First Parish Church in Dorchester
Unitarian Universalist

Religious Education (RE)

Children's RE

Make A Difference Day

FPC Dorchester Kids Making a Difference
As many of you know, the children and youth of FPC Dorchester have developed an international service project this year through a relationship with the Organization of Support to the Development of the Plateau Central in Haiti. After learning about Haitian language, culture, food, and history - and playing a few rousing games of marbles, a very popular pastime for Haitian children! - our kids made contact with pen pals in the Plateau Central, all recipients of services through OSDPC's aid programs for children and families. This Sunday marks the beginning of our school supply drive to benefit children served by the scholarship and orphanage programs of OSDPC. Donation boxes will be set up in the Parlor throughout the month of February, and our kids need to following items to realize their goals for this drive:

- No. 2 pencils
- Mechanical pencils
- Colored pencils
- Pencil sharpener (hand-held with a top to collect shavings)
- Pencil erasers
- Ballpoint pens
- Highlighters
- Spiral-bound or composition notebooks
- Book bags

Feel free to reach out to me, Katherine Jenkins, our MADD liaison for the social justice committee, or any of the kids with questions about our efforts - and thank you for your support!

- Lee Paczulla, Director of Religious Education

Program for 2011-2012

The children are have classroom sessions on two Sundays per month. There is also a worship Sunday every month and a Make a Difference Day (MADD).

We will do something different in MADD this year. For the next few months, MADD will focus on one organization and set of issues. Organization of Support to the Development of the Plateau Central, Inc. is a 501(c) 3 not for profit organization located in Roslindale, Mass. Its primary mission is to generate financial and material support to develop and run educational programs, job fostering vocational training, health maintenance programs, sporting activities for youth, emergency assistance to the needy, economic and tech assistance to small vendors or independent entrepreneurs and small industries in the Plateau Central, Haiti.

Church member Katherine Jenkins Djom has worked with this organization and visited Haiti with them on two occasions. On September 25, Jacques Parent, secretary of OSDPC, visited to talk with the kids and then the adults at coffee hour. We are looking forward to developing a partnership OSDPC.

FOR MORE INFORMATION
Contact: Lee Paczulla, Director of Religious Education
Email: dre@firstparishdorchester.org
Telephone: 617-436-0527

Adult RE

Beginning Sep. 29: Evensong
"Evensong" is a series of gatherings that explore individual life journeys through sharing thoughts, experiences, doubts, and beliefs on topics such as: what it means to be human, what it means to be part of a community, what are spiritual and religious experiences, what we mean when we say "God" or "Spirit," how we handle endings, hospitality, generosity, etc. In Evensong we listen to each other with undivided attention and without interruption so that each one can experience being valued for what they choose to share with the group. We will meet every Thursday beginning on September 29, depending on when participants are available, and going into early December. It is not necessary that people attend every session, but regular attendance is recommended. Please contact Rev. Lavoie with any further questions or to sign up. minister@firstparishdorchester.org, or 617-436-2999.

Programs for adults have included:

• Building Your Own Theology
• Meditation and other spiritual practices
• Historic Jesus
• Book group

First Parish offers a parent-run Religious Education program for children and childcare for infants and toddlers. The program is supervised by Lee Paczulla, the Director of Religious Education (DRE). On most Sundays, the minister or service leader will invite the children to come forward for the Children’s Focus early in the service, after which the kids go upstairs for their program. If you come with children, you are welcome to have them either try out our RE program or stay with you during the service. If you wish, you may also accompany them upstairs.

Welcome Lee!

Lee Paczulla is our new Director of Religious Education (DRE). Lee is a second year seminarian at Harvard Divinity School and calls All Souls in Washington D.C. her home congregation. A native of suburban Philadelphia, Lee has a BA in Psychology and worked in youth development and community health advocacy for five years before returning to school. Lee taught RE and led the Children's Chapel at All Souls from 2008-2010. She is currently an Aspirant in the Unitarian Universalist fellowship process.

Last year, the children learned about how other cultures and religions celebrate life, their beliefs, famous people, occurrences in nature, and times of year. Using a UU curriculum known as “Holidays and Holy Days” they learned about important days as well as significant parts of the traditions and culture they come from. Through crafts, ceremonies, games and discussion, our religious education program helped our children learn more about the world and people around us and the many ways people are religious.