Page Title

On March 11th, residents in mainland United States, except those in Arizona, will be turning their clocks ahead one hour. on March 11th, except in Arizona, that is. This means that they will get one hour less sleep that night, and attendance at churches everywhere but in Arizona will be below the norm.

I could always predict the attendance on these Sundays when the clocks were changed. In the spring, attendance was lower because a hour was lost. In the fall, attendance was higher because children had ready been up an hour longer, so I guess it

Board Invites All W.V.U.U. Members

The board hired Reverend Charles Gaines to assess our potential for strength and growth. He reported out twenty-one recommendations in January 07. The board has organized these into three categories:

A. Needs input or discussion from the congregation

B. Is currently in place

C. In the process of being implemented

D. (Number 10 regarding the 80% rule which would lead to double services: the board decision is that a committee could study this but that we are not ready for double services in the near future.)

There are eight of the recommendations in Category-A, where the decision would be strengthened by honest input and discussion among members:

1: Full time minister,

4: Publicity coordinator,

7: Wayside pulpit at corner,

13: Minimum contribution of record,

16: Fund drive to subsidize minister's salary,

17: Members' discussion and commitment regarding support for recommendations,

18: Volunteer coordinator,

21: Separate long range planning committee from facilities.

The board is scheduling two opportunities for input on these recommendations:

Sunday, March 4, before the service, 9:30-10:00 A.M.

in the sanctuary

Sunday, March 18, after the service, 12:00-12:30 P.M.

in the sanctuary

Please be present at one of these input sessions so that the board may hear your opinions. Copies of all twenty-one recommendations will be available. There will also be an opportunity for you to leave written comments.

Donnis Deever

Acting Board President

was something to do to divert their attention from picking on one another.

This year, Daylight Savings Time is occurring several weeks earlier than in past years. This doesn't make farmers too happy because they always opposed the time change. For it meant having to get up to milk the cows when it was still dark outside. But in the cities, children in the suburbs could play out longer in the evenings in the summer and in the fall, they didn't have to walk to school in the dark. Nowadays, most all children go to school on a bus, so people talk about the energy savings that come from the more daylight when most people need it.

Here in Arizona we don't have to think of such matters. Time is steady, eternal, unchanging, not subject to human manipulation. Still, I miss the twice-a-year activity of going around the house to change my clocks. Once or twice, I got everything wrong, so I ended up two hours off. Fortunately, I got to church early on Sundays, so I was still there on time for the service.

Now that I live here, I enjoy the fact that Arizona is different. As a Boston Red Sox baseball fan, I can see via satellite television all the night games at a "gentleman's hour", rather than having to stay up late at night as fans in New England have to do. When the Red Sox played in and won the World Series title in 2004, I didn't lose a bit of sleep while family and friends on the east coast suffered from a week-long loss of sleep.

Ecclesiastes in Jewish/Christian scripture was right when he wrote: "For everything there is a season, and a time for every purpose under heaven." He goes on to list many things that there is a time for. He doesn't include changing clocks twice a year, milking cows or playing baseball. That's why I think if he were alive today, he would probably live in Arizona, a place where time happens when it is supposed to.

Charles A. Gaines

Of Interest, Perhaps

Hartford Seminary published a report on the dynamics of growth and decline in American congregations. The report included a survey of some 884 congregations, and some of the findings of this study were:

· The more worship services a congregation holds, the more likely it is to have grown. More than half of the congregations that use contemporary worship styles have experienced substantial growth since 2000.

· The strongest correlate of growth is absence of serious conflict.

The Board of Trustees is working with the Caring Committee to develop a Child and Youth Protection Policy for our church. A first draft is nearly completed and must be approved by the Board of Trustees. The committee is using resources from the UUA, the PSWD, and Church Mutual Insurance Company. The Preamble to the Policy opens with this statement: "We, the West Valley Unitarian Universalist Church, as a religious community, recognize the importance of creating a community where everyone is safe. We dedicate ourselves to the creation of safe environments for all our members, particularly our children and teenage youth, who are vulnerable to incidents of abuse."

The Policy document goes on to describe requirements for selection and screening of workers, supervision, reporting of incidents, and education and implementation. It also includes a code of conduct for those who work with our children.

Writing the policy is just a beginning. We will be informing, educating and putting the policy into practice in the next months. The process will mean change and the sacrifice of some convenience, but it is necessary for us to address the safety and welfare of our children and youth.

