There will be two Zoom listening circles on Wednesday, May 6th. One is at 5 pm, and the other is at 8 pm. You will have to sign up for those. There will be sign-up sheets in Deale Hall on Sunday. 

Attention fellow UUs!

Do you like cherry jam? Do you want to help our neighborhood pantry?

If your answer to both questions was a resounding YES then Sunday, May 3 you will have a chance to sample and purchase some home made cherry jam. The price for an 8oz jar is a mere $5. All proceeds will be donated to our neighborhood pantry for the purchase of inventory.

A little “Pop Up” shop will be in Deale Hall following the service.

Gaen McClendon and Wanda Hoover.

Choir Reminder

Sunday morning Choir rehearsals will start at 8:45 a.m. from now until Music Sunday on May 17th. 

Thank You

The Building & Grounds Committee wants to sincerely thank the following folks for the tremendous effort and amount of work they put into the Prairie area, Atrium, Parking lot island, the Circle Garden, Memorial Patio, Church sign area, and various trees and shrubs in the West lawn. Listed not in any specific order.

Allen, Art, Teresa, Rich, Clark, Eli, John, Kim, Barb, Sandi, Lia, Charlie, Kendra, & Jason. 
There are probably others that I might have missed. The cutting, trimming, pruning, chipping, hauling, shoveling, and raking really transformed all the areas listed. It’s our hope that other members of the congregation will take the time to stroll around the areas mentioned and take a look at and appreciate what was done. And, as usual, there is always more to be attended to, and additional help is always welcome.

U.U. Church Building & Grounds Committee

Common Read Recap 2: Roles

A copy of the UU 2026 Common Read, Social Change Now: A Guide for Reflection and Connection by Deepa Iyer, is available in our church library.  The book provides an overview of the social change roles we embody to work together. This is a workbook that helps us better understand ourselves and how we work in groups.

We shared the first two roles–Frontline Responders and Visionaries–in last week’s Kairos, along with a longer book recap. The other eight roles include:

• Builders are able to support a big vision in small, incremental steps and have the skills to manage people and resources. You are resourceful, focused, and detail-oriented.

• Disrupters are deeply rooted in their convictions, creative and strategic, and willing to take actions that often are risky and shake up the status quo. You are courageous, determined, and ready to put it on the line.

• Caregivers focus on the members of an ecosystem with perception and intuition, collaborating with and supporting frontline responders and disrupters. You are very present, and often care-give in multiple contexts. 

• Experimenters have the capacity to try something without knowing the outcome, and a readiness to change course. You are curious, innovative, and pioneering.

• Weavers connect, network, and listen. You have the capacity to keep the “whole” in mind and hold space for fostering relationships, while trusting intuition and flow. 

• Storytellers know how to be vulnerable and to connect to a social change ecosystem. You are accessible and inspiring, and know rest is required to generate ideas.

• Healers are transformative, intuitive, and forgiving. You study and practice various modalities, and are deeply anchored in a deep and enduring commitment to healing, connecting with ecosystems ready to embrace this.

• Guides can translate meaningful experience and expertise, with humility and the intention to be a helpful and supportive mentor. You are knowing and discerning and focused on improving.

It is very possible to identify with more than one role. Iyer also explores how to support and grow within each role.

The UU Fourth Sunday Book Discussion Group meets at noon on the fourth Sunday of every month (Suprise!) in the church library.

This month, we will be reading Animal Farm by George Orwell

Admission if Free
Membership is Free
No strings are attached

• Our deep roots connect us to a wealth of resources that nourish our growth as a beacon for justice, inclusion, and liberation, especially anti-racism and gender and sexuality justice. 
• Our listening cultivates diverse and multicultural relationships that bridge divisions, strengthen our communities, heal hearts, and foster safety for all. 
• Our awareness of our interdependence inspires us to protect the shared environment and natural world in which we live.

The Unitarian Universalist Church, Rockford, IL  |   4848 Turner St., Rockford, IL 61107   |   815-398-6322    |   uurockford.org  |