IHN is Interfaith Hospitality Network, a neat way that churches work together to use some of their building space to temporarily house homeless families. The “hosting” takes place at First Unitarian Church of Cincinnati (in Avondale), which will have up to four homeless families staying on site for a week.

Tuesday, February 19, 2019, will be Heritage Church’s turn to provide hosts. We still need a co-Dinner-Host to help plan, prepare, and serve a meal for those being sheltered.

If you are interested in learning more, please talk with Rae Jane Araujo, or email her at:

Wednesday, February 20, 2019, 7:00 p.m.

As we head into these dreary days of winter, what could be better than to curl up with a good, long novel. The subject of the February 20th meeting of Heritage’s Babes with Book (the women’s book club) fits that billing. Winner of the Pulitzer Prize and PBS’s top 100 American reads, A Confederacy of Dunces, by John Kennedy Toole, is described by The New Republic as, “One of the funniest books ever written . . . it will make you laugh out loud till your belly aches and your eyes water.”

For the March 20th meeting we move on to People of the Book, by Geraldine Brooks, and on April 17th, The Masterpiece, by Fiona Davis. All meetings are from 7 to 9 p.m. in the Heritage Room. All women, members or friends, are always invited to attend, whether or not they have read the book.

For more information, talk with Barb Barnes or email her at the address below.

Sunday, February 10, 2019, and every Sunday.

As we all hunker down in our warmest clothes and eat our comfort food to stay warm, let’s pause for a moment to imagine what it would be like if comfort and the glow of a warm belly weren’t available to you. Please consider supplying some of the supplies needed for warm bellies and comfort of mind next time you shop. Critical needs are listed below.

PANTRY NEEDS:

• Boxed cereal
• Soups, stew & chili – or the supplies to make these
• Spaghetti sauce
• Canned tuna, chicken and ham
• Canned fruits, jams and jellies

PERSONAL CARE NEEDS:

• Shampoo/conditioner
• Toothpaste and toothbrushes
• Toilet paper
• Paper towels
• Laundry detergent
• Diapers/Pull-Ups (any size)

Place items in the shopping cart in the Great Hall. Donations go to the Inter Parish Ministry food pantries.

If you have questions, please speak with Kay Inskeep or Mike Roberts, or email them at:

The Cincinnati Sanctuary Congregations Coalition has recently welcomed a family to temporary housing at Clifton United Methodist Church in Cincinnati. Heritage Church joined the Coalition two years ago, and is being called upon for support.

The family was admitted to the U.S. and granted parole status in order to apply for asylum. They are from the Congo, and have made a long journey through Brazil, South America, Central America, and Texas, and now are with us in Ohio. The family of four consists of a pregnant mother, a father, an 8-year-old boy, and an 8-month-old boy.

What the family needs now is help in adjusting to its new world. If you would like to sign up to work with a team of Heritage volunteers for one week, in February or March, to provide the family with transportation, groceries, and other needs, please talk with Russ Araujo, or email him at SanctuaryCoalition@huuc.net.

January 2019.

Wednesday, February 6, 2019, at 6:00 p.m.

$40 per person. Connect with Tracy Jo at the email at the end of this article, or buy tickets online at the Facebook event page.

This class is fundraiser for the Heritage Healthy Cooking Classes which have been teaching those with food insecurities since 2014.

Join us as Tracy Jo Duckworth teaches some basic Ayurvedic techniques and recipes that you can easily create in your own kitchen. Class size is small-just 16 students, please register early. Your $40 ticket includes the 2 hour class, recipes and a sumptuous meal and it might be tax-deductible!

In this informative and interactive class, you will learn dishes that are rooted in India’s age-old culinary traditions yet adapted to today’s kitchen and lifestyle. Entrees are wholesome, healthy authentic and made with ingredients that you can purchase easily. Mostly vegan with a little chicken and dairy. Ayurvedic translates into “knowledge of life” and is a 4,000-year-old system of well-being that originated in India. Ayurveda views the human being as intimately connected with the environment and all other life forms. It prescribes various methods of synchronizing ourselves – physically and psychically – with the world around us, placing great emphasis on diet and the specific attributes of different foods.

Email Tracy Jo at:

by Louise Lawarre

It’s almost New Year’s Day, and your friends at GAPP (Greater Anderson Promotes Peace) are planning the 14th annual Candlelight Vigil at the Peace Pole in Beech Acres Park. On this first day of the year, many people’s hearts turn to the dream and vision of humankind living together in harmony. Participants are invited to bring a brief reading to share. If you haven’t attended before, you can be sure to see Heritage Church friends there. More information is available at this HUUC webpage.

Right on the heels of the New Year comes Martin Luther King Day, on January 21. This is an invitation to consider what more there is to do to end the persistent racism in our nation. Join with the MLK Coalition (GAPP has been a member for 15 years) beginning at the Freedom Center at 10:30 a.m. for a Commemorative Civil Rights March to Music Hall. At Music Hall, beginning at noon (free admission), enjoy the outstanding MLK Chorale, which includes several Heritage Church members. The speaker will be Rev. Derek Terry of St. Peter United Church of Christ.

On Tuesday, January 29, right here at Heritage UU Church, at 7:00 p.m., GAPP and ACRU (Anderson Churches for Racial Unity) are honored to host Rev. Damon Lynch, III, to discuss “What’s Needed Now” to end the 400-year legacy of inequality that has persisted in the U.S. since the arrival of the first slave ship at Jamestown in 1619.

Sunday, February 3, 2019, around 12 noon.

You are invited to a jar salad making party at Heritage Church on February 3, after service. What is a jar salad making party? Glad you asked! Bring one-to-two bags/heads of lettuce or greens cut and prepped, two-to-three other salad ingredients cut and prepped, one container of salad dressing, and five containers for your salad (quart canning jars would great). At the event we will set up an assembly line for making salads. Heavy and wet items go in first, light things like lettuce at the top. Then we will take turns going along the assembly line adding ingredients to our own containers to build our salads. Each person goes home with five salads to eat during the week. Contact Tamilyn Thompson with any questions at:

Saturday, February 2, 2019. Various Events and Times.

Imbolc is also known as Candlemas and Groundhog’s Day and occurs at the beginning of February. It marks the halfway point of Winter and it holds the promise of Spring. The original word Imbolg means ‘in the belly’. Heritage UU Church pagans invite you to celebrate with some traditional rituals associated with this sacred day. You are welcome to participate in any or all of the following elements, which take place at Heritage Church.

At 4:30 p.m. we will walk the land to notice and honor signs of the coming of spring and the return of the sun. The Imbolc Festival acknowledges the successful passing of winter and the beginning of the agricultural year.

At 5:00 we will have our Imbolc ritual around the fire, outdoors as weather permits. This day traditionally honors Brigid, goddess of healing, poetry, and smithcraft, who was so loved as an ancient Goddess that her worship was woven into the Christian church as St. Bridget. The ritual will include reading of poetry, all are invited to bring a poem to share.

At 6:00 you are invited to a potluck dinner. Contributions might include traditional items like breads, grains, and vegetables stored from fall. Dairy is also traditional, since Imbolc marks the festival of calving. Just bring whatever you have a lot of in your pantry.

At 7:00 we will circle round once again for drumming and dancing.

We gather to celebrate the growth of the returning light and honor our insatiable appetite for rebirth in all its forms.

Please bring a potluck contribution, a drum or noise maker and an open mind.

Visit the event page on Facebook for updated information.

If you would like to assist in co-creating any part of this celebration. We welcome all help! Send email to: