Category: Governance

News and reports from the Board of Trustees, Board Committees and Task Forces.

Covenant of Healthy Relations 2021 … at ucv.im/cohr2021

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The Covenant of Healthy Relations – along with related procedures – covers three pages of a report approved by the UCV board in 2021. Those three pages are in a PDF file at ucv.im/cohr2021. The text of the covenant is on the first page. You can also read it below.

Covenant of Healthy Relations

This is a covenant to guide how we behave towards each other and to groups and individuals
within the congregation. The objective is to enhance a safe climate that is courteous, friendly,
supportive, respectful of others, open and honest.

Because I believe in the inherent worth and dignity of each person, I will endeavour to:

1. Be compassionate and supportive in my relationships with others, assume their best
intentions and be curious rather than judgmental.
2. Communicate with active listening and consideration. Explain concerns to the person
directly and share differences respectfully. Focus on the current problem – not the person.
3. Balance being open to new ideas with respect for our traditions.
4. Be attentive to our community’s needs, generous with my talents and careful with the
church’s resources.
5. Keep the big picture in mind, be patient with myself and others and stay engaged in the
process of change; participate in the decision-making and respect the decisions that are
made.
6. Discuss conflicts in our church in a way that respects the privacy and dignity of those
involved.
7. Recognize and praise others and myself for the work we do in the church and be
forgiving when we make mistakes.
8. Support, in a constructive way, the work of the minister, staff and congregants.
9. Deepen our connections by getting to know and understand people of all ages and points
of view within the congregation.
10. Nurture my own spiritual needs in this community and support others in their search for
truth and meaning.

Approved on November 27, 2005 by the Annual General Meeting of the Unitarian Church of Vancouver.

Note that you can go to the source of the above – a PDF file at ucv.im/cohr2021 – to check out the related procedures as well.

Covenant of Healthy Relations / site:vancouverunitarians.ca

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Enter the title of this post as a search term in Google to get the results you can see here.

At or near the top is a PDF file you can print as a single page. It’s the covenant. And it’s here.

If you missed the service on Sunday, click on the date below:

2021-11-21 Paddling into the future (Rev. Samaya Oakley) / (!*) … see also: video (!*)

The above is a copy-paste from the list at ucv.im/sermons.

Anyhow, the sermon reminded us how important it is to have at hand a copy of the UCV Covenant of Healthy Relations and to look at it often. If you don’t have a copy of the covenant, you can print one now. Or just download the PDF. It’s here.

This UCV covenant is also at ucv.im/healthy.

Pair it with a copy of the recently introduced CUC Responsibility Covenant at ucv.im/responsibility.

 

PSA: check the list at ucv.im/sermons right after any service to see if the prepared text is already in the literature stall digital archive

 

The above is a lit stall post first published on November 24, 2021. The date now displayed with this post is the date of its latest material update.

The post shows up in the results of an internal search of this website for “Covenant of Healthy Relations” – as you can see here.

The featured image is a cropped screenshot of a Google search on November 24, 2021.

In the bulleted list below are the three latest posts tagged as lit stall posts.

If you haven’t read it already, please see the post about lit stall posts for more information.

A message from our outgoing UCV President

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Dear Vancouver Unitarians,

I have been honoured to serve as President these past two years of change and growth, and also honoured to be asked to stay on as President. I declined the invitation to stay on due to my full time job resuming and other priorities. A UCV President needs a lot of time and energy to focus on their responsibilities, and I am grateful that I had that time and energy.

In my Presidents Report, I would like to begin by thanking each of you for giving me this opportunity to deepen and expand my knowledge of our Unitarian congregation, our faith, and organizational leadership in general. So much has happened…

We all said good-bye to Rev Doctor Steven Epperson at his last (emotional) service, and a celebratory hello to Rev Lara Cowtan. And then we all began this incredible and challenging journey of transition together.

As this was my second time as Board President, I decided to commit myself to a new leadership style that I was introduced to through several books generously loaned to me by Rev Lara Cowtan. Within these books, there is much homage paid to “self-differentiated leadership.” It is a progressive new leadership style that is highly recommended for congregations (and organizations) in transitional periods and times of anxiety. Change goes hand in hand with excitement and anxiety, so this is not a negative judgment; it is simply an honest acknowledgement we have been going through exciting and anxious times.

