🌉The Bridge Weekly
September 20, 2026
💜 A Note from the DRE
What an incredible Youth-Led Service!
Our youth absolutely brought the shine, the energy, and their amazing authentic selves. Their voices, creativity, humor, reflection, and youthful wisdom were felt throughout the entire service, and I am so grateful for everything they shared with us.
It was also such a beautiful reminder of what Religious Exploration can look like when we create space for people to discover their own voices and trust them enough to share what they find.
I’ll be out of town this upcoming weekend, so while the DRE is away, Byron has the bridge! 😄 He’ll be our RE point of contact on Sunday and helping keep things moving smoothly while I’m gone.
And after seeing so much life, laughter, curiosity, and connection throughout our RE spaces this past Sunday, I’m heading into the weekend feeling very grateful for where this year is beginning.
🧭 Our RE Journey Has Begun!
Our first Sunday of regular Religious Exploration didn’t roll out quite exactly as planned—but honestly, that’s part of the adventure!
It was wonderful to see so many people gather for The Journey Home to YoUU in Adult 2 and to hear so much laughter spilling through the walls and doors. Everyone will be receiving their folders and lanyard name tags this weekend as the journey continues.
Adult 1: Curious Conversations: The group shared the Burkes’ Exploratorium experience and now has a new streaming device, making it even easier to research, explore, and discuss together!
Our K–5 Mindfulness Passport explorers created their name tags and made About Me puzzle pieces while exploring a beautiful idea: every puzzle piece is unique, and yet every piece helps create the larger community.
Our classes may be beginning in slightly different ways, but the exploration is officially underway!
🌟 Youth Group Gathering — This Sunday!
Sunday, September 20 | 4–6 PM | REZ Youth Room
Youth Group gathers again this Sunday!
Emi and Tish will lead the youth in a debrief of their Youth-Led Service, including reflections on the experience and what they learned while creating it together.
They’ll also talk about plans for using last year’s hunger-fund proceeds, explore a possible new fundraiser opportunity, and—as always—leave plenty of room for games, laughter, and social time.
👶 Nursery Families — Please Register
If your child is using the nursery and you haven’t yet completed their RE registration, please take a moment to do so.
A QR code is available directly on the nursery sign-in sheet to make registration quick and easy.
Registration helps us keep contact information, participation records, safety information, and communication lists up to date. Thank you!
🍎 Facilitator Training
Thursday, September 17 | 5:30–6:30 PM Fellowship Hall & Fred Ball Room
Our next Facilitator Training is coming up this Thursday!
If you’ve been interested in helping with Religious Exploration but haven’t quite stepped onto the facilitator journey yet, you are absolutely welcome to join us for dinner and training.
You can complete the Volunteer Interest Form beforehand here:
https://form.jotform.com/262058660418055
There are so many ways to help create meaningful spaces for children, youth, and adults—and there is room for your gifts here.
🗣️Pronouns Workshop — October 11
Alesha and Jess Ox will be hosting a Pronouns Workshop on Sunday, October 11 after potluck.
We want this workshop to be useful, welcoming, and responsive to the questions and experiences within our community.
Please take a moment to complete this short survey so we can shape the workshop in ways that are meaningful for those attending:
🎃 Save the Date: Trunk or Treat!
Sunday, October 25
Trunk or Treat is coming to HVUUC! 🎃🚗✨
Start dreaming up those costumes—and those decorated trunks!
We’ll soon be sharing a sign-up for anyone who would like to enter a vehicle in our Trunk Decorating Contest, complete with prizes and plenty of Halloween fun.
Whether you're decorating a trunk, dressing up, bringing the family, or simply coming to enjoy the festivities, save the date and join us!
Sign-ups for the Trunk Decorating Contest begin next week, so keep an eye on Enews and your RE updates for details.
📦 Small Boxes Needed!
Our K–5 Mindfulness Passport explorers have a project coming up, and we need your small boxes!
We’re looking for:
● Small flip-top boxes, such as dryer sheet boxes
● Small gift boxes
● Other similarly sized sturdy boxes
Donations can be left at Jess’s office door or in the REZ lobby with a note.
Thank you for helping stock the explorers’ supplies!
💜 Gratitudes Across the Bridge
There is so much to celebrate this week.
Deep gratitude to:
● Our Youth, who brought their ALL to the Youth-Led Service. Your courage, creativity, authenticity, humor, reflection, and wisdom made the morning extraordinary.
● Rev. Tiffany, for spending the past month guiding, encouraging, and supporting our youth as they created a service that truly sounded and felt like them.
● Justin, for co-piloting rehearsal alongside Rev. Tiffany and helping everything come together.
● The parents and caregivers of our youth, who encouraged them, helped them practice, supported meeting schedules, listened to developing sermons and rituals, and made space for this experience to happen.
● Traci and Kita, for rocking the K–5 class and helping our Mindfulness Passport explorers begin getting to know one another as fellow travel companions.
● Heather, for welcoming everyone into The Journey Home to YoUU—even without the full folders and lanyards! Our facilitators continue to show just how naturally they create safe spaces and navigate the unexpected.
● Every facilitator who stood to be blessed during Teacher Commissioning, and every facilitator who wasn’t able to be there physically but is still sharing their gifts with our community. You are all deeply appreciated.
● Lori, for making space for Religious Exploration to be shared during the Path to Membership class.
● Our Nursery Team, for staying beyond their regular hours so parents and caregivers could participate in Path to Membership.
So many hands, hearts, voices, pivots, conversations, and acts of care are helping build this year together.
Thank you for being part of it. 💜