Your Weekly Link – News and Updates 11/10/2022

Your Weekly Link – News and Updates 11/10/2022

Table of Contents

  • This Week in Worship
  • This Week in Religious Exploration
  • Events and Meetings
  • News and Announcements
  • Volunteer Opportunities
  • Beyond First Parish

This Week in Worship

“Singing a New Song”

Worship Assistant: Lisa White

Greeter: Jeff Stoodt

Usher: Tracey Robinson

Social Hour: Robert & Joanna Dahl

Music: Dzidzor Amorin

Audio: Brynne Mershon

Sunday’s offering will go towards the ministry and service of First Parish.

Masks are optional for vaccinated people in the meetinghouse; masks are still required for those who have not been vaccinated. Respect and consideration should be given to all regardless of their masking choice.

Dear First Parish community:

Well that went quickly, didn’t it?

August 15-November 15 is a blink of an eye. Late summer to mid-autumn. 10 Sundays. Yet it was enough time for me to feel at home here and develop a fondness and respect for this faith community and its members. It was enough time to be encouraged by who are you and how you strive to grow deep faith and take bold action.

Rev. Lisa spoke so well of you that I figured all would be well. But there is a difference between hearing about a community and experiencing a community. I’m glad I had the chance to serve you these three months and get to know you.

A number of you have asked what’s next for me. Well, I’m looking forward to a less busy life for a couple months. Then in February I begin another sabbatical ministry, this one for four months at All Souls UU in New London, Ct. That’s home town territory for me, as I grew up in Groton, the next town over. I’m quite excited to be back on the Connecticut coast in a place that holds so many memories, and where family and friends still reside.

I do thank you for the genuine welcome and willingness to support me as your sabbatical minister that I felt from all corners: staff, leaders, children, youth, long-time members and those, like me, who just walked in. All the warmth and welcome helped me to settle in, do my job, and enjoy myself.

The first Sunday I preached I said that as your sabbatical minister I’m here to row the boat with you, and that really all we had to do was row together, meet the challenges that came along, do our best to love and enjoy one another, and stay afloat. I think we did that. Come November 15, I hand back to Rev. Lisa this congregation, grateful to her for her trust and you all for your faithfulness.

Warmly,

Rev. Tricia

Music For Sunday

Dzidzor Amorin will be offering the music for worship this Sunday.

Religious Exploration

This week, RE children will participate in an all-ages craft workshop during worship. We will read ‘The Extraordinary Marble’, talk about the power of kindness, and then work together to build our own marble mazes.

Youth participating in Coming of Age will not meet with mentors this Sunday, November 13 as scheduled. Instead, youth are encouraged to attend the worship service. Our next class with youth is November 2o, and we intend for mentors and youth to first meet on December 11. Thank you to those who have already shown an interest in serving as mentors. We invite three or four more members of our congregation to mentor our Coming of Age youth this year. Please contact Jeff DellaRovere at jdellarovere@hotmail.com if you want to learn about Coming of Age mentoring or if you are interested in mentoring.

Events and Meetings

Invitation to Weekly Meditation

Creating a peaceful space, a few minutes each week, is a quiet and powerful way to maintain balance in these hectic and challenging times.

Every week a small group “gathers” for silent meditation/prayer. We meet on Sunday morning 8:30am-9:00am and Thursday evening 6:45pm-7:15pm. We meet via Zoom for the convenience of those who live at a distance and for those who prefer to join from home. All are welcome. Contact Tracey at tdr02186@gmail.com for more info.

Peace is this moment without judgment. That is all. This moment where everything that is, is welcome.

The Milton Residents Fund gratefully accepts financial or gift card donations throughout the year to assist families and individuals who are experiencing a financial crisis. We especially need gift cards during November and December to respond to holiday gift requests for those requesting additional assistance with the purchase of food or basic necessities, and teens/young adults/parents and seniors who have requested help with a holiday gift, sneakers, bedding or winter clothing. The following would be particularly helpful: grocery (shaws or star market work best), target (as they sell everything), Dicks Sporting Goods (for athletic needs of teens,) Gamestop as several older youth have only listed video games on their holiday wishlist, TJ MAxx/Marshalls or Amazon. All else would also be gratefully accepted. Generally we distribute in increments of $25 and $50.  Donations can be left in the grey box in the church hallway. Provide the donors name and mailing address if a tax donation letter is requested.”

Regards,

Noreen K Dolan, MSW, LCSW

Fund Coordinator

Thanks-for-Giving Celebration

Each year the Milton Interfaith Clergy Association (MICA) gathers our entire community together in gratitude for our many blessings and to honor extraordinary volunteers from our many communities of faith and civic organizations. Our theme this year is Welcoming the Stranger as we give thanks for all the gifts of time, talent, and treasure that are helping welcome our newest Syrian refugee neighbors to Milton.  

Please plan to join the celebration on Sunday, Nov. 20 @ 4:00pm to First Congregational Church, 495 Canton Ave, in person and via Livestream  to celebrate and give thanks.

An offering will be received and split evenly among the Milton Food Pantry, the Milton Residents’ Fund,and the MICA Refugee Resettlement Fund. Please make checks payable to MICA. A light meal of soup and bread will follow the service.

News and Announcements

What’s the deal with the Inflation Reduction Act?