So I will briefly share with you some ideas around self-differentiated leadership that I have aspired to embody as your President in the hopes that this may provide some clarity and guidance for us to continue to move forward together.

Self-differentiated leaders take a stand, respectfully, in an intense emotional system and they try to be clear about their own personal perspectives, not feigning objectivity, while also remaining genuinely open to listening to other people’s perspectives. Self-differentiated leaders are transparent with their perspectives by defining themselves within the values of the organization, and focus on what is best for the organization, not on being right, and not on trying to make everybody happy. Self-differentiated leaders take maximum responsibility for their own emotional well-being and do not blame others or the context.

And perhaps most importantly – the beauty of this kind of leadership style is that it requires others to self-differentiate, to take responsibility for their own perspectives, and that leads people to dive a little deeper and know themselves a little better, what their values and goals are. It can also raise people’s awareness around why they say and do the things that they say and do, and why they feel the way that they feel in certain situations.

Ultimately, strong trust can be built within this leadership style because everyone is required to take deeper responsibility for their own voice in a self-differentiated system, for their own engagement in the processes, for their own actions, and for their own well-being in the community. The 8th Principle process we undertook at UCV, with small group meetings guided by specific questions and a covenant, is self-differentiated
leadership in action.

This has been an incredible year at UCV. We have completed our first year of transition through a pandemic, and members of our congregation have risen boldly to the occasion.

Huge thanks to our Sunday Morning Tech Team who not only kept us connected and inspired, but managed to engage an even wider audience through their high quality work. I would also like to thank everyone on the Ministerial Transitions Team for their very committed efforts. Special thanks to everyone on our Board of Trustees for their time and contributions this past year; Gordon Gram, Michael O’Neil, Galen Elfert, Carolyn Grant, Jenny Malcolm, Marilyn McVicar, John Boyle, Catherine Ponsford, and Leslie Hill.

Significant progress has been made in deepening our commitment to radical inclusivity and equity with the changes we all decided to make to our Sanctuary. The Sanctuary upgrades were passionately championed by myself and the Board of Trustees to help make our spiritual home more welcoming, inclusive, and reflective of our values, and to be an artistic and spiritual destination within the larger community. We took our inspiration from Rev Steven Epperson’s parting words, and the generosity of a member donor. The Board’s efforts were strongly supported by our active new IBPOC caucus and our youth and young people who are taking a leading role in helping define UCV’s future, keeping us relevant and accessible.

Our hard working Buildings and Grounds committee continues to amaze with how much they get done and how well they do it. From a new heat pump in the admin building (bravo, Hans Elfert!) to our beautiful new chairs in the renovated Sanctuary to the gorgeous grounds we all enjoy, sincere thanks for their ongoing very hard work.

All of our committees and teams continued working through the pandemic. Our Worship Services Committee has experienced an intense year of online services and we are so grateful for their efforts. The Environment, Social Justice and Refugee Teams were as active as they could be, and I am in awe of their ongoing generous work that benefits all of us and the larger community.

I would especially like to thank Rev Lara Cowtan who continues to fearlessly and tirelessly work to help us define and lay our foundation for the future. Her efforts include (I really don’t know how she does it) helping set up and engage with various Teams and Task Forces regarding many aspects of the complex transition work and goal setting, and contributing to the process of creating and implementing our new Organizational Design.

Indeed, this year we as a congregation really invested in ourselves. The New Organizational Design has seen us expand our RE programming for kids and adults significantly with the wonderful Kiersten Moore and Olivia Hall at the helm, and build our administrative and membership/outreach capacity significantly, which has resulted in two amazing new staff people – Derrick O’Keefe and Casey Wallace! Derrick and Casey have really taken on a lot, and are doing amazing work. Huge kudos to them and to Marcus and Gordon – our office and RE staff are stellar, as is our Care Taking Team.

Big, genuine shout-out to Head Caretaker Paul Nash who always works hard, but worked tirelessly on the Sanctuary upgrades. And thank you, too, to our musical staff and choir; you raised our spirits and touched our hearts all year long.

