Volunteers Needed for Pastoral Care Teams

Hello, friends and congregants,

I hope this message finds you well.

As many of you know, I am now fully and joyfully serving as our church’s Director of Pastoral Care. While some aspects of this role are new to me, our Caring Community ministry is very familiar. Over the 25 years that First Unitarian has been my church home, I have had the privilege of serving on several of our care teams and experiencing firsthand the compassion that defines this ministry.

Pastoral care is central to our Unitarian Universalist belief that we are made whole when we serve others and also when we open ourselves to receiving care in moments of need. Through this model of reciprocal service, we create a beloved community where no one has to navigate life’s joys or challenges alone.

As we begin a new liturgical year, we are looking for additional volunteers to join our care teams. Every act of care matters, and no matter your location and schedule, there is a way for you to make a meaningful difference.

Quill Card Team
If you enjoy encouraging others through the written word, we’d love to have you join our Quill Card Team. Team members are typically asked to write two cards each month, and you are always welcome to pass if a request comes during a particularly busy season. We’ll host two training sessions in September (one in-person and one virtual), and we provide the cards. All you need to do is write, stamp, and mail!

Meal Team
If you enjoy cooking—or simply like the idea of helping someone with a meal—our Meals Team may be the perfect fit. You can prepare and deliver a homemade meal or send a DoorDash or Uber Eats gift card. Volunteers sign up only when it’s convenient, making this a flexible way to care for members during times of need.

Grief Support Facilitators
If you’ve participated in our Navigating Grief class or have a background in counseling, and also have a compassionate heart for those who are grieving, we invite you to consider becoming a facilitator for our First Unitarian grief support group which currently meets on the first Tuesday of each month. We revived this ministry in May and are seeking additional lay facilitators to help it continue. We provide both the training and the curriculum, and our hope is that each facilitator will lead approximately three sessions per year.

If one of these opportunities speaks to you, or if you are interested in any of our other care teams, I would love to hear from you. Please complete our Interest form or contact me directly via email or 214-884-1211.

Thank you for considering how you might share your gifts to strengthen our church community.

-Karen Stanton, Director of Pastoral Care