Back in August, Congress passed the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), America’s biggest-ever investment in fighting climate change. Much of that money is aimed at people like you and me to make our homes more efficient and to switch from fossil fuel-powered to electric vehicles, heating, appliances and more. It’s a huge opportunity to save energy and save money.

The organization Rewiring America has put together two excellent and very accessible guides – a guide to electrifying your home and a guide to the incentives available under the IRA-that everyone should read. And Tony Dutzik recently published an article with a few tips for how to get started in electrifying your home. See more info on the Getting to Zero section of the FPM website.

Volunteer Opportunities

Fair Foods

Fair Foods is a non-profit program that rescues fresh produce that would otherwise be wasted and uses it to feed our communities. We volunteer together unloading and sorting food and packing bags once a month.

The next volunteer date is Saturday, November 19th.

If you want to volunteer, please sign up on Sign up Genius by Thursday

evening before the event. Start time and locations vary depending on Fair Foods’ needs, but typically start at 8:30 a.m. at their warehouse at 70 Amory Street in Roxbury.

Sign up here!

Other volunteer opportunities are also available at Fair Foods, especially on Friday and Saturday mornings. Contact Tony Dutzik at tdutzik@gmail.com or 617-291-4685 with any questions or for more information.

First Parish Milton volunteers provide bagged lunches to MainSpring adult shelters in Brockton twice a month on the 1st and 3rd Wednesdays. Members of the Social & Environmental Justice committee will make the delivery to Brockton.

Volunteers are needed to acquire food and pack 10 lunches and deliver to the church between 12:45 pm-1:00 pm on Delivery day. One team lead drives all the lunches to the shelter in Brockton. Please note how many meals you are making in comments. We are looking for 70 lunches for each delivery day. Lunches should include sandwich, fruit, drink, snack/chips and sweet/cookies.

The next delivery day will be on Wednesday, November 23rd and then every other Wednesday throughout the year. We will meet in the lower parking lot between 12:40 and 1:00 PM.

If you haven’t made lunches in a while OR if you are a new volunteer, sign up on MainSpring Sign Up Genius or contact Pat Gallivan at pl.gallivan@verizon.net for more info.

Thanks to all the volunteers that have made this program a success for more than two years !!

Sign up here

Beyond First Parish

ONLINE UU HISTORY SERIES – OPEN TO ALL!

Tuesdays, October 11th thru November 15th

7:00pm-8:00pm CT

Offered on Zoom Free

The Faith Forward program out of the First Unitarian Church of Dallas is excited to offer an online session of our UU History series for all congregations! This series is an incredible opportunity for all visitors, members, and friends to learn more about the rich and deep history of our faith. This series approaches history from the starting point of compelling stories and personalities; each session will focus on one or two people from our history. Participants explore the questions these people faced and make connections with their own lives and the world around them today. The overarching question is: how can history be translated into our religious life and practice? 

To register, just use this link:

NOURISH: Community Dinners & Conversations

Wednesday, November 16, 6-7:30 p.m. (and ongoing)

First Congregational Church, 435 Canton Avenue (our neighbor across the green)

These catered dinners and conversations alternate weekly between our town’s two Congregational churches. Suggested donation $5/pp or $20/family*. Event includes 45 minutes of supervised kids’ activities during guest presentations. Alex Hasha of Sustainable Milton will present: “More than history: WHY do we volunteer?” YOU are invited!! [*Sustainable Milton members will be free on 11/16]

Another Milton Grows Event

“Let’s Compost! What are you waiting for?”

Tuesday, November 29, 6:45 p.m. (in-person)

Milton Public Library (MPL) 

Keyes Room (lower level – accessible)

476 Canton Avenue

Milton Grows is a year-long MPL initiative focused on gardening and sustainability in collaboration with The Friends of MPL and Sustainable Milton. Local duo Tucker Smith and Sita Cochran will cheerlead for home composting. It will be interactive, enthusiastic, and educational, with lots of show and tell to inspire you and your family. Free to all.

Book Group with the book THE FENCE

This is the chilling Boston story of violence against a police office by other police officers and the subsequent cover-up. The police officer beaten was Michael Cox, Boston’s current police commissioner. 

Join us on Zoom, Tuesday night 11/15/22 from 7:00pm to 8:30pm.

Register here

The Fence is available as an ebook from Milton Public Library and can be purchased on Amazon.

Your CCTRJ Book Group Hosts, Debbie Alsebai, Annette Correia, Ann Hunt and Pat Neves


STAY CONNECTED

Follow First Parish on Facebook and get updates, poems, announcements and more. You’ll be glad you did!

CHURCH OFFICE HOURS

Monday – Thursday 10:00 am – 1:00 pm

Other times by appointment

MINISTER OFFICE HOURS

Tuesday – Thursday 10:00 am – 2:00 pm

Other times by appointment

The Church office is closed on Fridays

Sundays through mid June

  • Worship, 9:30 am in the Meetinghouse
  • Choir Rehearsal (most Sundays) at 8:45 am

SIGN UP GENIUS (formerly known as the Planner)

The link to SignUp Genius is: http://www.signupgenius.com/go/4090d44aca728a02-sunday1

You can sign up for one our our Sunday volunteer positions.