The Co-ministers have been in conversation with several other ministers across the country about the start of the new year. There are so many factors to consider in each location when striving to care for one another in the best ways we know how. Rev. Lynn and Rev. Wendy also had a conversation with Dr. Kim Kilby who is a member of the UUSS Covid Prevention and Response Team.

Together, they created a plan for a slow and intentional start to the new church year, centered in our values of inclusion and care for the most vulnerable among us including our interdependence with the wider community.

To this end, we will continue to mask in the Great Hall for worship so that we can continue to sing and so the choir can also participate in worship. They know that masks are not the most comfortable thing to wear and for most of us, it is a minor inconvenience to wear it to offer a message of care. They will continue to discuss and revisit this depending on how the local cases go as school begins.

They also know how important it is for people to gather together to share a meal and connect. UUSS will host a potluck/picnic on Sep 18 after the Water Communion Ingathering service-see the sign up announcement elsewhere in Circuits. Masks will be worn while acquiring food (if you are not yet sharing food with others, please feel free to bring your own picnic lunch) and then folks can choose to unmask outside on the patio, in the back gardens, or near the fountains to eat and to visit.

The Co-Ministers and Staff are working on a plan for classes and smaller groups who gather inside and will share more information in next week’s Circuits and in communication with teachers and facilitators.