UUFSM Newsletter
May 1, 2008	Volume 16, Number 5
“Life began with waking up and loving my mother’s face.” George Eliot “Every mother has the breath-taking privilege of sharing with God in the creation of a new life. She helps bring into existence a soul that will endure for all eternity.” James Keller Reminders: · 10-11am Tuedays Tao Te Ching at Panera’s · 7:30-9pm Wednesdays Choir Rehearsal · May 8 and 22 1-3pm Daytime Chalice Circle · May 2 6-8pm TGIF Roller Skating		May 4, Rev. John Gaffney On May 4, please join us in welcoming Rev. John Gaffney. Rev. Gaffney grew up in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He entered the Franciscan Order, and in 1962 was ordained a Roman Catholic Priest at the Franciscan Monastery in Washington. At the age of 55, he became a Unitarian Universalist Minister and served in churches in Cumberland, Hagerstown, and Bowie, Maryland. Rev. Gaffney retired from active ministry about four years ago. Sunday, May 4, he will speak at UUFSM. His sermon is entitled, “If I Were God for a Day, What Would I Do.” The service will begin at 10:30 a.m. and end at 11:30 a.m. Religious Education classes start at 10:45 a.m. In addition, our choir will sing, “Up Above My Head” which is a version of an Elvis Presley song. We hope you will join us. May 11, Honoring Our Mothers & Welcoming New Members Let us see motherhood through the eyes of sons, husbands, and daughters, as well as, from Mothers themselves. Join us on May 11, and bring a short story, poem, song, or memory to share about Mothers or Motherhood. During the service, we will also welcome six new members who will join our fellowship and we shall witness the dedication of two children. It will be a wonderful day filled with celebration. Please join us to honor Mothers and honor our six newest UUFSM members. Service begins at 10:30 am and ends at 11:30 am. May 18, Ibrahim Soliman on Peace Mr. Soliman, father of Dr. Russell Rhine a member of UUFSM, will honor us once again and speak about a subject that is near and dear to his heart, peace. Since his last visit with us, Newsweek featured Mr. Soliman in an article in the April 16, 2007 edition, entitled, A Parallel Peacemaker. He was the first Syrian to speak at Israel’s Knesset, which is similar to our Congress and recently met with former President Jimmy Carter. Service begins at 10:30am and ends at 11:30am. May 25, Sing-A-Long with Joe Ruff Come join us for a sing-a-long with Joe Ruff, great food, and great conversation. Our annual Memorial Day celebration and picnic will start at 11:00 am at Greenwell State Park (follow signs to the pavilion). We’ll begin with a sing-a-long with Joe, followed by a potluck picnic. Drinks and utensils will be provided. Please let Marianna Nystrom know how many people are coming and what you are planning to bring – so we won’t end up with all desserts – although that might be fun! Call 301-863-7484 or email her at Nystrom@radix.net .
Send all notices to bulletin@uufsm.org by Wednesday evenings for inclusion in the Sunday Bulletin. Send all articles for the monthly newsletter to newsletter@uufsm.org by the 20^th of each month. Board Meeting 7:15pm May 13 at the Lexington Park Library. Submit agenda items to board1@uufsm.org or call Janeen at 301-994-9372 at least one week prior to meeting. All members are welcome. UUFSM PO Box 1703 Leonardtown, MD 20650-1703 301-373-9293 mail@uufsm.org We’re on the Web! www.uufsm.org	Important Dates! On June 1, elections will begin for new members of the Board of Trustees. Five positions will open on the board and currently we have four candidates, Carl Lavsa for Treasurer (2008-2009), Dotsy Moroney for Secretary (2008-2010), Janeen Grohsmeyer for member-at-large (2008-2010), and Luke Seubert for member-at-large (2008-2010). Current members Marianna Nystrom and Vincenza Cumbo will be completing their 2007-2009 terms. Board Advance, June 28 Our annual old/new Board meeting will be held June 28 at the Lexington Park Library from 9:00-1:00. All members of UUFSM are invited. The first part of the meeting will be primarily to cover old business and to transition to the new Board. Everyone is asked to bring a bag lunch and committee chairs who would like in-put into the planning calendar are asked to come at 12:00 for the remainder of the meeting. Team Budgets Needed We are finalizing the numbers for the coming year. Several members met on April 20th after the service to review the costs and the pledges for next year and discussed the options we have for a minister. Below is a breakdown of the budget without figures, to help everyone understand their leads and contact person. Teams please coordinate with and have the committee head (team lead) email the requested amounts for next year to Vincenza Cumbo vincenzacumbo@hotmail.com or to Carl Lavsa skippy60@comcast.net. Please feel free to add items so that we’re sure to include everything. We need these by May 1st to review it with the board as well as review the feedback we received from the April 20th meeting. Any questions, please don’t hesitate to contact us. Sunday Mornings (Board Liaison: Marianna Nystrom) - Worship - Operations (rent) - Hospitality, Chalice Guild (coffee, food, supplies) - Music, Choir (piano tuning, copies, musician fee) Sunday Morning Totals Life-Span Religious Education (Board Liaison: Janeen) - Special Events - RE training - RE Grant from JPD - RE Coordinator Salary - Curricula - Supplies - Adults' RE (self-financing) - Library Total for Religious Education Fellowship Builders (Liaison: Carl) - Membership (supplies, books, cakes) - Pastoral Care (flowers, cards, gifts, etc.) - Small Group Ministry (self-financing) - Social Events (aka Community Events) Totals for Fellowship Builders Social Justice Action Team - "Donate the Plate" Charitable Giving (from the plate: 10 months x $200) - Earth Care - Local Community Outreach - Civil Rights Totals for SJA Finance (Board Liaison: Treasurer) - Stewardship: Fundraising, Grants, Canvass - Supplies, software, etc. Totals for Finance Communications (Board Liaison: Secretary) - Publications Pamphlets, newsletter, bulletin), directory - Website - Publicity (ad in Enterprise) - Historian - PO Box - Phone $30/month - Stamps, supplies, copying, misc. Communications Team Totals UU Matters Finance -Liability Insurance -Worker Compensation -JPD Dues - UUA dues Totals for UU Matters