May…This is a month for important decisions for our congregation.  The Annual Congregational Meeting is May 11, after the Sunday service.  During the weeks prior to this meeting you will be ask to pledge your money and your time for the coming church year, which begins July 1.  Review the proposed budget and consider what you can pledge to contribute to meet that budget.  The year, for which we are planning, will be the culmination of Rev. Al’s service with us.  Think carefully what having Rev. Al, especially, but in a more general way, what it has meant to have a Unitarian Universalist minister in our pulpit and perhaps as importantly in our community.  The liberal religious UU presence has never been so strong and so effective in Valdosta, Georgia.  Help as you can to make Jim and Josette Ingram’s dream come true for one more year with Rev. Al and to send us off into a future of growth and, well let’s dream, a full-time minister in deep south Georgia!!!! 

A special welcome to our new members. 

Your absent editor misses the opportunity to get to know some of you, but is also excited about seeing so many new faces on her return to Valdosta.  Your presence is what we trusted would happen if we had a minister working for our faith in Valdosta.  Imagine what we could look like a year from now, if everyone really works to bring our planning to fruition.

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The Parson's Piece

Rev. Al Boyce

On Thursday, April 10th I had the opportunity of representing our UU church by opening the monthly City Council Meeting with the Invocation.  I am told this was another first for our church.  It was good to hear the name of our congregation as I was introduced. 

I share a small portion of that prayer with you:

"Give them strength to make the hard choices and not shrink from their duty.  As the writer has said 'I am only one.  But still I am one.  I cannot do everything.  But still I can do something.  And because I cannot do everything, I will not refuse to do the something I can do.'  May their somethings bear fruit to help create a community freed from hatred and want, where all are cared for equally despite the differences of race, economic status and gender."

May they gain a deepened fidelity to all they know to be good, an unfaltering devotion to the true and just.  Help them to build a better world of love and peace here in this place and at this time among all our residents.  May the flame of justice burn within the light of conscience and be their guide as they go forth to do the work 'of the people, by the people, and for the people.'"

By the time you read this article we will be half way between welcoming new members formally into the church and the annual meeting where members agree on volunteer tasks and a budget to do our work of keeping our liberal flame alive in Valdosta.  It is my fervent prayer for each of us that we too, here at the congregation, do the "something" we can with commitment, humor and a sense of passion to keep our church a beacon of acceptance and hope for every person who enters into worship with us.

  

 Welcome New Members!!!!! 

David Hill, Lisa Hamilton, Betsy Thompson, John Tait, Andy Phillips, Mike Carmichael, Adia Gatewood, Ab Roesel, Rhonda Crawford, Richard Blume recently signed our Membership Book and received new member packets and certificates.  Most were recognized in the special April 20 Member Recognition service.  We are delighted you have decided to officially join our congregation.  We welcome your continued contributions to our church community. 

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Sunday Services 

Rev. Al Boyce will lead the services on May 11 and 25.   On May 11  the title of his sermon is “Decisions, Decisions.”  May 11 is both Mother's Day and the Annual Meeting.  With much appreciation, respect and care for the mothers among us Rev Al begs our indulgence as he turns his sermon topic not to mothers but to the making of decisions.  The decisions we make on this day will impact the congregation for the next year and far beyond.  May we decide well. Rev Al says all the same moms; Happy Mother's Day!  Rev. Al’s topic on May 25  will be “Grieving Properly.” In this Memorial Day service he says we will share the very important aspect of grieving in ways that help and bring healing.  It has been a tough year as a nation as war has brought us face to face with the reality of permanent loss.  As UU's how do we treat this holiday?  How do we approach grief.  Rev. Al has some observations to share with us. 

The first Sunday in May Lars Leader and the R. E. class will present the service.  Come support this group and their presentation.  On May  18 Charles Judah will make a presentation entitled “What I Have Learned In 69 Years” or, Charles says, “Slaying the Dragon.”  Charles always has his own unique perspective on the world.  Come and participate in what will surely be provocative.

Interested in Sunday Service Special Music?

Anyone interested in singing some special music during a Sunday Service in May contact Anna Hall or Betsy Thompson.  They would like to know of your interest by first week in May.  They plan to pick a song that is easy to learn and practice for a few weeks before performing. (The ability to read music will not be necessary).  If you love to sing, please participate.  It will be a lot of fun.   

Annual Meeting 

The Annual Congregational Meeting will be Sunday May 11 immediately following the Worship Service.  Because it is Mother's Day we will not have a potluck so that people will be able to still celebrate the holiday. The meeting should not take more than an hour.  This is an important opportunity to participate in the governance of our church and exercise our principles on democratic government,

Nominating Committee Report

The Nominating Committee composed of Virginia Branan, Chair, Betty Derrick, and Jim Ingram present the following slate of officers to be voted on at the annual meeting in May.

