** Sunday Worship Service
January 23, 2022
10:00 am – Livestream
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Join us as Heather Petit shares her homily…
Followed by…
** Mid-Year Review
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In lieu of breakout rooms after the homily this Sunday, the Board of Trustees will be conducting a mid-year review for the benefit of the congregation. This will include the status of the 2022 Generosity Campaign and a review of church finances, COVID impacts and policies, and more.
Everyone is encouraged to attend.
Connect With Us Virtually
There are several ways to get the Zoom link for livestreaming the service:
* Click the link below (Sunday Livestream) and bookmark it; OR
* Access the church calendar (https://www.uusmc.org/news/calendar/) (https://www.uusmc.org/news/calendar/); OR
* Open our Sunday morning email; OR
* Open ANY PREVIOUS Sunday morning email – the link remains the same from week to week
Click here for Sunday LIVESTREAM (https://zoom.us/j/97806427419)
** Congregational Life
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** Upcoming events, meetings and news to know
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** December 2021 Finance Committee Report
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In advance of this Sunday’s Mid-Year Review, the Finance Committee provides the following information:
The Bookkeepers notes for the month ending 12/21 show a surplus of $1,262 of income over expenses, but fiscal year-to-date, we are running a deficit of $10,146.
We have received all but $7967 of the amount pledged for 2021 and we have $170,346 in pledges for 2022.
Please participate in our mid-year meeting, via zoom, after service this Sunday, January 23, during which a more detailed report of finances will be shared.
** January Worship Services Continue as Livestream Only
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January 23: Heather Petit
January 30: Rev. Kent Matthies
At the January Board meeting, a determination will be made regarding February services: if a hybrid format can be offered (limited in-person services with livestreaming) or if a livestream only format will continue, and for how long. The Board’s decision will be announced next week.
** UUDAN Monthly Steering Committee Meeting
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UUDAN, the Unitarian Universalist Delaware Advocacy Network, brings together the five Delaware UU congregations to engage in local legislative action. Their mission is to inform, recruit and mobilize UU advocates to work, in partnership with other advocacy organizations, for the many social justice issues in the state of Delaware. With the start of the 2022 legislative session in Dover, UUDAN welcomes all Delaware residents to the upcoming meeting and hear how you can get involved in local advocacy.
Meeting: Sunday, January 23^rd at 4 pm on Zoom
Featured speaker: Jill Itzkowitz, Chair of the Voting and Elections Committee, League of Women Voters Delaware
Use the link below to register for attendance at the meeting, and the Zoom link will be sent to you.
Register for the meeting HERE (https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSc3QqOoIunbfvlbloQfrqZqh_j2qxdWAOe91HYLvJbir6MU3w/viewform)
Questions? Contact Mill Creek member Jack Guerin HERE (mailto:jackguerin7@gmail.com?subject=UUDAN)
** A Word about Pastoral Care During Rev. Greg’s Sabbatical
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Dear Fellow Congregants,
In September of 2021, Rev. Greg asked me if I was open to being hired for a temporary role as “Pastor” during his sabbatical. The request was to employ my lifetime of pastoral care to assist congregants in any kind of crisis: physical, emotional or spiritual. I agreed, with the one understanding: that I would not assert any form of religious doctrine or identity during any meeting. My deepest belief is that the only expert on a person’s view of the meaning of life was that person. If they request I meet them were they are spiritually, I am highly experienced with having such a relationship. Rev. Greg smiled and said, “we’ve done a good job bringing you into the UU world!”
The Board, Rev. Greg and I want, therefore, for you to know that if you call Debby at the church office regarding any relevant issue, you will be referred to me. I may hear of something through the church “grapevine” and reach out accordingly. Finally, I want you to know you can call or text me 24/7 at 302-584-2218 or reach out by email at RJBroesler@Gmail.com (mailto:RJBroesler@Gmail.com) .
I am deeply grateful to be trusted as a part of the compassionate arm of Mill Creek, and thank Rev. Greg and the Board publicly.
Bob
The Rev. Robert Broesler
**
Mill Creek and Our Participation in the UUA Annual Program Fund
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Every Unitarian Universalist congregation in the UUA (Unitarian Universalist Association) is asked to contribute a specific sum of money to the Annual Program Fund (APF) to support all of the congregations in the Association. The APF formula is based on the percentage of a congregation’s expenditures.
