This Week at UUP: May 2-7, 2008

The Unitarian Universalists of Petaluma
An Oasis for Heart and Mind Every Sunday in Downtown Petaluma

ANNOUNCEMENTS AND UPCOMING EVENTS

Step Up to the Plate: Annual Pledge Drive "Opening Day" a Success
Last Sunday, this year's annual all-congregation pledge drive got off to an excellent start, with a lunch and a meeting following the service. We had a good "blue-sky" brainstorming, in which the enthusiasm and ideas of the group were elicited by Rev. Ben, and then we sang a silly version of "Take Me Out to the Ball Game," followed by pairing off and having one-on-one discussions about what UUP means to our lives. We filled out pledge cards and turned them in. Our stats so far: we have $25,175 in pledges, with 21 pledges altogether--a nice average of $1,260 per pledge unit! We're expecting about 25 more pledges, so if we keep up our pace, we'll have a nice healthy budget for the coming fiscal year. Pledge cards will be available on Sunday--or email uupetaluma at gmail dot com if you'd like one emailed to you. Go UUP!

Join UUP for the Annual Petaluma River Clean Up this Saturday, May 3rd
As part of our Service Sunday program, the Religious Education committee invites you to participate in this year's Petaluma River Clean Up. Please join our children and youth as we pull on our gloves and head down to the river. We'll work as a team under the guidance of Friends of the Petaluma River, city-wide sponsors of this event. Meet at 8:30 a.m. at the Petaluma Marina, 775 Baywood Drive. For directions: see the Friends of the Petaluma River Website. Friends of the River provides music, food and prizes for participants!

FLASH! Memorial Day Weekend Retreat spaces available!
Join us! We have a place for two more individuals or a family! Please contact T Hathaway ASAP to sign up.

Leadership Positions Available at UUP
This year's annual meeting (June 1) will see three members elected by congregational vote to the UUP Board of Trustees. These are three-year terms. Don't be surprised to be approached by a member of the Nominating Committee (Nancy Blake, David Dodd, and KC Greaney), who will be seeking out hidden talent throughout the membership. If you would like to know more about this opportunity, please don't hesitate to speak with any member of the Nominating Committee.

Considering Becoming a Member of UUP? The next New Member Ingathering is Sunday, June 1st
If you've been attending UUP regularly and have been thinking about joining the congregation as a member, here's your chance! We will hold a new member welcome ceremony during the Sunday service on June 1st. For details, please contact Hope Stewart, for the UUP Membership Committee.

Unitarian Universalists are fighting global warming together with the "UULM Low Carbon Challenge"
Our goal is for Unitarian Universalists in California to collectively lose one million pounds of carbon dioxide emissions by Earth Day 2009. "Carbon Rings" in 50 of our California congregations are going on the "Low Carbon Diet" to lose 5,000 pounds of carbon emissions per household. Please contact Stacey Meinzen, David Dodd, or George Beeler for details.

Religious Education Volunteers Needed
Our program is growing! Please consider volunteering occasionally to help with the 7 to11 year old class on Sunday mornings. Volunteers will assist our regular teachers or help out on a service Sunday project. No advance preparation is required. This is a great opportunity to strengthen our intergenerational connections! Please contact Leslie Harrison at 773-2226 or lahlee10@sbcglobal.net for more information.

Interested in seeing 'West Side Story' at Sonoma State University?
A UUP group is gathering for Saturday, May 3. Order tickets through Sonoma State, then contact Dick Allen to coordinate a place to meet and eat. Maybe picnic on the lawn?… eat at a nice restaurant right across the street?

The next half-day introductory sitting at the San Francisco Zen Center is Saturday, May 17th from 9 am to 1 pm.
If you'd like to join a UUP group planning to attend - and possibly carpool, call Susan Price. For more details see the Zen Center website.

UPCOMING SUNDAY SERVICES
(Social time with refreshments begins at 10:00 am , at the Petaluma Woman's Club, 518 B Street. Worship service begins at 10:30 am. )

This Sunday, May 4, 2008: "Flower Communion"
Worship Leader: Diana Spaulding
Greeters: Stacy Meinzen, Richard Stark, David Dodd, Elaine Ellsworth, Karen Rutherford, David Gardner and Hope Stewart
This year marks the 85th annual Flower Communion Celebration. This beautiful celebration of community is one of the very few (almost) universally practiced Unitarian traditions. Each person is asked to bring one flower for the ritual.

Sunday, May 11, 2008: "Peace"
Minister: Rev. Ben Kocs-Meyers

REGULARLY SCHEDULED GATHERINGS
The UUP Men's Group will meet at Dick Allen's house on Friday, May 2nd at 7:30 pm.
The UUP Board of Trustees will meet this Sunday, May 4th at 8:30 am in Christian Science Fireside Room.
UUP Worship Associates will meet Sunday, May 4th at 12:30 pm at T's office.
UUP Membership Committee will hold a retreat on May 10th at 11am at Hope's home.
Larking About, the UUP Singers, meets on Wednesday evenings from 8 to 9:30 at the home of Diana Spaulding and David Dodd.

INSTRUCTIONS FOR SUBMISSION TO "THIS WEEK AT UUP" AND TO THE UUP CALENDAR
If you have an item for "This Week at UUP" (UU or UUP-related only, please), send it to our Administrator, Jennifer Newman at uupetaluma at gmail dot com by Wednesday for inclusion in that week's email newsletter. For information that needs to go on the calendar (located at http://www.uupetaluma.org/calendars/current.html), please send your event details to the same email address.

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