The Newsletter of First Unitarian Church of Omaha
The Flame May 2013
Be sure to vote for the UU of the Year. Forms at church and online!
REV. ELATIONS Already our first year together approaches its close. As much as I had dreamed of ministry in a smaller church, I hadn’t fully recognized how many people I would come to know, to respect, and to care about. Nor did I anticipate being so moved by a congregation of people who so deeply care about each other. I have also begun to see our church in the context of the Omaha community. We began our year with a covenant, a promise about who we will be for one another. Last year I composed the words that we spoke together. Next year I would like the words to truly be the words of the congregation. So I’m printing the words of our first covenant, and I ask that the congregation consider editing or rewriting them at our annual meeting (see next page). As the Shakers sang, “To turn, turn will be our delight, /’Til by turning, turning we come ‘round right.” That has been my life experience. I hope that it’s yours as well. Blessings and love, Frank
Sunday Services
At 9:30 am and 11:15 am
May 5 | Rev. Frank Rivas | “the leaping greenly spirits of trees” A poem by Unitarian e e cummings sets the tone for summer: i thank You God for most this amazing day: for the leaping greenly spirits of trees and a blue true dream of sky, and for everything which is natural which is infinite which is yes May 12 | Rev. Frank Rivas | Mother’s Day/ Coming of Age As we celebrate Mother’s Day, we also recognize some of their remarkable children. May 19| Choir Concert | Summer Schedule begins: one service at 10:30am. May 26 | We Remember: A Memorial Day Celebration of those who have and continue to serve our country. One service at 10:30am.
Rev. elations COVENANT
Thus do I covenant.
We gather together to affirm that life is blessing. Through profound loss, even in the face of death, life is blessing and blessing is life.
We gather together to affirm that as we create loving community here, we model loving community for our children. We are also called to carry loving community beyond these walls ― into our neighborhoods, our city, and our nation.
Thus do I covenant. We gather together to affirm that the experience of blessing is nurtured in loving community. We need one another to keep our lives in balance. Thus do I covenant.
Thus do we covenant with one another. So may our time together enrich our lives. So may our time together bless this world.
We gather together to affirm that this church is loving community, that here we treat one another with profound respect. If I disagree with another, here I am called to recognize that each acts with his or her understanding of the good. Therefore I speak with both directness and compassion, and I listen with an open heart.
Remembering Marie Helms A note from Ron Knapp: Marie Helms, long-time member of First Unitarian Church, has passed away at age 98. Marie joined First Unitarian Church in 1949. Over the years she served on various boards and committees. Over decades, furthermore, she was instrumental in creating and maintaining the archives of the church. In 1982 Marie was named Unitarian of the Year by First Unitarian Church. In 2008 The Prairie Star District honored Marie with the Betty Gorshe Heritage Award which recognizes those who have made “a significant contribution to preserving, understanding and celebrating our Unitarian Universalist history.� A memorial service will be held at the church on Saturday, May 11 at 9am. There will be more information about this remarkable person in the next issue of the Flame. 2
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Annual Meeting The 144th annual congregational meeting of First Unitarian Church of Omaha will take place at the Church on Sunday, May 19 at 12pm. Eligible voting members* of the church will adopt an operating budget for the 2013-14 church year and elect a President-elect, members of the Board of Trustees, a Trustee of the Trust Fund, and Nominating Committee members; hear select reports from church leaders; and reveal our UU of the Year! Childcare will be provided. And your Board of Trustees will host coffee hour following the 10:30am service and provide food and drink to help tide you over during the meeting. We encourage all members to attend this important church event. *Individuals are eligible to vote who have been members of the church for at least three months and have made a financial contribution in their name to the church between April 19, 2012 and April 19, 2013. Board of Trustees
Our Four P’s Ever considered an answer to the question of what our responsibilities of membership to First Unitarian really are? Well, your handy, dandy membership team (along with a few other sources), has come up with some ideas to help clarify our expectations. We are calling them the “Four Pʼs”. Do these positions describe your expectations of your fellow members and yourself? When completed, these four responsibilities will serve as our expectations of new members. Of course, life happens in the meantime, and we all understand that over a member's lifetime, church participation waxes and wanes. However, do you think these statements reflect what you would like to see us use as our guidelines? Responsibilities of Membership in First Unitarian Church of Omaha Presence: Attend church services and functions, as you are able. Participation: Get involved in the life of our community in ways that enhance your life and spirit with music, social events, social justice action, classes or whatever you desire. The possibilities are unlimited! Your participation also brings benefit to other members of our community. Pledging: Support the church and its mission through an annual financial pledge. Passing It On: Share your pride and enjoyment in our community by talking about our church and what it means to you. Bring friends and relatives to our services, classes and social events. Your Membership Team: Lana Hammel, Ben Wallace, Ron Withem, Joe Schaaf, Stephen Meister, Jamie Alexander, Janet West, Barb Ross, Bill Ross, Carolyn McNamara, Judith Wright, Maria Wilson, and Jackie Anderegg.
