K-3 Wonderful Welcome: will meet on Sunday, 10/16! K-3^rd grade Children will begin in the Great Hall with their families and stay through the Story for All Ages, when they will join their teachers and head to their classroom in the church hallway, next to the dining hall.

4-6 Love Connects Us: will meet on Sunday, 10/16! 4th-6^th grade Children will begin in the Great Hall with their families and stay through the Story for All Ages, when they will join their teachers and head to their large 2nd-floor classroom across the street at Waters House.

7/8 OWL (Our Whole Lives sexuality education): will begin with a November 12^thSleepover! Regular 7/8 OWL meetings will take place Sunday mornings during services in the classroom downstairs from the church beginning 11/20. A requirement of 7/8 OWL is the attendance of parents and caretakers at the Parent Orientation on Sunday, 10/23, from 12:30-2:30. The orientation will take place in the 7/8 OWL classroom. All 7/8 OWL participants must be vaccinated.

9-12 Coming of Age (COA): will meet next on Sunday, 10/16, from 10-12. We will meet in the Waters House youth room. COA will take the place of youth group for this year only.

10/9 Children’s Chapel: A big THANK YOU to Morgan and Bethany Myatt–and their furry friend Reeses–for visiting us during this past Sunday’s Children’s Chapel! Morgan, Bethany, and Reeses taught us lots of interesting things about bunnies, including some of the differences between domestic and wild bunnies. Bethany told us about participating in 4-H Club and how she shares her bunny knowledge with the 4-H judges and other guests at county fairs! We also had some yummy apples and learned that apples are a sweet treat for bunnies too!

If you have a special interest you’d like to share with the children during a future Children’s Chapel, please reach out.

The UUSS Nursery!

Childcare for children 5 and under is available from 10-12 on Sundays!

We still have some nursery staff positions available. If you know someone 18 or older who is fabulous with children and might like to earn a little extra cash, please have them contact Director of Lifespan RE Robin Ahearn at dlre@uuschenectady.org.

The Religious Education Team Needs You!

The RE Team is in need of a couple of additional members. We typically meet once a month, either in person or via Zoom, and we work together to explore big-picture plans for the Children and Youth of RE, as well as support the director of lifespan religious education. If you’d like to support RE by being a part of the RE Team, please contact Director of Lifespan RE Robin Ahearn at dlre@uuschenectady.org.

Young UU Project

Have you heard of YUUP yet? The Young UU Project began in 2020 as a way for young UUs to keep in touch with each other and their faith during the pandemic, and is held by Lifespan Faith Engagement. Supporting YUUP is part of our commitment to the Commission on Institutional Change’s charge for a national youth ministry structure and creating more gathering spaces for BIPOC youth and emerging adults.

The purpose of YUUP is to be a national community care network and multi-directional communication channel that centers BIPOC, trans/non-binary and neurodivergent youth and offers a transition zone for young people moving into emerging adulthood. LFE is providing logistics support, communications platforms, safety structures and funding for YUUP to connect youth and bridgers to each other.

Anyone (youth, caregivers, religious professionals, lay leaders, everyone!) can tap into the social ministry of YUUP by following them on Instagram @yuup.uua and signing up for the YUUP newsletter. YUUP also has a community sphere just for youth, those who bridged in 2022 and support adults. These “Third Monday Meetups” are where youth swap ideas they can take home to their local youth communities. In August they swapped Favorite Check In Questions. In September they swapped favorite youth group games, which will soon be released on Instagram and in the newsletter.

The community sphere requires an annual registration process in adherence to our UUA Youth Safety Guidelines. The registration only needs to be filled out once and is good for any online program the UUA puts on in the 22/23 church year. Once a youth fills out the form, their caregiver will receive a request for permission, and the religious professional they list will receive an invitation to sign off for their participation.

As we grow this program, we will need your support in getting youth registered so they can fully participate in this online community. We do this registration process because our programs are founded in a covenant between families, congregations, and youth, and we want caregivers and congregations to know what their youth are involved in.

Please point youth and their families to UUA.ORG/YUUP to connect at their capacity level.

–Jennica Davis-Hockett (UUA Youth Ministry Specialist)

Senior Youth: Save the date: mini youth con at First UU Syracuse November 5-6th. This will be a small, one night event. We will need adults from our congregation to attend with our youth. Watch for registration and more info soon.