Month: March 2021 (Page 1 of 2)

Heartfelt Moments from this Past Year

March 25, 2021 /

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]As we reflect back on all that has happened this past year, share one special moment that touched your heart during this time.

  • All my friends, family and church members who have given their time and support even though their struggles may have been greater than mine. The saying, a single candle can break through the darkness has never been more apropos for me. Thank you all.✌️🕊️💞
  • All of the people in my circle group who helped me move and brought me meals. I am grateful for such wonderful people.
  • Being asked to help in COVID-19 preparation. Knowing that being retired did not end my usefulness to society was a big thing.
  • Birth of my granddaughter.
  • Families spending more time together.
  • Friends who are trying creative pursuits like painting to get through the pandemic. I have a painting from a childhood friend hanging in our bedroom now and an inspirational rock from a close church friend in our back garden.
  • I was meandering in Old Town with my nine year old granddaughter and gave her a little money to spend to support local stores. She found a stuffed animal that her 13 year old sister had been craving and spent her money on her older sister instead of herself. She melts my heart every day.
  • My (now former) boss/friend asked me if there was anything we wanted/needed from Costco, as we didn’t want to go out shopping!
  • Not one moment, but all the special things the staff where Jeanne Kennedy lives and all the extra work and precautions they have taken. Since families can’t come in, they’ve upped their activities to keep the residents more engaged.
  • Numerous Kindemic visits & related opportunities to pass it on.
  • Personal stories such as Chalice Lightings by Ben Manvel and by April Undy; also Memorial Service conducted by Rev. Elaine for Leah Aylward.
  • Seeing Mom light up when she speaks with her grand & great grandchildren.
  • Someone in our congregation brought us dinner after our dog died.
  • Spent more time with our kids and grandkids on Zoom or FaceTime than ever before and LOVED it!🥰
  • The care and connectedness of our community.
  • The diversity represented in the state roll call during the Democratic National Convention.
  • The flower communion in our specific area meant so much to me… I felt very connected, these were people that are in my extended neighborhood and I found it comforting because I never felt alone really did not feel alone after that connection. These are people that are physically reachable… Because I felt if I have an emergency of some kind, these people are within walking or easy driving distance.  It was very special for me…. it brought me to tears.   In my brain I know I really do know that I can reach out but to have that physical presence right there right physically there with me wow it was life-changing for me.
  • The gift bag I received from the church when I was depressed. The help from neighbors and the AAA man shoveled snow so we could get the car out onto the street.
  • The innocence and honesty of children.
  • Watching my previously not close younger kids become closer.

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Letter from the Board: Restoring Wholeness

March 24, 2021 /

Sunday’s homily from Rev. Sean about how we respond to harm in our society, how we make amends for the harm that we cause, and how restorative justice offers a different response, might have reminded longer-term members that we have experienced misconduct from former religious professionals, that relationships have been lost in the aftermath, and that some of us continue to hold these unresolved feelings and unrestored relationships with a heavy heart. 

Responding to the actions of our former religious professionals has been the difficult work of five successive boards of trustees. In our work to discern the most responsible and caring path forward, we learned that continuing to acknowledge what is now a part of our history is absolutely necessary for healing and for creating a healthy, protective culture at Foothills.

Many of us are likely to be strongly conditioned to not want to speak of this part of our history — because we are aware of the pain that still resonates out from it in ourselves and our friends, because we hold conflict-avoidant energies, because we still mourn the loss of relationships. Because it still hurts.

And yet, healing and defusing of old, unconscious patterns of collective behavior won’t happen unless we keep holding space for us to process together and move through this part of our community’s experience and history. 

As one part of that unfolding work, the board has written a narrative meant to help newer members understand what may feel unspoken here at Foothills, and to help us all practice speaking the truth in love. You can find that here.

We’ve also compiled a full archive of events and a detailed narrative that is meant for future lay leaders to understand our full history and to better prepare them to respond to future episodes of misconduct. Because misconduct happens. We are all fallible human beings. We make covenants. We break covenants. And we seek to repair what we have harmed, through transparency, courageous honesty, and taking full responsibility for our actions.

If you are a member of record in our congregation, and you feel that reading the detailed accounts of our recent past might help you in your integration of these events, we invite you to send a request to elaine@foothillsuu.org. Rev. Elaine, responsible for pastoral care in our congregation, will coordinate access to these confidential materials and offers her ministerial companionship in processing this experience.

In faith,

Sue Sullivan
Board President

Please do not hesitate to reach out for pastoral support as you process this information, the service on Sunday, or anything else that may be weighing on your heart and mind. Click here to request support.

