Chalice News and Notes 9.12.25
Chalice Admin
We Nurture Spiritually Courageous People
Who Transform the World through
Justice and Compassion
Explore our website to learn more about everything we are doing.
Upcoming Events
Sept 12th - Community Forum “Long Term Care - What You Need to
Know” - 7pm on Zoom - Register here: https://bit.ly/LongTermCareWhatYouNeedtoKnow
Sept 13 - Citizen's Climate Lobby - 9 am at Chalice
Sept 14th - “We Belong” Fair - after service
Sept 14th - Wisdom Exploration’s Justice Sunday Coin Toss Game (bring your quarters!) - after service booth in front of Chalice
Sept 21 - Open Mic Nite - 6pm in the Lounge
Sept 21 -Last Chance for Grateful Gathering Registration… Don’t Wait!
Grateful Gathering Registration
Oct 12 - Breeze Training - 11:30 am at Chalice Please fill out this registration and interest form: Breeze&GoogleTrainingRequest
Oct 12 - Voices at Dusk (music, poetry and potluck) - 5:00 pm at Chalice
Long Term Care
What You Need to Know
Friday, September 12 – 7 p.m. PT (via Zoom)
Lori Martin
Principal, Envision Benefit Specialists, LTC and Medicare Insurance
Kelila Heller
Board of Directors, Senior Concerns; Senior Living Advisor, Assisted Living Connections; Administrator, Residential Care Facilities for the Elderly
Keith Gosselin
Executive Director, Long Term Care Services of Ventura County
Ombudsman Program
Topics to include:
· Understanding long-term care options
· What Medicare does – and doesn’t – cover
· Different – and new – LTC insurance plans
· How to prepare ahead
· Resources
Please register for the forum in advance here:
https://bit.ly/LongTermCareWhatYouNeedtoKnow
Citizens Climate Lobby
Meets Saturday, Sept 13th at 9am
Meetings are open to anyone interested in saving our planet!
Here is the sign-on info:
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/82274752266?pwd=YUR1enR2RXFQLzN1a0xTK0NiYXRqZz09
Or:
Meeting ID: 822 7475 2266
Passcode: 271577
SUNDAY SERVICE
Onsite & Online ~ 10 am
Merlin Snider & Matt Chapa
What if our interactions with the earth, and rocks in particular, shape us, and we shape them? How do we shape the,m and what do these interactions say about our culture and values? We will explore stones of: 1. geology and fossils, 2. stones of building materials and tools, 3. commerce and trade, 4. art, and 5. ritual.
The registration link below will allow you to register for the service with your preferred email address. A service link will then be sent to that email. This service link will be active 10 minutes before the service. As an added benefit, you’ll be sent a recording of the service after it is done streaming!
Registration Link for the StreamYard Meeting:
Registration for the StreamYard Meeting
You can also view our Livestream on FB: https://www.facebook.com/ChaliceUUF
This Sunday’s Special Collection:
Our special collection this Sunday is for CAUSE - Central Coast Alliance United for A Sustainable Economy. CAUSE is a base-building organization committed to social, economic, and environmental justice for working-class and immigrant communities in California’s Central Coast. You can find out more here: https://causenow.org
To all who participated in the Ingathering Potluck Picnic!
We are so grateful!
Big thanks to everyone who brought food and participated in making our Ingathering Potluck Picnic such a fun community event! It was wonderful to see so many people there enjoying each other’s company. Many of you requested the recipe for Grenda’s corn casserole and she has generously given us the link posted below! Enjoy!
Join us for the We Belong Participation Fair after service on September 14, where you’ll be able to visit tables with representatives from various groups and ask questions about how to participate in those offerings. Think of it like a job fair but instead of jobs these are opportunities to connect and engage at Chalice and to put your personal passions into action in your life. Each of us belongs and this is one way Chalice hopes to promote that belonging. And if you don’t see something that feeds your soul… don’t hesitate to let us know. Maybe you can start a new Chalice group that speaks to your unique ways of belonging! Stop by the Community Life table with ideas or send any ideas to Community Life at: commun...@chaliceuu.org
Any questions? Reach out to commun...@chaliceuu.org
Don’t Forget to Bring Your Quarters!
