On Sunday, September 7th, the Family Ministry Team has some big plans. First, the Kids’ Connection volunteers will be commissioned by Reverend Kevin and the congregation during the early portion of the downstairs service. When I asked what “being commissioned” meant, I was told that it is something like being blessed at the beginning of a new undertaking. In this case, the new undertaking is the inception of a new year of our work on behalf of the children and youth of UUCM.
The downstairs service on that day will be UUCM’s water communion, a ritual held annually in the fall during which we welcome each other back into community after our summer adventures, large and small. Each family is invited to bring in small containers of water that represent their family’s lived experiences during the past many months. The adults can bring in water for the downstairs service. And, the children can bring in water for the water communion we will hold upstairs during our child-centered service. (Rest assured, we will have small containers of water that symbolically represent a child’s experiences over the summer months for those children who are not able to bring in their own containers of water.).
Finally, after the service on September 7th, the Family Ministry team will hold a Parent Cafe, a time and place to bring together the adults who love and care for the children of UUCM. We will serve a light lunch to the participating parents. Child care after the service (with lunch) will be provided by several faithful Kids’ Connection volunteers. If you are a parent of one or more of our amazing UUCM children, look for us around 12 pm in the Hosea Ballou room (the former nursery) adjacent to the large room in the back of the building where our social hour occurs each week.
September 7th is shaping up to be a big day for the Family Ministry Team and our Kids’ Connection community. I hope you will join us to honor the service of our volunteers who work so faithfully to make this program happen for the children of UUCM, to celebrate our returning to community at the end of our lovely Nevada County summer, and to build our connections with each other as we work to keep our Kids’ Connection program growing and evolving just as our children do.