UUFD member and Thrive! co-founder, Mo Maliszewski, was instrumental in bringing US wealth inequality expert and best-selling author, Chuck Collins to Durango this fall. Both hold leadership roles in Unitarian Universalists for a Just Economic Community (UUJEC), a progressive organization, rooted in the UU liberal religious tradition dedicated to economic justice for all. On Oct. 4th, as part of Thrive!’s 2018 education program, Mr Collins will speak at the Fort Lewis Ballroom on REVERSING INEQUALITY: What is the Path Forward? The ensuing discussion will be led by selected community leaders including our own Rev. Katie Kandarian-Morris. Mr. Collins has scheduled a separate presentation on Saturday Oct. 6th at 4:00 p.m. … Continued

BELOVED CONVERSATIONS: Meditations on Race and Ethnicity is a powerful tool for the journey of healing racism and encouraging a multicultural lens in the congregation and how we engage with our community at large. This experiential program begins with a weekend retreat, October 19 & 20th,  offered by a curriculum developer from Meadville Lombard Theological School and continuing with eight small group sessions using the curriculum. More information»

The UUA Common Read Selection Committee is pleased to announce the 2018-19 Common Read: Justice on Earth: People of Faith Working at the Intersections of Race, Class, and Environment, edited by Manish Mishra-Marzetti and Jennifer Nordstrom (Skinner House Books, 2018). At a time when racial justice, environmental justice, and economic justice are seen as issues competing for time, attention, and resources, Justice on Earth explores the ways in which the three are intertwined. Those on the margins are invariably those most affected by climate disaster and environmental toxins. The book asks us to recognize that our faith calls us to long-haul work for justice for our human kin, for the … Continued

More than 35 members contributed to the sanctuary expansion effort over the past two weeks. Here’s a fun slide show» documenting some of their efforts. The project is almost complete, with final building inspections pending.

This year’s summer series theme: Tell me what is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life? is taken from a Mary Oliver poem.  The series begins Sunday, June 17 and extends through Sunday, August 19.  Here’s a colorful chronological pdf of participants»

UUFD invites members and friends to make a one-time donation to the CHAIR FUND to provide chairs for the newly expanded sanctuary. A generous donor has agreed to match funds for up to 32 chairs (for a total of the 64 chairs we need). So each contribution counts twice! Click here» to donate the full cost of one chair ($160*) or any amount. ( *$160 covers one chair and its share of the renovation )

A video recording of this year’s GA Ware Lecture by Brittany Packnett is now available online at the UUA website»

The Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA) condemns the Trump administration’s appalling assault on vulnerable families seeking asylum in the United States. “The policy of this administration to separate children from their parents at the border is immoral, inhumane and indefensible,” says UUA president, the Rev. Susan Frederick-Gray. “These families arrive desperate for safe-haven, seeking asylum having fled violence and disruption in their own homeland – and instead of safety, they are further traumatized, victimized and criminalized at the hands of the U.S. government.” Full story»

Durango Food Bank needs volunteers to sort, organize and distribute food resources to fire evacuees and impacted residents. Click here to see time / dates for preparing food donation boxes at Durango Food Bank. Contact Bonnie Miller, UUFD Social Responsibility & Justice Team Co-Leader, to schedule your volunteer time slot. Thank you for joining this emergency effort in the spirt of community caring!

On May 14 UUA President Rev. Susan Frederick-Gray participated in the opening 40 Days of Action of the Poor People’s Campaign: A National Call for a Moral Revival in Washington, DC. After the season of 40 days of direct action, teach-ins, worship, arts and cultural events, from May 13th-June 21st in over 30 states and the U.S. capital, and a mass mobilization on June 23rd in Washington, DC, the campaign will shift to voter registration and turnout, and begin developing fusion grassroots organizing campaigns to gain the campaign’s demands for policy change at the state and national level. More information from uua.org»