September 14th after service
Minister’s Schedule
Rev. Nica will be taking study leave starting September 8th and returning to her office on September 23rd. She will not be available by email or text during that time. Our wonderful worship services will continue with special guest speakers.
Please refer general matters to our Administrator, Ana Krista Johnson at ad...@chaliceuu.org or reach out to Board President, Annie Barker, with any urgent issues at Pres...@chaliceuu.org. Our Pastoral Care team is also available at pastor...@chaliceuu.org. The phone number for Chalice is (805) 498-9548 and you may also leave a message there.
Thank you for granting Rev. Nica this important time of study and renewal.
Visiting or New to Chalice?
If you would like to connect and share more about yourself, take this survey: Let's Get Connected
Chalice Lighting
To start your day, a meeting, or before a meal
“This World”
I would like to write a poem about the world that has in it nothing fancy.
But it seems impossible.
Whatever the subject, the morning sun
glimmers it.
The tulip feels the heat and flaps its petals open
and becomes a star.
The ants bore in the peony bud and there is the dark pinprick well of sweetness.
As for the stones on the beach, forget it.
Each one could be set in gold.
So I tried with my eyes shut, but of course the birds were singing.
And the aspen trees were shaking the sweetest usic out of their leaves.
And that was followed by, guess what, a momentous and beautiful silence
as comes to all of us, in little earfuls, if we’re not too hurried to her it.
As for spiders, how the dew hangs in their webs even if they say nothing, or seem to say nothing.
So fancy is the world, who knows maybe they sing too, and the ants, and the peonies, and the warm stones,
so happy to be where they are, on the beach, instead of being locked up in gold.
~ Mary Oliver
Please email any joys and sorrows prior to service by 8 am on Sunday mornings to this address: j...@chaliceuu.org.
You may still fill out cards if you are attending in person.
Welcome to Grateful Gathering Circles!
"Living gratefully helps you navigate the joys and difficulties that accompany life. This is not an exercise in avoiding the hard stuff you experience by pretending things are okay when they’re not. Instead, living gratefully is being fully present to your life so that your perspective can be expanded, your compassion enhanced, and your purpose discovered in this moment. This is what makes every day more meaningful." ~Grateful Living
Previously known as Chalice Circles, Grateful Gathering Circles will offer the warm bond of small groups we are all familiar with, while bringing fresh new material from Grateful Living. Together, we will be in awe of the beauty around us, hold one another gently in the tender moments, and be open to all the wondrous things waiting just around the corner as we explore what it means to live a life of gratitude.
If you are interested in learning more, you click here to watch the Zoom recording from the September 2 information session.
Registration is now open and you can register at this link:
Grateful Gathering Registration
If you are unable to sign up for a regular group, we will hold a drop in group on the 4th Sunday each month. Please contact Sam Dickerson with any questions, d...@chaliceuu.org.
Ventura County Interfaith Community hosting
Annual Feast of Faiths on
October 5th 4-6 pm
Come join us at the Simi Valley Mandir (1925 Royal Ave., Simi Valley) for an afternoon of celebration and unity at the Feast of Faiths! The Feast begins at 4:00 PM. Experience a diverse array of cultures, traditions, and beliefs coming together in one place. Enjoy delicious Indian food and engaging conversation that showcase the beauty of different faiths. This in-person event promises to be a memorable experience for all who attend. Don’t miss out on this opportunity to connect with others and celebrate diversity! More information at https://vcic.info.
Get your tickets https://www.eventbrite.com/e/1653070401069. Early bird tickets are $30 and early bird students are $15. Get your tickets early as prices go up on September 28th!
DEI: Differing Views
A Convocation, held via Zoom, of the Unitarian
Universalist Multiracial Unity Action Council
Saturday, Oct. 11, 2025, 11 a.m.-12:30 pm Central time
(Starts at Noon Eastern, 10:00 am Mtn, 9:00 am Pacific)
3 Featured Speakers present PRO, CON and Mixed Viewpoints
(for details on the speakers see the attached flier)
There will be time for questions and comments by those in
attendance after the three presentations
TO REGISTER send an email to UUM...@gmail.com;
Zoom codes will be sent the day before the Convocation
Breeze Data Base Training for members!
