To help with Sunday morning hospitality, click here.

The UU College of Social Justice, UUJAZ and several AZ UU congregations have been participating in a small planning delegation with Borderlinks this week, and I am happy to have been able to join them.  We are learning together and thinking about what it would look like to lead a delegation of UU’s in February 2024 and in an ongoing way to bring folks to the Borderlands to learn more about the experiences of migrants at our Southern border.  We have listened to stories, traversed the border, learned about organizations doing important work, and had a deeper and embodied encounter with the realities here.  We have also begun to dream about what could be, what might be, and how our congregations will work together to engage the work that is calling us here. It has been important to me to re-invest in my own capacity to lead on these issues and to partner/collaborate with other congregations and organizations.  I look forward to sharing more with all of you and inviting VUU to help create a team of delegates to return and to learn together as well.  

Liz Chain

Dalai Lama and Friends is dedicating Sunday, November 12 , 2023 to a Celebration of Life Service for Liz Chain both in the VUU Board Room and online at 9:00a (after the meditation time 8:30-9).

Pat Flahart  480-983-6829 Home phone, leave a message

Save the Dates!

The next weekend Rev. Sam will be with us is January 26-28. Details TBA but count on an event on Saturday and Rev. Sam at the helm of the Sunday service on January 28.

TONIGHT! NOVEMBER 9 - MONTHLY ZOOM MEETING, 6:30PM

Rev. Dr. Samantha Wilson has begun VUU work on the Spirituality of Conflict.  She will be our guest speaker. A quote on her approach:  

“This is not about fixing a specific thing, or getting ‘rid’ of conflict. The hope is that there is a deeper capacity for engaging conflict in ways that are generative – conflicts grow us and deepen us rather than stop us. This is about tending our congregational culture” - Rev Sam

Join Zoom Meeting

Partners in Education

This Thursday, Adams hosts a visit of Ellie, the robotic elephant! This is a great opportunity to teach kindness to all living creatures, large and small. This is made possible through collaboration with Denise McLeod who works for People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA). One of the divisions is TeachKind, a humane education program dedicated to teaching children to be kind to animals. Thank you, Denise!

The Happenings Team

Your Happenings Team compiles the news and calendar each week to make sure you receive all the information you need every Thursday at noon. Most of the work is done on Wednesdays, and each team member takes the lead every second or third week (about three hours), while the others pitch in to edit (30-60 minutes) on their off weeks. To join the team or find out more, contact The Happenings Team here.

Post-Service Zoom Sessions Host

We need a few more folks to be trained and set up to host our zoom sessions after service. Thanks to members of the Pastoral Care team and a few others who have stepped up to help us out in this way. We usually have 7-10 folks looking to have some online conversation and connection after service.  Contact Rev. Sarah if you are interested. 

A Unitarian Universalist Christmas Pageant

Join us on December 10 as the children and youth of Valley UU remind us how and why we celebrate Christmas. In addition to a fabulous story about the true meaning of Christmas we will be conducting a clothing drive during the pageant. 

We will be supporting documented asylum seekers who come to the valley. Please plan to bring new or slightly used outwear for kids and adults:

   All children's sizes - sweat shirts and jackets 

   Adult sizes small, medium & large - jackets

You will want to join us in person - everyone in the sanctuary will receive an "audience participation" bag!

Class schedule for the next 2 months:

• Nov. 12 - MS & HS classes meet (offsite visit), Pre-K - 5th grade NO class Pageant Rehearsal (assistants assist with pageant.) OWL classes do NOT meet
• Nov. 19 - MS & HS classes meet, Pre-K - 5th grade NO class  Pageant Rehearsal (assistants assist with pageant.) OWL classes meet
• Nov. 26 - NO classes, all age game day (assistants join us) OWL classes do NOT meet
• Dec. 3 - MS & HS classes meet, Pre-K - 5th grade NO class  Pageant Rehearsal (assistants assist with pageant.) OWL classes meet
• Dec 10 - NO classes, everyone attend Pageant, 10:30 am OWL classes do NOT meet
• Dec. 17 - ALL classes meet, OWL classes do NOT meet
• Jan. 7 - Everything is back!! All classes and OWL meet.
• Jan. 14 - ALL classes meet, OWL classes do NOT meet

Maren Kay Long born Oct. 27

Doug Feisler and Carlin Knight are happily welcoming the newest member of their family: Maren Kay Long, born 10/27/23, in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, to Dave and Aimee Long, Carlin and Doug's youngest granddaughter. Although this is their first great granddaughter, they already have two wonderful great grandsons, Charlie and Ben. Carlin took daughter Laura to Italy to celebrate major birthdays this year. When they returned to Philadelphia, the icing on the cake was the birth of Maren the day before Carlin returned to Arizona so they all got to meet. What a wonderful blessing!

The Page Turners' Book Club

The Page Turners Book Club is open to all members, visitors, and friends of VUU who enjoy reading and discussing a variety of books. The next meeting is November 16 at 7:00 PM. The book is The House of the Spirits by Isabel Allende. More information to come.

Immigration Action Team

Are you interested in Caring Neighbors, Fellowship and Connection Circles? Then come to the Immigration Action Team (IAT) meeting after services Sunday and join as other VUU'ers help our immigrant families learn to live in a new land!

Are you fascinated by Finance and Special Funds? Then come assist IAT in helping families survive in an harsh economy by giving them support balanced with teaching them to become self-sufficient.

Interested in Social Justice? Learn first hand from the experiences of those crossing our borders for asylum and trying to thrive in a system that is stacked against them. Hear how our laws are penalizing asylum seekers and making it virtually impossible for them to succeed.

Interested in Environment Action and food for the planet? See how the IAT is redistributing food to those who need it from grocery stores and produce suppliers that would otherwise go to waste.

Looking for Community Outreach and Faith Formation? Then join the IAT at Refugee Aid distributing clothing and necessities to those in immediate need.

Love "Partners in Education"? Explore opportunities to enrich the lives of our families' children who by a stroke of fortune attend our adopted school, Adams Elementary. Provide English lessons to their eager-to-learn parents.

If you want all that VUU has to offer in one convenient stop, then join the Immigration Action Team for our monthly in-person meeting on Sunday November 12 after the service in the Sanctuary.

Enjoy the intersectionality of every VUU Committee and Team in one easy place!

Job Announcement

Unitarian Universalist Justice Arizona (UUJAZ) is excited to announce that we are currently searching for a new Co-Director of Finance + Operations and a Co-Director of Programming and Partnerships. We welcome all applications and invite you to apply to one or both of these positions. Our organization's mission is to engage Unitarian Universalists in justice-making through strengthening congregational social justice ministries, connecting UU activists and congregations across the state, partnering with like-minded justice organizations, and empowering UUs to work for socially-just public policy. View the full job descriptions by clicking on the images below. Resumes and/or questions should be directed to board@uujaz.org



Application Link: https://www.uujaz.org/job-postings.html