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 with spiritual nourishment through online Sunday services and virtual gatherings. But they need your support to continue this vital work.

Due to the national emergency, the TUUC board, in consultation with Rev. Linda Hart, has decided to postpone the budget drive that had been planned to launch this spring.

We recognize that many of us feel stretched thin, both psychologically and financially. Our building remains closed, but our hearts are open to new ways of gathering and keeping in touch. In order to weather this extraordinary storm, TUUC still needs your financial support.

We are asking you, if possible, to continue supporting TUUC at your current weekly, monthly or quarterly pledge level through the summer and early fall. Our church fiscal year runs through the end of June; that’s the budget your current pledge is supporting.

But we will still need to financially sustain our congregation through at least the first four months of the 2020-21 fiscal year, which starts in July.

Our current plan is to launch a budget drive in the fall. But like everything now, that plan is subject to change depending on how events play out.

Your gift now and into the next quarter — whatever the size — can make a big difference. Just as a single pebble creates ripples across a pond, your contribution will have far-reaching effects in this time of uncertainty.

While we understand that giving may be more difficult at this time for many of you, we hope you will be as generous as you can afford to be in the coming months. Some may even be able to give at a higher level, in recognition of those who must cut back due to financial hardships brought on by the pandemic.

I hope you will carefully consider at what level you can continue your TUUC financial commitment. Every gift you offer will ripple widely throughout our community.

With an eye on our future, I thank you.

Debbie Cafazzo

TUUC Board of Trustees President