A few weeks ago, Barbara Child mentioned that she wouldn’t be going back to Kent for the 50 year commemoration of the killing of four students on the Commons at Kent State University. In a private Facebook group she shared some memories of that day in May, 1970, the sunny hillside, students protesting the escalation … Continue reading Homily: What Gets Us Through
Harnessing the ripple effect in times of trouble An ugly pandemic has launched a societal tsunami, threatening to turn us inward at a time when we desperately need the warmth of community. In times like these, the value of sustaining your spiritual home becomes clear. Our minister, staff and volunteers moved quickly to provide us … Continue reading Tahoma UU President’s Budget Message
Beloveds, A student once asked anthropologist Margaret Mead what she considered to be the first sign that a culture had become civilized. You might rightly think that it would be something like a tool for sowing seed, or a fishhook, but Mead replied that it was a healed femur bone. A break in that mighty … Continue reading Hart to Hearts for March 25, 2020
Yesterday as I walked our black Lab Cooper, I found myself tuned into the beauty around the apartment complex where we live. There was a small globe of moss that had fallen off a nearby tree, seafoam green on the deep green grass. Hyacinths were blooming next to the mailboxes. The ornamental cherry trees were … Continue reading We’ll Get Through This Together: Update on Worship and Gatherings
I’m pleased to share that, during the 2019 Inclusive Family Book Drive at Tahoma UU, our congregation donated more than 125 inclusive books for our newly expanded children’s section in our library! We also added more books geared toward parents’ understanding systemic racism, consent, LGBTQIA+ allied behavior, immigration, and indigenous history. With more than $300 … Continue reading Tahoma UU Congregation Inclusive Family Book Drive 2019
I’m Jonina, and I’ve been a member of this congregation since 2015, almost four years. My husband, Aaron, and I started attending TUUC when we moved to Tacoma almost 5 years ago, and officially became members when we were expecting our son, Julian, who is now two. When Tori asked me to give a stewardship … Continue reading My Stewardship by Jonina Wright
When Tori asked me to speak about what motivates our commitment to stewardship of this church, I thought sure, no big deal. If I can facilitate a sexuality curriculum with sixth graders, I can do this. Then I listened to the example she included with the request. The guy was a flat out comedian who … Continue reading My Stewardship by Cindy Hackett
I’m going to keep this simple by trying to authentically answer only two questions: Why am I here? Why do I pledge? Question 1: Why am I here? I come to TUUC because I think this world is a very messed up place on many levels – the state of the environment, discrimination in so … Continue reading My Stewardship by Christine Chansley
At our Auction in the fall, we raised money for doing some social justice work in the community. At a Collaboration meeting in early February, a group of discussed and came up with opportunities to use the funds to help us do some direct work in our wider community. First, we talked about what we … Continue reading Making a Difference
I served a congregation in Woodstock, Vermont back in the mid-1990s. I learned about winter weather. And a LOT about snow. It might have been the first time we had a big snow that I decided to not preach the sermon that I had planned, but rather to offer the few people who arrived — … Continue reading Snow-zilla!
