Post 31

Northwoods Unitarian Universalist Fellowship, Brainerd/Pine River MN. March 7.

The first of the five meetings, Feast, Film &Forum, scheduled at Happy Dancing Turtle was held last night, March 6th, with a pot luck and program on young farmers and sustainable agriculture.We were pleased to have the Schramm and Brakstad families talking about their experiences as local farmers, the Brakstad parents longstanding farm residents near Pequot Lakes, and the younger Schramms starting their enterprise and raising their young family, and showing such enthusiasm and love for their work. The discussion followed a film called "The Greenhorns," about young farmers around the country and the challenges they meet in the marketplace and life in general.

The next program in this series will be held on March 20 with a local foods panel, "movers and shakers in the growing local foods movement." Again, an optional potluck at 5:30, program at 6pm. These programs are sponsored in partnership by NUUF and Happy Dancing Turtle.

Check out our website soon for a resource page on available for borrowing books and other media on Unitarian/Universalism. mnnuuf.org.

Respectfully submitted, Mary DeYoung, News Director 218-587-2543

Post 30

Northwoods Unitarian Universalist Fellowship, Brainerd/Pine River  Feb.29, 2014

Greetings! the March Newsletter has just been completed, and I apologize for any shortcomings. I have been plagued by printer and computer problems for the whole month of February; now up and running and fingers crossed.

A couple of things; the PUC public meeting for comments on the Sandpiper proposal by Enbridge, is scheduled for March 12 at the PR-B school between 6 and 9pm. Local people who attended our gas/oil films and meetings earlier may wish to come and face these people in the flesh! The latest notices from PUC have Enbridge's whole plan, so you might want to research this ahead of time. Of course, they do not see anything wrong with going ahead, being concerned with the bottom line, always. They see no farther than their noses. Certainly not into the future when more leaks occur and more poisoning of the environment makes life untenable. Thanks to Barb Kaufman, who submitted a well reasoned letter to the editor on this topic recently.

And I did not have room to make comment on our workshop goals and plans, some of which are beginning to start up. Melissa and I met to discuss public relations, and need to develop a source page for newspaper and other media outlets, to use for disseminating information. Melissa and Pat are working on development of music programs by revising and updating the Songbook; Alison is contributing the player and some music, Melissa has purchased some CDs as well. We need to establish this in the budget as an ongoing expense. Also Melissa has started a resource page for the website, on which books and CDs and other items of interest can be listed for lending and program planning. I am sure that as we study the workshop plans, we will see some results develop for positive change and growth of our congregation.

The first of five meetings on food issues will be held on March 6th. This one features the film, The Greenhorns, about beginning farmers, and a discussion with a panel of speakers. At the HUG campus, and in partnership with Happy Dancing Turtle, there will be optional potlucks at 5:30, programs at 6. HDT is located just off Highway2 in Pine River, on the west side. Call for further information at 218-587-2303 or google www.happydancingturtle. org.

Respectfully submitted, Mary DeYoung, News Director NUUF

Post 29

Northwoods Unitarian Universalist Fellowship, Branerd/Pine River, MN 2/23/14

 "Feast, Food, and Forum"...

Greetings! We have finally firmed up our plans for five food meetings, with our co-sponsor, Happy Dancing Turtle. As mentioned, we have a schedule to talk about food issues and sustainable food production for local people. To be held at the HUG campus in Pine River, with a potluck supper for those who wish to participate, there will be films, panels, and discussion. The topics and dates are as follows:

March 6: "The Greenhorns" and a panel of beginning farmers
March 20: Local foods and organic producers
April 3: Toxic Taters, and a panel discussion. About the use of chemicals in raising potato crops.
April 17: Bees, film and local beekeepers for discussion
May 1: GMOs; film featuring Jeffrey Smith, acclaimed author of "Seeds of Deception"

More details will be published as time goes on...

Schedules for March include March 8, with Arlene Jones talking about sustainable gardening, and March 29, when a panel of recovering mentally ill persons will talk about their experiences with services and what has helped or hindered their particular situations. To be held at the Nisswa library, 10:30 coffee, 11:00 service.

