Greater Nashville UU News Update
April 2, 2025
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Minister’s Note

Apr. 2, 2025

“Traditions are the inventions of people who mean to
routinely put love and comfort and meaning into
their lives and the lives of those they love.”
~Elizabeth Berg

Dear Ones,

These next three months, April, May, and June, also known as the 4th quarter of our congregational and UUA fiscal/church year, are full of traditions! Some of them, like our recent (and very successful) fundraising auction, we tend to think of as fun community-building events and look forward to every spring. Others, like the stewardship pledge drive and our annual GNUUC business meeting to vote for officers of the congregation and approve our budget for the coming year starting in July, we tend to think of as necessities (because they are) and perhaps to dismiss as boring or tedious–which I’d like to challenge you to reframe!

Thinking about our money–where it comes from and how we deploy it–and about how we organize our time and talents and skills to sustain congregational life are, obviously, ongoing tasks all year long. But every spring, we ask that everyone join in the projects of making annual pledges of financial support and practicing our core commitment to democracy by attending our meeting. These two crucial practices safeguard the continuity of our resources and are, in a sense, some of our most important congregational traditions. Individually as members, and together as a congregation, these are ways we routinely put love and comfort and meaning into our own lives and work to extend our welcome and care into the wider community, as our mission and vision of ministry direct.

Our pledge drive will be ongoing over the next two weeks, and our annual meeting will be held immediately following our Sunday service on May 18. I look forward to your participation in our rituals of planning and renewal!

Yours in springtime renewal,

Rev. Denise
RevDenise@gnuuc.org

Welcome to April!

This month, as we reflect on The Practice of Joy, we invite you to engage with open hearts and generous spirits. Together, we will launch our Pledge Drive and celebrate Earth Day, embracing the opportunity to reimagine how we can use our gifts to advance Climate Justice within our local community.!

THIS SUNDAY AT GREATER NASHVILLE UU

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Sun., Apr. 13, 2025, 11 AM: Sunday Service, Caren Spencer-Smith "Climate Justice: What If We Get It Right?" (Hybrid)

This hybrid service will be in the Sanctuary at Greater Nashville UU Congregation and on Zoom. See How to Join a Virtual Service at GNUUC. The Wiggle Room is available off the sanctuary for those who need it.

After service, please join us for a potluck lunch.

Sun., Apr. 13, 2025, 1 PM: Worship Team Meeting (Hybrid Sanctuary/Zoom) Newcomers Welcome!

The Worship Team has changed its meetings to in-person/hybrid on the 2nd Sunday of the month at 1 PM in the Sanctuary.

Please join us if you are interested in the Sunday Worship Service content, volunteering as a Service Leader or Service Designer, volunteering to play music or sing, or joining the Tech Team. We would love to have you!

If interested in joining on Zoom, the link is in Slack at the top of the Worship channel reach out to revdenise@gnuuc.org to join this channel.

Sat., Apr. 19, 2025, 10 AM - 2 PM: UU Climate Justice Revival Workshop: All are Welcome!

In Part 2 of our Climate Justice Revival we will work on our congregation action plan! It is NOT necessary for you to have attended in the Fall to attend.

For the first time in…ever…the entire UU ecosystem is organizing for climate justice action. We all know how desperate the situation is, but even those of us who have been climate and environmental activists for a long time feel powerless. But, there’s power in numbers and thousands of UUs around the world are getting ready to join hands in September for a denominational Climate Justice Revival. Sponsored by the UUA, UUMFE, UUSC and a whole lot of other UU organizations—as well as our own leaders and thinkers on this subject—this Revival is designed to kick-start our activism and ongoing engagement in climate justice work.

Our congregation will:

-Create a complex representation of the challenging realities and liberatory possibilities for climate justice in our unique context

-Develop a vision of a flourishing future

-Identify a clear set of potential actions that we can take to realize this vision

-Enable participants to understand their roles in the interdependent ecosystem of creating climate justice and collective liberation.

