Family Information for Sunday, June 23, 2013

Hello Friends and Families of Westside!

Happy summer, and happy summer solstice to all of you! Such a beautiful time of year.

We are in the second week of our summer program at Westside, and Mackenzie Murphy (our RE Summer Coordinator) and I are happy to invite your children to enjoy our fun morning class each Sunday. Children ages 5-12 are invited to engage with guest speakers from our congregation who are sharing what they are passionate about as Unitarian Universalists. Our summer line-up includes music and arts, Seal Sitters, gardening, and celebration.

Tomorrow, Julie Forkasdi and Mackenzie Murphy will celebrate the summer solstice with our kids, singing and doing sun salutations. Tomorrow is a good day to wear comfortable clothing for our yoga together!

Our Nursery is open for little ones ages six weeks to 4 years old. Middle and high school youth can help Julie and Mackenzie with their class, or enjoy the service.

Just a reminder that there is no regular Youth Group meeting on Sunday evenings in the summer.

I am enjoying GA in Louisville this week, meeting UUs of all ages from all over the country!

Have a fabulous Sunday with Mackenzie and Julie!

Best,

Betsy

Summer at WSUU!

Thank You! Thank you to all who participated in our beautiful RE Celebration Service last Sunday, and thank you to all who received it with such warmth! It’s a gift to work in a community where our children and youth are so cherished and beloved!

Teaching and Advising in our RE Programs: We are filling our rosters with fabulous teaching teams for next year, and we invite YOU to consider the possibility of playing a role in bringing our rich Religious Exploration ministry to life! In addition to joining a teaching team, there are other opportunities to support our varied RE activities through the year. Bring all of your curiosity and questions and interest to Betsy (dre@wsuu.org) or Julie Forkasdi, RE Council Chair (julieforkasdi@email.com)!

Westside’s Summer RE Program: June 16^th will be the first Sunday of our RE Summer Program! As with last year, we will offer an engaging multi-age class for children ages 5—12 in the Social Hall. Each week we’ll have a guest speaker share a topic they are passionate about, linked to our seven UU Principles. Our RE teacher each week will lead our kids through the rituals of chalice lighting, check-in, community building, energizers, and wrap-up, and we’ll have music, art, and movement activities infused. The Nursery will be open for children from 6 weeks to age 4, and youth over the age of 12 are invited to participate in the service (unless they have arranged with the Summer RE Coordinator to assist with the RE class). Check our RE blog for updates on our topics and activities each week! (www.wsuureligiousexploration.blogspot.com)

Mackenzie Murphy, Summer RE Coordinator: Please welcome Mackenzie Murphy, our RE Summer Coordinator for 2013!  Mackenzie will join Betsy Lowry, our DRE, and a team of dedicated RE volunteers to coordinate WSUU’s summer RE program from June 9^th through September 8^th. You’ll see her greeting families on Sunday morning, and ensuring that our littlest Nursery babies through our high school youth are welcomed and included in engaging weekly sessions.

Recently out of high school, Mackenzie is currently a nanny for two families. She adores her jobs and even more so, the kids she works with. Mackenzie has dedicated her time to children and youth as a camp counselor, babysitter, and nanny for the past nine years. Watching them flourish is something she’s deeply passionate about. Mackenzie will continue to follow this passion as either an au pair or an assistant ESL teacher abroad next spring. She is very excited about this new position and getting to know the Westside community where her parents, Patti Hooper and Larry Murphy, are members. Feel free to approach her at any time with questions or concerns, or just to say hi!

Summer Youth Activities: Our Youth Group will not meet regularly during the summer. They will plan periodic gatherings and events, which will be shared with families through email, posted on the RE Blog, and announced in the eNews and our weekly Order of Service. 

Looking Forward to Fall: As we ease into our summer schedules, we can relax knowing that fabulous programs will be offered next fall as a part of Westside’s ministry for children and youth. In July, families will hear more about orientations and information sessions for OWL offerings (including our year-long junior high OWL class for 7^th and 8^th graders), Coming of Age (offered for all of our high schoolers who have not yet been through a COA class), and our middle and high school youth groups. Our RE program will offer music and art opportunities for kids of all ages, and multigenerational events for families. And our middle and high school youth have fall Cons to attend!

RE Celebration Sunday Recap - June 9th

Hello Friends and Families of Westside!

Just posting some details for you to know for our RE Celebration service this week – a very cool mulitigenerational service you won’t want to miss!

