Thanks to everyone who attended and helped make the Sunday, March 24 service a success. WUUC has many caring community committees we hoped everyone got to learn more about in the service. The leads of each team that presented in the service have explained what their group does below for review.
Written by Liz Ligon SCRT:
As a congregation and a community, we strive at WUUC to be a safe space, physically, emotionally, and spiritually, and to promote a culture of consent and accountability for our actions. We want people to be able to let down their guards while they are here, and be their full, authentic selves without fear of judgment, harassment, or sexual harm. Unfortunately, it’s impossible to guarantee 100% safety in any community, and the Safer Congregations Response Team is here to respond promptly and meaningfully if someone is no longer able to feel safe in this space because of someone else’s behavior toward them, whether because of harassment, sexual overtures, being touched without consent, or even sexual assault. We will provide you with the support you need, talk with the offending party, and craft a response with the goal of restoring your and the community’s sense of safety.
Written by Susan McBain, Cares and Concerns:
The Cares and Concerns Team is here to provide you with help and support when you most need it. If you’re having surgery, are ill, need transportation, or just need an occasional visit until you’re up and around again, we can help. We can arrange transportation to and from your medical appointments and assist with meals while you are recuperating. We can even visit you if you’re in rehab or when you get home from the hospital if you would like. You will talk to me, Susan McBain as Team Leader, and I will find out what help you need. Then I will coordinate with other team members to support you. If you would like meals delivered, we can accommodate your dietary preferences and needs. We will keep your situation confidential, and we’ll be careful to respect your needs without intruding on your privacy. The easiest way to reach me is by sending an email to cares@wuuc.org. Please reach out to the Cares and Concerns team at any time if there is something we can do to support you. And you can also use that email to join the team! We can always use more members. Team members sign up only for what they want to do, usually just a few times a year. It’s tremendously rewarding to offer help directly to someone in your community.
Written by Lori McConnell – R&R:
“What is the purpose of the Relationships & Resolution (R&R) group? Is it a conflict resolution team? Or a group of Mediators? R & R team members have training that allows them to work in teams of 2 to help people improve communication with others, with a focus on strengthening our covenanted community. Team members have no training in conflict mediation– in fact to do the work they don’t really need to know the details of a conflict. The work of R&R is to get people past the details of the conflict, away from trying to prove who is right and wrong, and move their relationship toward one of empathy and a desire to understand the other people in our covenanted community. Their work is to get people past “shunning” someone they disagree with and to move back into community with that person. R&R works with one person at a time, intentionally, until those involved can move out of the “Right/Wrong” dichotomy and into understanding and empathy. Only once people are able to empathize with and understand one another are they invited into communication with each other. R&R is then available to facilitate that conversation– but not as long as it stays in a “conflict” mode.”
LPA written by Marian Johnson:
Lay Pastoral Associates (LPAs) offer emotional and spiritual support by providing a listening ear without judgment. Our conversations will be confidential. Although we can’t “fix” the situation, sometimes a compassionate presence in times of need can ease the burden. We all need that sometimes. Send an email to lpa@wuuc.org and one of us will get in touch with you as soon as possible. Also, you can talk to one of the LPAs during our Compassionate Connection Circle after the Sunday worship service. One of us will be over in the choir area if you would like to talk. The LPAs are here for you at any time when you need someone to listen. If you would like more information about pastoral care and our Care Team, please visit the WUUC website, select “Resources” and then “Need Help?” or follow this link: wuuc.org/pastoral-care/. Our minister, Rev. Dan Lillie, is also available for pastoral care if you’d like to talk with him. You can request an appointment by emailing revdan@wuuc.org.