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YoUUng Adults at First UU By Maria Wilson, Young Adult Coordinator Have you noticed a surplus of energetic individuals at church setting a record for how many people can sit around one table at coffee hour, talking excessively about Doctor Who and Star Wars? Well, then you have been lucky enough to encounter members of the Young Adult Group of First Unitarian Church of Omaha.
name just a few!
While the UUA defines young adults as 18-35, we define it quite loosely. If you ‘identify’ as a young adult, you are more than welcome to join us! This probably means that you enjoy playing silly games, discussing a variety of odd topics, appreciate immature humor, and/or may be in a transitory stage of your life that causes you to seek out the company of other exciting individuals who are still figuring out what their futures may hold.
Also, please look for our Facebook group: "First UU of Omaha Young Adults."
If you identify as a young adult, please join us for Young Adult game night every 3rd Friday of the month at 6pm(with childcare thanks to Meka Tate!). Bring a favorite game, a potluck item, your sense of adventure, and an open mind!
Questions? Email youngadults@firstuuomaha.org.
The Young Adult Group has grown far beyond a social group during the past couple of years. Young adults have led fundraisers for the church, such as the anti-Valentine’s Day party this February, the baseball tailgate last summer, and selling snow-cones at the Pride festival. Many of our enthusiastic and emerging leaders are young adults! Abby Cape is on the nominating committee and has served as the volunteer coordinator, Kathi Oliver is now co-chair of the fundraising team, Colleen Fitzgerald facilitated the pilot covenant group, and Anne Wilder is the leader of the Spirit Circle and YoUUtube choir, to 4
President’s Letter—May A lot of wonderful things are happening as we get close to the end of the church year. Our annual meeting is scheduled for 12:00 noon on May 19th. That Sunday is the start of our annual Summer service program which begins at 10:30 am. We have listened to the feedback we have received concerning two services and, with some tweaks for our Youth Program, we are planning to continue the formats. Attendance has been running from 60-70 per service and the energy is there. Thank you for your comments; they will only serve to help continually improve our rich program life. Sandy and I attended the Prairie Star District annual meeting along with Bill Ross, Ben Wallace, Maria Wilson, Carolyn McNamara, Mary Bort, Meka Tate, Elaine Wells, Shawna Foster and Jackie Anderegg. The major business item at the meeting was the unanimous vote to merge Prairie Star District with Central Midwest and Heartland Districts to form the MidAmerican Region. UUA found that District boundaries were losing their significance as UUA Field Staff were already a regional team and UUA Board of Trustees are elected at large. MidAmerica is the pioneer for Regionalization in UUA. There are many benefits to this merger. PSD expects to see administrative cost efficiencies. The District Staffs will still be there to support the Region, but instead of three Boards, there will only be one. In the 21st century, training and workshops will be done more and more by video-conferencing, a much more cost-effective way of delivering services. I hope to have one of our meeting rooms equipped with state-of-the-art video-conferencing equipment. We will have the opportunity to meet and interact with a larger community of UUs and share ideas. For more information on this check out http://www.psduua.org/Regionalization/Updates. There were many wonderful lectures and workshops all of us attended and we are bringing back ideas for our congregation. The Rev. Christine Robinson, Senior Minister, First Unitarian Church, Albuquerque, New Mexico, gave the lecture on “Unitarian Universalism Faces the Future”. Bill Ross reported back: “This lecture is all about the future and it has very thought-provoking information for anyone who is interested in mission, vision, growth, advertising, etc. The lecture is about an hour-plus and it is available on video (http://www.ustream.tv/recorded/30965399). I