E-Newsletter

From the Minister's Study

Welcome to the return of our Stone Temple News church newsletter! For many years we compiled a monthly newsletter that included articles from staff and lay leaders and announcements. After a hiatus we are now creating an every-other-month newsletter. This newsletter provides space for staff and lay leaders to write articles about ongoing projects, and share news about recent special events. Information about upcoming events, programs, and worship services will continue to be shared in our weekly announcements which are emailed out on Fridays and available in print on Sunday mornings. You can also read about upcoming events on our website at ufpc.org/upcoming-events.

We are in the midst of a busy and thoughtful year at United First Parish Church as we move forward on many projects and initiatives including: Music Discernment, working with a ministerial intern, preparing for our 2027-2028 Capital Campaign, initiating a Share the Plate program, working with our first Communications Coordinator, and more. For this newsletter I want to share some highlights from the UFPC Church Evaluation of Ministries process led by the Committee on Ministry (David Fallon, Donna Ekstrand, and Susan Ballester).

The UFPC Committee on Ministry (COM) assesses the work of the Minister and overall ministry of the church approximately every three years. This church year, the COM created a survey seeking feedback on the work of the Lead Minister and the congregation as a whole in seven areas of ministry. 44 congregants completed the survey! In February the COM met with the congregation’s Vice President, and later with me, to discuss the feedback from the survey. The summary is also being shared with the Board of Governors (with participant names removed). Feedback was generally positive and shows that we are engaged with and proud of our congregation!

A new question in this year’s ministries survey was, “what has been the most meaningful or transformative experience for you at UFPC?” Your answers were moving and inspiring! The COM summarized responses to this question in the following way: “Across responses, people describe the congregation as a transformational community - one that nurtures personal growth, inspires social justice action, and provides deep emotional and spiritual grounding. Meaning comes less from a single program and more from relationships, shared values, and embodied participation. Responses depict a congregation that changes lives. Members experience this community as a welcoming, justice-driven, emotionally resonant, and participatory. Its greatest strengths lie in the interaction of relationship, worship, and action - creating a spiritual home that inspires hope, courage, and connection.”

Thank you for being part of our transformational and inspiring community!

-Rev. Rebecca Froom, Minister

2026 Pledge Drive

Stewardship Committee members Karl DeBisschop, Peter Kovach, and Jason Sharitt are excited to announce UFPC's 2026 Pledge Drive. This year, we reflect on the Latin words Alteri Seculo, or "for future generations," reminding us that the work we do at UFPC today plants seeds for the benefit of those who come after. Giving is especially important this year as we approach the 200th anniversary of our sanctuary, and as we go through a music discernment process searching for a new music director. Pledging is a two-step process: intention and action. The first step is filling out a Pledge Intention Form which is used in planning the church budget for the year. The second step is the contribution itself. We invite you to reflect on what UFPC means to you, and what future you want to help build. Your pledge—whatever the amount—is an act of faith in the generations to come. Pledge Intention Forms are due March 22, 2026. Thank you for all the ways you support this church community and the mission of United First Parish Church!

-Stewardship Committee

Music Discernment Process

Why is music important? Where is music present at United First Parish Church? How is music present in your life beyond church? When have you experienced a “Musical Welcome”? What are your big dreams for our Music Ministry at UFPC? These are some of the questions that were asked at our February 1st Music Discernment Workshop facilitated by Music Consultant Bailey Whiteman. Approximately 40 congregants attended our Music Discernment Workshop sharing their ideas and listening to one another’s ideas and experiences. One core theme from the workshop is that we find signing together meaningful - as a congregation and a choir. We want to be a community that sings together with joy, enthusiasm, and confidence! A second theme is how much we appreciate experiencing a broad range of musical styles in church.

Later in February, we held a lunch and Listening Circle with the choir which was very well attended. Choir members shared what they found meaningful about the UFPC Choir over the years. Stories were shared by choir members who had been singing together for a few months or for over 20 years. Together the group also shared their hopes and ideas for the choir going forward. Earlier that same day our children had their own music discernment workshop in Spirit Circle (see below).

Over the next month, the Music Discernment Team will convene to synthesize the information we’ve shared and gathered in this year of Music Discernment. They will articulate our Music Ministry priorities and highlight which of these priorities are essential functions for our Music Director. Our search for a Music Director will begin in April.

-Rev. Rebecca Froom, Minister

Spirit Circle Music Discernment

In our Spirit Circle Classroom on the last Sunday in February, we had a Music Discernment “workshop” with a sing-a-long led by Sharon Gamache on guitar - along with scribes Ann Parsley and Marie-Louise. Just as we did with UFPC members and friends earlier that month, we had large post-its around the room to gather thoughts from the children on music. We learned that they play a variety of instruments: piano, drum, ukulele, guitar, recorder, and flute! Songs they like to sing include: “Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star,” “Elsa from Frozen,” and songs from the Marvel Movies. They also like songs they compose themselves! The children learn songs at home, at pre-school, and at church. Sharon brought a whole cart full of musical instruments to share. There was a lot of joyful energy in the room!

