The Northliner

Sunday services are held at 10:00 am. Currently our services are held live at UCN and also streamed on Zoom. Coffee hour follows the service. If UCN closes due to weather or building issues, the closing will be reflected on our website, on our office voice mail, and a special email will be sent out, if possible.

Join Zoom Meeting:
https://zoom.us/j/93364454692?pwd=U29yanFGZTUvOXAvcWM0UWQ1UFU0QT09
Meeting ID: 933 6445 4692
Password: 13800

Services begin promptly at 10 am. If you'd like to join in conversation before the service, you may join the Zoom meeting at 9:50 and wrap up your conversations shortly before 10.

March 17: "Honoring Inspiring Women"

During Women's History month, it seems apropos that we develop our own service honoring women we've personally known, who have been inspiring and influential to our own growth. We'll have testimonials/descriptions from a few members about their valued mothers, mentors, friends or acquaintances. The service will culminate in soaring song after which congregants and visitors may call out the name of a woman they have been blessed to know.

March 24: "A Religion with Vision," Rev. Sarah Oelberg

As the UUA contemplates big changes in its principles and purposes, we need to ask if ours is a religion with vision. There was a time when Unitarianism truly was visionary. I will look at that time, to see if there is anything we can learn from it.

Sarah Oelberg has been a special education teacher, has written special ed. curriculum for our U.S. Office of Education, was a faculty member at Yeshiva University in New York and at NYU, and trained special ed. teachers in Iowa. She followed her heart as the first in her six-generation Unitarian family to become a UU minister. After serving churches in Nebraska and Minnesota, she retired in 2001. She and husband Gerald raised four children and have six grand- and four great-grandchildren.

We are proud to present another wonderful evening of live music, featuring the musical stylings of longtime joint force & multifaceted husband & wife combo, B-Free & Quinten Farr. This incredible team received rave reviews after last year's concert and we are thrilled to have them back again.

Doors Open at 6:30, concert begins at 7:00 and ends at 9:00. Beer, wine and non-alcoholic beverages will be available for purchase.

Tickets available for sale before and after service for $25 and through Eventbrite UCN Presents: B~Free & Quinten Farr Duo Tickets, Fri, Apr 19, 2024 at 7:00 PM | Eventbrite. Tickets are also available at the door, $30. Please join us!

Classes will be held this week. Elementary students will continue with the UUA Wonderful Welcoming curriculum. We will explore the concept of STEWARDSHIP. The middle school students will be working with the UUA Sing to Power curriculum that affirms our Unitarian Universalist heritage of confronting “powers and structures of evil with justice, compassion, and the transformational power of love. This month’s classes will focus on THE POWER TO SHINE.

The nursery will continue to be staffed weekly during the full service.

Outdoor Play

During the winter/spring months, if we have appropriate weather, we may have the kids play outside after class or during non-RE activity time. Please bring appropriate clothes for playing outside.

An Important Message from the Defend Democracy Group at First Unitarian Society of Milwaukee

On Tuesday, April 2, Election Day, Wisconsin voters will have the opportunity to accept or reject two proposed statewide constitutional amendments that, if approved, will have an impact on the election process here. The Defend Democracy Group at FUSM has studied the questions and provides this information:

* Question 1: “Use of private funds in election administration. Shall section 7 (1) of article III of the constitution be created to provide that private donations and grants may not be applied for, accepted, expended, or used in connection with the conduct of any primary, election, or referendum?"

WHY VOTE NO:

1. Elections need to be fully funded. This amendment reduces the options for municipal governments looking for outside sources of funding for elections without providing alternative resources. This change will shift the burden even further onto tax payers.

2. This change will have a negative impact on the voter experience and could lead to long lines and wait times at polling places, consolidated polling places, longer waits for election night results, and more due to lack of funding.

3. This change does not belong in our constitution. If the legislature wants to make this change, they should work with the governor to do so in a way that ensures our elections are fully funded.

4. Vote No on question 1 to ensure our clerks have the support and money they need to keep our elections running smoothly and securely.

* Question 2: “Election officials. Shall section 7 (2) of article III of the constitution be created to provide that only election officials designated by law may perform tasks in the conduct of primaries, elections, and referendums?"

WHY VOTE NO:

1. Elections are a lot of work. Clerks rely on a whole host of outside experts, volunteers, and community members to make sure our elections are run smoothly and the results are accurate.

2. Voter education organizations, like LWV, play a critical role in informing the public about their right to vote. This proposed change to our constitution ties the hands of our election officials from getting the outside support they need for our elections to function.