And we have stayed connected beyond Sunday services. There have been many online events – action evenings, Board Forums, coffee hours, committee meetings – so many this year who have stepped up. We organized an All Candidates Meeting during the Federal Election which I moderated and it was live streamed on Youtube, featuring our newly renovated Sanctuary.

I am also happy to have helped organize UCV’s first ever Decolonizing Practices Workshop which was free and open to all members, staff and Board. This was a highlight for me, and has acted as a catalyst for all kinds of anti-oppression programming and follow-up workshops in Anti-Racism and bystander training at UCV.

Our membership’s fulsome engagement is what gives me hope for our UU faith and for our congregation’s future. We do not have a faith without a community that trusts each other enough to engage in honest, respectful dialogue. So let us raise the bar on the conversation. Let us continue to build trust by differentiating ourselves; defining ourselves and our diverse perspectives through our UU values openly with each other, listening actively to each other, and treating each other with respect.

“Judgement is the absence of love” – The Dalai Lama.

Let us define our future together.

In active faith,

Diane Brown, UCV Board President.

UCV survey results on proposed 8th Principle available for all members to review 

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A congregational survey about the proposed 8th Principle was developed and approved by the Board and sent by email to all UCV members with email addresses on file.

There was broad support for the intention of the proposed 8th Principle that racism and other oppressions require action. This was true for nearly every respondent, whether they responded “Yes”, “No” or “Undecided” to Question 1 (Do you support the proposed 8th Principle?) Despite real differences about whether or not respondents supported the 8th Principle as proposed, there is a strong consensus on the need to take action against racism
and other oppressions. At the same time, about half of respondents expressed one or more concerns about, or objections to, 1) the wording of the proposal not being consistent in tone with existing principles, 2) that the proposed principle was inconsistent with or redundant with the existing seven principles, 3) that the process was problematic and potentially divisive, and 4) that the fallout from the decision poses risks to our faith community going forward.

The full summary report, including an explanation of the survey timeline and review, can be read here. We have also provided an anonymized Excel sheet with all comments so that congregants can read them and form their own conclusions.

 

Ministerial Transition Team: Rethinking Our Identity Workshops — Now In-Person at UCV

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The Identity phase of our Ministerial Transition is the time to envision the congregation we want to be(come) in our future. It is arguably the most important step to complete before we search for a new settled minister.

The Rethinking Our Identity workshop is based on Appreciative Inquiry principles, an approach to organization transition that focuses on moments of exceptional pride and performance and creates a future that nurtures and supports even more pride and performance. In the workshop we will share our responses to eight ‘thought-provoking questions’ (see below) that probe our best and most memorable experiences of our lives in this congregation.

Over 60 congregants have already completed this 2 1/2 hour workshop and all have found it worthwhile and enjoyable. Many appreciated the chance to see and talk to others in this congregation, something we have been missing during the pandemic. Here are some participants’ comments:

“Very enjoyable and useful.”

“I was very engaged.”

 “The questions are all about meaningful things.”

 “The process itself was an example of meaningful connections when working in small groups at UCV.”

“Every member should take part in these workshops – interesting and very useful.”

“[The interview questions] are thought-provoking…I found the process good –

helpful, informative, stimulating.”

“This workshop was wonderful opportunity to share stories of what gives meaning to my life at UCV – 

and to learn about others’ experiences too.”

“Great!”

 

We have scheduled workshops on Sept. 1, Sept. 9, Sept. 11 and Sept. 15, with more to follow.

Contact us to register:

identityproject@vancouverunitarians.ca

 

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________

 

Here is an abbreviated version of the workshop’s thought-provoking questions:

 

  1. Reflecting on your entire experience at UCV, remember a time when you felt most engaged, alive, and motivated. Who was involved? What did you do? How did it feel? What happened?

 

  1. What are the healthiest, most life-giving aspects of the relationships among people at UCV? What would you say has been most valuable about your friendships in this community? Give some examples of how we live together at our best.

 

  1. What are the most valuable aspects of our congregation’s worship? What makes your worship alive and meaningful? What shapes your Unitarian faith?

 

  1. What do you believe are the most important and meaningful elements of our congregation’s engagement with the local community, the nation, and the world?

 

  1. What are the most important things our Unitarian community has contributed to your life? Who or what made a difference?