think Rev. Robinson's thoughts should be shared with every member of the board, program council, staff, and anyone else who might be interested.” There were outstanding workshops on Hospitality Teams, Covenant Groups, Engaging Storytelling, the proposed merger, and Inspiring the Future. All of us who attended want to share this information and implement ideas we gained from the annual meeting. I have already met with Steve Meister to explore forming a Men’s Covenant Group. We are sending four members of the church to the July Midwest Leadership School. When I attended leadership school in the PSWD in the early ‘80s I found it to be a life transforming experience. It is a major commitment for both the individual and the church, but I can think of no better investment we as a church community can make than seeking out and supporting future leaders. Along with pledging, our program also needs volunteers willing to work in support of our church life. This is part of being a member of this community and in service to each other and the wider whole. And speaking of future leaders, I would like to thank the individuals who have volunteered to serve our church in the upcoming year. The Nominating Committee will be presenting the following candidates at the annual meeting: President-Elect, Louise Jeffrey; Trustees, Lana Hammel, Lynette Ryder, Dean Christensen, Steve Meister; Capital Trust Fund, Tim Duggan; Nominating Committee, Nadine Keith, Joe Schaaf, and Mary Bort. We are truly blessed with talent. In Faith, Tony Host 5
At Church This Month Check out our calendar at our website: www.firstuuomaha.org
CommUUnity Night—May 3 at 5:30pm If you haven’t participated before, CommUUnity Nights are a fun, laid-back, all-church event. We gather together for a potluck of side items (main dish provided by RE) and we don’t worry about who is bringing what. We just have fun! We eat together and then just chill. The adults talk, play games and enjoy each other’s company while the kids and teens are free to roam and play.
The Book Club The Book Club will meet on Monday, June 3 in the Merritt Lounge. The book selection for this meeting will be announced in the eNews and the Sunday announcements.
Please contact Dave Richardson for more info at drichardson@westside66.org.
If you can’t bring anything or you’re feeling too rushed to grab or make something last minute, come anyway! There is always plenty of food and what we really want is YOUU!
Calling All Veterans and Military—May 1 You're invited to an informal conversation with Medea Benjamin, co-founder of Code Pink, and founding director of Global Exchange. Code Pink regularly takes delegations of citizens to Gaza, Iran, Pakistan and Afghanistan, and brings needed food, medicine and supplies. In 2005 Benjamin co-authored Stop the Next War Now. Her most recent book is Drone Warfare: Killing by Remote Control, a revised and updated edition of which will be available on April 23, 2013. A leading activist and organizer in the peace movement, Benjamin recently interrupted Congressional hearings on the use of military drones, calling out a long list of names of ordinary people who had been killed by US drones, contrary to our government's claims that there were virtually no civilian causalities in these attacks. Church member Major Stephen Meister, while not officially representing any government agency, will co-host this event and offer his perspective as an active duty Air Force officer.
Potluck: All Invited!
All members and friends are welcome on Wednesday, May 1 from 10-11am in the Common Room.
A potluck with our Sister Church the Episcopal Church of the Resurrection will be held on Wednesday, May 29 at 6pn in our Common Room.
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Spirit Circle What used to be known as The Witches’ Tea is now The Spirit Circle. This year the group will be taking a journey through the Wheel of the Year. This is an exploration of the major holidays that most Pagan or Wiccan traditions follow. Come join us on May 5th for our Beltaine celebration! We will be holding it on the east lawn at 1pm. If you can’t make it out to dance the Maypole, feel free to join us on June 2 to discuss and participate in meditation.