First, the Nursery will be open with Julie Vance and Lewis Brancati. Our Story Time class for toddlers is closed for the summer, and our Story Time teachers will join us in the service on Sunday. Parents of toddlers are welcome to keep them in the service, or take them to the Nursery (or to try a little of both!).

Second, we will need time on Sunday morning before the service for final rehearsals, reviewing the flow of the service, and sound checks. If your child is in the Uke or the Youth Band, please have them at the church by 8:45 to tune their instrument and prepare for our 9:00 rehearsal.

Our Children’s Choir will meet in the Fireside Room at 9:45 a.m. for rehearsal.

If your child is participating in the service with a speaking role, please arrive by 9:45 for a review of their parts, and a sound check.

Finally, if you have any questions about the Bridging Ceremony, please don’t hesitate to contact me.

This will be fun!

See you Sunday,

Betsy

A Special Invitation to RE Celebration Sunday

Hello Friends and Families of Westside!

This week is RE Celebration Sunday, which is a multigenerational service, and I am posting this message early so you will know why to plan to attend!

One very important reason to attend is that we’ll have our annual Bridging Ceremony during this service, to honor the milestone transitions our kids are making. This year we don’t have any seniors bridging from high school, but we will recognize our preschoolers who are moving into kindergarten; our elementary kids moving into middle school (including those entering a middle school environment as a 5^th grader); and our 8^th graders moving into high school. And we want to cherish these kids and let them know we’re standing with them through these transitions! No preparation is necessary – just be there!

During this service we’ll also hear music from our children’s choir, our Ukulele Band, and our Youth Band. The bands have been fun, and a beautiful experience – a learning experience! It was an opportunity on those early Sunday mornings, to bring our children and youth together in community, to foster the bonds between them, and to empower them as music makers in our worship. And a starting point for me in learning about the challenges and possibilities! No matter the ultimate sound they make on Sunday – this will be fun!

We will recognize and appreciate our loving and dedicated teachers, advisors, and RE program friends who have stood by our children by preparing beautiful lessons for them week after week, building caring relationships, and attending to their spiritual development.

And through our worship experience, we’ll get a glimpse into the minds, hearts, and activities of our children and youth through their speaking, and through images from our RE year.

I look forward to this beautiful celebration in worship with you on

Sunday!

With love,

Betsy

Family Information for Sunday, June 2nd

Hello Friends and Families of Westside!

The next two weeks are special Sundays for us as we close out our RE year. Please read below to know what’s coming! This week our children will have celebrations in all classes, with food. If your child has a food allergy you would like to highlight, please tell the greeters when you first arrive. 

Note, the RE Council is cancelling Date Night for this evening since we didn’t get any takers this time around. We’ll likely offer this again in the fall.

You won’t want to miss next Sunday, June 9^th—our RE Celebration Sunday! We’ll honor milestone transitions our kids are making; our bands will play; we’ll see some video and pictures of our RE program in action; kids will share their RE experience as part of our worship; and we’ll recognize our fabulous teachers!

ANNOUNCEMENTS:

1.   BAND UPDATES: Woo-hoo, we’re close to the finish, and we need as much participation as possible! Both the Uke and the Youth Bands will meet three more times before they play in the service next Sunday, June 9^th. After June 9^th, we’ll take a break for the summer and we’ll regroup with a plan for the fall.

·      Tomorrow, June 2^nd, both bands will meet in the preschool room behind the Social Hall from 9:15-10:00.

·      Saturday, June 8^th from 4-5 p.m. both bands will meet in the Sanctuary for a short rehearsal and sound check to ensure we can mic them effectively. We’ll also review how to transition for the service the next day.

·      Sunday, June 9^th we need all band members to be ready to rehearse with the sound system by 9:15. I encourage you to arrive closer to 9:00 for set-up.

2.   CHILDREN’S CHOIR: Our final rehearsal is tomorrow, June 2^nd from 12-12:30 in the Fireside Room. The choir will sing next Sunday, June 9^th.

THIS WEEK:

Story Time: This week is our last Story Time class for the year. Next week is a multigenerational service, and parents may want to keep their toddlers in the Sanctuary through the service. The Nursery will be open next week and through the summer for infants and children up to age 4.

Spirit Play: Our Spirit Play class will enjoy a story with their celebration activities.

K-8^th Grade: All classes will celebrate the closing of our RE year with reflection, food, and fun!

High School: Our high school class is not meeting, since our youth have full schedules with other commitments.

YOUTH GROUP: This is our last Youth Group meeting for the year! Youth Group will get together periodically through the summer, and next week’s overnight (June 7-8) will close out the year.

See you tomorrow!

Betsy