Continuing monthly groups:

There are three traditional groups that are meeting during the upcoming year. Each group has space available for a few new members. These meet monthly as follows:

Saturday morning 9-11am (which Sat TBD)
Meets in Fenn Chapel. Let by Doug Richards.

1st Thursday evening 7-9 pm
Meets in members’ homes. Let by Dinah Smith.

2nd Wednesday evening 7:15-9 pm
Meets in Blue Room. Led by Alan Moore (formerly led by Bobbie Loney).

“Affinity” or interest-focused groups:

These groups are underway:

Transition to retirement group
Are you retired or planning to take the leap soon? Share the joys and challenges of retirement. Meeting the 2nd Monday of the month at 7pm monthly. Contact Dinah Smith (dinah.smith@uvm.edu) if you are interested.

Queer community at CVUUS?
A new CVUUS group addressing the needs and interests of LGBTQIA+ and questioning folks has formed and gathers for monthly potlucks in our Fellowship Hall on the 1st Wednesday of the month at 6:30pm. For more, see Jordan Young or Ollie Cultrara (ollie.cultrara@gmail.com).

Women’s group
Meets following the Sunday service, over lunch at noon, in the Sanctuary Meeting Room. To join and decide which Sunday to meet, contact Elizabeth Golden (elizabethgolden@shoreham.net)

Parent’s group
Meets the 2nd Saturday each month, 5:30-7:30pm. Childcare provided in Fenn while parents meet in Sanctuary. Parents with children through middle school age are invited to to get together and develop deeper connections by sharing their thoughts and beliefs around our monthly CVUUS themes within the small group ministry model. We resume Saturday the 12th. Childcare, dinner (mac n cheese) and drinks provided by our amazing Date Night Out volunteers. RSVP preferred. Contact Tracey Harrington, (4.mt.mice@gmail.com)

Writer’s group
Meets the 3rd Monday of the month (summer off). Next one Sept 16th, Fenn Chapel. Bring something to read (with a few copies): fiction, nonfiction, poems. Questions? Contact Nancy Wright (nancymeanswright@gmail.com)

Other possible affinity groups might consist of a limited number of sessions (with an opportunity to extend or refocus). Among those that have been proposed are a “Let’s chat about death” group (proposed by Laurie Borden), a bimonthly reading group about “decentering whiteness” proposed by Margy Levine Young), and a “Spiritual Journey” group (proposed by Scott Smith) If any of these ideas interest you, or if you have an idea of your own for an affinity group, contact the proposers above or Doug Richards.

Finally, yet another wrinkle on “affinity” groups that has emerged consists of regular congregational task-groups taking on a small group inflection as a means of deepening the connections between those engaged in a common task. For example, the Hospitality folks might consider a monthly or quarterly gathering in which they (and others who are interested) share and reflect on the spiritual dimensions of hospitality, perhaps with a brief common reading or simply a few questions to consider. Similarly, members of the Flower Coop or Landscaping groups might gather to consider the spirituality of flowers or of landscaping. We hope that each of the task-oriented groups in the church will consider deepening their spiritual connections through formal or informal gatherings that draw on the principles and practices of Small Group Ministry. For more information or assistance with this idea, contact Doug Richards or any member of the steering committee (Dinah Smith, Bobbi Loney, Marjorie Carsen, Karl Lindholm)—or perhaps chat with Rev. Barnaby about it next time you see him.

Blessed be!