by Laci Lee Adams, Director of Lifespan Faith Development

Spring and Summer are growing seasons. We can see that growth everywhere, in our gardens outside, in the trees around us, in crowds at outdoor events!

We can even see all that growth in our church. When I started at HUUC almost two years ago, we averaged about 4 kids in weekly RE programs. During the month of April, we had TRIPLE the number of kids EVERY Sunday! Wow – that is growth!

I have also been experiencing a bit of personal and familial growth. Emily and I are so excited to share that we are actually expecting our SECOND CHILD, due in late August/early September. As of writing this article, I am 23 weeks pregnant and excited for the growth that awaits over the summer and early Fall.

Expecting while overseeing an RE program is a special treat because the wild possibilities in my personal life are supremely exciting and inspire such creativity. Rev. Bill and I, along with the RE committee and a host of co-collaborators are spinning up plans for the Fall while I am on parental leave. It will be a time full of connection, fun, and deepening ties both for my family and for all of our young people in the congregation. I am looking forward to planning and creating and wondering with all you as we anticipate another new addition to our broader HUUC community!

Best,
Laci

June 2023.

by Rev. Bill Gupton

All spring, Heritage Church has been growing again, just like the grass outside my window. New members are joining; meanwhile, even more visitors continue to come through our doors and find a warm and welcoming community. And have you noticed the kids? Young people – with their laughter, exuberant energy, and boundless smiles – are once again bringing life and vitality to our church family in numbers not seen since well before the pandemic. On a recent weekend, the Children’s Carnival at the Auction made for a fun-filled Saturday night (some young people even got into the bidding later that evening!), while 12 hours later in the sanctuary, we had more children on a Sunday morning than I’ve seen in a long, long time.

There is palpable momentum, right now, at HUUC. Which is why what we do and decide, collectively, over the next couple of weeks is so critically important. We can’t afford to lose that momentum – a rare commodity in churches these days, both locally and nationally. As Unitarian Universalist Association President Susan Frederick-Gray says, “Now is no time for a casual faith.”

I’m talking here, among other things, about our church budget. About the level to which we each are supporting that church budget. Are we really “all in”? Do our pledges of financial support reflect how much this congregation means to us, and how deeply we believe in the momentum – the future – of this church?

The Board of Trustees – your elected congregational leadership – has been grappling with some difficult financial realities. At their recent budget-preparation meeting, they began with all the programs and staffing that had been requested for 2023-24, then compared that to the amount that had been pledged by members and friends to support the church for the same 2023-24 period. The result would have been a deficit of a little more than $50,000.

To their credit, they concluded that we can no longer sustainably carry such large operating deficits. I wholeheartedly agree. So the conversation turned to ways to increase fundraising and rental income, and how we might cut expenses. Cutting pay and decreasing the number of hours our program staff (including yours truly) work each week might just be necessary in order to balance the budget. Remember the old saying “the numbers don’t lie”? Well, the numbers are telling us that we need to generate more income in order to pay for the level of paid, professional leadership and staffing the congregation has come to expect.

All this while other numbers – those that reflect attendance and participation, those that reflect membership – are once again on the rise. Those numbers, too, don’t lie. In fact, they reflect a congregation that is energized, growing, and coming out of a pandemic and a lock-down in much better shape, quite frankly, than many other churches.

Over the next couple of weeks, we will be holding a series of Town Hall meetings to discuss our budget and financial issues – followed by the Annual Meeting on June 4, when hopefully we will be able to adopt a budget that can simultaneously be balanced, while ensuring that we maintain the hard-won momentum we are currently enjoying.

Please participate in this important process of discernment. The future direction of the church is, literally, in our hands this spring. May we be loving and careful stewards of it.

Blessings,
Rev. Bill

May 19, 2023.

by Martha Viehmann

During the month of April, members of the Heritage community wrote words and phrases that they associate with this church and dropped them in a jar. Those submissions inspired this poem.

 

Our Heritage

Say hello.
Smile.
Say thank you.
Weave connection.

Eat together.
Laugh together.
Set a place at the table for all.
Create a family.

Sing together.
Breathe together.
Seek together.
Become a sanctuary.

Commit.
Serve.
Accept.
Build compassion.

Kindle love at the center
of this community.
This is our church,
our Heritage together.

Martha Viehmann

2023.

by Julie Kane

In July, my term as Heritage Board President comes to an end. I have learned so much from serving as president this past year. I wanted to take a moment to express my appreciation and gratitude for all the encouragement and support I received. It was an honor to work alongside such talented and dedicated individuals on the board.

As my leadership role comes to an end, I want to encourage everyone to become more involved in Heritage. There are many opportunities at Heritage to volunteer. Please consider participating in making Heritage the community we all seek.

I wish you all joy, peace and love.

Julie Kane
HUUC Board President

by Rev. Bill Gupton

A quick online search for the definition of “sanctuary” will yield two main understandings of that word: “a sacred place” and “a place of refuge or safety.” There is, of course, a literal sanctuary at Heritage Church – the space in which we gather for Sunday services, worship services, memorial services, singing and celebration, mourning and meditation. You know, the room with the beloved round window that looks out onto the world, from our inner sacred space.

