Casa Marianella

-ICE is here in Austin, picking up students, workers, dreamers, and parents.

-Texas is building many detention centers for people from out of state, with our tax money.

-Asylum seekers who go to local courts for a final hearing are losing their cases. Their last recourse might be a habeas review for possibly unlawful detention.

Casa Marianella has all-hands-on-deck for asylum seekers, refugees, and other immigrants. Your contributions help!

Why don’t immigrants just get in line? The truth is that “There is no line.” Instead of “a line,” there’s a convoluted system that is applied unevenly among different nationalities and ethnicities. However, we UUs believe in fairness, inherent worth, justice, and diversity. We help our neighbors avoid deportation and work, live, and raise their kids here. 

Emergency and transitional housing are provided in small homes for women and children, single men, single dads, and families. Support includes food, clothing, legal and medical resources, English classes, a bicycle program, and much more. Residents may stay for 3 months;  some of them move to host homes for another 3 months as they try to get on their feet. 

Convivo is a monthly celebration on the last Sunday of the month (except November and December, when it’s on Thanksgiving or Christmas Day). Residents, staff, volunteers, neighbors, and friends like us enjoy live music, excellent food, fellowship, and dancing. Join the fun at 821 Gunter St, Austin, TX 78702, from 6-8 pm.

More info at https://www.casamarianella.org/.

On the first Sunday in March, the Austin community will gather to fight hunger both at home and around the world. Visit the First UU Austin CROP webpage to donate to this important event and learn more about the walk.

The walk will be held at Camp Mabry at 2:30 p.m. on Sunday, March 1st, and the route is accessible for wheelchairs and strollers. If you are interested in walking, feel free to contact Emily Speight at espeight2003@gmail.com with questions. The local beneficiaries of this year’s walk are the Central Texas Food Bank, Casa Marianella, Micah 6 of Austin, iACT for Refugees, Hope Food Pantry, Urban Roots, and Society of St. Vincent de Paul of Central Texas.

Together, we will continue to fight against disease, disaster, displacement and other challenges that leave people hungry. Join with us as we raise funds to help neighbors near and far get the meals they need for today and sustainable food security for tomorrow!

Sign up Now!

Vegan Potluck

Sponsored by the Veganistas! / UU Animal Ministry Chapter & the Austin Vegan Association 

Saturday, February 21st, 6:30 PM

What to Bring:

• A vegan dish serving 10+ 
• You may also bring things for the salad bar, appetizer table, and desserts!
• You are welcome to bring multiple items. More food is always welcome!!
• We ask that food be free of all animal products, including meat, fish, eggs, dairy (milk, cheese, yogurt, butter, whey), animal broth, gelatin, and honey.
• As a courtesy, be prepared to give information about allergens like nuts or gluten.
• Bring your recipe if you want to share it.
• Small serving utensil for your dish
• A plate for yourself and utensils for eating. 
• Your own beverage.

Whether you’re vegan, vegetarian, or just veg-curious, you’re welcome to join us. This event is free and open to all. Children are welcome.

If possible, sign up at www.meetup.com/vegaustin or just show up! For more information, message us through Church Center.

Did Unitarianism really start in Transylvania?

Who is Reverend Wheelock, and who is Emily Wheelock Howson?

When was this building constructed?

If you are new here and want to learn the answers to these questions and more, this class is for you! We will be hosting our quarterly Path to Membership Class on Saturday, March 28th, 9:00 AM in Room 13.

Here we will learn about the history of this church, as well as the broader history of UUism and its origins. There will also be a time to share our spiritual journeys and make connections with each other. Then, at the end, if you decide you would like to become a member, you will have an opportunity to sign the Membership Book! 

Breakfast and coffee are provided, as well as childcare if needed.

*If you require childcare, you must Register on Church Center to let us know.

Questions? Please email membership@austinuu.org

The Speaker’s Race: How Democrats Gave Away Their Power on Day One

On the first day of the 89th Legislative Session, Democrats elected a notoriously bad MAGA Republican as Speaker of the House, with little to show for it. This discussion will cover what happened behind the scenes leading up to the race, how the vote played out on the House floor, what Democrats gained, and whether it was worth it, and the lessons learned for how Democrats can better deliver for Texans.

This is your Official Notice for our December Congregational Meeting on Sunday, December 21st  at 1:00  p.m., to be held in the Sanctuary and on Zoom (Passcode 512452). Click on the link below for materials for the meeting.

Congregational Meeting Materials

The church bylaws specify the following regarding voting eligibility: “Individuals who have been members of the church for 30 days or more and who have (as an individual or part of a family unit) made a recorded financial contribution during the last 12 months and at least 30 days prior to the meeting, have the right to vote at all official church meetings.”

The list of eligible voters may be found by clicking here

Any questions about voter eligibility, including if you feel that you were mistakenly not listed on the list of eligible voters, please contact Shannon Posern, info@austinuu.org.

We look forward to seeing you at the meeting!

Congregational Meeting Packet.

Many of us carry wounds from the religion we were raised in or just growing up in a Christocentric society. Owning Your Religious Past is a series of five classes designed to help us heal from our religious wounds and grow in our Unitarian Universalist faith. 

From the authors of the program, “We can be most fully and completely present in our religious identity when we see our path as a continuum rather than a series of unrelated episodes. People who feel whole in this identity are more likely to make solid, healthy commitments to religious communities. Because we are usually more certain of what we left in another religion than what we bring forward from it, some tools are needed by which people may establish connections, bridges, and resonances between past and present.” 

Please join Rev. Carrie Holley-Hurt and Rev. Dr. Leona Stucky-Abbott for this five-week series of learning, healing, and growth starting on Sunday, January 18th. Maximum participation is 15 people, so Make Sure to Sign Up! 

Nominations for 2026 Monthly Special Offering

Due by Thursday, December 4th

One important way First UU lives its mission to do justice is through our Monthly Special Offerings.  These offerings are collected during service(s) on the second Sunday of the month. Each member of First UU may nominate one nonprofit social justice organization that promotes our UU values in the larger community. 

To nominate an organization, please complete the 2026 Monthly Service Offering Nominations form.

The congregation will be asked to rank their top 10 recipients on Sunday, December 21, 2025, after the worship service and at the congregational meeting that afternoon. Two additional special offerings are reserved for  Spring into Action (First UU’s church-wide social justice outreach project) and the Texas UU Justice Ministry.

After the vote, the Social Action Chairs and Co-Ministers will determine the schedule of selected recipients. All money collected will be held until the end of the year and distributed equally among the 12 recipients in January 2027. For 2024, the amount donated to each recipient was $1,662.09.

Please fill out the Nomination form here. 

‘Health Care at Risk’ panel, on Sunday, October 12th at Live Oak UU in Cedar Park, features panel steeped in medicine and advocacy.

• Lynn Cowles, Director of Health and Food Justice from Every Texas
• Dr Christine Eady Mann, family practice doctor, political activist, former Congressional candidate 
• Dr Karen Van Matre Smith, award-winning family medicine specialist with published research 
• Jan Lance, President, Austin Chapter of Texas Alliance of Retired Americans (moderator) 

• National or state healthcare policy and administration  
• RFK Jr’s qualifications to be HHS Secretary and the policies that he has enacted since taking office 
• The attack on vaccines 
• The potential impact of cuts to Medicaid and ACA via the congressional bill recently passed and signed by the White House 
• Drastic cuts to medical research, including mRNA vaccine development 
• How medical and mental health practices have and will change because of the above 

Register Here!