President-------Dee Tait

Vice Pres.------Charles Judah

Secretary-------Rosie Asbury

Treasurer-------Randy Thompson

Religious Education---Lars Leader

Building. & Grounds ---John Tait

 

Religious Education 

Youth R.E   Youth religious education meets on the second and fourth Sundays at 9:30 AM.  The youth R.E. class is continuing crafts and projects, which serve the congregation and make application of various UU principles. They planned and carried out the Intergenerational Egg Hunt on Apr. 13 and are completing original jigsaw puzzles for the nursery.  Contacts: Lars Leader, Virginia Branan.

 Adult R.E. Adult religious education meets on the second and fourth Sunday at 9:30 AM.  In April the group began a topic based on a curriculum, “Vision and Values in a Post-9/11 World,” prepared by the UUA’s Washington Office for Advocacy to provide an opportunity to reflect historically and ethically about civil liberties in the U.S., patriotism, and the U.S. role abroad.  For further information, contact Lars Leader.

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About Our Members

We offered our new members an opportunity to tell us about themselves.  Here’s what several of them have to say by way of introduction. 

o       Lisa Hamilton and David Hill are native Floridians who moved to Valdosta in June, 2002 when David became an Assistant Professor of Political Science at VSU.   Lisa is the Director of the Retired and Senior Volunteer Program (RSVP) sponsored by the South GA Coalition to End Homelessness.  They are the ecstatic parents of Emily, age 2.   They enjoy entertaining, gardening, outdoor activities and music. 

o       Mike Carmichael, Lord Of Serpents, Companion Of Canines, Hermit Of South Brooks, and Maker Of Really Good Coffee. Okay, that's a wee bit pretentious, drop the Lord Of Serpents part, they just put up with me now and again. Actually I’m a man who doesn't know where he is going, is not sure where he has been, and doesn't know what he is doing here now. And open for suggestions.

o       Albert J. Roesel, Jr., aka: Ab, asshole, dumb jerk, bonehead, etc. My parents were Albert and Tappy, (I'm the oldest of seven siblings, the third in line is female, the only one, all still more or less alive or what passes for it). My wife is Cindy K. I have a son, Bert, and a stepdaughter, Crystal. I am a teacher, specializing in high school math (making kids feel bad, working at accumulating a store of information and skills that none will ever need or use when we could be doing fun stuff like watching soaps, playing video-games or talking about what we did or drank last night or will tonight).  My parents' wedding license shows Augusta, Ga., deep South, USA (god's country, source of every good thing and inclination for the whole world, if not the universe). My birth certificate indicates Wilmington, N. C. (an accident of the "Great War"). (None of the above suffices to explain me. My parents encouraged a love of reading, learning, honesty, kindness, religion, wisdom and critical thinking, having no idea how difficult they would make my life or how difficult it would make it for people to be around me. I can't just be "normal" and accept commonly held understandings of what is good, or the good life, or service to country, or religion.) Consequently, I think, if I'm from anywhere, it's “the liberry or outer space (not necessarily Venus or Mars), or some other source of ivory tower, intellectual, pin-head, commie-pinko, bleedin-heart, taxnspend libruls.” (If it's any comfort.) I feel most at home, most nearly among like-minded people in our church. (Nothing is simple or easy or can be done in five minutes). (Some things or worth doing regardless, if not on their own merit, because a lovely person who persists in thinking well of one in spite of all evidence to the contrary requests it.) (Do you realize there would be little or nothing here, if it were not for parentheses? Of course, Garrison Keillor would not have had a book were it not for footnotes.)

o       We regret learning that Karen Jacobson will soon be moving and has requested that we inactivate her membership.  We hope she will visit us when she is in town on a Sunday.  We’ll miss seeing her regularly.

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 Congratulations to

v     André Asbury who was named STAR student for the entire South Georgia District for the year 2003.

v     Ming Lin, our pianist, who was selected as one of 600 high school students in the state for the prestigious Governor's Honors Program this summer. His area of major study will be math. 

 

 

President’s Column

Charles Green, President

I believe we are all a size 5…

So many times I have faced obstacles that I cannot change and feel frustrated that I am powerless to have any success with influencing the outcome. I realize that there are forces that I do not understand and that I am a small speck of sand on an endless beach. I constantly read bumper stickers of the truck ahead of me and I am often embarrassed for the fool who would tag his/her vehicle with some of the slogans that I see on my road trips.

The cruelest lesson I’ve had to endure in my fifty-three years on this planet had to bury my father and then my mother. I’ve felt incomplete since the loss of each of them. I will not ever understand why my father was taken from this world at such an early age or why my mother had to suffer so deeply during her final twenty-one months. I was powerless to affect the outcome of either of these losses.

