Dear Members and Friends,
Here we are in the thick of the holidays – between our Music Sunday last weekend and the upcoming Holiday Pageant Sunday. All of us working together make the season bright.
With that in mind, I have an important update for you all. After careful reconsideration of staff, members, and friends alike, I share with you that the time of the Christmas Eve Service this year will be the same as ever – 9:00 PM. Please disregard previous announcements about any other time. There was rationale for attempting an earlier hour, but not enough to surmount the disruption to members’ and friends’ plans such an abrupt change would have required. I’m glad to go into details about this with anyone who would like to know more, but probably not until January. Thank you for your patience all around.
So here are upcoming highlights:
- Potluck and Carol Sing, Saturday, December 13. Potluck starts at 5:30 PM and the singing of carols at 6:30 PM. Come sing with Micah and Nick!
- Christmas Pageant, Sunday, December 13 at 10:00 AM. Angi and the Family Faith Team will lead us in a joyful, multigenerational service.
- Christmas Eve Service, Wednesday, December 24 at 9:00 PM. Join in this longstanding tradition full of music and candlelight.
- Choosing Hope: When Hope Is Hard to Find – A Hanukkah Observance, Sunday, December 21 at 10:00 AM. We lift up community and resilience.
- Choosing Hope: We Remember Them, Sunday, December 28 at 10:00 AM. We take time to celebrate the lives of those UUWestport members and friends deceased over the past 14 months.
We look forward to seeing you at all these occasions and hope you’ll invite your friends and neighbors to join us.
A Tender Time. I recognize that the holidays are challenging for many of us. Click HERE to access thoughts from the Safer Congregations Committee on how to weather those possible storms. In addition, you can reach our Pastoral Care Associates who are trained and available to listen and offer support. They welcome hearing from you confidentially at 203.227.7205 x19.
Holiday Appeal. Finally, I want to share that we are 25 percent toward our goal of $30,000 for this year’s Holiday Appeal. A cause for celebration – Let’s keep going! I pray that UUWestport is among the organizations to which you give generously this month. With your help, we will be able to support congregants through the Minister’s Discretionary Fund and to sustain our broader collective needs. You can donate via check, Venmo, or credit card on our website – memo: “Holiday Appeal”. If you have any questions or need additional alternatives for payment, please contact our Accountant, Sue O’Meara. Thank you in advance for joining me in this endeavor.
I’m delighted to celebrate the holidays with you this year in the spirit of hope, joy, love,and peace. See you in the Sanctuary!
With appreciation,
Rev. Carlton
Rev. Carlton E. Smith
Transitional Senior Minister