-Marie-Louise Jackson-Miller, UFPC President

Music Ministry Survey

As we continue our year of music discernment, you are invited to fill out a UFPC Music Ministry Survey online at https://forms.gle/aVUMRZygwcbeC5i8A. Please complete this survey by Monday, March 23rd. Print copies will also be available in the parish hall, though we prefer people to complete the survey online.

What is Spirit Circle at UFPC?

For our introductory newsletter in this new format, I wanted to give a bit of an introduction to Spirit Circle itself. You’ve probably heard us inviting our children and volunteers to head down to Spirit Circle together most Sundays, but what is it? And did you know that it was created just for UFPC?

If you’ve volunteered with RE or served on the RE committee or the Board, you may be able to answer this even better than I can, because UFPC started running the Spirit Circle program in 2022, two years before I joined you all! Spirit Circle was developed by our Community Minister and previous RE Director Nan Moore. It’s structured so that 3-4 rotating expert teachers lead classes on different topics approximately once a month, assisted by UFPC RE volunteers. The program also incorporates periodic multigenerational services and occasional field trips. Spirit Circle lessons weave in the Soul Matters theme for the month, so that our whole community is experiencing these themes.

There are many things that drew me to UFPC in 2024, but one was definitely how excited I was about this model! In many ways, it builds on Rev. Greg Stuart’s innovative Way Cool Sunday School model, which also used rotating experts, multigen worship, and occasional outings to engage with the community, and which I’d gotten to experiment with a bit back when I was Acting DRE in Wellesley Hills. Spirit Circle’s core concept of rotating expert teachers is especially helpful, and makes lessons both extra engaging and easier for our smaller congregation to staff! It’s an idea I’d be delighted to see other congregations adopt.

This year, we are offering Earth Care, led by Jon, a very knowledgeable staffer at Holly Hill Farm in Cohasset; Art, led by Max, a gifted local art student and aspiring children’s art teacher; Meditation, led by Paula, who has a wealth of mindfulness experience; and a guest music session from talented congregant Sharon Gamache! We have also added a new component: once a month, I lead a session focused on Unitarian Universalism itself. This year, we’re exploring the values as a team of superhero sidekicks rescuing their superheroes (each of whom represent a different value). Although it wasn’t specifically planned, Rev. Rebecca and I recently noticed that the Spirit Circle topics actually relate very strongly to themes that come up frequently in our congregation as a whole: environmentalism, creativity, and meditation are all important touchstones for us. We really are in this together!

-Elizabeth Foster, Director of Religious Education and Family Ministry

Take Action for a Sustainable Quincy!

David Downs—who chairs the Social Justice Action Committee (SJAC) for UFPC—is helping the Climate Action subcommittee promote a climate crisis event for Quincy Climate Action Network (QCAN). Taking place on Earth Day, Wednesday, April 22nd, the event will explore cross-sector climate solutions for Quincy! Participants will learn practical ways to reduce emissions, improve energy efficiency, and support sustainable practices in their homes and communities. This interactive workshop will also utilize the En-ROADS Climate Simulator to show how different climate solutions shape our future in real time. SJAC subcommittee members Sarah Belfort and Pat Desmond built the connection with QCAN which led to the event being held in our very own UFPC parish hall. Click the link below for more event details and to reserve your spot.

-Climate Action Subcommittee

Reserve a Spot!

Expanding Communications Systems

I am so excited to be launching UFPC's bimonthly e-newsletter, 'Stone Temple News'! While UFPC previously had a physical newsletter by the same name some years back, the Communications Committee has revived this tradition in a modern way. Our hope is to send out the e-newsletter once every two months in order to share articles about the life and leadership of the church with members and friends.

In addition to our e-newsletter, the Communications Committee has been working hard on streamlining our various communications systems and channels. This has involved examining our utilization of Google Workspace and GoDaddy as well as switching our weekly announcements format to a new email template. Platforms such as YouTube, Facebook, and the UFPC website still remain important avenues of connection and outreach.

Missed a sermon while it was cold? Well, you're in luck! You can go back and watch Sunday worship livestream recordings on the UFPC YouTube channel at any time (thank you to the UFPC Livestream Team for running and recording all of our online services)! Additionally, you can be involved with our community virtually by following our Facebook page and joining our UFPC Facebook group. This Facebook group provides UFPC members, friends, and congregants with a virtual community to connect with one another. There is also a new page on the website dedicated solely to Share the Plate with information about what STP is, monthly recipient organizations, and link/instructions to donate.

If you have photos from UFPC events, please email them to me at kdoty@ufpc.org. I'm always looking for more photos to add to our website, e-newsletter, and other UFPC promotional materials!

I am looking forward to continuing these projects and expanding our communications capabilities in and into the future!

-Kendall Doty, Communications Coordinator

Stone Temple News