These kinds of things don’t happen often. Our churches all stand alone and apart. Collaboration is difficult, let alone a decision for every UU congregation to join in this Revival at the same time. We’ll all have the same materials, our leaders were trained with other UUs, and when it’s over, we’ll be part of the national conversation moving our climate work forward. It’s exciting just on the face of it, and the day itself is looking like a lot of fun.

CONGREGATION ANNOUNCEMENTS

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Thursday, April 3 ONLINE ONLY: Rise for Freedom Trainings

As we face the growing threat of autocracy in our country, it's more crucial than ever to build a stronger, more united movement for democracy.

That is why Greater Nashville UU Congregation will be hosting in-person gatherings to participate in the Rise for Freedom Training Series every Thursday for the next few weeks. We are inviting friends like you to come together and learn how to organize and mobilize diverse, nonpartisan communities to demand democracy.

Please come to any or all of the scheduled meetings. Each session is designed to stand alone and will include music, calls to action, digital hygiene/safety tips, and a core online training module, with in-person breakouts for hands-on learning, planning, and community building.

The American Civil Liberties Union originated in 1920 as a response to the Palmer raids, in which thousands of people were arrested without warrants or regard to constitutional protections against unlawful search and seizure, then brutally treated and held in horrible conditions before deportation. The ACLU today is the nation's largest public interest law firm, with a 50-state network of staffed, autonomous affiliate offices. It appears before the United States Supreme Court more than any other organization except the U.S. Department of Justice. About 500 ACLU staff attorneys collaborate with about 2,000 volunteer attorneys in handling close to 2,000 cases annually.

We are thrilled to share that the Fiesta 2025 Auction raised $8,343, surpassing our goal of $8,000!

This year’s auction was a resounding success — and it was amazing to witness our community come together to make it happen. The event was a true reflection of the power of collaboration, generosity, and shared purpose. Thank you all for turning our vision into reality.

Heartfelt thanks to everyone who made it possible:

-Kris T. for Auctria support and donation entry— a monumental effort!
-Jesse S-S. for thoughtfully assisting with live auction item planning.
-Dan L. for his dynamic and entertaining work as our auctioneer.
-Mirabelle S. and the Tex-Mex food crew for preparing a truly delicious meal (see Maribelle’s Thank You).
-The Women’s Group for crafting beautiful and festive decorations.
-The Saturday Setup Crew for transforming the space by setting up tables, silent auction displays, and live auction items.
-Kris T. and family (again!) for stepping up to ensure a smooth registration, bidding, and checkout process.
-To all who donated, all who attended, and all who bid — your contributions made this event joyful and successful.

Together, we created more than just an auction — we strengthened our community. Thank you!

Many thanks to the following who helped make the Taco Bar a great success-I know I’ve missed some, please forgive me, if I have.

Bonnie, who supplied lovely Mexican cookies and rice, an homage to her New Mexico roots, and took care of the cold section;

Leisa, who prepped all the veggies and took care of the tacos and tortillas;

Mike for his delicious key lime pies;

Lisa who brought a delicious flan with chocolate cake, and with Gina, were the baristas for the delicious beverages;

Jane W. who quietly and without fuss did whatever she was called upon to do, cleared tables, and more;

Dan, who sourced 99% of the food, and was still running to Kroger in the last minutes;

And very, very special thanks to Charles and Melissa who were there when I arrived, warmed up and set up almost all of the food, stayed throughout the serving, washed ALL of the dishes, pots and pans, and serving dishes ENTIRELY by themselves- thank you - you were my rock.

Mirabelle

April 5, 2025, is the deadline to apply or recertify for Nashville’s Tax Relief and Tax Freeze programs for 2024. These programs are for those 65 and older, the disabled, and disabled veterans and widow(ers). This is the first year that the qualifying annual household income limit has been raised to $60,000 for the tax freeze program; the income limit for the tax relief program is $36,370. You can find more information about the two programs here and here. Download a flyer here.

Mark your calendars now for NOAH’s annual banquet on May 29 from 6:00 pm to 8:00 pm. This year’s banquet will again take place at the Boone Center at Trevecca Nazarene University, with Charlene Oliver, District 19 Senator in the Tennessee legislature, as keynote speaker. More details to come. Watch this space!

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