Women’s Alliance The Women’s Alliance will hold its next meeting, Monday, May 13. This month the event will be held in Benson. The Women’s Alliance May meeting will be a meal at Jane’s Health Food Market located at 61st and Maple in Benson. Parking is available in the lot just to the south and across the street from Jane’s. The program will be a tour of the Historic Business district of Benson with a few other bits of information thrown in. Janet West will be taking reservations for two tours – one beginning at 5pm and one following our meal at 7pm. The reason for the two tours is to make it easier to talk with numbers of folks. Wear comfortable shoes and come join us. Dinner will be our regular price of $12. If this is your first time, please be our guest. Reservations must be made no later than Friday, May 10 to Janet West (402-5533162) or jmasonwest77@yahoo.com.
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Prayer and Mindfulness Group Each Sunday in the Merritt Lounge 10:45am on May 5 and May 12. We will meet immediately following the service on May 19 because of the Annual Meeting at noon. 11:45am on May 26 and after because we will have one only service at 10:30am. Open to those who wish to gather in community to share a prayer, intentional thought, and be mindful of those who need support. This support can heal us as a community; to name our concerns for one another and to know that we are named by others. Royal Bush is available for more information. His email address is: chaplainroyal@inclusivelife.org.
YRUU Update by Naomi Solomon The YRUU school year is coming to an end. Advisors and youth have mentioned over and over how much they miss those of you out there who have been too busy to come out Wednesday nights. Our one last hurrah! for this year will be on Wednesday, May 15th at Spaghetti Works in the Old Market at 7pm. We hope you can take the night off from your extracurricular commitments in order to enjoy some food and fun with your friends and peers from both churches. Please bring $10 if you can, to help offset the cost of your food, and youth group funds will take care of the rest.
RE News by Meka Tate, DRE This past Easter turned out to be Egg-celent, and I want to thank each and every one who volunteered their time in support of the religious education program. The children hunted for and donated over 100 cans of food to a local nursing home. The price of canned peaches, 89 cents, but the look on those people’s faces was priceless, thank you to everyone who brought donations. In addition to the canned food hunt, the kids enjoyed dying eggs, making “peeps” and playing Bingo. Q: Why did the Unitarian-Universalist cross the road? A: To support the chicken in its search for its own path.
Pictures from Easter
RE Volunteers We need more adults to help with our growing RE (religious education) classes on Sunday mornings—either service! Whether crowd control, assisting, or teaching, there is a spot for you! We especially need adults comfortable with preschoolers for the Nursery. Sign up on-line here—or on paper during coffee hours: www.SignUpGenius.com/go/10C094CA9A92DA75-resunday/1553678 or email dre@firstuuomaha.org. Meka is in need of a RE Board Decorator: A volunteer to keep pictures of current RE activities, arts and crafts, and information posted on the board for families to view during coffee hours. Also, she is looking for an Arts & Crafts Volunteer: this helper would be given a list of current topics for RE, then help find craft activities to go along with the lessons. Volunteer Reminder Caller: this person works from the comfort of his/her own home calling volunteers to remind them when they are scheduled to help on Sundays. Thanks! 8 8
What is the Sarah Joslyn Society? Sarah Joslyn, a member of this church for 47 years, signed the membership book in 1893. She was a trustee and she and her husband George were strong financial supporters at the time of the 1918 dedication of our building. The Sarah Joslyn Society was created in 2004 to recognize and honor those members of First Unitarian Church who have made a commitment to leave a bequest to the church. As these bequests are realized they will make a difference in its financial security. How can you do the same? All you have to do is incorporate a bequest at the time you write your will. Or, if you already have a will, you can add a codicil. It can be a dollar amount, a percentage of your estate, life insurance, or even stock. Only you will know the details. There are now 70 members of the Sarah Joslyn Society who have made this decision. Please consider joining them by making an investment in the future of the church. After you do, you will receive an invitation to our annual luncheon in October where we will welcome new members and reaffirm our thanks to old members. For more information, contact Dixie Lemon or the Finance Team.
