(March 17, 2020)

Dear Friends,

I hope this message finds you in good spirits, even as we all struggle to adjust to the rapid changes occurring around us. Find a moment to unplug, rest your eyes and mind, and perhaps go outside or open a window and let the breeze in. It’s just about spring, after all, and nature is waking up, about to surprise us again with color and bloom. Blessed be for that constancy; that light and quickening music.

Thank you to everyone who participated in our first live-stream service on our congregation’s Facebook (FB) page this Sunday. It was good to be together, and we learned a lot in the process. We are planning on live-streaming on YouTube this coming Sunday, March 22, so that more people will have access to the service. We will likely broadcast on FB live-stream too. And soon we will explore leading a service on Zoom, which would give us a different kind of flexibility in online worship, should we need that.

But for this week, YouTube Live and probably FB Live too. We’ll send out more information closer to the service, which has changed in theme from what was in the newsletter to:

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Sunday, March 22, Hope in Time of Chaos, Rev. Bill Neely

Our lives are so different than they were even two weeks ago, and the stresses and anxieties of these days threaten our physical and spiritual health. Where can we turn for hope and peace during these unprecedented days? With so much tearing at our sense of well-being, how can we care for ourselves, and one another?

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We hope you’ll join us this Sunday. And be sure to tell your friends! Lastly, I want to offer a special word of gratitude to Kevin Yeh who worked tirelessly to get the live-stream going this week. Thank you Kevin! We couldn’t have done it without you.

Some other news: we have purchased a Zoom plan for our congregation. Zoom is a teleconferencing platform that allows groups of various sizes to meet online using video or telephone technology. It’s very popular in the larger UU world and easier than other platforms to use and understand. If you lead a ministry, team, or group and would like to meet virtually via zoom, just send an email to Bill@uuprinceton.org and I’ll be happy to get you set up. Chalice Circles, committee meetings, planning groups, spiritual-growth classes; Zoom is good for it all. Please do give me at least 48 hours to set up your meeting though. While I’ve been on innumerable Zoom calls, I’ve never set one up, so I’m expecting that to take a little time at first.

We also have a traditional teleconferencing option that comes with our phone system. Everyone on the call simply dials into the church land line, dials a particular extension, and everyone is on the call together. Please email Sara@UUprinceton.org if you’d like to use this system as we need to assign different extensions in case some of the calls overlap.

As for scheduling, all in-person meetings are cancelled through the end of March, and perhaps beyond. The staff is working adjusted schedules but is reachable, particularly via email. We’ll continue monitoring the advice and concerns of local and statewide leaders with regard to the spread of the coronavirus and gather again as soon as doing so doesn’t threaten public health. We all want to do our part to limit the transmission of the virus so that our health systems aren’t overwhelmed.

Some more big news – our Spring Sale (May, 2020) will now be a Fall Sale (September, 2020)! Our volunteer leaders realized that even if we are able to gather in person by the time of the Sale, we will lose much of the in-person planning time and meetings needed to get there. And so just as we turned our Spring Sale into a Fall Sale a few years ago as our building was being renovated, we’ll make that shift again. Last time, it worked out really well and I’m sure it will this time too.

Also, UU Princeton will not be making sandwiches for Loaves and Fishes this year, although there may be a way for us financially support that important ministry. Thank you to our volunteers who are exploring options for supporting Loaves and Fishes, now or in the future.

The Ordination of former UU Princeton member Jane Smith, scheduled later this month in Maryland, has been postponed. Once Jane has a new date, we’ll send word out and hopefully get a good group from her first UU congregation to celebrate her Ordination by the congregation she serves.

Lastly, our Pastoral Associates are here for you. Please contact the church to be in touch with our PA’s if you’re feeling isolated or anxious and they’ll connect with you. These are stressful times for everyone; please reach out if you need to talk. Especially if you develop flu-like symptoms: stay home, call a doctor, and then let us know so that we can check up on you.

We’ll be in frequent touch with more information as it develops. Blessings to you and your loved ones. And thank you for being a part of the UU Princeton community.