The After: Making Plans for Post-Pandemic Church​

March 23, 2021 /

Some of you know that my partner and I had exactly four hours notice before we went to pick up our daughter from the hospital. With my son, we had three whole days!

I always think about this when, a few weeks or months before their due date, expectant parents tell me how they are not sure they are “ready.” What’s funny is I believe them. Sometimes having too much notice about a big thing makes it harder.

I start with this because, with the vaccine roll-out, it’s time to start planning for what church will look like post-pandemic.

While we had only a few days to move into virtual church, we have months to figure out what “going back” will look like, and so (like with parenthood!), I think that makes it much harder.

We become parents by parenting, and we’ll become the church we’ll be post-pandemic by being the church after the pandemic.

Just as we have learned how to do church in the pandemic by simply being the church. And, of course, this doesn’t mean we shouldn’t be making plans! Just like my partner and I probably would’ve picked a better car seat with slightly more time for research and shopping, this advance notice gives us all a chance to consider our options and talk with other congregations, communities, and each other about how we want to gather and with what practices in “the after.”

We anticipate that the families from Family Housing Network / Faith Family Hospitality will be with us through May, after which they will return to rotating across churches as they did pre-pandemic. This will allow us to deep clean and do any needed maintenance in June. Then we believe some degree of indoor gathering may be possible in July.

Between now and then, we will be convening various conversations and task forces to assess the form, content, and timing of our post-pandemic church life together.

The only thing we can say for sure is that there will be robust online and in-person offerings, both because we value accessibility and because there’s a lot about being online we don’t want to stop! Depending on infection rates and vaccine availability, we can imagine some smallish in-person gatherings by early summer and larger gatherings by late summer.

We’ll keep offering a good portion of what we’ve been creating for Sundays, including lay member testimonials, high-quality visual components, and the opportunity for personal conversation and connections in breakouts.

We’ll also add back in things like singing together, choir, and hearing each other laugh (and yawn, and cry, and more). We’ll add hugs and handshakes (when wanted!). I can’t wait.

To offer both of these things is not easy and will take more resources in staffing, software, and volunteers. Some consultants talk about hybrid models requiring 40% more staff and volunteer hours than doing only in-person or virtual. We do not anticipate this heavy a lift, but it is important to remember that it’s not merely the same work across multiple platforms.

With all this in mind, I’m currently anticipating a “re-launch” of in-person services in September or October. While we will have a lot of conversations on specifics, a few priorities for me include:

(1) Using online services to enable us to have two in-person services (rather than returning to three).

(2) Centering the needs and experiences of those who haven’t had access to online services, especially families with younger kids.

(3) Remaining as agile, curious, collaborative, and creative throughout the process as possible so that as new information continues to unfold, we can adapt, grow, and continue to be the church our mission requires us to be.

(4) Ensuring that no one way of accessing the church’s ministry is “primary,” aka, no second-class church members! We need to create meaning-filled and quality experiences wherever they are offered. This means we need to think about sustainability, systems, and support at every step of the way.

The other thing I’ve noticed about long lead times for more traditional routes-to-parenthood is that there’s more time to worry. But our short notice process taught me that sometimes you’ve just got to take that leap of faith! So, let’s keep our guiding values at the center and trust each other. Let’s keep being the Foothills Unitarian Church through it all. And….leap!

With love and in partnership,

Rev. Gretchen

For more information, click HERE to visit our Transitioning Back to In-Person Webpage

Vaccine Update (as of March 23, 2021)

March 23, 2021 /

NEW: Colorado has moved into Phase 1B.4. To learn whether you are eligible to receive the vaccine during this phase, please CLICK HERE.

There are many options to receive the COVID-19 vaccine for anyone eligible. BIPOC members continue to be the most affected by COVID-19, and without sufficient leadership or planning at the national level, local communities need to step up to get this vaccine distributed. We need to rely on our informal networks to bring this pandemic – and all that comes with it – to an end. CLICK HERE to learn how Foothills is working to make vaccine access more equitable.

The most important priority is getting everyone eligible scheduled to receive a vaccine. If you or someone you know hasn’t been scheduled, we’ve listed the options of which we are aware below. If you need a ride to get your vaccine, call A Little Help who are providing support for this need at 970.541.9877.

If you have tech challenges or otherwise are struggling to get this figured out, please do not hesitate to reach out for assistance by calling us at 970-493-5906.