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Special Screening of “The House I Live In� Sunday, May 5 at 6pm Who can pass up popcorn, pop and a lively discussion with fellow UUs? Please join us for a screening of the award winning documentary, "The House I Live In". This film deserves to be seen by everyone. The United States incarcerates more people than any other country in the world-more than China, Russia or Iran-on both a per capita basis and total number imprisoned. Since 1980, the rate of incarceration has skyrocketed and drug convictions account for most of the increase. The movie deals in a very powerful way with how the War On Drugs has been waged primarily against poor people of color, devastating communities and stigmatizing and marginalizing the individuals caught up in this system of mass incarceration. The film covers many of the issues addressed in Michelle Alexander's book, The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness, selected by the UUA to be this year's "Common Read". The film will begin at 6pm with an optional brown bag dinner starting at 5:30pm. See the movie trailer here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a0atL1HSwi8.
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First Unitarian Church Stars From the Nominating Committee: Annually the Prairie Star District invites member congregations to make nominations for their various awards. The Nominating Committee is proud to announce the following as this year’s nominees from First Unitarian Church. Thanks for everyone who helped in this process with suggestions and prep materials. Betty Gorshe Heritage Award: For significant contributions to preserving, understanding, and celebrating our UU history: Dave Richardson. Ellie Morton Award: For outstanding achievement and excellence in religious growth and learning: Kate Wiig. Keeping the Faith Award: For keeping the UU faith alive in the community and touching the lives of community and congregation members in a positive way: Richard Holland. Social Justice Award: For witnessing to the ideals of social justice and responsibility so important to our UU heritage: Elaine Wells. Social Justice Award Youth: Rhianna Giron. Unsung Unitarian Universalist Award: For a lifetime of actions that inspire, support and express Unitarian Universalism: Dave Rosser.
Winners! We are proud of all our nominees. At the PSD Conference Elaine Wells and Rhianna Giron won awards for social justice! Also, church member Shawna Foster was awarded for service and leadership for her dedication to the PSD as their Social Justice Coordinator for the 2012-13 year. Pictured to the right are church members at the PSD conference.
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Pictured to the right: William Howard Taft
The Dedication of Our Church Building—Oct. 19, 1917
liberal toleration that twenty-five and fifty years ago did not exist. The Unitarian Church appeals to those who have a conscientious lack of credence in some orthodox form of religion.”
The laying of the cornerstone of the First Unitarian Church of Omaha was a momentous occasion not only for the church, but for the community at large. The dedication ceremony brought to town William Howard Taft, the 27th President of the United States. (1909-1912.) Taft was a lifelong Unitarian. After his term in office ended in 1913 he continued a distinguished career in public service, academia and church leadership. He held the office of President of the International Conference of Unitarian Churches. He later became the tenth Chief Justice of the United States (1921–1930). He is the only person to have served as both President and Chief Justice of the Supreme Court.
At the conclusion of his remarks Mr. Taft deposited the copper box containing the church records in the proper niche, then Mr. Baxter, Mrs. Holdrege representing the Women’s Alliance and others spread on the mortar, and the cornerstone was dropped in place. In 2017 we will observe the 100th anniversary of that great event. Within the following two-year period we will also see the 150th anniversary of the founding of our church in 1869. It should be a great time of celebration and reflection.
2019: Two
Important Events
The dedication ceremony was conducted by William F. Baxter, chairman of the Building Committee. He noted the new edifice “was the outward expression of our faith in this institution, which will become of tremendous importance to our city and state.” He also referred to the recent struggle to maintain our church and the work of the Women’s Alliance in saving the church, which, in his words, had “approached perilously near the rocks of destruction.” He then called upon Mr. Taft for his remarks which resonate well with contemporary Unitarians as the following excerpt proves:
2019 may seem a long way off; however, that year is the convergence of two important dates: the 150th anniversary of the Founding of the First Unitarian Church of Omaha and the 100th birthday of our building, which was completed in 1919.
