Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Lakeland

Dear Members,

The Annual Meeting of the UU Congregation of Lakeland will be held on Sunday, March 28, and all members need to prepare for it.

First, you should plan to attend an information session about the content of the Annual Meeting, which will be held on Sunday, March 21, immediately after service. Then, watch your mail for the Annual Meeting packet, which was sent out on Thursday, March 18. This packet will give you complete information on the candidates and initiatives members will be asked to vote on at the Annual Meeting. Let me or President-elect Theresa Lutz know if you have any questions.

You should also plan to be at UUCL this weekend for some wonderful events, including two concerts and a special service featuring UU songstress Mindy Simmons. See below for complete information on upcoming events:

Thursday, March18

Haiti Benefit, Polk Theatre, 7 p.m.: Join local favorites Billy Needs a Beard and other bands as they raise money for earthquake relief.

 Friday, March 19

Common GroUUnds Coffee House, Sanctuary, 7 p.m.: Listen to live music while sipping coffee and eating baked goods at this UUCL event.

 Saturday, March 20

Friends of Joe Concert, Sanctuary, 8 p.m.: UU song stylist Mindy Simmons takes to the stage, with Jeremy Procopio and Benedict Heaps opening. Cconcessions, including beverages, snacks and a light meal, are available at Joe’s Café starting at 7 p.m. Tickets are $12 at the door  ($7 for students); visit joeprine.org for more information.

Sunday, March 21

Religious Exploration, RE Complex, 10 a.m.: Children and youth continue exploring the 7^th UU Principle.

Adult Discussion Group, Social  Hall, 10 a.m.:  Is the U.S. two-party political system broken? Come and share your views.

Sunday Service, Sanctuary, 11 a.m.: Guest speaker/singer Mindy Simmons asks us to “Consider the Source” as we live our lives. You won’t want to miss the intergenerational event.

Annual Meeting Information Session, Sanctuary, 12:15 p.m.: Learn what we’ll be voting on at next week’s Annual Congregational meeting.

EarthFamilies Evensong Gathering, Sanctuary, 2 p.m.: Learn about Ostara, the pagan celebration of Spring Equinox, at the monthly Craftwork session.

I hope to see you soon at UU Lakeland.

In faith,

Come see...

Poor Saddam

Sun of Sam

Walking Catfish

Friday March 20th 7-10pm

FREE SHOW

Snacks and drinks will be for sale

This weekend, you have a chance to enjoy two potluck meals with UUCL. The first, on Friday night at 6 p.m., is being held in honor of the Coalition of Immokalee Workers, a farmworkers' rights organization. If you plan to attend, you'll ned to RSVP; see the notice below under Friday, March 12 for more informaion.

The second is our  monthly after-service potluck lunch, to be held on Sunday. Details are below, as are details about all this weekend's upcoming events. I hope to see you at one or more of them.

Friday, March 12

6 p.m.: Potluck Dinner,Sanctuary: Join UULakeland members and friends as they host a dinner for the Coalition ofImmokalee Workers, a human rights organization whose organizers are living and working in Lakeland in anticipation of a march to protest human slavery in theagricultural industry. Bring a dish to share; RSVP so we can set up enoughtables to Blenda George at blenda@tampabay.rr.com or 863/709-9096.

Saturday, March 13

8 a.m.: Paint Your HeartOut: This annual community service event givesus the chance to paint the home of a neighbor who cannot manage on her own. For more information, contact Judi Irwin at rudiwill@yahoo.com

4 p.m.: WorshipCommittee, Social Hall. Join Rev. Bonnie and the Worship Committee as they plan upcoming services. All are welcome.

Sunday, March 14

10 a.m.: ReligiousExploration, RE Complex: Childrenand youth continue their exploration of the 7th UU Principle, whichguides us in our stewardship of the earth.

10 a.m.: Adult Discussion Group, Social Hall: Join in a discussion of the importance of Humor, Joy, andLaughter.

11 a.m.: Sunday Service,Sanctuary: “Ba Piti Pa Chiche” - Rev. Bonnie Devlin. Every year wepromote and honor our UU Service Committee: First in the fall with our ‘GuestAt Your Table’ boxes, and in the spring with our Social Justice Sunday. Thisyear our focus is on ‘economic justice’ in general, and how we can help Haiti in particular through some important programs we are working on in the UUA/UUSC.

12 p.m.: Potluck Lunch,Social Hall: Join us forour monthly after-service luncheon. Bring a dish to share, if you wish.

2 p.m.: EarthFamilies Evensong Gathering, Sanctuary:  Drum Circle: Join this family-friendly activity andexplore the meditative value of rhythm! We have plenty of instru­ments toshare; chanters and dancers always welcome!

And don't forget choir practice, Monday night at 7 p.m. in the Sanctuary.

On Friday, March 12, UUCL will have a pot luck dinner for the staffers from the Coalition of Immokalee Workers who have been living and organizing in Lakeland for the past four weeks.

The main focus of their work has been organizing the march from Tampa to Publix headquarters in Lakeland, in a continuing effort to persuade Publix to join the Campaign for Fair Food and the efforts to combat conditions of slavery in the tomato fields.  The March will be held on April 16-18.

Everyone is invited to attend the dinner on March 12 in the sanctuary at 6:00 p.m.  Bring a dish or your favorite libation to share.

On Saturday February 13 our Beloved Community came together to "Be Committed". Good food, fine company and spectacular entertainment helped us celebrate our abundance as we reaped the benefits of small commitments by many people. Thank you one more time to all who helped make it a very memorable evening.

Part of the purpose of the Annual Dinner is to launch our annual Pledge, or Stewardship Campaign that helps us create our budget for the upcoming congregational fiscal year, July 1, 2010 thru 2011, and some of the evening was spent learning how you can help and why you would want to.

Many of you renewed or made fresh financial and labor commitments to our work since then, and we thank you so much for your generosity. We are quickly approaching the halfway mark in our campaign, with over $28,000 in pledges from 39 members in 27 households.

If you have not yet pledged your time and talent to the congregation, won't you please do so? The greater your commitments, the more readily we can achieve our commitment to bring Polk County tolerance and liberal thought as expressed in our mission statement, so won't YOU "Be Committed!" ?

Our Mission is
to Seek Truth, Share Strength,
Promote Understanding,
Develop Wisdom, Decry Division,
Embrace Diversity and Open Minds.