Outreach Collection Sunday, November 22: Youth Hunger: At this time of celebration of harvest and our ritual feasting for Thanksgiving, we dedicate our November Outreach Collection to Youth Hunger—to those programs in our community that help to ensure that our children and youth have the sustenance they need to grow and learn and play and lead healthy productive lives. Half of the funds will support Feed the Kids, which provides a hot meal every Friday evening to the children and youth at the Boys and Girls Club, sending them into their weekends fortified and nourished. Over 30 members of our church community volunteer regularly to “feed the kids.”
The other half of the funds will support the Backpack Program, which sends home backpacks of food with those children who qualify for free and reduced lunch, helping assure that they have food to sustain them over the weekend. A team of UUFH members fills backpacks for the children of Upward Elementary. During this season of Thanksgiving, we hope you will share your blessings and bounty with the children and youth of our community.
Angel Tree: Each year, in celebration of the Seasons of Giving of Christmas and Hanukah, UUFH members and friends act as “angels” for 20 children and youth from Upward Elementary (those who quality for free and reduced lunch). Gifts are modest—usually a toy or warm coat or item of needed clothing. But they mean the world to these children who get to celebrate this season. And they enable us to enter into the spirit of the holiday by truly giving a gift of love to someone. Charlotte Corrigan and Patti Smith will be staffing our very own UUFH Angel Tree. We encourage you to stop by, take a name, and be an Angel this holiday season.
Gifts With Meaning: Because there are so very, very many opportunities and invitations to give during this season, we found that the Gifts with Meaning Fair got lost in the requests. We felt we were overburdening you—our community—and we weren’t being fair to our vitally important nonprofit neighbors who need our support. Thus, we are postponing Gifts with Meaning this year. We will do the fair in late April, in honor of Mother’s Day—and ask the attendant nonprofits to provide cards that you can send to honor the women in your life. Stay tuned.