The special collection on Sunday, January 19, will be for the newly formed Ministers Discretionary Fund. Many churches have such a fund, but UUCJ has never formalized one. The UUCJ board and ministers recognized that there are situations in life that are often unexpected and may cause great financial hardship. The fund will be  administered by our ministers and is intended  to provide confidential assistance to those facing emergency financial needs. This Sunday Penny Reid and Reverend Marti will further explain the processes established by the board and the pressing need for such a fund at UUCJ. Let us generously provide funding to establish this fund for the future through this month’s special collection.

Did you find a stray envelope or coin box for the Unitarian Universalist Service Committee? Our campaign is over, but if you place your donation in the offering plate, Judy, our bookkeeper, will get it added to our total. Thanks for your wonderful support!

The  UUSC campaign for this year has come to a close. Our “guests” are on their way to keep fighting for social justice. If you want to help them, please bring your coin boxes back or write a check to UUCJ with UUSC on the memo line. We will have extra envelopes at the back of the church.

One last note about this organization: In addition to the 80 partners they support around the world, they are also exposing thousands of young adults with immersion trips and training. ThIs UU College of Social Justice is creating a new generation of faith-based justice activists.

Thank you for your loyal support.

UUCJ is in possession of 2 donated sets of tickets for Romeo and Juliet. Each set contains two tickets plus a parking pass—all for $50 each. One of these tickets is now selling for $50—so this is a very good deal! The performance takes place at the Times Union Center, Friday, January 10, 8:00 p.m. This ballet comes from Ukraine, and features top Ukrainian artists. It is amazing! All proceeds from the sale go to UUCJ and would help contribute to the budget shortfall we currently have. Contact Darlene Larsen for more info: fundraising@uucj.org

The sale of each pen supports and advertises UUCJ.

The Fund Raising Team has two types of imprinted pens for sale; both have a  stylus on the opposite end: A royal blue one that lights up our info ($3) and an attractive navy one with silver trimming ($2). Combined with stationery they make great gifts that will keep our church’s name in the limelight, literally. The pens alone are especially appropriate for future new members.

If you interested in purchasing pens see Cyd Reider, Reider, Jeanne Huebner, Arlene Anderson, Betsy Duerling, Janine Leland, Teri Mitchell, or Darlene Larsen. Penny Reid has pens for our Fernandina members. All proceeds from the pens go to UUCJ. Such a winning idea for all — we hope you will consider it!

Please remember to bring back your coin boxes in the next two weeks. Any amount of coins is appreciated. A $40 donation to the Unitarian Universalist Service Committee makes you a member of this effective group that supports marginalized people in the U.S. and around the world. A recent grant was given to our Florida Panhandle communities to document their post-hurricane devastation.
Final sale of Fair Exchange chocolates will take place before the congregational meeting this Sunday.

When you donate to the Unitarian Universalist Service Committee, you are supporting an organization that has received four stars from Charity Navigator for the last seven years. Please bring your coin boxes on December 22, 24, or 29. Checks can be placed in the offering plate anytime this month or given to Cyd Ryder at the UUSC/chocolate table in the Social Hall after the service. Many thanks for your support.

Phil Scanlan, UUCJ member in Fernandina Beach, will be on the UUCJ campus on December 8 where he will have copies of his new book A Path to Reason for America for sale for $10 — and Phil will donate all proceeds from sales back to UUCJ.  This will be an opportunity to talk with Phil about his book, his reasons for writing it, and his passion for improving the lives of all Americans.  (And get him to autograph your copy!)

Description of the book: The first half of the book explains how to fix Washington and resolve our multiple crises using a quality approach. The second half of the book provides examples of how to apply this quality approach to reduce twenty-three US crises while balancing the budget. With each crisis analysis is a personal story to show how individuals are affected by each of these crises. The underlying root cause of the loss of hope in the American dream is identified along with how to restore hope in the American dream.

Our campaign is running well for 2019. The $2,015 we collected last year for global human rights may be hard to beat, but we’ll continue filling those coin boxes, buying chocolates, and writing checks for UUSC until the end of December. Many thanks for your support!

Thanks for contributing $832 to the Special Collection for Bozod Unitarian Church on Sunday. A contribution of $100 was turned into the office, bringing the total to $932. Sometimes additional donations will trickle in after the collection. We are confident that we will exceed the $1,000 goal. If you would like to put us over the top or even increase the total we are sending to Bozod, feel free to contribute online or bring check to UUCJ next Sunday. Please annotate the memo line of the check: “Special Collection Bozod.”  Thanks again for being generous partners to the Bozod Unitarian Church.