BUUF News – May 2010

Contents

EverGreene

Reverend Elizabeth Greene

Ever notice how everyone is suddenly even busier than usual in May? I'm not sure what the deal is, but it's true for me, for the church, and certainly for families with school-age kids. (Are the rest of you lying on your couches eating bonbons?)

So, with the usual deadlines and pressures, it feels like a good time to write a column about how many things I'm thankful for, especially this church year.

I'm grateful to the people who are happy or thankful about something and have told me and other people about it.

I'm grateful to people who practice honest conflict management and forgiveness, leaving grievances behind.

I'm grateful to the wonderful elves who leave nice things on my desk. (But I'm not grateful to whoever broke off the four-leaf clover and apparently took it....)

I'm more grateful than I can say for the good-natured, inspirational leadership we've felt so strongly this year. The Board, the burgeoning Program Ministry Council, religious exploration for all ages, fabulous worship planning (how about that music?!), committees, task forces.

This is a list that could go on, to the horror of our newsletter editor (for whom I'm grateful!). Children. The grove. Honest hearts. Plants. A Peace Pole. Social justice. New people. Etc.

In the midst of our busyness, let us give thanks.

PRESIDENT'S MESSAGE

Judy Frederick

A big hello to spring and to the events that mark this season for our Fellowship.

So many things are in the blooming and growing phase for us. Note all of the physical changes in our landscape, with the bulbs and flowers showing their colors. Note as well the beautiful Peace Pole now standing over us with its special spirit on the South side of the grounds. These gifts surround us. They invite us to become more aware of the many hands and hearts that bring such things into being.

This month is our Annual Meeting; where our hands and hearts once again express our community in supporting and refining our wishes for one another. Now is where we choose how to spend our hard-earned funds to maintain and grow our presence in this Valley. But we can't do it without YOU.

Come enjoy fellowship and the experience of doing the work of shaping who we are becoming. Watch for information in the mail, online, in our announcements at Sunday Services, and phone invitations. Read what is offered and come ready to be engaged in our democratic process. We will also be celebrating the work of our 'hearts and hands' crews, so bring your thanks as well.

Come to be inspired.

Come to learn more about who we are, and most importantly, to learn how each one of us, with our gifts of hands and hearts, bring this Fellowship into being over and over again.

RELIGIOUS EXPLORATION

Game Day – May 30

The weather is beautiful! Our grounds are delightful! Let's go out and play! On May 30, your young people's Religious Exploration program would like to invite you to come out and play with us. During our two services, our young people will be out on the grounds for our traditional Game Day led by guides, advisors, and youth. After both services, everyone will be invited to join in the fun and play some games out in the fresh air!

... Where Children are Wise and Adults Can Play

Our young people are a miraculous bunch! They bring smiles, laughter, and joy to us all every week. If you haven't spent time in one of our Religious Exploration (RE) classrooms, you're truly missing out on a whole lot of fun, wonder and awe. Your RE program is looking for teams of guides and advisors to lead and follow our youth through the next year of explorations, discoveries and transformations. If you would like to join in on the phenomenon that is RE, please contact Emmie Schlobohm, Director of Religious Exploration at 658-1710 to find out more about teaching in our classrooms - nursery through high school.

COMMITTEES

Name That Committee – Win a Prize!

The Welcoming Congregation Committee (WCC) is inviting BUUF members and friends to submit ideas for a name that better describes the committee's mission. It has been evident for some time that the current name is a source of confusion for many.

The WCC is the Fellowship's liaison with the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender (LGBT) community. Its responsibilities include communicating to the LGBT community that the Fellowship is a safe, welcoming, inclusive religious home for LGBT people and their families; creating and maintaining relationships with LGBT organizations; and identifying opportunities for the congregation to assist the LGBT community in achieving its goals within the larger society. The Welcoming Congregation Committee also sponsors workshops and other events within the Fellowship on topics related to LGBT concerns and issues and hosts events in cooperation with other groups that enhance understanding of LGBT people.

Please submit your entries to Louise Jacobsen, or 378-1085 by May 30. The person who submits the winning entry will receive two passes to The Flicks theater.

SOCIAL JUSTICE

Dig into your pockets for the Boise Urban Garden School!

For the month of May, the Boise Urban Garden School, or BUGS, has been selected by our Social Justice Committee as our offering outreach organization. 25% of the non-designated plate offering and 100% of checks that are marked "outreach" in the memo field will go to BUGS in May. We have children and youth in our own congregation who have been involved with BUGS for the past few years. BUGS vision is to transform our community's connection to food through knowledge, skills, and practices that support a secure, local food system. Boise Urban Garden School Summer Programs help children connect large-scale environmental issues with real choices they make every day – choices that involve diet, health, ecology, economics, as well as personal and community responsibility.

BUGS to me means a group of people who care deeply about themselves, others, and the world in which we all live, and who are willing to give a part of themselves to make it a better place. Conrad, BUGS student, summer '09

Shift at the Shelter

Rick Groff

When I parked behind Interfaith Sanctuary Homeless shelter, there was already a group of anxious adults and their kids waiting to get in. Families are allowed in at 5:30 PM, but single adults aren't let in until 6:00 through another door.

