Thomas Jefferson Memorial Church - Unitarian Universalist

Thomas Jefferson Memorial Church - Unitarian Universalist

10 AM Service

September 11, Sunday: Sermon - Us & Them. 10 AM. September 11, Sunday: Sermon - Us & Them.         10 AM. This multigenerational service will begin with the creation of a communal peace altar (so please bring with you an image or object that symbolizes your vision of peace and put it on the altar as you enter the Sanctuary).  Then through song, story, spoken word, silence, and interactive “stations” we will mark the tenth anniversary of the September 11^th attacks and celebrate the hope and unity we discovered in the days and weeks afterward.

Child Care

We will worship in multigenerational community. For those who prefer, child care is available for children four years old and younger in the lower hall of the main church building. We also have a “Comfort Room” at the Rugby Road entrance of the Sanctuary for parents with young children. Audio from the service can be heard in the Comfort Room.

Church This Week.

September 9, Friday: Labyrinth Walk, 6-7 PM, Outdoors. Please join us for an early evening walk on our beautiful outdoor labyrinth (behind the Social Hall) to celebrate the coming of autumn! Live acoustic music (Celtic harp, Native American flutes) will accompany the walk. Friendly folks will be on hand to introduce you to this contemplative activity if you are new to it. Rain will cancel.

September 10, Saturday: Cultivating Connections, 8:30 AM–1:30 PM, All Church. Only one more week until the all-church gathering “Cultivating Connections” brought to you by the Board of Trustees and the Leadership Development Committee. Join us from     8:30 AM-1:30 PM, Saturday, September 10, to celebrate our connections to each other with worship, song, conversation, and activities designed for all ages. Child care will be provided for our very youngest, and older children will be valued participants in a truly inter-generational event. You must RSVP for lunch and if you are bringing children let us know their ages. Email connect@uucharlottesville.org, post to the TJMC group on Facebook, or sign up on the Board bulletin board by Tuesday, September 6.

September 11+18, Sunday: All-Church Carpooling Challenge. The first three Sunday services in September will be intergenerational single services at 10 AM, so Green Sanctuary has decided to hold three consecutive carpooling Sundays to accommodate the crowds. There are only 120 parking spaces in our lots and around the church and more than 400 adult members. Spaces may be hard to find! Circle the dates September 11+18, and contact TJMC members and friends who live near you or stop by our table in the Social Hall so that you can find a buddy and join our All-Church Carpooling Challenge. Each Sunday at the door, carpoolers will receive tickets for a raffle to be held after church Sunday, September 18.

September 11, Sunday: Covenant Facilitators, 1 PM, Parlor.

September 11, Sunday: Peace Action - United Nations UUN-Offfice Group, 11:15 AM, Summit Room 2. This is our first fall meeting and there is a very exciting agenda. You are welcome to visit.

September 11, Sunday: NatureSpirit Pot Luck, 6 PM, Social Hall. What’s new with NatureSpirit? This year Marlene Jones, Tom Damery and Lisa Kelley will be leading the NatureSpirit group. To begin the year, we will be hosting a series of informal discussions; the monthly worship services have been discontinued. Our first discussion will be on the topic of Nature as an important part of spiritual or religious practices. We will start with a potluck dinner followed by the discussion. You can contact us by emailing natureuucharlottesville.org.

September 13, Wednesday: Leadership Development Committee, 7 PM, Parlor.

September 14, Wednesday: Finance Committee, 7 PM, Social Hall

September 18, Sunday: Balloon Sunday – Multigenerational, 10 AM. Do not miss our annual multigenerational kick-off of the church school year! We will delight in one another’s presence as we celebrate being together in our beautiful balloon-filled Sanctuary. We will recognize our Children’s Worship graduates who are moving into our congregation’s youth program. Come claim your balloon and your place in our beloved community as we release our hopes and prayers for the coming year together.

September 18, Sunday: Social Action Collection – On Our Own. On Our Own/Charlottesville has matured over the past twenty-three years. This mental health consumer-run organization is unique in its crucial work to support lasting mental health recovery for its members. It is located in the house on Fourth Street beside the Jefferson School. Members participate in their own recovery from mental illness through peer-support groups, educational programs and social activities. They are empowered to give back to the community through volunteer work such as helping the SPCA and Food Bank. On Our Own recently expanded its mission to assist with holistic health, employment, housing, and leadership development. It is seriously understaffed due to funding reductions. Please look at http://onourowncville.org for more information.

September 18, Sunday: IMPACT, 11:30 AM, Summit House. Your IMPACT team is gearing up for another successful campaign to bring about concrete systemic changes that affect the social and economic fabric of our neighbors’ lives. This will be an information and “listening” session.  Let us know ahead of time if you need child care. We will brief all interested people about IMPACT’s work and gather your sense of the most pressing justice issues to address in our area this year. Call Bob Gross at 977-9828, Greta Dershimer  or Sarah Peaslee  with your questions.

Church Notes & Requests for Help

TJMC-UU September Bulletin is now online at uucharlottesville.org.

TJMC Holiday Card: Send a TJMC Holiday Card to members and friends, and at the same time contribute the Unitarian Universalist Service Committee (UUSC). It is time for Edith Good to start collecting for the annual card that TJMC distributes during the end of the year holidays to benefit UUSC. UUSC is a social justice affiliate organization of the UUA. See their website at volunteerservices@uusc.org. The card will be distributed with the December issue of the Bulletin. Receipts are available for donations, which are tax deductible. Checks are made to UUSC and all funds will go to the organization. Sign up with Edith Good at the counter in the Social Hall after services. Your name will appear on the card. Lorie Craddock has again agreed to design this year’s card cover.

Circle Pot Lucks: Thank you to all those who volunteered to host the Circle Pot Lucks to be held on the weekend of October 7-9. Sign up sheets are posted on the wall of the gallery between the Sanctuary and the Social Hall. Come and join the fun and get to know some members of the TJMC congregation better at a purely social occasion. For questions, contact Sally Taylor, Pot Luck Coordinator.

Covenant Groups will be starting at the beginning of October. These are our small groups meeting twice a month during which participants engage in active listening, share stories about spiritual growth and promote fellowship. You can sign-up by filling out a registration form online at the church website (www.uucharlottesville.org ) or on paper at the Covenant Group table in the Social Hall during Coffee Hour. For more information contact Sally Taylor .

Registration for the 2011-2012 Religious Education Program for Children & Youth is available at http://www.uucharlottesville.org/education/religious-education-program-registration on the church’s website. All families with children infants through twelfth grades participating in the program need to register. Thank you! Classes begin September 25.

Calling all non-parents and parents of grown children. Our church’s children need You! While parents of children in our church’s religious education program do help out in a variety of ways, we desperately need non-parent volunteers too. You can help and still attend worship regularly! Please speak with Leia Durland-Jones today to learn more about volunteer opportunities. Leiadj@embarqmail.com or 293-8179 x 3#.