There is also Heritage Acres Memorial Sanctuary – a 40-acre piece of that natural world, which is set aside not only as the final resting place for, already, dozens of people who have passed from this life, but also as a “nature sanctuary” where wildlife and ecosystems can be protected and preserved.

Both of these sanctuaries – the one on Newtown Road and the one on Locust Corner Road – align with both of the definitions of “sanctuary”: they are, most assuredly, sacred places … and they offer a place of refuge and safety, whenever such a place is needed, either by one of us, or someone in the wider community.

In these difficult and often painful times, I am reminded that this is perhaps our most important mission. Moved by the love that is the spirit of this church, we seek to provide a sanctuary from an often dangerous world. With hateful, exclusionary legislation being proposed and passed in this and other states around the country, we offer a safe place for those who are being marginalized by society. With racism, homophobia, transphobia, and misogyny driving much of the discourse in our culture (the so-called “culture wars”), Heritage Church can be a much needed, even life-saving sanctuary.

Every week, I speak with someone who is grateful, sometimes even deeply emotional, to have found a place like Heritage. They use words like “safe” and “oasis.” They say things like “I never knew such a church existed” and “Where have you been all my life?” and “I can’t imagine what life would be like without this place, and these people.”

I lift up the idea of sanctuary, and experiences such as these, because it is important to remind ourselves, every now and then, why we are here. Why we support Heritage. Why what we do matters.

May we always be a sanctuary, when you need one. May we always serve this community as a sanctuary of faith, of hope, but most importantly, of love.

Namaste!

May 2023.

by Julie Kane

“Were everyone knows your name” …

This is my experience attending Heritage for many years. Heritage has become my extended family. Whenever I enter the building, I always feel welcome. An observation from someone explained one of the reasons I like coming to church because my friends are here: similarly, the children come to church to see their friends. Another time, at the women’s Christmas dinner a fairly new member asked me, do you know everyone here. I had to say yes.

How much is “Everyone knows your name” worth? In order for this community to function we need your support. Our stewardship campaign is in process. With your help we can make this campaign successful. Your contribution will enable the church to continue, whereby, “Everyone will know your name.”

If you haven’t already made your pledge, please do so.

Julie Kane

May 2023.

by Laci Lee Adams, Director of Lifespan Faith Development

How do we judge the health of our community? In the midst of our annual Stewardship Drive, our first thought might be for our fiscal health. (Insert not-so-subtle reminder to think about and/or submit your pledge.) So close to a New Member Ceremony (May 7th, if you are wondering!), our thoughts might turn to our membership size. If you are a child in our community, you might think of our health in terms of your level of excitement to come to church. And if you are a parent, you might gauge our health in terms of ease of convincing your child(ren) to get into the car and come to church! I wonder if all of these gauges are actually symptoms of our sense of connection?

If you happened to be at church for our recent service centered around Karma, you might have had the distinct pleasure of seeing more than a dozen kids and youth in worship! There was a palpable sense of excitement and wonder when kids crowded around our altar to see Bob Lamb’s excellent dominos demonstration (which you can still view online, if you interested!). What most of you might not know, is a tiny fact that me and just a few others are privy too — we had guests in that throng of kids. Not only a kid of a visiting family (we had one of those too!), but a kid visiting with their bestie! That experience has really had me thinking—how often do we adults invite our friends to church?

The act of invitation of a friend into a community is a supreme act of connection! It shows a willingness to collide some of the artificial boundaries of our separated lives. The invitation says to both the community and the friend that we are inviting that we are deeply invested in connecting individually and communally. It’s a way of saying, “I see you! I see your value! And I hope to share this new experience with you!” We begin to invite our friends into community, it is a barometer of health for that community because none of us are going to invite folks to come to a place that we have doubts about.

May is an amazing time to invite a friend to church with you! Are you looking for a fun family event to invite your friends with kids to? Or might you be wanting to invite a neighbor to a fun-filled night out? Our annual auction (May 13th) could be just that opportunity! Do you have friends that are voracious readers? We host not one, but two monthly book discussions! Have friends that are looking to deepen their spirituality? We have worship services that can range from beautiful, poignant, powerful, and even whimsical! Do you have friends that are looking for Summer Camps for their kids? We have on tap for the summer! Peace Camp is August 7th – 11th. (There’s even an article with more info in this very newsletter). Do you have friends that have been expressing confusion, questions, or frustration with the anti-LGBTQ+ legislation in Ohio or around the nation? Might you have friends that you know want to grow in their understanding about race? Guess what—we have learning opportunities on all of those topics scheduled in May!

What I am trying to say is, I wonder if we can take a lesson from some of our youngest? Can we be brave and invite folks into this awesome community? Can we give outward expression to our inward sense of connection?