I helped resident volunteers unfold tables and chairs and prepared for the evening.

The gate was unlocked and Webb Van Winkle started checking in residents while Joe Jeffery monitored outdoor activity.

I greeted residents and visited with a friend who was grieving over losses in his life. I couldn't avoid overhearing the conversations taking place around me. Conversations about religion often occur and some of the residents seem to be well schooled in the Bible.

One group played cards while some men played chess.

One guy strummed a melody on his guitar and another individual made up and sang words to go with the melody.

A resident used the desk phone to call about a job hoping for work the next day.

Eventually, tables and chairs were noisily put away and mats and bedding were put out for those who would be sleeping on the floor.

The overhead lights were turned off and the noise gradually decreased.

Webb and I slipped out after the residents quieted down but Joe stayed until midnight. Refreshed by the clean smelling night air, I climbed in my car and drove home.

ACTIVITIES & EVENTS

All in all, you're just another...

...well, you probably know what Pink Floyd said you are, but perhaps you'd prefer to be a brick in the BUUF patio instead! You can now order engraved memorial bricks for departed loved ones, or for yourself, if you want to plan that far ahead, for only fifty dollars a piece. See Alan or Mary Schwartzman or any member of the Congregational Care Team for more information.

We have had some recent changes to the Congregational Care Team. Mary Osterman, long a guiding light for the team, decided a few months ago that someone else should have the privilege of being CCT co-coordinator, and Kristen Cheyney stepped up to that position. Now Kristen has taken a new job in her "other life," one which will require her lengthy absence from Boise.

Kristen will remain with the CCT, but Susan Kelley has agreed to be our new co-coordinator. Stalwart Sandy Layser continues as our other co-coordinator. Pam Woodies will now be our "point person" for memorials, so if anyone asks us a memorial-related question, we will point at Pam!

Health Care for All: Really?

• What is the state of health care in America today?
• Who benefits from the present health care system?
• How much do they benefit?
• Do we have the best health care money can buy?
• That is, IF you have money.

Friday evening, June 4, from 8:00 to 10:00 pm, the Tuesday Evening Men's Chalice Circle will sponsor an awesome presentation on Universal Health Care for All by Dr. Louis Schlickman, a local primary care, internist physician. He has accumulated a great amount of research and information on past and present health care as it exists today. He is a member of the national Physicians for Universal Health Care and is one of the organizers of the local group of doctors and citizens, Idaho Health Care For All. Admission is free, and you will have the opportunity to ask questions of Dr. Schlickman and any others who are present. Save the date. This is important.

The Other Book Club

Mark your calendars for the following book club discussions.

On May 16 we will be discussing the non-fiction book The Good Life by Helen & Scott Nearings. These folks have been living self-sufficiently for many decades. We will be gathering at the home of Eric Wallace, 1387 E. Monterey Dr., Boise. 433-0706. 7PM to 8:30PM.

On June 13 we will be discussing To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee. This book was selected as the Big Read this spring. Hosting will be Dorothy Vanderpool, 5129 N. Riverfront Dr., Garden City. 853-1598.

Our July book is a non-fiction selection, Half the Sky. Stay tune for date and location.

Happy Reading!

Sage Roots

Tom von Alten

Our friend and gardening columnist Margaret Lauterbach will present her response to the film, "Food, Inc." at the first May meeting of the BUUF Senior Sages (Thursday, May 13). Come and hear some of the implications of having our food supply controlled by huge multinational corporations. Here's just one: In 1996 when it introduced Round-Up Ready® Soybeans, Monsanto controlled only 2% of the U.S. soybean market. Now, over 90% of soybeans in the U.S. contain Monsanto's patented gene.

Dr. Margaret Doucette travelled to Uganda last summer as part of "Be The Change," a nonprofit program that provides high school and college students experiences of Africa, and supports grassroots programs in Uganda and Kenya. She (and perhaps a younger traveler or two) will be our special guests at the Thursday, May 27 meeting.

We meet on the 2nd and 4th Thursdays of the month at the Kopper Kitchen (2661 Airport Way). Join us for a no-host breakfast and an interesting program, starting at 9:30am. Newcomers always welcome. Contact Tom von Alten ( or 378-1217) if you'd like to present something, or have a program you'd like to see.

Humanists and Fowler's Stages

Jeanette Ross

For the April Humanist meeting we decided to investigate systems for describing various kinds of human development according to stages. Many of these systems describe a kind of building block system- as in learning to read, learn a sport or develop leadership skills, there is a common path to mastery. We asked ourselves how systems of development compare, what they have in common and what they mean for humanists. Since this deadline precedes the meeting, I'll summarize from one, that of James Fowler.

