Dear Ones:
I typically have a bit of an aversion to August. Maybe it’s the fact that it’s Leo season, with all its fire sign energy and the sweltering temperatures to match. August shows up lazily enough, echoing the summer vibes of July that I’ve only just settled into post work-tour. But the leisurely pace is a ruse, and soon I will be swept up by all that August demands of me. Meet-the-teachers and registration forms, carpools and permission slips, program calendars and meeting reminders and…and…and. August is the bridge we cross into another program year, another season in the life of our families, our football teams, our church. Whoever we’ve been must now give way to who we’re becoming, ushered in on a wave of new beginnings that I never feel quite ready for, accompanied by lengthy to-do lists that I never quite check off.
The last week in August is also when Burning Man occurs – and while, as a mama to a school-aged daughter whose birthday always falls around Labor Day, I’ve only been once – I do try, in my daily life, to embody the Ten Principles. The Principles are very UCG, focusing on things like radical inclusion and leaving no trace. I could design a year’s worth of programming based on these principles, but the one I want to highlight today is Participation:
“Our community is committed to a radically participatory ethic. We believe that transformative change, whether in the individual or in society, can occur only through the medium of deeply personal participation. We achieve being through doing. Everyone is invited to work. Everyone is invited to play. We make the world real through actions that open the heart.”
Isn’t that beautiful? We achieve being through doing. So, what do the things we do here say about who and how we want to be? I can’t answer that question for us, but it’s one I reflect on quite often.
I joined UCG in 2012, just as Larry and Sandy were preparing to retire. I found it challenging to get involved at first. I even left my first all-church retreat early because there was a moment I felt unwelcome at one of the workshops. But I kept coming back because I could tell, with so many committees and events, that I would find my place here eventually. I definitely did not envision that place would be on-staff, as the director of all that amazing programming that I was so excited to be a part of, but here I am. 😀 In my time here, I have served on the Board of Children, Youth and Families; I taught the pre-K Sunday school class; I was the family liaison for our all-church retreat from 2016 to 2019, and by the time we returned to Warren Willis post-Covid in 2022, I was the youth coordinator.
In all this time, I have been motivated to take responsibility for my own involvement by accepting invitations to serve, by the reminders that here at UCG we practice theology with our sleeves rolled up, and by calls in worship. Rev. Andy Bachmann once gave an inspiring sermon in which he challenged us all to go forth and BE “SOMEBODY”! in response to the typical adage of “somebody” should do [insert undesirable thing here.] Thanks, Rev. Andy. God is still speaking through you, years after the fact.
These days at UCG I am, most definitely, a “somebody.” I am somebody writing curriculum and planning service projects, coordinating anniversary celebrations and scheduling guest speakers and hosting fundraisers. And I understand that it’s different for me now. This is my job. But I’ve done and would continue to do all of it for free, because the work we do here – the community we create here – is needed and important, not just to me, but to our entire congregation, to the populations we serve, to God however known. And because I love us. And I want you to love us too.
The love language of UCG is acts of service. I know this because I took the Love Languages quiz on its behalf. Just trust me. And so, the very best way for you to love us is to *radically* participate. Visit the booths at Time and Talent on August 17. Sign up for the things. Join the committees. Volunteer to move tables. Truly, the ministry of moving tables for the events we host is also needed and important. It is in sacred service to this container that holds us together. I have had beautiful conversations and gotten to know so many of our fellow UCGers while rearranging Reimer Hall. Whether it’s moving tables, or filling backpacks, or attending socials, your experience here will be richer, I promise you, the more that you invest your time and share your unique gifts.
This August we have much to look forward to – Talia’s return, our annual Gathering of the Waters, kicking off the festivities of our 60th Anniversary, evening socials and morning prayers, bounce houses and outings for our children and youth. I hope that in the coming months, as we celebrate all that we have been, you are able to find a space here where you feel called to show up and radically participate, here and now.
Looking ahead toward our small groups, seminars, retreats, and other offerings, I ask you to consider what we could offer here that would inspire your enthusiasm and involvement? What would be so different and amazing that your passion would be ignited, that would invigorate your love for UCG? And if something comes to mind, send me a message, or better yet, come see me and tell me all about it. Let’s dream and scheme and make some UCG magic together.
With love,
Your table-moving, ice-cream-scooping, curriculum-writing, grant-proposing, fundraising, sex-ed-teaching, work-tour-planning, campout-coordinating, small-group facilitating Director of Programming and Development,
Tami
Thanks for all you do for UCG, Tami. Thanks for sharing your seemingly boundless energy!
Tami, thank you for sharing the Ten Principles. So valuable and important, and relevant to UCG as you pointed out. It’s delightful to have your leadership at our church!
Your leadership and creativitiy have made a huge difference at UCG since you took the position. You are often behid the scenes, but you should be stage center for all the work you do.