Social Action Committee
The Social Action Committee initiates and coordinates outreach
activities of
First Unitarian Universalist Church in the larger community. These
activities
are largely determined by the interests of our members. These
initiatives can
range from one time a year events to ongoing organizational activities.
-
Questions or information? Contact Social Action Committee Co-Chairs: Christine Chesnut
or Charles Vestal
- Social Action Committee E-Mail List:
- If you want to receive announcements about upcoming Social Action
events and meetings, send an e-mail to fuucsa-social-action-subscribe@yahoogroups.com. If
you do not have access to e-mail, watch the weekly announcements in the
church bulletin as well as the monthly church newsletter. Social Action
is a reflection of First Unitarian Universalist members' interests.
The Social Action Committee regularly meets the 3rd Sunday
of the month at 12:30pm in the Thoreau Building.
Members and guests are welcome. See the announcements, the Events
Calendar or contact one of the Co-Chairs above for more details or
information.
Some of the activities and events that our church members are
involved with in
the larger community include:
- Ethical Eating: Food and Environmental Justice
- Basura
Bash (Annual Riverbank Clean Up, last Saturday of March): First UU has
adopted a section of the San Antonio River south of the Theo Avenue
bridge, across from Concepción Park.
- Other events that the Social Action Committee and First Unitarian
Universalist members have frequently participated in include the Martin
Luther King, Jr. Holiday March (January), the International Women's Day
March (March), the Cesar Chavez March (March), Gay Pride Picnic, events
promoting peace and justice, reproductive rights, concerts raising
awareness about the death penalty and the environment, and more.
Ongoing "portfolios"
- COPS/Metro Alliance: A broad-based
interfaith community organization dedicated to organizing local citizens
and working on a range of issues of concern to our families.
Nearly 12% of Unitarian Universalist congregations nationwide
are members of similar congregation-based
community organizations. To join our email list send a message to MetroAlliance-subscribe@yahoogroups.com.
- Greater
Edwards Aquifer Alliance (GEAA) and other environmental
initiatives: Our congregation is a member of GEAA and monitors policy
and actions relating to the Greater Edwards Aquifer and other
environmental issues.
- Share the Plate: On the second Sunday of each month since July
2007,
our congregation has been contributing money collected through our
worship service's offering, that are not marked for the operating budget
or other specific designations,
to a non-profit organization that connects to our Unitarian Universalist
principles. The program also increases awareness and connections between our congregation and these organizations.
- Peacemaking
- UU Housing Assistance Corporation: UU Housing
Assistance Corporation of San Antonio (UUHAC) - a community housing
development organization that helps low- and moderate-income individuals
and families acquire or repair affordable housing. The organization is
governed by a nine-member volunteer Board of Directors from the two San
Antonio Unitarian Universalist congregations (First
UU and Community UU)
as well as neighborhood association representatives in the areas served
and Broadway National Bank. Since 1994, the organization has worked
with low-income home owners in the Alta Vista and Beacon Hill areas to
repair homes. UUHAC also has funds to build new homes for first-time,
low-income home buyers and to purchase, repair, and sell homes to low-
and moderate-income families.
- Unitarian
Universalist Service Committee (UUSC): Through a potent
combination of advocacy, education and partnerships with grassroots
organizations, UUSC supports programs and policies that empower women,
defend the rights of children and support the struggles of indigenous
people and oppressed racial and ethnic groups. We also provide financial
and technical support when disasters strike impoverished areas.
Other First Unitarian Universalist Church links:
- Community Responsibility Endowment Fund (CREF):
CREF is one of the tools that our congregation uses to improve life in
our community. Each year members of the congregation make donations to
the CREF trust fund. It is through the annual donations that the fund
grows. The interest earned by the trust is then awarded to local
projects which reflect the charitable, religious educational and
scientific consideration of this church. These “Flower Power” grants are
awarded each spring to worthy projects nominated by members of the
congregation.
- Green Sanctuary Team
- Our congregation is working toward Green Sanctuary certification, which provides the framework to begin specific projects and activities that lead to recognition as a Green Sanctuary through candidacy and then accreditation. The process is designed to involve multiple facets of congregational life including Worship and Celebration, Religious Education for adult and children, Environmental Justice, and Sustainable Living—which includes grounds, parking lot, location, transportation, facilities, kitchen, food, recycling/reuseables, office and cleaning supplies, energy use, investment policies, congregation policies, congregation committees, etc. Recent activities have included campus recycling; installing a rainwater catchment system; implementing more green building
practices; providing workshops; and raising awareness through a concert and films.
- Visit our blog: http://firstuugreen.wordpress.com
- Meets the 1st Wednesday of the month, 7pm in the Thoreau Building (Mary Shelley Room)
- Contact: Diane Duesterhoeft or Mara Jewell
- Welcoming Congregation and Interweave:
The Welcoming Congregation Program is a completely volunteer program
for congregations that see a need to become more inclusive towards
bisexual, gay, lesbian, and/or transgender people. It consists of a
series of workshops developed by the UUA. The goal of the workshops is
to reduce prejudice by increasing understanding and acceptance among
people of different sexual orientations. Our congregation became a certified Welcoming Congregation in 2002.
Interweave's mission statement is: "Interweave is a membership
organization affiliated with the Unitarian Universalist Association. It
is dedicated to the spiritual, political, and social well-being of
Unitarian Universalists who are confronting oppression as lesbians, gay
men, bisexual persons, transgender persons, and heterosexual allies. It
celebrates the culture and lives of its members." Locally
we share meals and socialize to get to know one another better. To join
our email list send a message to fuucsa-interweave-subscribe@yahoogroups.com.
Contact: Carol Collins
Other Unitarian Universalist-related links:
"ideas without actions are just dreams"
