Minister’s Discretionary Fund, also called the Helping Hands Fund.
The offering is traditionally given and received during the Christmas Eve Service.
Recognizing the need for confidentiality around pastoral care, the minister will keep a record of all disbursements from the Fund which will be annually reviewed by the Treasurer.
Anyone seeking assistance from the Fund may make their request by contacting the minister in person or in writing. The minister will decide how much assistance (if any) will be given from the Fund,
The Treasurer of the Board will conduct an annual review of all expenditures to assure that they furthered WUUC’s mission and were consistent with WUUC’s tax exempt purposes.To view the full policy:Minister’s Discretionary Fund Policy 2025.09.17.pdf
Kick off the holiday season! Our Giving Tree will be ready for decorating, with gift tags for local organizations. During Children, Youth and Family time, children will make decorations to add to the tree.
Bring a Post-Thanksgiving potluck dish to share as we enjoy community, food, and a little holiday sparkle together.
Join us for simple holiday crafting and art activities that are fun for all ages! Children will also have a chance to shop (free) for small gifts to wrap and give to family and friends. After the kids are done, the shop will open to the rest of the congregation.
Please bring new or gently used unwrapped “giftable” items to the church on or before December 7.
Bring 1 or 2 dozen of your favorite holiday cookies for exchange, along with a list of main ingredients to help accommodate dietary needs.
We’ll also assemble care packages for neighbors in need in our local community. Watch your email for a list of requested items. While we pack, you’re invited to write holiday cards to include in the kits.
After the Sunday service, stay for a delicious pancake-and-eggs brunch sponsored by the Men’s Group. Vegan options available. Enjoy warm company as we celebrate the turning of the season.
After brunch, volunteers will be needed to help clear tables and chairs to prepare for the Solstice Labyrinth Walk the following evening.
The labyrinth is an ancient symbol used by many faith traditions for reflection and renewal. Walking its path is a spiritual journey through three phases:
1. The walk inward – releasing and quieting. 2. The center – resting in light and heart. 3. The return – integrating insight and renewal.
Come enter the darkness and walk toward the in-breaking of light. The path will be lined with glowing luminarias, adding beauty and reverence to our sanctuary.
Lift your voice in joyful song! Join our choir director Matt Smith accompanied by Terry Levitt as they lead us in familiar holiday carols for all ages.
Sunday, December 28 • 10:00–11:00 a.m., followed by potluck
As the year turns, join us in a ritual of release and renewal. • A burning bowl to release what no longer serves you. • Water for symbolic cleansing. • Stones to hold your intentions for the new year. • Cloth strips to let go of grief or harm from the past.
Come “cleanse the chambers of the heart” and make space for what’s to come.
Pink Haven is a collective of organizations and individuals who are committed to trans liberation and joy and to growing community defense, mutual-aid, and alternative systems of care for gender diverse people. Pink Haven says: “We proclaim that trans lives are sacred. Our work centers trans lives and experiences, particularly the lives and experiences of BIPOC trans and gender expansive people.”The ASJ Committee thanks WUUC members and friends for their generous support of our monthly special collections, which typically take place during services on the third Sunday of every month. October’s monthly collection occurs on October 5th. Instructions for giving are posted during the service, and you can also donate anytime at onrealm.org/wuuc/-/give/now, or by sending a check to WUUC at P.O. Box 111, Woodinville, WA 98072. Please make checks out to WUUC and write “ASJ Special Collection” in the notes. Visit wuuc.org/collection.
WUUC’s Recycling Task Force is beginning its work to get WUUC back to honoring our UU value of ministering to the earth and its resources. With a new program called “Refuse—Reduce—ReUse—Recycle—Rot” there will be more than just more trash and recycling cans in all the rooms of WUUC. The Task Force intends to focus on education, facilitation and reminders that there are so many other ways than “trashing it” to deal with our discards.
First, a process and some details: For each thing that comes our way for consumption, consider that we have options on how to deal with it.
Refuse: Just don’t buy new things. Do we really need so much stuff?
