May! Already? The warmer air is creeping in and visions of swimming pools are whirling around in our daydreams as many of us complete our semesters and/or school years. Similarly, our CartUUns class and UUCBV Youth Group will have their End of Year Party on Wednesday, May 25. We will meet at the Fun for All Playground at Stephen Beachy Central Park at 5:15 PM. We will have games, snacks, and arts and crafts. Please consider bringing a towel and swimsuit for the splash pad. Sunscreen and water bottles are encouraged! As always, don’t forget to check out UUCBV’s RE Newsletter, The Spark. This month’s theme is “Courage.” This newsletter has online resources for children, youth, and families.
We have so much fun planned over the summer, but for now, I want to highlight one program for all ages—UUCBV Pen Pals! Check out the details below and let me know if you would like a Pen Pal by May 25. We are especially excited for our elders and adults to sign up to have a pen pal over the summer months!
For our Brazos UU adults, our book read group meets every other Wednesday at 7:30 PM. Our selection is The Stonewall Generation: LGBT Elders on Sex, Activism, and Aging by Jane Fleishman. Feel free to join and discuss these engaging and powerful chapter-length memoirs. Secondly, the Lunch & Learn series continues! Each Thursday at noon, join the Church Zoom to hear from speakers and discuss with each other a wide variety of topics. Some highlights for May include Rev. Ranwa Hammamy from Side with Love talking about the necessity of local, context-specific organizing as we imagine and build a more liberated world and Hugh Stearns speaking about Brazos Stories, a podcast that highlights important folks in the Brazos Valley. Come join in the fun!
RE Sunday Blurbs:
5/1: I’m Puzzled!: We work on puzzles and talk about what to do when you just can’t find the piece you’re looking for!
5/8: Mother’s Day and Flower Communion: Intergenerational Service
5/15: Lake Bryan Day and New Members Ceremony: Intergenerational Service
5/22: Poetry: We write acrostic poems and sing rhyming poetry songs
5/29: Splendid Summer: We set intentions for our summer months and talk about our plans.
UUCBV Pen Pals
We are starting a super special summer program at UUCBV—Pen Pals! In this fun intergenerational program, kids, youth, and adults are matched to get to know a little more about each other every month of the summer until our Pen Pal Party.
Who can participate? Anyone under the age of 18 can be a “younger” pal and anyone over 18 can be an “older” pal. Pen Pals will be at least 10 years apart in age. Anyone under 18 must receive permission from their grown-ups to participate in the program. What is required? All participants are asked to commit to writing at least 3 letters (one per month from June 1-August 30). Feel free to write more often if desired. Younger pals who cannot write can dictate to their grown-ups a letter or create a drawing as their letter. All participants commit to attending the Pen Pal Party on September 18.Can I send gifts?You can send small gifts to your Pen Pal. Any gifts exchanged should be for the purpose of sharing about yourself with your partner or acknowledging something your partner told you about themselves (for example, sending a mini-Twix if “favorite candy is a Twix bar”). A gift should not be given without a note. Do not spend more than $5 over the course of the program.How do I get started?Email Allison at DRE@brazos-uu.org with the following information before May 25: - Name - Address to receive letters from June 1-August 30 - Written permission from your grown-up to participate if under 18: Include a sentence like “I give permission for ______ to participate in UUCBV Pen Pals program during the summer of 2022.”What do I write about?If you need help with letter ideas, consider some of the following: - Share your favorite recipe or restaurant and dish you like to order there. - If you could go anywhere in the world for a day, where would you go and why? - If you didn’t have to sleep, what would you do with the extra time? - What would your perfect room look like? - What fictional place would you most like to go? - What would be the most amazing adventure to go on? - What songs have you completely memorized? - What game or movie universe would you most like to live in? - What pets did you have while you were growing up?
Email Allison at DRE@brazos-uu.org to join in the fun before May 25