 

  1. What are the most valuable ways you contribute to our congregation – your personality, your perspectives, your skills, your activities, your character? Give me some examples.

 

  1. What do you think is the most important, life-giving characteristic of our UCV congregation? What makes Unitarians or UCV unique?

 

  1. Make three wishes for the future of our Vancouver Unitarians congregation. Describe what this religious community would look like as these wishes come true.

 

  1. Is there anything else you would like to add?

 

Join an ROI Workshop and help create our future.

identityproject@vancouverunitarians.ca

 

 

 

Continuing the conversation on the 8th Principle: A message from UCV President Diane Brown

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The Board is continuing our consultation process with the membership, which has so far spanned six months, by offering another Forum on the New Org Design Sunday Oct 24 at 12:30 by Zoom. Just go to ucv.im/forums and you will find Board members and New Org Design Task Force members on hand discussing many aspects of the how’s and why’s of this new structure and how it continues to evolve. Your questions and comments are welcome.

Also, the UCV Board of Trustees would like to invite each and every committee to please host conversations within your groups on the proposed 8th Principle. We recommend that you and your committee members first read the Dismantling Racism Study Group final report, the Truth and Reconciliation Commissions 94 Calls to Action, and the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous People prior to holding your committee conversations. We ask that someone take summary notes of the committees thoughts, and submit those notes to Galen Elfert (guelfert@gmail.com) by Oct. 18, 2021 so that these can be compiled and sent along to the CUC by their deadline, and sent to our UCV Delegates who will be attending the CUC meeting on Nov. 27 regarding the 8th Principle.

As always, email president@vancouverunitarians.ca if you have any questions.

**

8th Principle Meetings – Guiding questions for group discussions 

 

FOCUS: The heart of the proposed principle is dismantling racism; these forums should not focus on wordsmithing.

Read aloud the Responsibility Covenant.

Opening reflection questions; when are you at your ‘best self’?

What does accountability mean to you?

What is contributing to your hesitation / discomfort?

What will it mean/look like for your congregation to accountably dismantle racism?

What is affirming about the 8th Principle?

What are your IBPOC membership and young people saying to you about the 8th Principle and what it means to them?

 

If you are white, have you been listening to what IBPOC and young people have been saying locally and nationally about the 8th Principle and what it means to them? Please do not put any IBPOC that may be in your meetings on the spot by asking them to justify the 8th Principle – this is for you to reflect on.

 

 

What do you want UCV to be in the future?

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The Ministerial Transition Team is charting our course into the future and laying the groundwork for our upcoming search for a new settled minister. We’d love to have every members’ input. What is your vision for the future UCV?

In answering our thought-provoking questions and sharing your insights with other members, you have the opportunity to reflect on what you appreciate about this congregation and share stories with other members. Together we can imagine what the future UCV may be and what you want to see in this future.

Join us in one of our 2.5 hour Rethinking Our Identity (ROI) workshops – either in person at UCV or on Zoom. Consider organizing your own group (with our support) if you are on a committee or team or in a group at UCV.

 

Contact us if you have questions or to find out more and get involved:

identityproject@vancouverunitarians

Rob Dainow (rdainow@gmail.com; 604-523-0123)

Vivian Davidson (vdavidsonc@gmail.com; 778-318-3713)

Marg Fletcher (mfletcher508@gmail.com; 778-772-1120)

Leslie Hill (lesliehill49@gmail.com; 604-321-7175)

 

 

Let’s Remember How We Got Here

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Before we go off in all directions for the summer, let us recall the sequence of events that have transpired and brought us to this place, because when we return in the fall, ‘this place’ will not have pews, it will have beautiful new chairs. It will also have new lighting and sound systems.

Changing the pews to chairs was suggested by Steven Epperson a year ago and has been discussed casually for some years. Steven brought it up again right before he left, urging us to upgrade and share our Sanctuary with the wider community, thus attracting diverse younger people. He specifically said to the Board that he felt the pews should be replaced by chairs so that the space is more adaptable; this could greatly enhance our community outreach efforts and thus keep UCV relevant and sustainable.

Then, when UCV was offered an anonymous gift to upgrade the lights and sound of the Sanctuary shortly after Steven left, the Board did some research as to what an upgraded Sanctuary could give us, and the larger community. Moreover, a UCV Young Persons Task Force was formed and they submitted a fulsome report about what young Unitarians want from their spiritual home.