Reduce: Let’s all look for ways we can reduce waste here at WUUC. Bring food in reusable containers, don’t print every copy of that document!
ReUse:When we can, ReUse items (and use reusable items!) that would ordinarily be thrown away. If you need it, ask for it via wuuc@wuuc.org– it’s amazing how well The List works for wishes!
But also, don’t use throw-away plates and containers, or throw-away utensils. And save items at home for the Rummage Sale!
Recycle:Choose items for use that can be recycled when we no longer need them. Cardboard boxes instead of plastic bags, glass and metal containers instead of plastic.
You’ll note new waste cans in many locations in the church–one for recycling and one for Trash. Each week for a while a “Recycling Ambassador” will be available to help with which is which. In the restrooms, wet paper towels go in the “compost” bin.
Recycling Ambassadors will be in charge of helping with what goes where by being available for questions and also checking up on what’s in the bin before it goes to the outside bins. Composters will take compost home from WUUC each week. If you have a garden, here’s your chance at more compost! If not, it can go into your Food/Yard Waste bin for pick up at home. If you’d like to be a Recycling Ambassador and or Composter of the week, here’s a link to the sign up sheet
Look for more information from the Recycling Task Force coming soon.
A ‘Mission Possible’ Explained, in 5 easy Chapters
Introduction:
WUUC’s many programs, services and co-created events require a lot of ‘what, why, when, where and how’ components. These activities are created and implemented by WUUC volunteers, often overseen by a Committee or Team, with the support of the staff and leadership of our minister. Over the 30-year history of our church, we had not put into place a systematic sustainable process and infrastructure to keep our governance documents current, relevant and easily accessible by the congregation. Volunteers and leaders have gone through a long struggle of not having a current comprehensive library of the guides needed to do their work. So often a creative team, or committee had to make do with an old policy or set of directions that no longer apply to the here and now. Also, we did not have current Charters that describe the purpose and work of WUUC Committees and Teams, which would aid in the recruitment of new members.
In 2023 the WUC Board adopted an annual goal to: Organize, Update and Refine the WUUC Governance Document Infrastructure in a Sustainable Form. The Board appointed a Governance Document Team to spearhead the implementation of this Herculean multi-year goal.
Chapter 1 A board-appointed Governance Document start-up-Team was formed. The Team Lead, Trina Roulet took on a church document archeologist role in excavating through 30 years of historical governance documents to have a starting point for the team’s work. The Team then began the ‘mission possible’ task of communication with every church committee, team and group to request updated structures of operations; Bylaws, Charters, Policies and Other Documents, framed within a system of renewal. It was as though the whole WUUC community quietly turned itself into a beehive, co-creating a backbone of reliable protected Governance Documents.
Chapter 2 After the first full year, the library of updated and new Governance Documents: Bylaws, Charters, Policies and Other Documents began to take shape. The Governance Team had to create a new process for Board review & approval of these documents. The Governance Document Team and the Board engaged members from all corners of the WUUC community for help in creating or reviewing and updating the needed governance documents. Suspense grew in wondering where exactly WUUC’s backbone of cyber-secure documents would live?
Chapter 3 Marcia Sprang was nearby and happy to help with her operating knowledge of WUUC’s cyber-secure choices. REALM was clearly the reliable safe choice and Marcia helped in setting up the home-base location of WUUC’s cyber fortress. Marcia’s support was like having Zorro in disguise coming to save the day, but Zorro can’t be kept in one place for very long. How were all the updated governance documents going to get to their new safe home?
Chapter 4 A new leadership position was confirmed and added to the Governance Document Team: WUUC Governance Document Archivist, with Gregg Schiller appointed. Gregg is storing originals of recently Board-approved policies, charters, Bylaws in REALM. These are accessible for viewing by Church Leadership. Once our archivist, Gregg secures a document in the cyber-safe home a copy can be found in the Governance Documents section of the WUUC website and Secure Site.
Chapter 5 Current membership of the Governance Document Team: Trina Roulet, Lead; Gregg Schiller, WUUC Governance Document Archivist; Jan Radoslovich and Azure Forte (Blue), at large.