Respectfully submitted, Mary DeYoung, News Director 218-587-2543

Post 28

Northwoods Unitarian Universalist Fellowship, Brainerd/Pine River MN 2/8/14

Greetings! A couple of items to report on today from this week's activity. On Wednesday, Barbara and Mary met with Happy Dancing Turtle folks, Quinn, Jim and Barb to discuss and plan for a series of programs on food issues. This will be a partnered series by NUUF and HDT. Topics will include: a potato panel; GMOs; local organic producers; bees; and young farmers. Dates were set up: March 6 and 20; April 3, 17; and May 1. These are Thursday nights, 5pm potluck dinner; 6pm, program. There will be films and speakers, either or both. We will help with publicity and other aspects as this is in development.

The other very exciting day was yesterday, Friday February 7th, when we met for a day-long workshop to set new goals for the coming year. This will be elaborated on later, via newsletter and website. But basically, we had the services of Barb Mann as facilitator, to help reexamine the mission statement, and set goals for the Fellowship, going back to the UU principles as the basis for programs and activities. Three main ideas were discussed and refined. Paraphrasing; One: practice a nurturing and stimulating format for gathering, to stretch our spiritual growth and strengthen our connections. Two: effectively serve as a catalyst in connecting with the broader community, acting on our principles and increasing our visibility. Three: grow our gathering body as a home for religious liberals. Tasks were assigned and dates for completion developed. Some very concrete 'how-to's' came out of this, concrete directions, which when set down on paper, illustrate a clearer road-map to achievement than we have had. More details will be forthcoming. This was a very inspiring way to look at our problems and figure out practical ways to address them. Many thanks to Barb Mann for guiding us through the process and making this work so rewarding!

Dates for meetings have been problematical. In February, the next date is Feb. 15, at the Nisswa Library. The Spirit of Life program will continue, from the UUA Tapestry series. Melissa will lead. March dates are being changed, so watch the newsletter and the blog for details.

Respectfully submitted, Mary DeYoung, News Director

Post 27

Northwoods Unitarian Universalist Fellowship, January 18, 2014

We have been relatively inactive for a few weeks, mainly due to severe weather, which has impacted on many activities for many people and groups in the area. Today's service was held at the Nisswa Library; the topic was a Tapestry Service from the UUA website, called Spirit of Life: Exploring Spirituality for UUs. Since this is part of a series of programs, and was experienced so positively, we agreed to continue using this format from time to time. Today it centered on activities and participation by the members that focused on personal experiences and examination of understanding of this undefined realm on the individual level.

Discussion of future meetings led to a decision to cancel January 25th, which was to be a celebration of Martin Luther King's Day. The presenter will be unable to attend. So the next date is February 7th, when we will have a short Service on Standing on the Side of Love, and then a workshop on setting goals and the mission for the Fellowship, with the assistance of Barb Mann as facilitator. This will be held at Mary DeYoung's, 618 3rd St N., Pine River at 10:30. Pot luck lunch. A reminder: Back to Basics is held at the PR-B school on February 1st, with many workshops and artists/artisans work on display. Usually, we are present.

For further information, contact Pat Scott, from the Webpage.

Post 26

Northwoods Unitarian Universalist Fellowship, Brainerd/Pine River, MN
December 15, 2013

On December 11, the Fellowship held a planning meeting at Lakes Latte in Pequot Lakes. The next few months calendar was discussed and set up, with allowances for flexibility. We discussed several matters in connection with this. One was to keep our contacts open with the Union Church in Hackensack; they are continuing with native American outreach projects, with which we could partner in some manner. Mary will keep in touch with them. In this season, they, with other local churches, participated in a shoebox gift collection for families in need. We could add to that. Also there is a person on the Leech Lake reservation interested in providing wild rice for resale; we do not really have a venue for sales like that, but file it away for sometime later, or individuals can follow up.....The UUA has suggested action on the Standing on the Side of Love issue (marriage equality) in the 30day campaign, Jan 18 - Feb 16; we will bring ideas on this to the December 21st meeting.....We did followup on the UU workshop ideas from the November 9th meeting in Underwood, and decided to ask a traveling UU minister to do a program for us in May, on spirituality. We also decided to make a goal for each us to find a new person to invite into the fellowship in the coming year.....We are also contacting Happy Dancing Turtle to partner with them on food issues in the spring, probably a series of programs, and this is already in the planning stages.