Fowler's definition of 'faith' is critical. He describes it as a process, a way of bringing our beliefs and values together in a way that they can be expressed in our lives. Fowler begins with a step common to other forms of healthy development, that of feeling safe, having a sense of self-ness. In such an environment, the child's entire brain is developing- capacities for language, memory, pleasure in the moment, imagination. As we gain a capacity to form and learn abstract concepts, we can describe our beliefs, learn from others, test fantastical notions against our observed experience. As we grow in years and experience we can learn from mistakes, formulate ideals, decide what we need to do to accomplish what most matters to us. We can associate with those who encourage us, provide opportunities to contribute, to make a difference in our community.

From my perspective, these stages of faith can be as meaningful to humanists, agnostics and atheists as they are for those who follow a traditional faith. They allow us to reflect upon and better understand our experiences and our responses. As for how we solve our daily life choices: that's another discussion. Join us 11am, May 16, BUUF library.

How BUUF's Peace Pole Came to Be

Once upon a time, returning from a summer excursion, Jay and Carol Wechselberger came upon a white pole with language inscriptions at the city park in Jordan Valley, Oregon. Upon asking about it, then following up with researching it online, learning that it was a Peace Pole with prayers for Peace in various languages, they then shared their discovery with the Everyday Spirituality & Meaningful Rituals Chalice Circle.

Synchronistically, that same week Debbie Espen was at a meeting of the Idaho Peace Coalition at the Mennonite Church in Boise where she spotted a tall white pole. Intrigued, she got closer, and sure enough, it was one of those Peace Poles that Jay & Carol had shared about in the chalice circle! Sharing her experience at the next chalice circle meeting, the group exclaimed, "We should get one!"
What followed was months of discussion, planning, choosing the languages, and involving the First Thursday Chalice Circle, making it a joint service project of both Chalice Circles, who both contributed labor and/or money to the effort. Jay put the pole itself together. Some extra "zen" site design came from Mark McGinnis. Leslie Miller and Ed Simon placed a Contemplation Bench nearby.

At the Dedication on Sunday, April 11. the prayers in each language were recited. We were honored to have a representative from the Basque Community Center who recited the Basque prayer. Gwyn Reid also read a letter from our sister church in Transylvania. We ended with singing words from Micah 4:3-4, "And every one 'neath a vine and fig tree shall live in peace and unafraid. And into plowshares turn their swords, nations shall learn war no more." May it be so.

Death as Part of Life

Tom von Alten

This year's annual meeting of the Funeral Consumers Alliance of Idaho will feature Ed Rush, with an encore presentation of "Death as Part of Life," which he gave from BUUF's pulpit in February. Following the death of his mother, at age 97, Ed had reason to consider our culture's attitude toward life as precious, more important than pain, suffering, or the loss of what makes an individual life worth living. In spite of de facto social law, the times might be changing, toward acceptance of the right to die with dignity, on one's own terms. Voter initiatives in our neighboring states of Oregon and Washington have passed Death with Dignity laws in recent years, and we can draw on their experience.

The meeting will be at the Library! at Cole and Ustick in Boise, at 12:30pm, Saturday, May 15, is open to the public and free of charge.

The Funeral Consumers Alliance of Idaho was founded by members of the Boise UU Fellowship and allies, and is a non-profit corporation with more than 500 members, working to protect citizens' rights to choose alternatives for simplicity, dignity, and economy in funeral arrangements. The FCAI makes educational and planning resources and a survey of prices at funeral providers in the state available via its website, at fcai.fortboise.org, or call 208 426-0032 for more information.

Community Conversations – Join In the Dialogue

The BUUF Board is sponsoring monthly "Community Conversations," conducted one Sunday a month, before the 9:00 service (8 – 8:45 am) and after the 11:00 service 12:30 – 1:15 pm). These informal gatherings are opportunities to:

• Meet others.
• Learn about BUUF's inner workings.
• Listen deeply.
• Ask questions.
• Share your ideas and concerns.

Subjects that have been discussed during the first two months include:

• Information about the upcoming Annual Budget Drive and the Debt Reduction Campaign that will be conducted next Spring;

• The difference between a pastoral and a program church;

• BUUF's organization chart and the Program Ministry Council;

• The various ways we communicate with and among our congregants.

As you can see, these meetings are an ongoing effort to inform BUUF members and friends about near- and long-term issues and upcoming events.

The next Community Conversation is scheduled for May 2.

Snacks and childcare are available at each meeting. If you need childcare, please contact Janet Wyke at 939-3853 or with the number and ages of your children; however drop-ins are always welcome. Many thanks to Janet for her leadership and hard work in making these sessions possible!

Let's Show Our Appreciation

BUUF's leaders, volunteers, and staff keep our community strong and vibrant. A Task Force is forming to plan a fun offsite Appreciation Event in June. Please contact Sue Philley 340-9450 or email if you'd like to learn more about participating (2-3 meetings) as a member of the Task Force.

General Assembly of the UUA

General Assembly, A Meeting of UU Congregations will be held June 23-27 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Join thousands of Unitarian Universalists from around the world and experience wonderful worship services, actions of social witness, terrific speakers, and hundreds of entertaining programs and informative workshops. Hotel space is filling quickly: register online at UUA.org. Please contact Judy Frederick, Board President, if you plan to attend.