Convening the Congregation: Our Sanctuary

Comment

Comment by Ray Anderson on January 9, 2010 at 9:24pm

Hi Folks

Just a clarification about my previous comment about want to repair a few pews for any member who wants one, AFTER the new pews are installed. I'm NOT offering to repair the existing pews for continued use.
That could be done, I suppose, by a carpentry contractor. I'm sure it would end up with very ugly supports allowing the current pews to be used for a few years.
Again, I am NOT offering to repair the pews for continued use in the sanctuary.

Ray Anderson

Comment by June Herold on January 9, 2010 at 7:02pm

Hi Mary Means.....! I like very much the idea of an absentee ballot. My vote is in favor of the new pews. And although I'm unemployed and 2010 is going to be hard for my family, we will contribute financially to the effort.

Comment by Mary Means on January 9, 2010 at 6:52pm

I regret that another obligation will keep me from participating in the Congregational meeting tomorrow. However, i want to add my two cents worth to the discussion.
Yes, we are a green sanctuary, and need to do all we can personally and politically to slow the impending climate crisis.
Yes, times are tough, and we are behind in terms of meeting our budget goals for the year.
And, yes, it is technically possible to rebuild the existing pews, though how practical is questionable.

This is, as i understand it, a vote on whether or not to SPEND the money, once it is raised. It is not about whether or not one likes the pews chosen after great deliberation by our knowledgeable fellow members and Bill Peters.

The money then has to be RAISED. I, for one, plan to be a contributor, though times are tough for me, too.

If absentee ballots were ok, i'd be voting yes. I urge my fellow UUCA members to do so.

Comment by UUCAVA on January 9, 2010 at 4:08pm

Here is the info sheet on the pews. It addresses many of the questions in this discussion.

Comment by Bennett Minton on January 9, 2010 at 11:11am

Stuart et al.:

Be assured I am following all the comments with keen interest.

It is the Board's role to develop Ends for the church. These include have a safe and welcoming environment. It is the staff's role to develop a strategic plan (which the congregation endorsed at the 2009 annual meeting) to meet those Ends, and implement it. In this case, the Board is obliged to seek the congregation's consent to fulfill one element of the strategic plan. The staff has, and will continue to, detail the pews proposal, and it will address all questions on Sunday afternoon. In the meantime, keep those cards and letters coming!

Bennett

Comment by Stuart M. Whitaker on January 9, 2010 at 10:29am

I love the fact that Reverend Mary has written about the online conversation, encouraging the congregation to participate. I also think it's wonderful that tomorrow's service will ask what's it all about, what are we all about as individuals and as a community, what does it mean to be politically correct, and does any of that matter?

A number of important questions and issues have been raised in this online conversation (taking place at www.uucava.org and http://groups.yahoo.com/group/UUECOACTION/) about the proposal to replace the pews, and I encourage everyone who is interested to read all the comments and participate. I'm sorry that no one from the board or the task force has joined the conversation, but trust we will have an opportunity to fully explore those questions and issues at the meeting tomorrow.

A number of very important issues have been raised in this conversation. Because of my interest in sustainability, I want to address Sharon Sundial and Lavona Grow's comments regarding Green Action and a "Green Lens."

Surely we all know that when we find ourselves in a h***, the first thing we should do is stop digging. What some may not know is that we are in a huge sustainability h***, one indication being the fact that we are in the midst of the sixth mass extinction on Earth. Unlike the first five, I confess that this one is caused by me. And you. The outcome of Copenhagen, which held hope for a global agreement, was disappointing. At best the limited agreement reached by Obama and "noted" by the rest of the delegates would halt CO2 at 700 parts per million (PPM), yet level this is twice the 350 PPM many scientists say is safe, and what's more, there is no current global agreement or mechanism to halt emissions even at 700 PPM. If we are to have any hope of getting out of our sustainability h***, we can't continue with business as usual--you and I must make major changes now in what we do and how we behave. We can't wait for governments to solve all our problems.

I propose that the first principle of a Green Lens policy is that we first stop digging, which means in this case that we don't replace what we can repair. Ray Anderson explains exactly how the pews can be repaired. As for the fabric material, if the pews are replaced the fabric should certainly be "sustainable," but the fabric will play only a small part in the overall environmental impact of this project.

I welcome more comments and look forward to the discussion tomorrow.

Comment by Kit Britton on January 9, 2010 at 10:04am

A question I have is whether the $100,000 is an estimated cost or the result of a bid among qualified contractors. To put this question another way, will this project be bid among contractors, or is the proposal to use a contractor identified on a sole source basis?

Comment by June Herold on January 8, 2010 at 11:30am

I think it's great that we have such skills in the congregation. I'm just wondering whether this offer to have congregants make the pews came up in the last year or two when the options were explored and whether it was discussed. Meanwhile, I've seen little kids fall through the backs of the current ones. I was impressed, when I joined the congregation, that there was audio equipment to help the hearing impaired. I was also impressed that the sermons were recorded and video taped for those who couldn't attend. But I have to say, I saw a mixed message in the most obvious of pastoral care needs: to make sitting in the sanctuary comfortable for all with more up-to-date seating -- not just repair or replicate what existed.

Comment by Dorothy Mulligan on January 8, 2010 at 9:54am

I support Ray Anderson's idea of rebuilding some of the current pews. We are a green sanctuary and his skills in woodworking are evidenced by his previous work for UUCA, notably in the copy room.

Dorothy Mulligan

Comment by Stuart M. Whitaker on January 7, 2010 at 8:14pm

I appreciate everybody's comments. I hope someone from the task force or the board will address some of the questions that have been raised.

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