There is another simple obstacle that I have been equally frustrated with in my life. It seems most of the people I’ve been associated with in my adult years have this misconception about people who have an overweight problem. I remember vividly my slender, strong, athletic father, telling me at around age 12, that I would be wise to keep my weight down. He told me I would be more popular and successful if I was trim. At first I could not understand this message. As I grew into my teens, it became one of the most vivid ironies of my life. During WWII my father had been a German POW and lost half his body weight to starvation in Stalag 17B. In the final thirty five years of his life after ‘the war to end all wars’, he enjoyed very hearty meals. Growing-up, my middle class life style, I had only one extravagance, we had plenty of food on our table. There was a heavy emphasis on red meat and fried foods. This has been a curse to me in my adult life.

I have fought the yoyo diets since I was a teenager. When speaking to youths, I often get their attention by telling them that I weigh over seven hundred pounds. Of course, I get a smile when I explain that this is the sum of my current weight and all the weight I’ve lost through dieting through the years. I can remember seven organized diets I have tackled in my life. I have always had the ability to focus on a diet and lose weight… but I always gained back the fifty-sixty or so pounds and ten more added. My ideal weight seems to be around 150 and I have regained that number many times, at least seven.

Here’s my problem. my father was right, when I weigh 150, I am more popular. Still to this day, this lesson is true. I do not understand why when I’m over 200 pounds people see me as being weak or a failure. Eating for me is a reaction to several external forces. I overeat when I’m happy or sad. I overeat when I’m stressed or bored. I overeat sometimes for seemingly no reason at all. I have food group preferences entrenched in my habits from my early years. If a food is high in fats, then it usually tastes good to me. If it tastes like cardboard, then the food is usually good for me. You may be chuckling, but it is not funny.

In the seven years of marriage to my wife Gail, I have watched her fight with controlling her weight. I tell her that I see her as a size 5, no matter what the scales say. And it is true, I do. Maybe if I could eat like a horse and stay trim like Mr. Ingram, then I might have a different view. I hope not. With Gail, I know there is a size five inside her skin. I know she could starve herself into that shape if she punished herself enough. But I know that she probably could not maintain that weight for the remainder of her days. That’s not my point. My point is, I believe we are all a size 5.

I use this a metaphor for life. I wish we could see others from the inside out. Just like some of the bumper stickers imply, I think we are dominated by stereotypes and misconceptions about the people around us based on skin-deep observations. Why should we judge a person by their weight… or by their color… or by their heritage… or by their choice of RELIGION.  Why should we be hesitant to tell others that we are UUs?

Why don’t we give new acquaintances a chance to show they are a ‘size 5’ on the inside before prematurely labeling them a ‘looser’? Why can’t we live in a world where people are judged by the size of their heart or character or humility or generosity, rather than the tape measure distance around their mid-rib? Why was my father right when he said: “If you loose weight, you’ll be more popular at school?” If he was still here I would ask him: “Daddy, why did teach me to eat prime-rib?” Hah! I’m just joking… well, sort of… Ha!

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Social Action Activities 

South Georgia Coalition for Peace: An Update

The South Georgia Coalition for Peace, www.valdostapeace.org, is continuing to work to bring public awareness of the dangers and consequences of war in Iraq and elsewhere.  Thursday, April 10, a poetry reading and discussion, Poetry as National Conscience, was held in the VSU library.  Several members of the coalition, including Lars Leader, read poems concerning the 9/11 tragedy and the national attitude towards war.  On April 29, at 7:00 pm, at Christ the King Episcopal Church in downtown Valdosta, a group of international speakers, Voices for Peace, will present their viewpoints on the situation in Palestine and Israel.  For more information, contact Susan Wehling.

Plans are being made for a Mothers Day rally at the courthouse on Saturday, May 10.  The connection of the peace coalition’s efforts to Mothers Day was suggested by Rev. Al, who explained how a UU member, Julia Ward Howe, www3.edgenet.net/fcarpenter/howe.html ,organized the original Mothers Day to help bring sons home from war.

The specifics of a humanitarian drive will be announced soon.  Its organization will involve a combination of the American Friends Action Committee, www.afsc.org/iraq/relief/default.shtm , suggesting what people in Iraq need, and getting the material to the right place through the International Community of the Red Cross Red Crescent, www.icrc.org/eng .  Boxes will be placed in local churches.  A preliminary drive at our own UU church was approved by our church board and occurred during the last week of April, with donations of packets of hygiene items for needy Iraqis sent to the American Friends (Quakers) for shipment to Iraq.  Anna Mitchell, new to our congregation, suggested this social need action.  Rev. Al took this proposal for humanitarian aid to the Valdosta Area Ministerial Association, which had invited him to make a presentation to the association regarding religious perspectives on the war.

