Hallie Bowie, President of the Board of Trustees, (she/her)

Last Friday I attended the annual Hands On Sustainability conference put on by the Big Love Network and the City of Akron. It was inspirational, with a diverse group of people coming together to envision the world we want to create, with clean air, clean energy, and green space in ALL of our neighborhoods, including historically marginalized communities. We came up with some good ideas, and I expect some of these will take root and grow.
But I’m not sure when I will see most of the attendees again, and none of us made a clear commitment to working together in the future.
Then Saturday morning, I went out to the church and literally worked to create the world I’d like to live in by helping with the Stewardship of the Earth’s lasagna garden bed preparation. We laid down newspapers over the grass, moved dirt, talked with each other, laughed, and enjoyed the sunshine together. Next spring the area will be ready for deep-rooted pollinator plants to attract bees, butterflies, and birds. Since Saturday, I’ve already exchanged emails with friends from church talking about what we
need to do next to build a better world.
There is much work to be done to create the world we envision. It can feel overwhelming. To keep going, we need a loving community around us. This is the magic of the UU church community: our relationships with each other renew our strength so we can work to create the world we envision. These relationships get to grow deep roots over time because UUCA provides supports us in so many aspects of our lives. UUCA has helped me parent
my children, provided me with a place to make music, celebrated with Scott & I when we got married, and provided a community to share with my mom when she moved to Akron. It has given me comfort and provided me with laughter. It has provided a rich soil to grow deep roots, so I can keep doing social justice and environmental work to help create the world I envision.
To keep building the relationships that sustain us we need to make sure we take care of our garden bed. The Religious Education program, our Minister, our Music Programs, our fabulous church staff, and our building are all part of that garden bed.
Making your annual pledge allows us to plan for funding these core programs. The Stewardship team would like to have your pledge by November 12th, so if you haven’t sent it in yet now is a great time! It’s easy- just use our nifty online pledge form!