August 30, 2024 ‘Membership Moment’ 

from Elaine Ball, Congregational Life Coordinator

 

On the cusp of a new Church Year (beginning Sunday, September 8 with our Water Ceremony), I’m feeling grateful – for all of you – as well as excited, and hopeful.

I’m excited to share what we’re learning from your responses to the 2024 Demographics Survey.

I’m excited to greet you as you come through the doors (or log on to our YouTube channel) with your stories to share about the water you’ve collected from all the places this summer has taken you.

And, I’m hopeful you will all join together this Church Year in the enjoyable and rewarding ‘work’ of living into our mission:

 

“We welcome all as we build a loving community to nurture each person’s spiritual journey, serve human need, and protect the earth, our home.”

 

As I’ve often reiterated since I joined the UCM staff – six years ago this Fall – welcoming all takes us all! I’m immensely grateful for everyone who has shown up a bit early on a Sunday morning (or stayed after a while) – whether once in a while or nearly every week – to Greet, Usher, Make Coffee, and/or operate the elevette (before it was damaged last summer).

I’m both excited and hopeful to see your creative and collaborative ideas this Church Year, for organizing and scheduling Sunday morning volunteers each week.

As my role of Congregational Life Coordinator has shifted in recent years to include Communications work, it’s become unsustainable for one part-time staff member to organize teams of volunteers that were once organized by four-five individual lay-leaders.

As we all come back together in the coming weeks, I’m hopeful that all of you together taking on making these joyful and sustaining ‘tasks’ happen each week – tasks/roles that feel more like socializing than ‘working’ – will pull you into stronger, more meaningful connections and relationships.

As you Greet one another, learning names & faces; welcome in new and familiar people as you Usher; make and serve coffee as a Barista; tidy up shared spaces as people leave; and/or stay until the financial offerings are counted — I’m hopeful this Beloved Community will become stronger, more interconnected, and more joyful for all.

Thank you for welcoming all, and serving human need! We all need each other, and I’m so grateful we’re together. ~ Elaine Ball, Congregational Life Coordinator