Speakers sponsored by a number of departments at VSU and the South Georgia Coalition for Peace will present a series on “Rebuilding Iraq: Issues at Home and Abroad” at Valdosta State University.  The first session, to be held Monday, April 28, at 8:00 pm in the UC Theater, will feature Drs. Jim Hill and Jane Elza.  They will speak on Patriot Acts I and II. The Patriot Acts broadly expand law enforcement's surveillance and investigative powers.  On Tuesday, May 13, at 7:00 pm in the Bio Chem Auditorium, Mouyyed Hassouna will be presenting.  On Tuesday, May 20, at 7:00 pm in the Bio Chem Auditorium, Dr. Viki Soady will present “Women and Children First: In Defense of Political Correctness.”  Other sessions are planned for May and June. Each session will involve brief presentations, followed by questions and discussions.  All sessions are open to the public.  More information on the series is available from Dr. Christine James.

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Break Bread Together

Our date for meal deliveries with the Break Bread Together program is the 2^nd Monday of each month.  If you can deliver meals on this day beginning about 11:00 AM, please contact Virginia Branan.

 

 

 

We Must Walk the Talk of Our Faith

By Reverend Al, originally published  as a letter to the editor in the March 21^, 2003 Valdosta Daily Times. 

     As a clergyperson living in our beloved city and nation, I join my colleagues and residents in mourning the loss of our wonderful sons and daughters from Valdosta and across the nation.  I, too, pray for their safety and soon return.

As a minister and follower of Jesus, I am utterly heartbroken and shocked at the level of verbal rhetoric and support of killing in Iraq from the lips of clergypersons or laypersons who proclaim the teachings of Christ.  Christ came to change the law of the Old Testament way of living in the world.  God the Father sent his only Son to die on a cross, and to shed that holy blood so that the old law of Moses--an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth--would be changed forever through Christ's death.  Jesus said, "Love your enemies and pray for those who abuse you."  He also said, "If anyone strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also." If we go back to the Law of Moses in our theology then the Savior died in vain.  

I have researched the greatest scholars of our day regarding the words of Jesus.  There is no place in His teachings that support the taking of human life, for any reason.   If you follow Christ please read  His New Testament words again.  Search your soul.  If we are born again then we are born to be like Him.  My fellow Christians, pray with me for an end to the war.  Let us act by speaking out against this human horror.   We must approach our political leaders in one voice with the message of "stop the war" until they hear the non-hatred voice of Jesus.   May we determine to live like Jesus in our own lives by loving those that hate us, and praying for those who abuse us.   If I cannot do that, if you cannot, how can we call ourselves Christians?  May God help us to walk the talk of our faith.

 

 

From the Board 

The Board will be meeting at a new time for the remainder of this church year, the Tuesday after the second Sunday each month at 5:30 PM at the church.  Word is the Board had a productive meeting April15.  Several announcements related to the Annual meeting appear in the newsletter, but notes from the meeting were not available in time to meet the newsletter press deadline.  More news next month.

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Treasurer’s Report 

 Interim-Treasurer, Randy Thompson

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!!!Social Events!!!

End of the Month Bring-A-Dish Visitor’s Dinner

Saturday, May 12, 6:30 PM

At Mike Carmichael’s  Home

The Last Saturday Social, with April/May visitors as special guests, will be a potluck dinner May at Mike Carmichael's. (Mike had planned to host this dinner in April and had to cancel.) See the April newsletter for Mike’s colorful directions.  An abbreviated version follows.  These events are designed to introduce our visitors of the month to each other and to some of our long-standing members.  This is a very important part of acclimating our new comers to our congregation.  Plan to come and bring a favorite dish.  Sign up for the dinner with Joan Cline or with Mike.   

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Newsletter Staff

Editor:  Betty Derrick

Production/Mailing:  Virginia Branan, Charles Green,

Website:  Carol Stiles

May 15: deadline for the June newsletter

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UU Activities and Announcements

 Further information is posted on the bulletin board at the church.

May - several Elderhostel events at The Mountain

May 1-4 – UUSC Workcamp on the Border (Arizona/Mexico Border)

May 16 – Presidents Leadership Forum, Orlando, UUUS 

May 16-17  - Women and Religion Spring Retreat, The Pines, Brooksville, FL

General Assembly is coming soon.

Don’t forget SUUSI this summer.

The Mountain is wonderful in the summer and always has programs going on year round.

  

 

At the Church-in-the-Woods (click link for more info)

Tai Chi – Monday and Thursday Evenings.  6:00 PM.  Beginner’s Group taught by Eric Nielsen Saturday, 10-12 AM.   There are plans to start an eight week class at VSU taught by Karin Addis and Dennis Bogyo if there are at least ten students.  Contact Dennis Bogyo if you are interested or need further information.

New Hope Christian Fellowship - Sunday evenings: Choir practice at 5:00 PM. Service at 6:00 PM.

South Georgia Coalition for Peace  The Board has given this grassroots community group permission to use our building for its meetings as needed. 

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