< To Upcoming Services May 31, 2026 On Pride, Labyrinths This morning we welcome Kamora Herrington, founder of Kamora's Cultural Corner and the Sterling Street Sanctuary and Nature Reserve in Hartford. A one-time staff-member with True Colors, Ms. Herrington is an insightful historian, activist, consultant, mother, music lover and community-builder. She has the green light to speak about whatever is on her heart from UUSE's free pulpit. Coordinator: Rev. Josh Pawelek Summer Schedule #eBlast-05-27 Sunday Service: "On Pride, Labyrinths This morning we welcome Kamora Herrington, founder of Kamora's Cultural Corner and the Sterling Street Sanctuary and Nature Reserve in Hartford. A one-time staff-member with True Colors, Ms. Herrington is an insightful historian, activist, consultant, mother, music lover and community-builder. She has the green light to speak about whatever is on her heart from UUSE's free pulpit. Coordinator: Rev. Josh Pawelek Summer Schedule Sunday, May 31 at 10:00 A.M. In Case You Missed It #eBlast -05-27 OOS Sermon YouTube

< To Upcoming Services Watch the eBlast for the next scheduled Special Presentation on the Connecticut TRUST Act With Tabitha Sookdeo Tuesday Evening, May 6, 2025 at 7:00 PM The UUSE Social Justice / Anti-Oppression Committee welcomes Tabitha Sookdeo, Executive Director of Connecticut Students for a Dream, for an update on the status of Connecticut’s TRUST Act. Ms. Sookdeo will join us by Zoom. UUSE members and friends are invited to join the SJ/AO Committee at UUSE, or they can join online. Please contact Monica van Beusekom or Rev. Josh Pawelek for the login information. #MayNewsletter With Tabitha Sookdeo Tuesday Evening, May 6, 2025 at 7:00 PM The UUSE Social Justice / Anti-Oppression Committee welcomes Tabitha Sookdeo, Executive Director of Connecticut Students for a Dream, for an update on the status of Connecticut’s TRUST Act. Ms. Sookdeo will join us by Zoom. UUSE members and friends are invited to join the SJ/AO Committee at UUSE, or they can join online. Please contact Monica van Beusekom or Rev. Josh Pawelek for the login information. #MayNewsletter OOS Sermon YouTube

< To Upcoming Services Watch the eBlast for the next scheduled Loss and Change Group UUSE Loss and Change Group If you intend to visit our UUS:E Loss And Change Discussion/Support Group, contact Pam Maccabee and get on the mailing list so that you can receive any important meeting venue, date, and time changes. OOS Sermon YouTube

< To Upcoming Services Oct 4, 2026 Stop & Shop Cards Sales This Sunday, Stop & Shop cards will be sold on the first Sunday of the month after the 10:00 A.M. service. We now can use debit or credit cards for these purchases. Come support this UUSE fundraiser! OOS Sermon YouTube

< To Upcoming Services Watch the eBlast for the next scheduled Cards and Cocoa Cards and Cocoa from 1 - 3PM in the Sanctuary. Enjoy cocoa while handcrafting holiday cards for your loved ones! Free. Cards and Cocoa from 1 - 3PM in the Sanctuary. Enjoy cocoa while handcrafting holiday cards for your loved ones! Free. OOS Sermon YouTube

< To Upcoming Services Watch the eBlast for the next scheduled The Afro-Semitic Experience The Afro-Semitic Experience On Sunday, February 11th at 2:00 p.m. The Afro-Semitic Experience is coming to UUSE to help shake off those midwinter doldrums with a World Music Jazz concert guaranteed to get you up and moving. What could be better? $15 suggested donation. #eBlast-02-07 On Sunday, February 11th at 2:00 p.m. The Afro-Semitic Experience is coming to UUSE to help shake off those midwinter doldrums with a World Music Jazz concert guaranteed to get you up and moving. What could be better? $15 suggested donation. #eBlast -02-07 OOS Sermon YouTube

< To Upcoming Services Sep 7, 2025 Homecoming: Where Fire Belongs Sunday Service: "Homecoming: Where Fire Belongs" Join us for our annual Homecoming service. Let's celebrate UUSE--a beacon of spiritual light for all those seeking beloved, liberal religious community east of the Connecticut River. Our chalice flame lights the way as we offer opportunity, passion, action, comfort, and belonging to long-time members and newcomers alike. Coordinators : Emmy Galbraith and Rev. Josh Pawelek. Services at 9:00 and 11:00 A.M. #eBlast-09-03 Sunday Service: "Homecoming: Where Fire Belongs" Join us for our annual Homecoming service. Let's celebrate UUSE--a beacon of spiritual light for all those seeking beloved, liberal religious community east of the Connecticut River. Our chalice flame lights the way as we offer opportunity, passion, action, comfort, and belonging to long-time members and newcomers alike. Coordinators : Emmy Galbraith and Rev. Josh Pawelek. Services at 9:00 and 11:00 A.M. Sunday, September 7, 2025 In Case You Missed It #eBlast -09-03 OOS Sermon YouTube

Manchester Women's Sacred Singing Circle Every Thursday at 7 PM We sing songs and chants from a variety of traditions, including some written by women from circles around the country, including our own. All are about the earth, healing, spirit, and, of course, women. Come late, leave early, or stay the whole time. Come every week or off and on, when you choose. But come! We have so much fun each week, we want you to join us in the laughter, song and community! For more information contact Jane at sexton@uuse.org < Previous Times Are Listed Here Next >