“We are a small church but, the influence that we wield is not measured in the slightest degree by the number we gather in our churches. Under the influence of Unitarian tactics and Unitarian attitude, there has come a change over all churches and a 12
This Year Partner Church Comes to Us! By Janet West,Team Leader Thank you to all of the members and supporters of 1st Unitarian Church for your generous donations to the Partner Church Fund. $1518 was donated from November 2012 through February 2013. The Team raised almost $300 at the Partner Church luncheon in March. The Partner Church balance is currently $2141. This has to be put in the context of continuing promises that the Partner Church Team has made to our Partner Church in Firtosmartonos, Transylvania, Romania, i.e. $1320 per year to help maintain the village church and parsonage and $1200 per year to partially subsidize the educational costs of village teens and twenty-somethings to attend the Unitarian High School and local colleges. The team has wonderful, exciting news. For the first time in the history of the Partner Church relationship, the minister from Firtosmartonos will be visiting the United States, Omaha, and Corvallis, OR. (The minister in Firtosmartonos is also the minister to the Partner Church of the Corvallis, OR Unitarian Church.) Rev. Katalin Cserey, and her husband, Boti, will leave Bucharest on September 26, 2013, and arrive on the same day in Corvallis. While in Corvallis, Rev. Katalin will participate in a Women’s conference, visit various historical and agricultural sites in Oregon, and preach at the Corvallis church on Sunday, October 6. They will fly to Omaha on October 7 and will stay in Omaha until October 14 at which time, they will fly back to Bucharest. While in Omaha, Rev. Katalin and Boti will meet the members and supporters of our church. They will also visit places of interest in the Omaha area. Right now the Team is thinking about the Durham and Quilt Museums, the state capitol, the Henry Doorly Zoo, and a local farm. Rev. Katalin will preach at our church on October 13. Since neither Rev. Katalin nor her husband speak English, Gabor Ugron has been asked to accompany Rev. Katalin and Boti. Gabor is a multi-talented young man who speaks Hungarian, Romanian, English, and German. He is an experienced translator and a fun person. He was our translator, driver, and solver of all problems when Dave Olson and Janet West visited Rev. Katalin and Boti in 2008 and also provided the same services for Nadine Keith and Janet in 2010. My UU friends at the Corvallis church estimate that the cost for each church will be about $2,000 for air travel. Representatives from both churches have written a travel grant for $500 to the UU Partner Church Committee in Boston. Given the fact that no one has visited from Firtosmartonos in the past, we had a good chance of receiving the grants. The UUPCC committee has chosen to award one $500 grant for the pilgrimage. Bringing Katalin, Boti, and Gabor to the U.S. is a big commitment for both the Omaha church and the Corvallis church. The Partner Church fund has the money to pay the $2,000 for the air tickets now, but the money needs to be replaced in the near future. The Partner Church Team is planning on having another luncheon after church on June 9. Ron and Anne Knapp have pledged $50.00 to help subsidize the visit. This is a challenge pledge. To participate, members and friends of 1st Unitarian Church are to pledge $50.00 (more or less). The Team will periodically announce the total amount given in the eNews. The Team will also keep you informed of the developing plans and arrangements,
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A Note from Pat Allender
Board
To my friends at UU Church, and the Choir, I want to say a big thank you!
President Tony Host
Flowers, cards, offers of help have meant the world to me during the last three months. A special thanks to Bob McMeen for his patience in finding substitutes. Pat Will has upheld musical standards with pure dedication. I am blessed to have such good friends.