Our research and this report revealed that replacing the pews with chairs would give us a space that is much more flexible and could therefore accommodate various forms of worship, walking meditation, circle dance, Indigenous and other cultural forms of ceremony, Jazz Festival events, cabaret fundraisers, and Writers Festival events, to illustrate just a few. It would also allow folks with physical challenges, such as people in wheelchairs, to sit up front and not have to be relegated to the back of the room. The room could also be configured into a circle, the most democratic of configurations, allowing everyone equal status and accessibility.

So in short, it became evident that changing pews to chairs needed to be part of our Sanctuary upgrades because changing pews to chairs deepens our commitment to radical inclusivity. Moreover, the Sanctuary upgrades project furthers our community outreach and membership-building efforts. Having the Sanctuary empty during the pandemic seemed like an ideal time to make all the upgrades.

So the Board engaged the congregation in discussions around the possibility of Sanctuary upgrades (which included replacing pews with chairs) in fall of 2020, and the response we received at the forum we held at that time was enthusiastically in favour of the changes.

Following this engagement with the membership, we brought it to a discussion and a vote at the AGM in November 2020. At that vote during the AGM, the vast majority of UCV members voted in favour of the Sanctuary upgrades and changing the pews to chairs while keeping the balcony pews in tact and a few on the sides.

In this way, our beautiful Sanctuary will become a more welcoming space for various forms of worship, various physical abilities, become a cultural destination, and most importantly, attract a younger and more diverse demographic to our Church which will ensure that UCV will thrive into the future.

This has been a very challenging time for all of us, and as a congregation we continue to rise and meet those challenges as best we can. Although change is always difficult, we know from experience that from every ending comes a new beginning. I hope you will embrace our new Sanctuary this fall, and all the possibilities it affords.

With that thought and on behalf of the UCV Board of Trustees, I wish you a safe and peaceful summer.

Best wishes, Diane Brown, UCV Board Chair.

President’s Statement on Kamloops Residential School

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The UCV Board of Trustees would like to express our deep sorrow for the 215 children who died at the Kamloops Indian Residential School. We grieve for these children and their families. But we must not look away from this horror. Let us examine our troubled history, and ourselves, and bear witness to the history and lived experience of residential school survivors and their families. Let us look the facts in the face and transform through intentional action, on a personal and societal level, this white colonial empire that is still doing great harm. And let us Unitarians acknowledge that we have an opportunity within our midst to intentionally and accountably commit to dismantling racism within our congregations and within the UU movement by adopting the proposed 8th Principle.

These children were removed from their families by the federal government and forced to attend the Kamloops Indian Residential School. These children died while under the ‘care’ of the federal government and school staff. We know, as the Truth and Reconciliation Report released in 2015 has confirmed, that residential schools were “a systemic government-sponsored attempt to destroy Aboriginal cultures and languages and to assimilate Aboriginal peoples so that they no longer existed as distinct peoples.” We know that thousands of residential school survivors have confirmed experiencing emotional, physical, and sexual abuse at the hands of school staff. We know the sad truth that these 215 children are just a small portion of the thousands who were murdered by the residential school system.

If you are looking for next steps in this moment, here are some of the resources that Indigenous groups and individuals have generously shared over the last few days. A vigil will be held, Remember the Children, Wednesday June 2 at 6 pm at Grandview Park (1657 Charles Street, Vancouver).

Resources and services for Indigenous folks:

If you’re a settler, here are some places where you can make a donation to support residential school survivors and their families:

If you’re a settler, here are some educational resources on residential schools:

Image by Mike Labrum via Unsplash.com

Archive of Past COVID-19 Notices

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COVID-19 Update – March 25, 2021

Please be advised that we have reviewed the latest provincial health orders, including the March 23 variance permitting outdoor worship services, and are currently exploring the various options available to us as we determine our best path forward. For the time being, indoor social gatherings are still prohibited on the UCV grounds and worship services will continue to be online (livestreamed) only.

UCV staff work and pre-determined business dealings may still go ahead as planned so long as our COVID protocols are diligently followed (all gatherings that qualify as UCV business must still be booked through the office).