Look in the near future for announcement of a "screening" of a video from Church Mutual Insurance Company which will be the beginning of our efforts to inform and educate. In the meantime if you have questions or comment, please contact someone on the Caring committee or Darnell Kirksey who is the Board liaison for the project. Barbara Kovach is chair of the Committee and its members are Gen Volotta, Cindy Nowell, Mary Lou Cornell, and Terry Mead.

Darnell Kirksey

The Eagles

In February, the Eagles (grades 1 - 3) focused on the importance of our actions: What we do in this world matters.

Jewish tradition says that our hands are God's hands on earth. True miracles happen when we give to each other… and when we receive from each other, too.

The Buddha taught that we must be fully aware of what we do at all times.

Spirituality and Parenting

Workshop

"We know from research that all children by the time they are age five have a conception of God, whether or not we've talked about God to them as parents. And we also know that children ask these really large questions. And there seems to be an innate spirituality, a great sense of wonder, spontaneity, imagination and creativity, and a connection to something larger than themselves. What children seem to lack is a language to give expression to that sense of something deeper. And I think, as parents, our responsibility is to provide them with a language, an opportunity to have a conversation about these matters that they care very deeply about. Because I think what happens is, if we don't provide the language and if we don't encourage the conversation, then children stop asking." - Rabbi Sandi Sasso

Come join in a discussion about these ideas on March 24th. Call Kathy A for further information.

· Representatives from 9 committees were in attendance to present written and verbal reports.

o Sunday Services -

§ Hosted a retreat in February with 13 attendees

§ Moderator training sessions will be held soon

o Finance is working on the annual canvass

o Facilities -

§ Recruiting volunteers for the sanctuary beautification project.

§ Will create an office space area in the sanctuary

Caring Committee joined the project to develop a Safe Church policy.

Membership Committee now has 8 members who are actively working on projects

to organize and update membership/visitor data.

Social Action Committee is looking into a plastic bag recycling project.

· Rev. Gaines will provide guidance on the annual canvass. A kick-off luncheon will be held after the church service on March 25th.

· The Board reviewed Rev. Gaines' 21 recommendations and identified items that will require additional input from the congregation. Most of the recommendations are in progress or completed.

Kathy Dugan

Dancing for the Bottom Line: Saturday, March 31, 2007

WVUU Church's Annual Silent Auction

Donation Form

We're sorry that we've misplaced the forms that

you filled out before. Will you please fill them out again?

Name: ____________________________________________

Address: ___________________________________________

___________________________________________

Phone: ____________________________________________

E-mail: ____________________________________________

Item/service to be donated:

___________________________________________

Minimum Bid: _______________________________________

**Thank you!! Please fill out this form and return it to either

Mia or Larry.

Suggestions:

__________________________________________________

Chandler UU Sponsors Gordon Bok Concert!

Maine Folksinger comes to the Valley UU Church in a rare visit to the Southwest.

TIME magazine says he "The poet laureate of those who go down to the sea in ships".

He has recorded over thirty albums, solo and with other musicians, and performs at folk clubs, concert halls and other festivals though out the U. S., Canada, Great Britain and Scandinavia. He has appeared with the Paul Winter Consort, the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra, and "A Prairie Home Companion" among others.

Don't miss this rare opportunity to see one of America's Great Folksingers in person!

Open seating tickets are $20 and may be purchased online at

www.vuu.org/cs/gordonbok.

Valley Unitarian Universalist Church

6400 W Del Rio St

Chandler, AZ 85226

(480) 899-4249

First Choir Practice

"You must understand the whole of life, not just one little part of it. That is why you must read, that is why you must look at the skies, that is why you must SING, and dance, and write poems, and suffer, and understand, for all that is life." - from thinkexist.com

Learn or rediscover the joy of singing on the second and fourth Sundays of the month at 9 AM in the nave. Led by veteran choir director, Wayne Daniel and accompanied by Jane Busby (who is hiding in this picture), we will be showing off our vocal talents at least one service each month. No auditions or prior experience required. We will even teach you how to read music. Come join in the power of song.

West Valley UU Annual

Pledge Drive Begins in March

All members and friends will receive a brochure in the mail describing WVUU's Mission Statement and our goals this year that allows us to complete our Mission. The Finance Committee asks everyone to carefully read and consider the ideas contained in the brochure. In order to accomplish our goals, each of us will need to "Reach for the Stars".

On Sunday, March 25th Rev. Charles Gaines's sermon will deliver a sermon entitled "How To Be a Millionaire." Following the service everyone is invited to a free catered luncheon.

Because West Valley Unitarian Universalist Church is our spiritual home, will each of you consider carefully the ideas in the brochure?