3. This change does not belong in our constitution. If the legislature wants to make this change, they should work with the governor to do so in a way that ensures our clerks are able to get the support they need to run our elections.

4. Vote No to question 2 to ensure our clerks have the support they need to run our elections and voters have the support they need to make informed decisions for our state.

MICAH Health Summit

Thursday, March 21st at 5:00 p.m.

Hephatha Lutheran Church, 1720 W. Locust St., Milwaukee

The summit will focus on efforts of MICAH and our allies to restore pediatric health services in the wake of the abandonment and closure of the Next Door Pediatrics/Children's Wisconsin clinic. The gathering will include testimonies from directly-impacted persons and the determination of MICAH and its allies to seek health equity on the north side of Milwaukee, beginning with the Metcalfe Park area. See the flyer below. If you have questions, please contact Lucy Friedrichs at lnfriedrichs@wi.rr.com or at 414-305-7961. I'm looking for at least 5 UCNers to attend with me. Thank you

Leadership Board Meeting

The next leadership board meeting will be held on Thursday, March 28 at 6:30 pm via zoom. The meetings are open to all members, and members are encouraged to share their thoughts or issues at the Open Forum portion of each meeting. Contact the president for the zoom link.

Photos Needed

If you haven't sent in a photo or had your picture taken by Jim DeLillo for our photo member directory, please send one to info@ucnorth.org. We want to see all your smiling faces!

Lost and Found

If you bank at Cornerstone/Horicon Bank, you might have left an envelope at the visitor's table. Please see Lyn if you think it's yours.

Good Grief Group

Grief Group will be held Wednesday, April 10 and 24 from 10:00 - 11:30. Please contact Judy DeLillo at 720-935-0851 with any questions.

Events at UCN

• "Qi Gong and Tai Chi" is held most Saturdays at 11 am in the Fellowship Hall. Call Diane at
  307-763-0903 for details. First class is free for UCN members.
• There will be two Wisconsin Singer Songwriter concerts at UCN in March. Go to WSSS.org for details.
• Al-Anon meetings, offering recovery for families and friends of alcoholics and drug addicts, are held every Tuesday morning at 8:30 am in the Clara Barton room and online.
  

Thank you for supporting the groups that use our facilities.

Calendar through March 31

Meetings are held via Zoom, unless stated.

• Sunday, March 17: RE Classes (Betsy Muellenbach)
• Sunday, March 17, 11:30 pm: Social Justice -Emerson (Leigh Hoftiezer)
• Monday, March 18, noon: UUs Coffee & Conversation - Mequon Fiddleheads (Brenda Berg)
• Monday, March 18, 7:30 pm: Comm/Tech Committee (Sarah Cesar)
• Tuesday, March 19, 7:00 pm: Finance (Pete Blain)
• Thursday, March 28, 6:30 pm: Leadership Board (Ed Ahrenhoerster)

The monthly calendar for UCN events, not including rentals, can be seen on our website at: https://ucnorth.org/calendar/

Please remember to contact Lyn, info@ucnorth.org, to reserve rooms for your meetings, rehearsals, ceremonies, etc. To hold an event or ceremony at UCN, contact Lyn for date availability, facilities use forms, and answers to your questions.

All church committee meetings are open; visitors are welcome. Contact the committee chair (listed on the calendar above) for details or to receive the zoom info for a meeting. For information on classes and groups that meet at UCN, as well as future meeting and event dates, please see the website, www.ucnorth.org, or call the office, 262-375-3890.

Service and UUA Information

• Service Assistants are needed for Sunday Services. Please contact Julie Konik (julie.konik@gmail.com) if you can help.

• The Sunday Services Zoom Team is looking "for a few good zoom hosts." Please contact Gerry Schmitz or Dan Lusk if interested.
  

• Sunday Announcements: If you would like to have an announcement read at the service, please prepare it using the Spoken Announcement Guidelines, and send it to Joy Schroeder (peacenow@charter.net) or Julie Konik (julie.konik@gmail.com) or that Sunday's Service Assistant by the FRIDAY BEFORE the service, and they will relay it to the worship assistant.

• Reserving the Projector: If you will need the projector for a given date, please remember to sign the “Projector Reservation Signup List” on the clipboard on the table outside the office in the north lobby.
• UU Women's Connection offers retreats, newsletters and resources for women: https://www.uuwomensconnection.org/
• You are encouraged to subscribe to MidAmerica Region's newsletter, News page. More information at uua.org/midamerica .
  

• The MidAmerica Region is coming together - both online and at the First Unitarian Society of Madison, WI on Friday, April 19 and Saturday, April 20 of 2024 for a multiplatform Regional Assembly! Please join us, online and in-person: MidAmerica Regional Assembly!