We remain optimistic that we may meet again in person soon, in one form or another, (Once everyone can do so safely) and will update you on any further developments as they unfold. If you have questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact the church office.

COVID-19 Update – November 19th, 2020

Following the Provincial Health Order of November 19th, 2020 we have made the following changes to our rental policy in effect until December 7, 2020:

  • Social gathering rentals for both Hewett Centre – Main Space and the Sanctuary must be cancelled or postponed until December 7th, 2020, unless updated by Provincial Health
  • Please do not come to the sanctuary on Sunday unless your participation is essential. Contact Marie if you need an easy way to record a reading, announcement or greeting.
  • The UCV grounds are still available for use with those in your immediate household or bubble
  • UCV staff work, and pre-determined business dealings may still go ahead as planned (all gatherings that qualify as UCV business must still be booked through the office)
  • Any questions or concerns about these changes should be directed to Marcus in the office

COVID-19 Update – November 9th, 2020

Following the Provincial Health Order of November 7th, 2020 we have made the following changes to our rental policy in effect for 2 weeks until November 23, 2020:

  • Social gathering rentals for both Hewett Centre – Main Space and the Sanctuary must be cancelled or postponed until after November 23rd
  • The UCV grounds are still available for use, however we ask that folx adhere to the Public Health Order and only gather with those in your immediate household
  • Worship services will continue to be held online and we ask that folks please do not come to the sanctuary unless you are part of the staff or volunteers needed to make the live stream possible.
  • UCV staff work, and pre-determined business dealings may still go ahead as planned (all gatherings that qualify as UCV business must still be booked through the office)
  • Any questions or concerns about these changes should be directed to Marcus in the office

COVID-19 Update – September 1st, 2020

We have released our UCV Fall 2020 Go-Slowly-Forward Plan. Notable changes include:

  • Worship services will continue to be online, live streaming only
  • We have increased rental capacity for Hewett Centre – Main Space from 10 to 15 guests
  • The Sanctuary is now available for rentals with a maximum of 25 guests and 5 staff – choir loft remains Staff Only
  • Masks are now mandatory for all indoor activities
  • All windows and doors MUST remain open during indoor activities

To read the full plan and policy, including booking procedures, please see the full Go-Slowly-Forward-Plan 

Please note: All gatherings must be booked ahead of time through Marcus Hynes by emailing info@vancouverunitarians.ca.

Parking Lot Driveway Closure – August 6, 2020

CLOSURE OF OAK STREET PARKING LOT ENTRANCE. For safety reasons, the Oak Street entrance to the UCV Parking lot will be closed indefinitely, starting August 15th. The Fremlin Street entrance will be the main access to the parking lot.

COVID-19 Update – July 1st, 2020

We have released our UCV Summer 2020 Go-Slowly-Forward Plan which includes partial, pre-scheduled opportunities for onsite meetings during the summer period. Please read the full policy and room booking procedures here.

Older Posts

COVID-19 Update – May 28, 2020

The campus will remain closed for all of June. The Emergency Response Team and Board are reviewing all provincial guidelines and developing our UCV Go-Slowly-Forward Plan to determine what, if any, campus activities may go ahead this summer.

COVID-19 Update – May 12, 2020

In response to queries about allowing small groups of UCV members to meet in person on campus, the UCV Emergency Team is currently developing a policy that adheres to Provincial guidelines regarding small gatherings of people, and a specific plan for the area of the UCV campus. Please stay tuned for further information coming soon.

New UCV Temporary Communications Specialist – May 4, 2020

Given the greater reliance on technology to keep us connected during the pandemic, the Board of Directors has been relying very heavily on our communications team with Marie Witt at its helm, as its chairperson. In recognition of Marie’s greatly increased hours of volunteer work and her strong skills, the Board approved the hiring of Marie from May 1st – June 30th of 2020. Marie’s overall goal will be to develop clear, concise communications strategies with buy-in from UCV’s Emergency Team, Communications Team and Board of Directors.

Should you have questions concerning communication please contact Marie at communications@vancouverunitarians.ca (noting that Marie’s contract will terminate at the end of June).

