“I slept and dreamt that life was joy. I awoke and saw that life was service. I acted and behold, service was joy.” — Rabindranath Tagore
As Unitarian Universalists, we all have big visions for our church — for who we are and what we want to become. Our visions ask us to choose a life of service and action, within the beloved community we hold dear, grounded in generosity and justice. A life of joy abundant!
We call on joy as “that holy fire that keeps our purpose warm,” as Helen Keller wrote, in this time of renewing your pledge for the coming year to UUCW, our spiritual home. Especially in this joyful year of rebuilding our community post-Covid, we each reflect upon our commitments to engage and volunteer our time and talents, to align ourselves with anti-racist values and practices, and to pledge our financial gift to help sustain all that we do together.
Attend a Cottage Meeting
Because you are an important part of this community, your participation in this conversation matters. As a community, we are starting this year’s annual pledge drive, “Imagine What Our Joy Can Do,” with an invitation to join a small-group Cottage Meeting that welcomes YOU into the conversation with joy, generosity, and visioning our future in this time of ministerial transition. Meetings will be held in person at UU Church West, online, or in a member’s home. Join member hosts in an intimate gathering to reflect on our future and the kind of support and talent we need to achieve our community’s fullest potential. You’ll meet with people having much in common with you, where you can share, ask questions, and deepen your connections. As a community, we must make decisions about what we’re able to do together.
“When you do things from your soul, you feel a river moving in you, a joy.” ― Rumi
Giving is a Spiritual Practice
All UUA congregations are independently funded by YOU – our members and friends. We aim to build this community for you to thrive, grow, learn, be inspired, and be accompanied pastorally throughout your life. Giving is a spiritual practice of generosity and abundance, and there are many ways to give. Your presence and participation are the best gifts of all. We ask that your heart guide you, and to give as generously as you can. With your gift, we aim to support the true costs of operating, while also justly compensating our excellent employees and continuing to spread the light of this liberal faith. For it is true that our budget is the foundation for actualizing all that we can be together, which can only become real by increasing UUCW’s pledge income. This is our church, and this is something we can do together!
How much should I pledge? Here is a Fair Share Pledge Guide.
Here is additional information about the needs of UU Church West.
All Are Welcome Into Covenant
Joining and ongoing pledging to this congregation means making a commitment to being part of a community that is grounded in the long history of Unitarian Universalism. It is also an affirmation of principles such as universal human dignity, justice and compassion in human relations, and respect for the interdependent web of which we all are a part, as a foundation for every individual’s ongoing search for truth and meaning.
This covenanted community will accompany each other on life’s journey by making promises to one another through our covenant about how we hope to live into our Unitarian Universalist Principles. It doesn’t mean we get it right all the time, frequently we don’t but the beauty of covenant is that we keep calling one another back into loving community.
Why Pledge? Can’t I Just Give When I Can?
At UUCW, we know that it’s the people who make the community; money simply helps provide the enduring ‘container’ that holds us. Yet what a conundrum this is: It takes people to make a community, but it takes money to be able to bring the community together and address our needs, spiritual yearnings, and visions as caring, moral people. Pledging our financial commitment is how we bring into being your world as we dream it to be. You help us face the conundrum together, that we may build and sustain a full inclusive (and joyful!) spiritual community.
Pledges create stability for the congregant and goals for our community. We love this church. We hear your dreams. We always accept donations and you can always change your pledge amount up or down. We cannot make a budget without knowing what funds will be available. The pledge drive tells us how far we can go to sustain UUCW, including whether we need to cut programs or staff and minister availability. Our goal is to be here for you and generations of Unitarian Universalists to come. We seek to share goals with you as you make decisions about your finances, estates, and commitment to Unitarian Universalist values.
Pledging Makes the Community Thrive
A financial pledge to the stewardship campaign budget is part of your annual commitment to this community. No one is denied participation who commits to our shared covenant. A pledge of any size that is meaningful to you is welcome. If you need a waiver for your pledge, this year due to financial hardship, fill out a pledge form indicating this need. Questions? Talk to please talk to the Rev. Julie Stoneberg, Vicki Banville, Church Administrator, or Leslie Peterson, Church Treasurer. You can also change your pledge at any time if your financial situation changes. We use your pledge amount to make our budget and that is how we determine what dreams and commitments the congregation can fulfill each year.