at UUSG bake cookies for a fundraiser. Cookie contributors are asked to bake colorful, seasonal cookies which are displayed for people to choose from as they walk through and fill the boxes they have purchased. Much help is needed for baking, setting up, staffing . . . and did we mention baking cookies? Swedish Days Booth: During Geneva’s Swedish Days celebration, we set up a booth and sell pizza slices, slushies and soft drinks (no, not Swedish pizza!). Annual
Canvass: It takes a lot of money to keep UUSG running smoothly.
Naturally, it takes a lot of people doing a lot of different things
to come up with those funds. The donations received at each service
and the proceeds of the various fund-raisers that are described elsewhere
in this brochure are both important and very welcome, but the most significant
source of funds is the annual canvass. New UU Orientation Program (Offered Twice): During October and February on four consecutive Sundays, anyone interested in learning about our faith and our church may participate in these meetings. Contact Jill Brown or Bev Coe.
UUSG
is a viable, active organization, and its institutional work is accomplished
through the efforts of its numerous Standing Committees. In addition
to the Board of Directors, which is comprised by all officers and directors
(elected at each Annual Meeting), the governing bodies include the Program
and Administrative Councils, the Standing Committees and from time to
time, committees which are formed to serve specific needs, such as those
that were formed for sanctuary renovation and the search committee for
finding a second settled minister. The standing committees are Social
Justice, Stewardship/Annual Canvass, Communications, Technology, Lay
Ministry, UUSG is dependent on the willingness of its members and friends to join the committees and to assist in performing the many important tasks assigned to the various committees.
Here are some of the on-going projects that this committee sponsors:
Equal Exchange Interfaith Coffee: Available for sale in Common Room. Contact Laura Bartoszek. Illinois Youth Center: Discover the many mentoring and tutoring opportunities at this local detention center for boys. Special events are planned during Christmas-time. Contact Monica Jenkins. Special Offerings: Taken for select organizations during services on the second Sunday of the month.
The Lifespan Religious Education Program includes learning and social opportunities for children, youth, and adults. For new visitors and friends who would like to lead programs with children and youth, please help us get to know you by contacting Adam Robersmith associate.minister@uusg.org. Ongoing Programs: Children and Youth Education: Children and youth have classes during the services on Sunday. The church school is a wonderful chance to get to know children in the community and to learn more about Unitarian Universalism. Themes for 2005-2006 include Unitarian Universalist Identity, Jewish and Christian Heritage, World Religions. Volunteers may serve as teachers, class assistants, coordinators, and helpers for special events throughout the year. Contact Adam Robersmith associate.minister@uusg.org. Nursery: The Nursery is available during all three services. Volunteers are welcome to supplement our paid nursery staff and to get to know the youngest members of the UUSG community. Contact Adam Robersmith associate.minister@uusg.org. Junior Choir: The Junior Choir is open to children who can read and would like to sing. Rehearsals are at 10:20-10:50am for the two Sundays before the choir participates in the Sunday services. Contact Susan Conant and Pat Vary. Habitat for Humanity: This year-long youth social justice program includes fundraising events, planning meetings, and training sessions which culminate in a ten day out-of-state trip in July, 2006. Youth meet monthly with adult advisors to learn about home construction, fundraising, and cross-cultural experiences. Contact Hal Schulman. Monthly: Game Night: Children, youth, and adults of all ages gather after service on the second Saturday of the month to enjoy pizza and to play games. UUSG has a good collection of board games and you are welcome to bring your own to share for a night. Volunteers can lead games, help plan the event, or assist with refreshments and cleanup. Contact Ryan Wheeler or Adam Robersmith associate.minister@uusg.org. Seasonal: Halloween Weekend: On the weekend closest to Halloween, wonderful and scary creations emerge. The senior high youth create and run a Haunted House during the morning services. Children of all ages enjoy activities in the spirit of the day. Holiday Pageant: It takes a congregation to tell the story of the birth of the holy child. Attending services on the third weekend in December usually is all that is required to help bring the story to life.
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Lazarus
House
Habitat
for Humanity
