The Hagerstown UU church encourages its members to get involved and form special interests groups. Below is a list
of the current groups. Schedules and events are listed on the Calendar of Events page.
How to Start a New Group or Activity at UUCH
With so much happening at church, the UUCH Board of Trustees has established a procedure for approving new groups and activities and keeping a record of UUCH member sponsored groups.
If you would like to start a new activity or group at church, you'll need to complete an Activities Reuqest Form and have your request approved by the board, which meets monthly.
The activity request form has spaces for the new group's name; description or purpose; proposed meeting location, date and time; and contact person.
Return the completed form to our office manager. You can leave it on her desk in the church office or mail it to the church (UUCH, Attn: Office Manager, 13245 Cearfoss Pike, Hagerstown, MD 21740).
The office manger will review the form to be sure all the needed information is included and pass it on to the board for its decision. Members wanting to start a new group may also ask to speak at the board meeting.
Use of the church facilities is free for UUCH member activities. If you are interested in using our facilities for business meetings or another organization's events, contact our office manager for rental information.
Green Sanctuary Natural Foods Buying Club
The Green Sanctuary Natural Foods Cooperative Buying Club is open to UUCH members and friends. A buying club is a group of people who pool their time, resources, and buying power to save money on high quality healthful foods. Orders are placed once a month and the pick-up location is our church.
Circle Suppers
Circle suppers are a way for people to get together to share a meal and fellowship in order to create and renew friendships and have interactions with others in the congregation.
If you are already signed up, there is nothing more for you to do except look for the emails and/or posting in the church of the new circles in the next few weeks.
For those of you new to circle suppers and interested in participating, here’s how it works. You can either sign up as an individual or a couple.Once signed up, Lea Adams will contact you, telling you who is in your group and who is the organizer. It is up to the organizer to orchestrate, based on input from the group, when, where, and in what format your dinner together will be. You will have six to eight weeks to complete this fun and fulfilling feat. Shortly before the cycle is up, Lea will contact you again with the make-up of your next group.
You can sign up at any time. If you sign up in the middle of a cycle, you will be included in the next cycle. If you need to skip a cycle, just let Lea know and she will remove you from the pool of participants for that cycle.
It’s easy to join the circle suppers! The circle supper sign-up form is available at church from either
Lea or Dodie Ruskie and downloadable HERE. Complete the form and return it
to Lea Adams.
Women’s Spirituality Group
The Women’s Group, which meets on the first Wednesday of each month, is open to women of all ages who wish to discuss issues and share experiences..
Queen of Heaven Circle
The Queen of Heaven Circle is an earth-based spirituality group, which meets monthly at UUCH.
Although the group’s name is feminine, men are welcome. Details on this and other QOHC events are on the
Website: http://queenofheavencircle.org
SpiralScouts
The Queen of Heaven Circle is forming a local circle of SpiralScouts International, a program for girls and boys of
minority faiths. While the local SpiralScouts will meet on the same weekends as the QOHC rituals, participation is
not limited to QOHC children, but is open to all. For more information on the local SpiralScouts group,
contact Joan Mohn at amerriefaerie@yahoo.com. To learn more about
SpiralScouts International, visit SpiralScouts.org.
Women's Wellness Group
This is a goal-oriented group focused on taking a holistic approach to self-awareness and personal growth.
We welcome anyone ready to commit to herself and the group. The objective is to define individual goals
and work towards balance and wellness through the process of addressing these issues. Please RSVP
to Tara at tara@petite.net.
Green Sanctuary Committee
Green Sanctuary is a UUA program that encourages churches to practice eco-spirituality and live our seventh
principle—respect for the interdependent web of all existence of which we are a part. For more information,
contact Janet and Gordon Bartels.
UUCH Labyrinths
A labyrinth is not a maze to figure out; instead it is a single path to walk on a winding way into the center and out again. Many people describe walking the pattern as a spiritual experience, a form of moving prayer or meditation. Others, however, walk labyrinths as a form of relaxation, stress relief and even problem solving.
Labyrinths have been used in many religions and cultures as far back as prehistoric times. Today, labyrinths are often found in churches, private homes, hospitals and public gardens.
Two different labyrinths at our church are open for free, public walking on the second Sunday of each month. The indoor labyrinth is a Petite Chartres pattern, a smaller version of the 12th century labyrinth on the floor of the Chartres Cathedral in France. The outdoor labyrinth is the older, Cretan pattern. In case of inclement weather, one or both of the labyrinths may be closed.
For more information about our labyrinths, click HERE or see the brochure in the sanctuary pamphlet rack or talk to Diana Foley.
Garden Group
The re-activated garden group met in May to discuss ways to improve the church grounds, including planters with trellises in front of the sanctuary between the windows, decorative rain barrels, and mulch around the Martin House.
The proposed site for the memorial garden is the grassy area bordered by the grape arbor and the driveways. Among the ideas for this area are mulch instead of grass, benches under the arbor, perennials and bulbs, and possibly a solar-powered fountain.
The Garden Group is open to any interested gardeners. For more information, contact Sylvia Kremp
Western Maryland Vegetarian Society
The Western Maryland Vegetarian Society meets regularly for potlucks and conversation.
Contact Tara at info@westmdveg.org or for more info or visit the
Website: http://www.westMDveg.org.
Book Discussion Group
The UUCH Book Group welcomes all enthusiastic readers to its monthly meetings on the second Wednesday at Donna Catling’s
home. Contact Donna for more information.
Mystery Book Group
The Mystery Book Group meets on the third Tuesday of each month at Dodie and Howard Ruskie’s home.
Contact them for directions.
Philosophy Book Club
For more information, contact Blaine Dockery or Maury Badger