The APF makes up the single largest source of funding for the work of the UUA, who in turn utilizes these funds to provide resources, programming and support to all of the congregations across the Association.
During fiscal year 2020-21 (ended 6-30-21), we paid $14,934 in support of this fund, continuing with our status as an Honor Congregation.
Learn more about the APF here (https://www.uua.org/finance/apf)
** Share Our Plate:
January & February
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We regularly donate a portion of our undesignated plate collection to a local charity or non-profit organization.
For the months of January and February we have selected:
YoungMoms in Kennett Square, Pennsylvania
The mission of YoungMoms is to inspire and equip young mothers to build thriving futures for themselves and their families. This non-profit organization, serving southern Chester County, Pennsylvania, provides the academic, employment, parenting and relational support pregnant and parenting young mothers need to achieve their life goals and improve their lives and those of their children.
The individuals they serve face huge challenges as they navigate adolescence and parenthood simultaneously, including incomplete education, poverty, language barriers, isolation, and a general lack of options and opportunities. YoungMoms offers a program of individualized, comprehensive, and long-term support to these young women, featuring:
* Highly specialized case management
* One-to-one mentoring
* Educational & employment assistance
* Parenting education & development
* Monthly club meetings, life skills training, and enrichment workshops in Kennett Square and Oxford
Participants remain in the program between two and four years, allowing the YoungMoms program to assist them in overcoming obstacles which might normally derail their progress in achieving goals. This long-term investment makes YoungMoms unique and life changing.
For more information about this organization, click on the link below:
LEARN MORE about YoungMoms (https://youngmomschestercounty.org/)
Support this organization with your online donation today!
DONATE to Share Our Plate (https://onrealm.org/MillCreek/-/give/now)
**Be sure to select ‘Share Our Plate’ as the giving fund**
** Virtual Racial Justice Workshop
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Saturday, January 29th
12:30 – 3:00 pm
First Unitarian Portland (OR) is inviting everyone to join them for Seminary for a Day: Doing the Inner Work of Racial Justice with Rev. Abhi Janamanchi, Senior Minister of the Cedar Lane Unitarian Universalist Church in Bethesda, MD.
This is an opportunity to gain a deeper understanding of how racism has shaped our UU faith and our congregations; how structural racism still operates today, often unnoticed; and what is involved in cultivating Beloved Community and working against racism and oppression in all its forms. Offered online via Zoom.
LEARN MORE & REGISTER (https://www.firstunitarianportland.org/events/seminaryforaday22/)
MEET REV. JANAMANCHI (https://www.cedarlane.org/people/3)
QUESTIONS? Ask them HERE (mailto:kheintze@firstunitarianportland.org?subject=Doing%20the%20Inner%20Work%20of%20Racial%20Justice)
** Spiritual Retreat (In-person or Online)
at First Unitarian Church of Wilmington
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Spiritual Retreat: Unitarian Universalist Spiritual Practices
First Unitarian Church of Wilmington
Saturday, January 29, 2022
10:00 am to 3:00 pm
Begin the New Year by nourishing your Spirit. Join Rev. Larry Peers and Rev. Rob Hardies for a day-long retreat grounded in our own Unitarian Universalist spiritual tradition. In this retreat we will learn and practice the spiritual disciplines of our UU ancestors so that they might equip and sustain us in engaging our beautiful and broken world. Along the way, we will gain a better understanding of the spiritual and theological gifts of our tradition.
Each retreat participant will receive a set of handouts describing each spiritual practice, so that they can continue practicing at home. There will also be an option to form a small group that will continue practicing together.
Please bring or have handy a journal (or something to write with and on) as well as a brown bag lunch. Coffee and tea will be provided for those attending in the building.
The retreat fee is $25 for members of First Unitarian; $35 for all others. Scholarships are available. You must pre-register by January 24.
LEARN MORE here (https://firstuuwilm.org/wordcms/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/finale-Lifestream-Jan-29-Spiritual-Practices-Retreat-v3.pdf)
REGISTER here (https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSf2DFOwl8aTkmKICVQBGTSLkQw7tKTt2N8HBkmM-7oE0mwNuw/viewform)
** Upcoming Book Group Selections
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Everyone is welcome to join the Book Group for the following discussions:
MARCH:
Glass Hotel
by Emily St. John Mandel
Tuesday, March 1st at 7 pm
MAY:
Radium Girls
by Kate Moore
Tuesday, May 3rd at 7 pm
Zoom links remain the same for each discussion and can be found on the church calendar (https://www.uusmc.org/news/calendar/) . Contact the church office with any questions.