October 12 at 11:30 at Chalice
Breeze is an amazing database that allows you to stay connected to Chalice. We understand that not everyone is comfortable with technology, but each member has a Breeze account that can provide you with information about your pledge status, your Neighborhood Network, and more! If you’d like to learn how to use Breeze, we’re holding a training session on October 12 at 11:30 am and hope you’ll join us.
Here is a link to sign up and let us know which part of Breeze you’d like to learn about!
Voices At Dusk
October 12 5 pm
Music, poetry & potluck
We are getting excited for our biggest fundraiser of the year. As always, the most important part of the event is YOU! Our Casino themed event will be held on Saturday, November 15, 2025 from 5:00 to 9:00 pm at Borchard Community Center (190 Reino Rd. where last year’s auction was held). This is a fun theme and you are invited to dress to the nines for this evening of great entertainment, food and music.
Do these three things now, all at this link: buy tickets, RSVP for free childcare, and make a donation
Food & Toiletries Drive for Adelante Comunidad Conejo
Donations are needed for vulnerable families. Needed items: Baby Formula, Bagged Beans, Bagged Rice, Deodorant, Diapers, Dish and Laundry Soap, Feminine Hygiene Products, Paper Towels, Reusable Grocery Bags, Shampoo, Soap, and Toilet Paper.
Drop donations inside the Chalice lobby on Wednesdays from 10am to 8pm or after service on Sundays.
Please make sure the items are not expired.
If you can help with temporary storage and/or pick up and delivery of items, please contact Clint at citize...@protonmail.com
If you're feeling overwhelmed by the political climate and unsure of how to take action, you're not alone. To help sift through all of the information, the Democracy in Action Team is sending out details each week on what actionable items you can take to fight political division and its threats to equal rights, our values, and democracy. It lists upcoming in-person, local events, as well as important calls you can make to your representatives. If you'd like to receive these emails, please email Kelly Niebergall at kellyni...@gmail.com. Let's resist together.
Looking for ways to put your love into action? Check out these opportunities!
https://bit.ly/LoveInActionOpportunities
Chalice has many Social Action groups
to engage with on a monthly basis!
Racial & Cultural Justice Team: 1st Wednesday Zoom meetings at 5:30pm each month.
BIPOC UU Tri-County Collaborative: currently on hiatus
The Citizens Climate Lobby Meeting: 2nd Saturday of the month - 9 am
Chalice Climate Action Team Meeting: 4th Sunday of the Month @ 12:30 Community Forum Team Meeting: 3rd Mondays at 7:00 p.m.
Contact Justice...@chaliceuu.org for more information
Consider joining the Chalice Social Justice Facebook group. To learn about latest events supporting Black Lives Matter, Climate Justice, and other concerns, click on:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/1260868657268458/
Stay informed as a Chalice Member
● Leadership Documents can be accessed from our website, click on the Members pull-down, then Members Resources to reach our Google Members Shared Drive. Members Shared Drive
● Get more involved, connected and learn more about Chalice structure & Governance as a member: view links here: Making Connections 2025
We hope this is helpful. Please feel free to reach out if you need assistance or have questions: Pres...@chaliceuu.org, and Trea...@chaliceuu.org for Financial questions.
● If you have special news to share with the congregation in Sunday services please write to j...@chaliceuu.org.
Or reach out to us here:
Chalice Office # (805) 498-9548 - Messages will be checked regularly.
● Rev. Nica Eaton, Minister, mini...@chaliceuu.org
● Anthony Concepcion, Music Director musicd...@chaliceuu.org
● Samantha Dickerson, Director of Lifespan Wisdom Exploration d...@chaliceuu.org
● Ana Krista Johnson, Office Administrator ad...@chaliceuu.org or bookkeeper, bookk...@chaliceuu.org
Explore our website to learn more about everything we are doing.