• Join us June 20 - 23 for an all-virtual General Assembly 2024. For information, go to https://www.uua.org/ga/registration.

General Information

• Becoming a Member of UCN is very easy. Simply make a pledge of record, sign our Membership Book, and provide contact information for our records. We also provide New to UU and UCN Classes in the Spring and Fall. It is not necessary to attend the classes, however they are very informative, providing information about Unitarian Universalism and our church (its history and how it operates). For more information, you can contact Dan Lusk (262-234-9406).

• Rev. Scott will never ask you to buy a gift card for him. Please don't fall for these scams.

• Caring Circle: a group of people who may be willing to bring meals, help with transportation, make visits, pick up groceries, etc. for members and friends of UCN in temporary need. Sign up at church or virtually: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0A44ACA82BA75-caring

• First Aid Kits are located near the elevators on each level. Each kit is in a white box and mounted on the wall. AED Machines are near the first aid kits. If you have any questions, please contact Brian Bunzel, Building Committee Chair, at (262) 573-0045 or brianbuzel@yahoo.com.

• UCN is now able to accept donations via PayPal.

• Food Barrel: Don’t forget to grab a food item out of your pantry for the food barrel as you leave for church.
  

• Scrip Fundraiser: Scrip Cards are still a great way to support UCN. Use cards for carryout or online purchase with ScripNow!. There are 3 ways to buy or reload your cards: ScripNow! (Pay online, use online or in person), PrestoPay (buy or reload cards) or at UCN. If you have a special request or questions about Scrip, contact Mark Muellenbach. To sign up, use the code for UCN: 1F3EE5A9248LL

• If you order from Quill.com and tell them UCN recommended them, UCN will earn a $50 gift card.
  
  

• Support Black-Owned businesses: "MKE Black" offers a list of Black-owned businesses you can reference: https://mkeblack.org/

• If you would like to donate directly to Family Promise, the only shelter for homeless people in Ozaukee County, please send your donation to them, with “UCN Member” written in the memo line. This will give UCN credit for the donation. Their address is: Family Promise of Ozaukee County, 136 W. Grand Ave., Port Washington, WI 53074.

• The Social Justice Committee has an OPT-IN email list for anyone who would like to be notified on short notice to provide a physical presence at social justice activities. Please contact Sherryl Andrus, sherryla70@gmail.com, to be added to the list.

Monthly Fellowship Gatherings

• UUsOutToLunch meets on the first Wednesday of every month at noon, and sometimes at suppertime during daylight savings time. Couples, singles, men & women are all welcome, long-term commitment or not. Each month, a different member of the group takes the responsibility of choosing a restaurant at which to meet and eat, and emails the rest of the group with the particulars as to what and where, requesting yay or nay from the emailed recipient, so that reservations can be made if required. Join us! Email brendaberg@spectrum.net

• First Sunday Lunch: Join us after the service in the Fellowship Hall for lunch and fellowship on the first Sunday of the month, November through June.
  

• UUs Coffee & Conversation (Ladies' Lunch & Levity) meets on the third Monday of every month at Mequon Fiddleheads, 10530 Port Washington Rd. Stop in anytime between 12:00 and 1:30 for something to eat, a good cuppa, and chewy conversation. We meet in the back room.

Please submit articles for the Northliner to info@ucnorth.org. To keep the Northliner from becoming cumbersome to read, you are encouraged to keep these articles short, and to run them only twice. The deadline for submitting articles is every Thursday at noon. Items submitted later might not be proofed for errors or published.

Please contact Todd Zumach (zumacht@gmail.com) to submit articles for our website.

Minister, Rev. Scott Alexander: cell phone (preferred): 772-359-0602. Office phone: 262-375-4748. Email: UURevScott@gmail.com . Rev. Scott will generally be in the pulpit the first three Sundays of the month and in his office the first two weeks of the month.

UCN Office Hours: Tuesday through Friday, 9 am to 2:30 pm. Contact Lyn at 262-375-3890 or info@ucnorth.org. The office is closed for holidays and bad weather. Please do not reply to the Northliner; we do not receive messages sent to lyngust@mailgun.smore.com, but if you are having trouble receiving the Northliner, please add that address to your contact list.

Links

• Information on our Share the Plate Recipient

For more information about UCN, see our website www.ucnorth.org or call the office at

262-375-3890.

Email: info@ucnorth.org
Website: www.ucnorth.org
Location: 13800 N. Port Washington Road, Mequon, WI, 53097 USA
Phone: 262-375-3890
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/UnitarianChurchNorth/