Respectfully,
Human Resources Committee

EGM Postponed to the Fall – April 24, 2020

The June 14 EGM has been postponed to the fall. Instead, on June 14 at 12:30 pm, the UCV Board of Trustees will host a zoom information forum on the proposed budget for next year which the members will ratify (or not) in the fall. The Board will also be discussing possible next steps in the Redevelopment process which would involve engaging Canada Land Trust in conversation as our possible new partners.

Live Streaming Volunteers Needed! – April 20, 2020

Volunteers needed!! For services to continue to be virtual, we need to train some more members to learn how to produce and broadcast Sunday services and support our current incredible, over-worked team. Anyone interested in helping with technology, send your details here: https://ucv.im/offer-help

Scam Email Attempts at UCV – April 3, 2020

It has come to our attention that someone is using fake gmail accounts that appear to be sent from Steven (and possibly other administrators) to send emails directly to congregants. These emails are likely to appear in your inbox and are difficult to distinguish from our regular accounts.

These emails are asking people to send money, usually in the form of Amazon gift cards and typically contain a story about being needed for vulnerable people. DO NOT send money. DO NOT purchase Amazon gift cards. These are fake email addresses; Steven, staff or board members will never ask you to send money or Amazon gift cards to them personally over email.

We have specific fundraising drives and special protocols for donations. If you are ever confused or suspicious about a request for funds, you can always ask if it’s possible for you to speak with our staff over the phone. A scam artist pretending to be someone you know will not agree to a
phone call, whereas church staff will always be happy to discuss fundraising with you or over the phone or face to face on zoom.

If you receive any suspicious emails, please report them to our office so we can track these attempts. If you have any questions or concerns, please reach out. In the meantime, the UCV Board has hired a cybersecurity expert to help upgrade our systems.

UCV Office Contact Information

Office and Staff Update – March 29, 2020

Due to the rapidly changing environment for everyone, The UCV Board of Trustees had approved at the March 17th Board meeting to pay staff “as per budgeted amounts” for the next month.

With this in mind,

  • Staff members are working regularly scheduled times with some redirection as per duties.
  • Records of Employment will be given if requested, due to self-isolation/ quarantine or sickness.
  • Plans are in place to have Administration staff work from home if warranted, computer stations, email, phones/voicemail etc. have all been set up, to enable minimal activity at the office.
  • UCV Campus will continue to be checked daily by staff.

UCV COVID-19 *Possible Exposure* Update – March 23, 2020

Dearest congregants and renters, 
 
We have been notified of possible exposure to COVID-19 at our Unitarian Church Buildings on Friday, March 13, 2020, during a memorial service. The sanctuary and hall were used for this service.

 

At this point in time, 11 attendees of the service have developed symptoms and one has been advised by medical professionals that COVID-19 is likely. This has not been confirmed by official testing, but the province has shifted testing priorities so we may not have confirmation for some time. As such, we would like to treat this as if there has been exposure to the virus and act accordingly to keep everyone safe. 
 
We want to reassure the congregation of a few important facts about our preventative actions. By March 13th, the caretaking staff implemented a rigorous sanitization protocol and the members hosting the memorial service made sure to disinfect every surface in the church (pews, doorknobs etc.)
 
Although we hosted an on-site Sunday service on March 15th, there was no coffee hour and we believe given the distancing and sanitization protocols in effect, this poses a low risk to those in attendance. If you were at UCV in the days following March 13th, we ask that you please exercise additional measures to self-quarantine. If you are finding this challenging and need help getting groceries and supplies, please contact the Care and Concerns committee by emailing Connie Wigmore cwigmore1@shaw.ca. 
 
Thank You, 
UCV Emergency Response Team

Update From Our Minister, DRE, and Board – March 19, 2020

During this COVID-19 period, all face-to-face meetings on the UCV campus (and worship services in our church Sanctuary) are cancelled. The Sunday worship services will be live-streamed for the foreseeable future on the UCV YouTube channel which can be viewed HERE.

Rev. Steven Epperson, Elliott Dainow, and our Worship Committee will continue to provide quality worship services that you can view at home. The UCV Board and other committees and working groups will continue to do their good work via Zoom meetings, email, and phone. The office staff continues to do their work during regular business hours (Monday to Thursday, 9:30 am to 2 pm; Friday, 9 am – 1 pm).