< To Upcoming Services Watch the eBlast for the next scheduled UUSE Artisan Holiday Market. UUSE Artisan Holiday Market 📅 Friday, Nov. 21, 2025 • 6–8:30 PM Friday Night Sneak Peek – $5 admission includes mulled apple cider and dessert. 📅 Saturday, Nov. 22, 2025 • 9 AM–3 PM Free Admission! UUSE Artisan Holiday Market 📅 Friday, Nov. 21, 2025 • 6–8:30 PM Friday Night Sneak Peek – $5 admission includes mulled apple cider and dessert. 📅 Saturday, Nov. 22, 2025 • 9 AM–3 PM Free Admission! OOS Sermon YouTube

4192d084-c4eb-455d-9694-79388955b7b5 < Back to Newsletter September Newsletter Article < Previous Article Next Article > Sunday, August 30th: Coffee House . Join us for our annual coffee house service, at which many of our UUSE musicians and poets share their talents. This service has become a beloved end-of-summer tradition for us. Always fun, always meaningful, always a wonderful reflection of the diversity and passion within the UUSE community. Coordinator: Rev. Josh Pawelek. Sunday, September 6th: Labor in the Pulpit . This Labor Day weekend we’re participating in “Labor in the Pulpit,” a program of the AFL-CIO. We’ll be joined by the president of the Connecticut AFL-CIO, Ed Hawthorne. Mr. Hawthorne is a skilled organizer and speaker. We’ll have an opportunity to engage in dialogue with him about the state of the labor movement in Connecticut and nationally. Coordinators: Rev. Josh Pawelek and Rob Napier. Return to two services, 9 or 11 AM. Return to two services, 9 or 11 AM. Sunday, September 13th: Homecoming . All-Congregational service. This morning we kick off our congregational year. We’ll review our covenant, principles and values. We’ll bless backpacks (briefcases, purses, bags, etc.), and we’ll celebrate with our homecoming picnic following the 11:00 service. Coordinators: Emmy Galbraith, Mary Bopp, Rev. Josh Pawelek. Sunday, September 20th: Beginnings. Our ministry theme for September is, appropriately, beginnings. Rev. Josh delivers his first sermon of the congregational year—on beginnings. Let’s look forward to a year full of spiritual growth, learning, exploration, justice-seeking, service, and beloved community. Coordinator: Rev. Josh Pawelek. Sunday, September 27th: Building a UU Justice Movement in Connecticut! This morning we welcome the Rev. Sierra-Marie Gerfao into our pulpit. Rev. Gerfao is the executive director of the newly-founded CT UU Social Justice Ministry. She’ll preach on her vision for this ministry and how all of us can participate in it. Coordinator: Rev. Josh Pawelek. #SeptemberNewsletter Contact Information modified in accordance with UUSE Privacy Policies.

2a808d76-7ec3-45e6-bd31-9abf2aded99f < Back to Newsletter September Newsletter Article < Previous Article Next Article > Minister's Column Dear Ones: Welcome to the 2026-2027 congregational year of the Unitarian Universalist Society East Manchester, CT – our 58th year as a congregation! (Wait?!? Didn’t we just celebrate our 50th anniversary? I guess this means we have to start thinking about an extravaganza for our 60th!) I am really looking forward to the year. As many of you have heard me say, I feel blessed to serve as minister to a congregation as healthy as UUSE. And just as importantly, I feel blessed to have work that I genuinely love: preaching, worship planning, pastoral care, teaching, collaborating with talented leaders, performing weddings, memorials and child dedications, community organizing, social and environmental justice work. I love all of it! I know why I love it. At the heart of any successful ministry lies relationship. I love the relationships I have built at UUSE and in the wider community over the years. As I contemplate the coming congregational year, I am thinking a lot about relationship-building. In the coming year, I’d like to meet one-on-one or in small groups with as many of you as possible. Whether you feel you have a strong relationship with me, or barely any relationship at all, I want to extend the invitation to meet with me. Reach out and ask for a meeting. I imagine no agenda other than getting to know each other more than we already do. I try to meet with people in this way every year, but I want to prioritize it this year. I suppose this is my response to the chaos in the world—authoritarianism, climate change, war, etc. We respond in more healthy ways to the chaos when we’re in relationship with others. Of course, when I speak of relationship-building, I’m not only referring to your relationships with me. I am also referring to your relationships with each other as members and friends of UUSE. How can you build relationships in new ways at UUSE? How can you get to know more of your congregational peers? What common ground do you share? What common work do you want to engage in? There is so much potential. I urge you to consider how you can best deepen your relationships at the meetinghouse. It will make a difference. As our friends in organized labor say, we are stronger together! I want to make one last point regarding beginning the year with a focus on relationships. I’ve been dedicating some of my summer study leave to learning as much as I can about Artificial Intelligence (AI). I have a lot to say about AI (you can expect it to show up in my preaching this year). I am, to say the least, angry and disappointed with Big Tech. I am a budding Luddite in the best sense of the word. The big AI companies promise so much, and yet very little of what is promised turns out to be real, while real human beings are losing jobs and the quality of products and services is declining rapidly. Yes, there are remarkable things AI can do, but it’s also a lot of hype, and a lot of harm. This is why relationships matter. And this is why healthy congregations aren’t going away. Healthy congregations offer real-life, flesh-and-blood, meaningful human relationships. AI will never be able to do that. Never. Welcome to our 2026-2027 congregational year. Welcome to a year of building relationships. With love, Rev. Josh #SeptemberNewsletter Contact Information modified in accordance with UUSE Privacy Policies.

065b6864-9db8-4bac-a84b-c4f3abbe249e < Back to Newsletter September Newsletter Article < Previous Article Next Article > Books, Classes, and Discussions Adult Religious Education #SeptemberNewsletter Contact Information modified in accordance with UUSE Privacy Policies.