Report from the Lay Leadership Program Council

The Objective Setting Workshop was well attended on August 26, 2014.  We had representation from our Caring Circles, Stewardship, Pru-Com, Nomination and Search Committees, as well as membership committee and several other lay leaders throughout the church.  Our discussion was rich as we focused on the concept of “hospitality as a spiritual practice”.  The concept of spiritual hospitality is more than potlucks and coffee hour, it is a collective effort to participate in the practices of being a welcoming and open congregation.  

In order to reach our goal of improving our practice of and involvement in spiritual hospitality, the lay leaders discussed identifying 5 focus areas: Mission and Vision, Stewardship and Lay Leadership events, Gay Pride March in Worcester, The Joy of Lunch programming, the Wachusett Mountain Outing.  

This year the Stewardship Fair will be held on October 5, 2014.  Please remember to sign up for a table by contacting Laura Kirshenbaum, chair of the LLPC to secure a table to promote your church event, program or activity.  Caring Circles, the LLPC branches, Stewardship and many more will be present at the fair on October 5, 2014 in Unity Hall.

We are excited to see so many people volunteering to become Sunday Stewards to welcome our visitors and greet friends of the church.  The pre-service greeter is a critical part of the welcoming process and your participation is welcomed.  

Finally, the LLPC is seeking nominations of organizations for the monthly 50/50 offerings.  Last year, we focused on local, national and international organizations that focused attention on several critical social justice categories including:

Poverty, UU Service Committee,  Homelessness, Race,  Education, Animal Rights, Disabilities and Illness, Environment, and LBGTQ

A huge thank you to the members of our congregation who helped make last year’s 50/50 offering program a success.  Let’s do it again!

John Henry's Hammer Coffeehouse Fall 2014

John Henry’s Hammer Coffeehouse
Fall Concert Series 
held at First Unitarian Church, 90 Main Street, Worcester, MA.

Produced and presented as a collaborative effort between community radio WCUW 91.3 FM www.wcuw.org and the First UnitarianChurch of Worcester.

All shows: Doors open at 7 pm - Music starts at 7:30pm

$12 Advance - $15 at the door

John Henry's Hammer presents…

Sept. 20th: Blackstone Valley Bluegrass and the Erica Brown Bluegrass Band

Advance tickets: http://bpt.me/847613

Erica [Brown] developed an interest in music at an early age. At the age of seven, she was competing in fiddle contests with kids twice her age. At age nine, she was traveling throughout New England, Canada, and even Louisiana with the Maine French Fiddlers. Erica also performed as a special guest with Mac McHale And The Old-Time Radio Gang for five years. Currently, she has her own bluegrass band, Erica Brown & The Bluegrass Connection, which performs all over New England. Erica is also a member of The Stowaways, Darlin' Corey and The Record Family Band.

Blackstone Valley Bluegrass: Yes - there really is a Blackstone Valley and we all lived there when we started the band. Located in the heart of central Ma, exposure to the heavy metal content of the Blackstone river has produced a copious amount of fine bluegrass pickers. ;-)  Most notably are the Dick brothers from Sutton. Renowned musicians and celebrated recording artists, this brother combo will WOW you with their award winning picking. The Taylor-Nowlan bass/mandolin combo has been together in numerous bands since 1989. With their own distinctive style, these two crank out solid rhythm, and like to have a little fun too!  Put these four longtime friends together and you have a group that has excellent musicianship, fine harmonies, high energy and a true love of the music. Breakdowns and Gospel. Fiddle tunes and a Waltz. This is bluegrass! You will not be disappointed!

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Oct. 18th: The Twangbusters – Opening is Sarah Levecque / Dance floor will be open

Advance tickets: http://bpt.me/849409

The Twanbusters: Boogie, Blues & Bop with a heapin' helpin' of twang and sass, The Twangbusters bust out their own high-energy danceable blend of American roots juke-joint rhythms and soulful blues! Led by dynamo Paula Bradley (Miss Paula), described as "Patsy Cline meets Bessie Smith" on lead vocals, piano & ukulele, with the inimitable Peter "Dr. Z" Zarkadas on electric guitar (Sarah Levecque Band, Raw Symphony), and joined by rhythm masters Brian Rost-upright bass (Tarbox Ramblers, Girl Howdy) and former Nashville drummer Kathy Burkly (Girls Night Out)- they mix the best of bluesy country, boogie woogie & barrelhouse into a musical cocktail, shaken & stirred. Guaranteed to make you move yer feet! BOTTOMS UP!

Sarah Levecque: Ms. Levecque is a singer songwriter guitarist who moves easily between the sturdy roots of American music. Influenced in equal parts by early blues, country, folk and rock music Sarah has two full CD releases of her original material.

A Maine native, Sarah has been crafting her song-writing skills in the Boston / Cambridge / Somerville scene for the last eight years. An early music education in classical piano gave way to her love of early blues music. The Blues, raw and free of the conventions of her earlier training led Sarah to play guitar and eventually front her own band. At 19 she began to sit in with bands playing the music of Johnny Lee Hooker, Magic Sam, T-Bone Walker and Albert King. Her writing has evolved from the Blues tradition and her shy demure style may belie her capacity to bring strong and authentic blues guitar work to her live performances.

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Nov. 15th: Li’l BeeDee and the Doo-Rites – Opening are The Hip Swayers / Dance floor will be open

Advance tickets: http://bpt.me/713891

Li'l BeeDee & the Doo-Rites are a 5-piece combo, presenting old-school rhythm & blues with an infusion of rockabilly, with a mission statement to "do ya right"! The band consists of professional musicians who've recorded on Vanguard, Columbia, Fury, Spin-out, and El Toro Records collectively. This is a solid dance band with a high energy presentation, guaranteed to get your crowd on their feet - great for swing dancers, jive, bop & freestylers alike!

Born in North Carolina, BeeDee got her first start in the noise making business singing in the Baptist choir. From the first time she heard her granddaddy play claw hammer banjo and imitate a train whistle on his harmonica, her soul was captured by the raw sounds of hillbilly music. Then something called rockabilly floated past this gal's ears, and she was completely smitten. That raucous rhythm found a home deep in her veins, and soon she was a bonafide junkie. BeeDee got her first guitar at the age of 13 and started in on it, finding chords to back up her own crooning. Later she picked up the string bass and has played both guitar and string bass in several bands, including bluegrass, old-time country western swing, and honky tonk. BeeDee has also freelanced professionally with other musical genres, but rockabilly & honky tonk are the ones that resonate the biggest bang with her. Some of her other musical combos include Girl Howdy, a honky tonk combo fronted by 3 gals, based in the northeast, and Slippery Sneakers, a zydeco, rhythm & blues dance outfit, also based in the northeast.

The Hip Swayers: Hailing from the hills of West Tatnuck, the Hip Swayers are a get up and boogie band that play an eclectic mix of originals and covers - the harmonious duo of David Blodgett and Toni Ostrow invoke George Jones and Melba Montgomery meeting Lili'uokalani and Hank Thompson. The full band, Hip Swayers Deluxe, features Dave Niles on lead guitar and Mark Cherrington on percussion.