  • Larimer County – Sign-up here.
  • UC Health – Established patients with UC Health are receiving invitations through the online portal to schedule their vaccine. The invitations are by lottery and are extremely time-limited. If you miss the window, you go back in the cue. Don’t panic if this happens to you! If you aren’t a UC Health patient, you can still get your name on this list by setting up an account at this site. UC Health vaccination hotline: 720-462-2255 
  • Banner Health – Banner is distributing vaccines using a form on their website, here.  
  • Salud – Salud has now moved exclusively to an online form – here. Spanish speakers: there is a language button on the form to move to the Spanish version; the forms on site are available in Spanish, and there will be Spanish-speaking staff at the vaccine site. Note: they do not require a Social Security Number, and immigration status does not matter.  
  • Kaiser – Members sign in and start here for an E-Visit and non-members can sign up here.
  • Centura Health:  If you are a Centura Health patient, you will receive an invitation when it is your time to receive the vaccine through MyCenturaHealth, their patient portal. Get details here.
  • King Soopers Pharmacies – Some pharmacies are starting to schedule COVID vaccines. Go to the website or call 1-866-211-5320 to schedule. Don’t call the pharmacies directly as they are already overwhelmed! 
  • Safeway Pharmacies – The Safeway on Harmony and in Loveland on Eisenhower also are starting to have vaccines available.  Follow the links for more information.
  • Good Day Pharmacy – Some Good Day Pharmacy locations are currently offering vaccines, while others have vaccines arriving soon. Details posted here.
  • Walmart – several Walmart pharmacies are now offering the vaccine. Get details here.
  • Dr.B (stand-by list) – Dr. B is a standy-by list for when vaccine providers have cancellations or unused doses. Register here.

In addition, we recommend signing up with Larimer County directly so that you can be notified of vaccines as they are available.  

Lists will likely get full off and on for the next few weeks. When this happens, that provider will put a hold on new reservations. They will reopen when they receive a new shipment, so if you don’t get in the first time, try again. Keep trying! Everyone who wants a vaccine WILL get a vaccine! 

To ask questions (in English or Spanish) about the vaccine or vaccination sites, call the Joint Information Center at 970-498-5500 (Monday – Friday, 9:00 am – 4:30 pm) or text 970-999-1770 or email publichealth@larimer.org.  

If you are interested in volunteering to help with the vaccine effort, go here.  

Hang in there. You’re doing a good job. We’re getting through this together.

Original source: Foothills Unitarian Church, intended for community-wide distribution! Please pass it on!

Tools for our Self-Care Toolbox

March 11, 2021 /

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Many people expressed appreciation for the deep breath exercise last week. Share another practice that you use to center yourself. Let’s help fill each other’s self-care toolkits!

  • Cat stretching before I get out of bed followed by a glass of water.
  • Essential oils and hot tea help me come into the present!
  • Go for a walk.
  • Gratitude exercise of listing 3 things you’re grateful for each day or looking at the world like you’re seeing it through the eyes of a child.
  • Guided Mindfulness Meditations: http://www.rockymountainmindfulness.org/audio.html
  • I have used the deep breathing in the past and find that it really is helpful, I will continue to do that.
  • I hyper focus using my senses. For example, if I’m taking a drink of water, I fully engage my mouth with the sip – noticing if it’s bubbly, uses different tastes, if it’s cold or warm, if some stays on my lips.
  • I try to meditate twice a day and have felt at times that it has been helpful. I am under a lot of stress and feelings quite isolated as I have very little in-person contact that is positive in nature.
  • I use a modality called EFT several times a day to help deal with stress and sleep.
  • I vacuum.
  • If I consciously begin to name all that I have to be grateful for, I become calmer.
  • Journaling, meditation
  • Lighting candles and appreciating the flame, the warm glow and flicker.
  • Look out my window and do 10 eye blinks a couple times a day
  • My sister introduced me to a relaxation product, “Calm”. It has gentle music with beautiful nature videos, waterfalls, rain, bubbling mountain streams, etc. She put a link on my laptop’s desktop. I find it helpful and immediately available. (It also has verbal meditations, but I haven’t used those.)
  • Prayer & meditation
  • Quiet mindfulness and an appreciation of the focusing nature of silence.
  • S.T.O.P.:
    • Stop
    • Take three deep breaths
    • Observe how you are feeling
    • Proceed with love into the world
  • Stand and walk as if a Zen master is pulling towards them from your center.
  • Stretching exercises
  • Try moving away from Self to Principle 7, etc.
  • Use breath work
  • Walking
  • When feeling anxious I review the 5 senses that I am experiencing in that moment. Really helps!
  • Yoga Centering prayer

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