**
Chalice
Circle
Openings
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Chalice Circles at Mill Creek are small groups within our church that provide a supportive environment for people to meet and discuss topics relevant to our lives as well as share our stories, our experiences and our ideas. Circles are an opportunity to get to know each other on a deeper level and develop a rich spirituality. During COVID, some Circles meet virtually, some in person; some meet during the day and some in the evenings.
There are several opportunities to join a circle!
Click the link below to contact Helen Springer for more information, including dates & times of available circles,
or call 484-732-8641; or call the church office, 302-369-2712.
Click here for more information about Chalice Circles (mailto:helen_springer@msn.com?subject=chalice%20circles)
Realm is our church management software program. We use it exclusively for accounting, pledge data, membership, registration events, and more. Use the button below to access your Realm profile to make sure we have your most recent contact information, and make pledge payments and contributions.
Access your Realm profile HERE (https://onrealm.org/MillCreek/SignIn)
Fun fact: you can use Realm to set up recurring online monthly pledge payments using a credit card or your checking or savings account!
We encourage you to continue your financial support of Mill Creek during the closure by using one of the following methods:
1. Mail a check: 579 Polly Drummond Hill Road, Newark DE 19711 (staff is present in the office and the mailbox is checked daily). Please indicate on the subject line if this is a pledge payment, a general contribution, or a contribution to a specific giving fund.
2. Give electronically through REALM using your credit card or bank account (checking, savings, etc.): https://onrealm.org/MillCreek/Give or use the link below (remember to select a giving fund).
3. Text-to-Give: text MillCreek and the amount [e.g. MillCreek 50] to 73256.
We sincerely appreciate your support of Mill Creek, especially now during an uncertain time for all of us. But the work of the church continues! We gratefully acknowledge that there would be no Mill Creek without YOU. Thank you.
**Click here to GIVE NOW** (https://onrealm.org/MillCreek/-/give/now)
Follow us on Instagram!
@millcreekuu
Mill Creek Staff
Rev. Gregory S. Pelley, Minister
Rev. Greg is away on sabbatical now through June 30.
He will not be available by phone or email throughout the duration of his absence. We offer assurance that all church operations will continue as usual, and have prepared a guide which contains a list of guest speakers, contact information for those in leadership positions, and other information. Use the link below to access the guide.
Sabbatical Guide – view it here (https://www.uusmc.org/wp-content/uploads/A-Guide-to-Rev-Gregs-Sabbatical.pdf)
Debra Damiani, Congregational Administrator
Monday 8 am to 1 pm, Monday-Thursday
administrator@uusmc.org (mailto:administrator@uusmc.org)
302-369-2712
Rachel Sabella, Music Director
Hours by Appointment
music@uusmc.org (mailto:music@uusmc.org)
302-369-2712
** Events in Our Local Community
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** Newark Parks & Rec’s Winter/Spring Activity Guide Now Available
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Who says it’s too early to think about spring?!?? The good folks at Newark Parks & Recreation have compiled their bi-annual guide full of longstanding activities and events. Check it out using the link below.
Did you know…Newark Parks & Rec has 37 parks and open space areas for all to enjoy, which encompasses over 650 acres and 17 miles of trails!
View the Activity Guide HERE (https://newarkde.gov/DocumentCenter/View/15472/2022-Winter-Spring)
** News from the UUA, the Central East Region, and the Delmarva Cluster
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** We Are Unitarian Universalists
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Some people use the start of a new year to reaffirm their faith, while others may be questioning it. Regardless of where you are on your own journey, the UUA (Unitarian Universalist Association) offers a short and refreshing video as a resource.
Feel free to share it with others!
View the video here (https://vimeo.com/344862790)
https://www.uua.org/central-east
**
Opportunities for Connection: Central East Region Update
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JANUARY 2022
Opportunities for Connection – click here to learn more (https://uua874.activehosted.com/index.php?action=social&chash=b096577e264d1ebd6b41041f392eec23.5614&s=8983449a6b0e04757c2c9729fa49f044)