Flowers: The flowers for today's service are donated by Jennifer Day and Marc Cendron in loving memory of Harold and Betty Whiting, and Brice Day Cendron.

Chalice Lighters: The Raddatz Family

Ushers: Annie and Lark Madden.

Coffee Hour Hosts: Maureen Adams & Lee McLaughlin, Jack & Lorraine Adelman, Jeanne Anderson and Richard Anderson.

FRS Current Events Forum: 9:30 a.m. in Lower Meetinghouse Conference Room. The topic is "Hillary, Billery, Obama."

The Rev. John Weston, our pulpit guest for our annual Association Sunday, is a connoisseur of congregations. This is crucial to his position as Director of Ministerial Transitions for the Unitarian Universalist association, the person who for the last decade has guided churches in their search for ministers and ministers in their search for churches. His work has brought him to a wide array of UU pulpits from coast to coast, and he has worked out a taxonomy of congregation types. His sermon today will invite us to sign our way into deeper understanding of who we are.

(Harold Babcock will be preaching at the First Unitarian Church of Cincinnati, Ohio, this morning on behalf of the UU Partner Church Council.)

Steeple Lighting: The steeple lighting for this week has been donated by Roxie and Janet Kalashian in loving memory of Carol (Kalashian) Mullen.

Flowers: The flowers for today's service are donated by Ginger and Jeff Bard in memory of Ginger's mother and father, Peg and Leon Dubuc, and Jeff's father, Bruce Bard.

Ushers: Pat and Richard Ouellette.

Coffee Hour Hosts: Leslie Lawrence and Stan Barrett, William Heenehan & Marna Badavas, Russell Meade, and Jeffrey and Virginia Bard.

Our guest preacher will be the Rev. John Weston, who for the last decade has been the UUA's director of ministerial transitions. Weston is a connoisseur of congregations as well as a fine preacher, and his sermon promises not only to be engaging but also to help us come to a deeper understanding of First Religious Society in the context of UU congregations everywhere.

And this year the UUA has invited all its member congregations to join in a campaign to raise money to market Unitarian Universalism nationally, support local growth and outreach projects, and a new program that supports ministers of color. To this end, the Association Sunday offering will help the UUA's campaign, and members of the congregation who are moved to contribute may also bring checks to the church office.

The most visible evidence of the national marketing campaign has been a series of ads in Time magazine aimed at overcoming the fact that only a tiny fraction of Americans are even aware of Unitarian Universalism and the values it stands for. But at least as helpful will be outreach programs funded by grants controlled by district boards and efforts to help congregations settle new ministers of color with support from funds administered by the UUA's new Diversity of Ministry team.

Association Sundays have been part of FRS's life for many years, but the idea is new to most UU congregations, and at the UUA's suggestion most held theirs in October. To date, congregations have raised more than $1.1 million for this campaign. If you can't be in church February 24 to make your contribution, and are moved to be part of this campaign, please bring or mail checks to the church office made out to FRS with Association Sunday in the memo line.

The Association Sunday effort is part of the UUA's "Now Is the Time" campaign, whose goal is raise $20 million in cash and $30 million in deferred giving by June 2009.

Many church choirs, including our own, have struggled to attract enough strong volunteer singers especially in the tenor and bass sections. While our choir has grown overall, many volunteers have limited vocal experience or cannot read music well. The church choir is open to anybody with the desire to sing, as it should be, regardless of musical training. It is a place for fellowship, as much as a place to exercise and hone musical skills. An experienced music director, such as ours, can partially compensate for differences in musical training of the singers by choices of music, a supportive teaching style and by pairing stronger and weaker singers in the choir. Beyond this, many church choirs have found it very helpful to engage one professional quality singer for each of the four voice parts of their choir to lead and support the cadre of volunteer singers. We have been fortunate that our church has been able to financially support two section leaders for the bass and tenor sections.

The positive impact on our choir has been enormous: having two section leaders has given the volunteer choir members guidance and a strong voice to follow along with and to lean on, while the more experienced singers in the choir have appreciated the faster learning process and the ability to sing more complex music with the whole choir. Having section leaders has boosted morale and enjoyment among the volunteer singers, and has resulted in a noticeable improvement in the quality of the choir overall.

Our church music program aspires "to elevate the spirit," as part of our vision statement says, and the addition of section leaders, mundane as it may seem, has been a step in elevating the spirits of the singers and the listening congregation alike.

Collection for the Pettengill House
During the month of February the Community Human Services Committee will be collecting for the Pettengill House. The items needed are packaged food, paper products, and personal toiletries. For those who do not want to shop, we will gladly accept donations of cash and will be happy to do the shopping for you. Please leave all contributions on the table in the vestibule with the "Pettengill" sign. If you have any questions about this, please call Carol Kilty.

The suggested contribution for attending each concert will be $10.00 (seniors), $15.00 (adults), free (students).

Donations Needed
We are seeking tin mint tins (such as Altoids) for a Young Church project. If you have any to donate, please get them to Julie Parker Amery. Thank you.

