Meet Rev. Jamie Boyce

We have the most lovely opportunity to welcome Rev. Jamie to the joys of Southwestern Colorado. As you will see in her bio, she has lived mainly in the northeastern parts of the United States and Canada. This is our first opportunity to learn from her — what draws her to our area and what her hopes are — and her first opportunity to learn from us and what we love about living here and what our hopes are. There will be numerous opportunities for faith formation families, children, and youth to meet her. Please take advantage of these.

End of School Year Bowling & Pizza May 22

All UUFD kids, teens, and parents are invited to a bowling and pizza party to celebrate the end of the school year.

When? May 22 at 5.m.

Where? Rolling Thunder Lanes

14324 Highway 172 North

Ignacio, CO

Pine Song July 12-14

Faith Formation is thrilled to announce that we are putting together plans for the children and youth who will accompany their families to the Pine Song Retreat. Watch this space for details to come for the day’s activities. If you have suggestions about what you’d like to do during the retreat, send them to Sharon.

Faith Formation Seeks Teacher

Are you an active, personable person who likes kids of all ages? If so, The Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Durango is looking for you. We are seeking a teacher for Sunday programs for elementary and middle-school age children. Prior teaching experience is awesome, but not required. A back-ground or familiarity with Unitarian Universalism and its guiding principles is preferred but not required. Must be at least 18 years old and pass a background check. For details and more information, send Sharon Mignerey, the Coordinator of Faith Formation an email.

(Feel free to share this notice with anyone you think might be interested.)

Our Whole Lives (OWL) — Facilitator Training

Lifespan Sexuality Education

This summer (July or August), Formation at UUFD would like to host OWL training for facilitators-to-be who would like to be part of this vital program for our children and youth. Though we have a few people trained at the elementary and middle school levels, we need a deeper pool of facilitators. Teaching experience is not required, but an affinity and comfort with kids is a must.

We will be reaching out to other congregations in our surrounding states to meet the minimum enrollment, but want to make this available to members of our congregation first. If you are interested in becoming a trained facilitator for OWL, please let Sharon Mignereyknow. If you are not trained but would like more information, please click here for an overview of the OWL program.

Soulful Families

Who Brings a Smile to your Face?

Remember and Discuss With One Another

I was lucky enough to have grands in my life whom I remember fondly. Grand parents and great aunts and uncles. Some of those memories are full fledged stories, and some are wispy bits that flutter through my mind like a sheer curtain in a soft breeze. Watching stars with my granddad on a dark summer night … following my grandmother down the rows of her garden while planting beans and corn … walking through a blooming peach orchard with my great uncle.

Within these memories, I realize more and more how interdependent we all are. Within my family there was the exchange of vegetables and peaches and farm-raised meat shared as things came into season. Now we might experience those connections in a potluck meal, such as those we will get to have in a couple of weeks. We know who the wonderful bakers are and we look for their offerings. We know who the fun story-tells are, and we seek out their company. We know who needs a little extra help to participate, and we ensure they have it. And, all of us are richer because of the connections … and the sweetest of memories that follow us through life.

I invite you to share this month with one another over dinner or during a picnic … who do you remember as having an influence on you? What are the accompanying stories? How are you enriched by the relationship or the lessons learned? As you explore, imagine all the connections and the interdependence we have with one another. We each bring strengths and gifts that make our neighbors richer, and they do the same for us, making us richer in return. Imagine how these lessons get passed along to your children and grandchildren, to the others who are within the circle of your life.

The Soulful Family packets we receive each month have ideas and activities to help you have richer conversations with your family members, suggestions for activities that go beyond watching TV together, If you would like to have Soulful Family packets each month, let Sharon, the Coordinator of Faith Formationknow, and she will ensure you receive these each month.

T

From the Mailbox (April Soulful Home)

Dear travelers and homebodies,

bell hooks beams at me from the stage, me and a thousand other people who came to bask in her life-giving radiance. Of all her deeply synthesized philosophy and original wisdom about gender, class, race, politics, and intersecting identities, it’s her thoughts on coexisting in community that move me most. “We best realize love in community,” she says. “Our interdependence is the staff of life, our capacity to feel both with and for ourselves, and other people.” hooks understood power better than maybe anyone else alive in her time. And her message? Share power and apply it to justice. Use power to build community. Uplift others as you rise yourself.

With whom will you share power today? What deep truths inside you can create more freedom and understanding all around you? How will you strengthen the fragile parts of our interconnected web?

Love,

the Awaiting World

ps. PBS Newshour recorded a tribute to bell hooks’ life after her death in 2021. You can watch it here: A Tribute to Bell Hooks on PBS