Dear MidAmerica Chalice Lighter,

Chalice Lighter grants are funded by small donations from Unitarian Universalists across our large MidAmerica Region of the UUA, pooled together to help congregations with specific growth projects.

The MidAmerica Regional Chalice Lighter Committee, comprised of representatives from all three of the former districts, considered the four applications that were received. We are pleased to announce the results of the Spring Regional Chalice Lighter call:

• Chequamegon Unitarian Universalist Fellowship in Ashland, Wisconsin, will be awarded funds to assist their growing congregation in increasing professional staff by calling their first part-time minister. The fellowship has enjoyed steady growth over the past several years, has considerable enrollment in their RE programs, and recognizes their need for competent and considerate professional leadership.

• Harbor Unitarian Universalist Congregation in Muskegon, Michigan, has committed to making their two-story building accessible by installing a vertical wheelchair lift. A Chalice Lighter grant will be awarded to allow the congregation to provide accessibility to their sanctuary, religious education area, and the social hall. Harbor UU prizes inclusivity and believes accessibility is an essential component of UU values.

• Unitarian Universalist Church of Rockford, Illinois, will be awarded funds to hire a part-time consulting minister. This ministry will serve to train and support lay leaders in social justice empowerment, leadership development, engagement, and organizing. The UU Church of Rockford sees this as an opportunity to cultivate their growing partnership with other Northern Illinois congregations and to develop a model for creating collaborative justice ministries across the state.

For this Spring Call, please donate by June 15, 2017.

We thank you for your support of the growth of Unitarian Universalism in our Region!

There are several ways you can participate in the Chalice Lighter program, with four suggested levels of donation:

$20 Believer $50 Builder
$100 Benefactor $250 Beacon

These are amounts that would be donated three times each year upon receipt of the Call Letter in Fall, Winter and Spring.

If you’d prefer, for tax purposes, to make one donation per year (please send the $60 minimum donation or any greater amount to be divided among the next three Calls) you can send in your check now, and we will hold the funds and divide them equally across the three Calls. If you want to make an annual donation, please be sure to note “Annual” in the memo field of your check.

• You can go to the Chalice Lighter webpage and click on the Donate option of your choice; or
• Write a check out to MidAmerica Region. Please note “Chalice Lighters Spring 2017 Call” or “Annual Donation” in the memo line and send it in the enclosed envelope to the MidAmerica Region, 2355 Fairview Avenue #312, Roseville, MN 55113.

For those of you who are annual donors, you are receiving this Call Letter and will receive subsequent letters to keep you updated on what your funds are being used for. You are not being asked to send more money once you have made your annual donation for a given calendar year unless you wish to do so.

We know that many of you prefer to receive U. S. mail notices and send in your checks three times a year for each of the Chalice Lighter Calls. We will continue to gratefully handle your donations this way. However, if at all possible, we would like to convert the majority of both announcement letters and donations to electronic, since this saves the program money and time. You can find more information on this on the Chalice Lighter pages at www.midamericauua.org.

Thank you again for your generosity!

Sincerely,

The Chalice Lighter Committee

Emily Jaycox, St. Louis, MO
Heidi Lackmann, DesMoines, IA
Jennifer Thomas, Bowling Green, KY
Daniel Talhelm, East Lansing, MI
John Blevins, Kansas City, MO
with staff support from Rev. Phillip Lund and Dori Davenport Thexton