It's not too late to donate an old small appliance for our use in Young Church! It can be something that doesn't work anymore and should be something that can be taken apart safely. Please bring drop them off by Sunday, February 17.

New OWL Policies
In an effort to keep our OWL class manageable, safe, and meaningful for participants, the Religious Education Committee has adopted new policies for participation in the program. The policies will be sent directly to all parents with children due to participate in the class next year, but it is important that all church members and friends are aware of them. Please take a moment to look at the policies so that you are aware of them. This will help tremendously if someone you know who does not attend the FRS asks you how they might get their son or daughter into the class. Thank you!

Spring Is Just Around the Corner-
And that means we're seeking teachers for our spring term in Young Church! The term begins on March 9 and runs for eight weeks. Teaching is fun and a great way to get to know other adults and, of course, some of the fantastic kids, at FRS! Training, curriculum and supplies are all provided-what could be easier? Please contact Julie Parker Amery to let her know that you're interested.

                            Schedule

Please park on the house side, not the river side, of the road.

Spirit in Practice
Wednesdays, 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.
March 5 to April 16, excluding March 12 and April 9
Led by Christina Sillari and Alex Mezey
Though the program has been split in two, we hope participants will attend as many sessions as possible. Each evening features an aspect of spiritual growth: the value of regular spiritual practice for spiritual development and the "eight spheres" of spiritual growth (1), prayer and meditation (2), meaningful communal worship (3), current spiritual needs (4), intellectual exploration and stages of spiritual growth (5), the body in spirituality (6), creative expression in spirituality (7), integration of inner lives with outer work (8), social action as integral part of spirituality (9), and implementation of spiritual practices (10). To register, call Christina Sillari at (978) 465 0602 x410.

We regret that at this time the practice is located on the second floor of the building and there is no elevator. Those unable to climb the stairs should call us to talk over the situation. We may be able to arrange home visits.

Then FRS Administrator to Church Leaders: So, help me here: which committee said it had a porpoise?

From a member of Committee on the Ministry: I have surfed with porpoises and they care little about purposes.

From a staff member: I think we should get one . . . It would make [committee] meetings a lot more fun.

From the head of Adult Education: It could be the Adult Ed-sometimes it feels like there is a porpoise in the room.

From the head of Human Resources: Good question because the porpoise certainly is not very transparent budget-wise, and I worry that another committee might demand a dolphin, and you can see how this could get out of hand.

You have probably just responded to our recent mail or phone appeal, but we thought you would want to know what UUSC is doing in response to this crisis.

UUSC condemns the mounting violence precipitated by the electoral crisis in Kenya, and we are deeply concerned about the growing humanitarian crisis. Across Kenya, entire neighborhoods and villages have been burned to the ground. Sources report that between 485 and 600 people have been killed, numbers that are likely to rise once humanitarian aid groups gain access to remote areas that are currently restricted.

"We are being brave, but it's really bad. The nation is so agitated, and we are living in intense fear, anxiety, and danger. It really seems that the ordinary person's daily life, hope, and spirit have been destroyed. We were in a cease-fire with the hope that mediation would take place, but now I think those hopes are dashed," said Bahahi, one of UUSC's partner leaders.

An estimated 255,000 displaced people have crowded into insufficiently equipped sites, without adequate access to food, water, medicines, and other supplies. Another 250,000 people who have not been displaced are in need of food, water, and other services. Kenyans still in their homes also are living with insecurity and many are afraid to leave; Kenyans report that people are being forced from their homes at night. Schools that were scheduled to open Monday, January 14, are full of displaced persons, and parents fear sending children to school amid the current insecurity. Many hospitals are overwhelmed with trauma cases and are running low on medicines and supplies.

Areas throughout the country are being strained by serious shortages of fuel, water, food, and other commodities due to closed ports and the paralyzed transportation system. Because Kenya also serves as the regional hub for trade and the flow of relief supplies, the growing crisis threatens vital humanitarian work in Uganda, southern Sudan, and the Congo. In order to help us respond, UUSC asks our members and supporters to give to the UUSC-UUA Kenya Crisis Fund. Through UUSC's long-term and ongoing work in Kenya, we have established relationships with grassroots organizations from a variety of social sectors. In collaboration with these groups, we have been monitoring the situation closely. An expert delegation led by UUSC President Charlie Clements and Programs Director Atema Eclai will be traveling to Kenya on January 19 to assess the growing humanitarian crisis by meeting with UUSC partners, community members and leaders, and humanitarian specialists.

Please help now! Members and supporters who would like to support UUSC's efforts to help the people of Kenya are encouraged to donate to the UUSC-UUA Kenya Crisis by mailing checks payable to Kenya Crisis Fund to:

UUSC-UUA Kenya Crisis Fund
UUSC
PO Box 845259
Boston, MA 02284-5259

Or you may donate online by visiting http://www.uusc.org/info/Kenyaarticle011408.html