The tentative calendar looks like this:
Jan 18 "Spirit of Life" from the UUA Tapestry website.
Jan 25 Martin Luther King Jr program.
Feb 1 Back to Basics at PRB School. All day workshops. General public.
Feb 8 Standing on the Side of Love program.
Feb 22 Sermon from Tapestry.
Mar 8 Sprout and CSA talk by Arlene Jones.
Mar 22 National Alliance on Mental Illness speaker.
Apr 12 Flower Service.
Apr 26 Annual Meeting (elections).
May 10 STOP  program on sex trafficking.
May 17 or 31, guest minister.
June/July/Aug, second Sunday picnics, possibly attending a powwow...

Message from Pat: Save the date for a presentation at CLCC from 6:30 - 8:00, Monday January 27, on the Minnesota Safe Schools (anti-bullying) Act; HF 826, SF 783.

Our meeting on December 14 was held at Arbor Glen; Alison presented a talk on atheism, sharing a reading list from various writers on this topic, from various points of view. In the gradations of this philosophy, there are many on the continuum from the absolutists to the more agnostic humanists in definition. Deciding where one fits along this line, if at all, requires some self examination of beliefs and values. This was an interesting and enlightening talk; Alison will put out the reading list for us. We followed up with a concert by the local Legacy Chorale in downtown Brainerd with seasonal music and singalongs. Thanks to Luann Rice for hosting once again.

Submitted by Mary DeYoung, News Director    ......Happy Holidays.....

Post 25

Northwoods Unitarian Universalist Fellowship, Brainerd/Pine River MN
December 6, 2013

This evening we held the last of our gas/oil educational meetings, in partnership with Happy Dancing Turtle here in Pine River. It has been slightly below zero all day, so it was gratifying to have people turn out. The movie "Gasland" was the featured film, about the proliferation of gas wells all over the US, and attendant environmental hazards to land, air, water, and people. This particular film does not leave much to be optimistic about. While Minnesota and Wisconsin do not have large gas pools from which to extract energy, Wisconsin does have the optimal kind of sand for fracking, and Minnesota is a corridor to the Dakotas where it is used most heavily. No one escapes the impact of these industries.....on the Enbridge front, the public comment period by letter has closed (on Dec.5), but there are still public meetings to be scheduled where citizens can testify in person. We feel continuing to write political incumbents is still worth while.....I received a reply from Joshua Stevenson, Cass County Land Commissioner to a letter about the county possibly passing a moratorium  on  pipeline expansion. In it he says that on September 9, there was a CC Board Meeting, in which a motion passed to "respectfully decline endorsing any pipe line routes and report the same to Carlton County and Enbridge Energy, LLC." We think this could be overridden by the State....Meantime, the plot thickens: On December 5, the last day for written comments, Kennicott filed a holding request, as they say they have some prior leases on land Enbridge is negotiating for.....now that calls up some pictures! It would be funny if it didn't affect all of us one way or another....There is another film available on hydraulic fracturing and natural gas, called "Split Estate." It is available to netflix users for instant viewing; we will soon have a copy to share as well.

Next meeting is a planning meeting on December 11 at Lakes Latte in Pequot Lakes at 11:30. The next service will be on December 14 at Arbor Glen at 11, followed by a seasonal concert in Brainerd. The annual Solstice Meeting will be on December 21st at Barb's home in Pine River. For questions or comments, contact Pat or Mary.

Submitted by Mary DeYoung, News Director 218-587-2543