Board Members Dean Christensen, Lana Hammel, Barb Herring, Louise Jeffrey, John Wagner, Ron Withem
—Pat Allender
Community Meals
Trustees of the Capital Trust Tim Duggan (2013), Steve Hutchinson (2014), Sandy Host (2015)
Thank you to everyone who helped with Community Meals on April 13—our cooks, dessert makers, and the kitchen crew (pictured below with aprons), and Matt Dewell who picks up pantry items from Trader Joes every week. The beef stew we served was a huge hit, and we were able to share our leftovers with Set Free Mission, which provides meals, job placement and housing for those who are post-incarceration or recovering from substance abuse. We cook next on May 18, and after that we have the summer off! Stay tuned to the eNews for more information on how to help.
Submit items for publication to admin@firstuuomaha.org Word limit is 200; deadline is the 15th of the month. Board meetings are on the second Tuesday of the month and are open to all members.
We share the plate with NAMI (National Alliance on Mental Illness) in the month of May. For more information, please see their website at www.nami.org. Every month the church chooses an organization to help support. For more information about the Share the Plate program, contact the church office. 14
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Ministry Team Leaders
Contact Phone: (402) 345-3039
Finance Matters By Walt Jesteadt This is a series of random thoughts as we come to the end of one church year and approach the beginning of the next. We expect to finish the current year with a surplus for the first time in many years, but we still need those who can pay their pledges to do so. Contribution statements have gone out to all those with a pledge and to some non-pledge contributors to let everyone know how their contributions compare to their pledges. One way to avoid the need to make a big contribution in April is to sign up for automatic monthly payments. You can arrange that through your bank, or we can arrange it for you through a company called Vanco. Just contact the office and ask for a Vanco form. We have trouble at this time of year knowing whether pledge contributions are intended for the year ending April 30 or the year beginning May 1. Please give us a hint on the memo line of your check. If we are in doubt and your old pledge has not been paid, we will apply contributions to the old pledge during the month of May and will switch to the new pledge in June. If you have accounting or payroll experience or just enjoy working with numbers, the Finance Team is always looking for help. Just send email to treasurer@firstuuomaha.org.
Adult R.E. Crystal DiGiorgi Archives Dave Richardson Building (short-term) Dave Rosser Caring Douglas Lee-Regier Chalice Guild Kay Lynn Goldner Community Meals Louise Jeffery Fellowship Nadine Keith & Judith Wright Finance Walt Jesteadt Fundraising Donna Neff, Kathi Oliver Garden Sharon Conlon Governance Alex Nather Membership Jackie Anderegg Office Carolyn McNamara Partner Church Council Janet West CY-RE Team Donna Neff & Kate Wiig Religious Services Megan Gustafson UU Class Yvonne Price & Jaime Alexander Women’s Alliance Vanessa Timberlake Young Adult Group Maria Wilson YRUU Ben Wallace & Shawne Coonfare
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Fax: (402) 346-2662 Staff Minister Rev. Frank Rivas minister@firstuuomaha.org Director of Religious Education Meka Tate dre@firstuuomaha.org Office Administrator Catharine Dixon admin@firstuuomaha.org Organist Pat Will Choir Director Bob McMeen Choir Accompanist Patricia Allender Nursery Aide Justin Deffenbacher Custodian Bobby Medrano Minister Emeritus Ronald Knapp The Flame Editor Catharine Dixon Proofreaders Scott Kemper, Lana Hammel, Cyndi Nather The Flame Mailing Team Anne Massoud, Evelyn Whitehill, Howard Bolton, Shelton Hendricks
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The Flame 3114 Harney Street Omaha NE 68131
Next Soul Full Thursday Class — Starts May 2 (4 weeks) Unitarian Universalism, as part of the free religious tradition, has historically and consistently stressed the inherent worth and dignity of every person and the right of individual conscience in matters of religious faith and practice. While Unitarian Universalists draw religious wisdom from many and varied sources, the test of any religious position is an individual's own direct experience of the good, the holy and the true. This class will look at writings from three historical Unitarians, Emerson, Thoreau, and Parker, while on this faithful journey. The essays chosen by each of these three men are ones that you may not expect, but will provide a new perspective on our beliefs. Please join Meka on this spiritual journey and take a new look at an old work of art. Contact Meka to register at dre@firstuuomaha.org.