Dorothy Ward

Finance Chairperson

UU Airs On KPHX, 1480 AM

9:00 a.m. Saturdays

As a result of a grant from the Unitarian Universalist Association in Boston, Rev. Walter Weider of the UU Church of Surprise is the moderator for a call-in radio broadcast at 9:00 a.m. Saturday mornings on Air America, KPHX,, 1480 AM called A DIFFERENT VIEW. That program is considered by most to serve a function for the UU cause in the Phoenix area. Online, you can get the program at www.kphx.com at 9 a.m. Arizona time. Call-ins are encouraged.

-Lyn Fischrup

Transformation Through

Pilgrimage

Spring Pentecost and Renewal Pilgrimage-- May 18-29, 2007-- Loving hospitality of Transylvanian Unitarian families

Unitarian Budapest & Hungary-- June 1 -11

Homorod Holiday -- July 12--24, 2007

Transylvania. Thanksgiving, Sept. 25--Oct. 5, 2007

Visit the UUPCC web site today for complete itineraries, pricing information, and information about custom tours: www.uupcc.org

A flyer is on the bulletin Board

Find a tour that you like. Tell about it and chances are that another WVUU member(s) will want to go, too!

Registration Opens March 1

For General Assembly

This year the Unitarian Universalist General Assembly meets in Portland, OR from June 20-24, 2007. 4,000 UU's meet each year to meet, talk, discuss, listen, and participate in hundreds of workshops, worship services, and meetings on myriads of subjects.

To find out more about General Assembly, log onto www.uua.org. Once on the site, type in General Assembly. Information about all the events/programs, various kinds of housing from UU Bed and Breakfast, dormitory housing at the Portland State University, and hotels, and, of course, costs.

Sunday, March 4, 2007, Kathryn Sheffield "Crossroads and Mythology: The Myths of War" The twentieth century was the bloodiest in human history, and the twenty-first has begun with a war that shows no clear ending. War has become a central metaphor for our culture: war on drugs, war on poverty, culture war. Ancient myths show us that war has always been with us. Can they shed light on today's conflicts?

Sunday, March 11, 2007, Rev. Charles Gaines "Universalism: Love's Winning Wit" Many of you in West Valley UU Church call yourselves Unitarian. Often when the media reports on us, it also refers to us as "Unitarians". But there's another story about us that is often ignored. It is the "Universalist" part of our identity. As an original "Universalist" minister, I'd like to tell you some of that story.

Sunday, March 18, 2007, Rev. Judit Gellerd "Not on a Map? Still a country." The world seems to have too short a memory of genocides. By remembering, we honor those people who lost their country to aggressors, but are determined to keep their faith, culture and hope alive--Armenia, Tibet, and Transylvania among them.

Sunday, March 25, 2007, Rev. Charles Gaines "How to Become a Millionaire" The over-whelming number of congregations I have visited as a consultant don't like to discuss money unless it is in the context of how little of it they and the congregation have. So on this Canvass Sunday, I hope to make our discussion easier by telling the younger people in our congregation how they can become millionaires and the older people how they can live as if they were .

West Valley Unitarian Universalist Church

PO Box 2505

5904 W Cholla Street

Glendale, AZ 85311

Phone: 623-846-6004

Editor: Dorothy Ward, Publisher: Doug Pope

602-246-1246

Newsletter E-mail: UniqueDorothy@cox.net

This Church provides a safe place to celebrate diversity, draw inspiration for our lives, foster

social and environmental justice, and compassionately support each other in our spiritual searches.

We currently have 88 members and many more friends.

Our Sunday Services begin at 10:30 AM followed by a coffee house style social hour and light lunch.

Mia and Larry Need Items For The Annual Silent Auction

Date: Saturday, March 31, 2007

Time: 5:00-8:00 pm

Theme: Dancing for the Bottom Line

Mia and Larry both became ill on February 25th and had to cancel the Silent Auction. They have graciously rescheduled for March 31st.

The evening will include a pot-luck supper and line dancing for all who are interested!

Some ideas for donations could be:

*a special item that you have and want to donate

*a service that you could provide: a music

lesson, cooking lesson, horseback riding,

*a weekend get-away at your cabin or beach house

*a gift certificate to a local store/restaurant.

*a gift basket...this could be done as a family

or friends together.

*a gift certificate to a local spa.

So...come out and support your church! Have fun and lots of laughs!!

Maybe you'll come home with something special, too!

See you all the last Saturday evening in February!!

Mia and Larry