Laci

May 2023.

by Rev. Bill Gupton

Change is in the air. Hopefully, by the time you read this, our unseasonably cold March (which followed an unseasonably hot February) will have given way to warmer, milder temperatures and better weather.

Around the church, there is also change afoot. Hopefully, sometime this month, we will be able to announce our new Music Director / Accompanist to you. This change is necessitated by the impending retirement of Les Tacy, who has served us for nearly a decade in that role, combining creativity and compassion with impressive musical talent. Congratulations on reaching retirement, Les! (By the way, Les will remain an active part of our church community as a member of the congregation, along with his wife Steph.)

We are also experiencing change in the wider composition of our church community. In the past couple of months, many individuals – some of them long-time Unitarian Universalists, others brand new to our unique brand of faith – have become regular participants, attending on Sunday mornings and at various events throughout the week. (Have you noticed there is a lot more going on throughout the week these days?)

If you are among these newer folks – or if, perhaps, you have simply been waiting for the “right time” – we are offering an opportunity to become a member of Heritage and officially join the church, on Sunday morning, May 7. That morning is also our annual Flower Communion Sunday; bring a flower to share with someone else in the congregation. If you’d like to become a member of HUUC that day, please get in touch with me. It will be a day of great celebration.

While I’m on the subject of folks who are new to the church, I want to give a shout out to Bruce Bowdon, who has been filling in for Les Tacy occasionally this spring. Bruce seems right at home at our Heritage piano, whether playing one of his original compositions, or accompanying us as we sing a hymn. Thank you, Bruce!

Bruce’s story proves that there are many ways each of us can bring our gifts to this community – regardless of whether you’re new, or a long-time participant; whether you’re a member or a friend. Do you have a special or unique skill or talent? Or maybe, even if it’s not that unique, do you have a skill that you don’t see otherwise being utilized around the church? Carpentry? Cooking? Organizing? Handyman (er, handy-person) skills? There are so many ways you can help our church grow and change. To get involved, speak with me, or with anyone on our Board of Trustees.

In the spirit of love and abundance –
Blessings,
Bill

April 2023.

 

by Julie Kane

Spring is here and that begins our annual Stewardship Campaign. The campaign is the beginning of the process and the Annual Meeting on June 4th is the end.

At the last Town Hall Meeting, we shared with you the first draft of the budget. This was compiled from various sources such as the following committees: Personnel, Music, Building, Grounds, Office and Religious Education. The next step is the actual Stewardship Campaign, where the entire congregation participates.

The contributions of our members and friends are the overwhelming source of our annual funding. When you are asked to pledge this year, please remember all the benefits you receive and consider increasing your pledge. It is a challenging time for all of us with everything being more expensive for members and Heritage.

Let us thank Reid Hester for his work on the campaign.

Please remember to pledge and share with the congregation your generosity.

Happy Easter!

Julie Kane
HUUC Board President

April 2023.

by Rev. Bill Gupton

Springtime brings new life and new hope all around us. It is a time of thinking of the future, leaning into the future, with exciting possibilities on the horizon.

Maybe that’s why churches, at least most of those in the Unitarian Universalist tradition, tend to invite their members to envision the future and commit their support to that vision during the spring. This month, at a special Town Hall meeting after our potluck lunch on March 12, we will invite you to look at and have a conversation about the goals and dreams for 2023-24 that you submitted to the Board, as they begin preparations for next church year’s operating budget. And then, two weeks later on March 26, we will begin the process of funding that budget by encouraging your financial support (in the form of your annual pledge).

Newer folks are often surprised to learn how churches in our Unitarian Universalist tradition pay for their operating expenses. In other traditions – Catholic and most Protestant ones, including a Baptist church whose website I was recently looking at – members are expected to “tithe.” It is an effective fundraising strategy, and one that I’m sure generates a more steady and reliable cash flow than our approach. But telling folks how much they should give to support their church is just not the UU way.

Instead, we offer some “fair share” charts, with options and graduated levels, for those who are inclined to do such calculations – and we explain what your money will be paying for. We let you build the budget, and offer your input into what you think our priorities should be. In recent years (including during the pandemic), we have provided opportunities for discussion and conversation about the budget well before the Annual Meeting in June. Transparency about what folks have said they want, and frank dialogue about how to pay for those things, is part and parcel of our Unitarian Universalist process.

We do not have a “Vatican” or higher ecclesiastical body that supports our churches. In fact, it is the congregations that support the UUA financially, not the other way around. This is because in Unitarian Universalism, each individual church is independent and autonomous – which means, among other things, that we pay our own way. Most of our annual operating expenses (staff salaries, utilities, building expenses, worship and educational costs, etc.) are funded by the contributions of members and friends. You.

So this month, when we ask once again for your support, I hope you will consider what a rarity – and a blessing – it is to be part of a church community that truly does “pay its own way.” And I hope you will be moved to make a generous pledge, each according to what they can offer, to support and maintain all the unique things that make Heritage such a special place. Thank you!

Blessings,
Rev. Bill

March 2023.