First Unitarian Church of Pittsburgh

  605 Morewood Avenue
  Pittsburgh, PA 15213-2999
  412-621-8008

Social Responsibility

Social Justice Council

Leaders and representatives of our social responsibility groups meet at 7:30 PM on the first Wednesday of each month to help organize and advance our social responsibility program as a whole. The Social Justice Council includes leaders and representatives from the following twelve groups:

Alternative Gift Market Committee
Anti-Racism Committee
East End Cooperative Ministry (General)
East End Cooperative Ministry (Men’s Shelter Meals)
Green Sanctuary Committee
Inter-Arts Social Justice Committee
Interweave
Khasi Hills Partnership Committee
Pittsburgh Interfaith Impact Network (PIIN) Core Team
Social Justice Committee
Social Justice Endowment Committee
Unitarian Universalists for Justice in the Middle East (UUJME)

East End Cooperative Ministry Food Pantry Collection

You are invited to bring contributions for the East End Cooperative Ministry Food Pantry on the first Sunday of each month. All non-perishable food items are welcome. Following is a suggested schedule of items:

January--peanut butter
February--tuna or vegetarian alternative
March--canned soup
April--canned meat or vegetarian alternative
May--jelly, jam, or preserves
June--boxed meals
July--pancake mix
August--chili
September--pasta
October--spaghetti sauce
November--canned fruit
December--beef stew or vegetarian alternative

Pittsburgh Interfaith Impact Network (PIIN) Core Team

Fourteen members of First Unitarian Church have volunteered to serve as members of our Core Team. The overall mission of this group is to keep our congregation connected with the Pittsburgh Interfaith Impact Network (PIIN). Members of our Core Team are: Sandra Akacem, Susan Blackman, Sage Bowser, Brian Byers, Laura Conkle, Paul Covaleski, Ebe Emmons, Helen Gerhardt, Bethany Getgen, Holly McCullough, Liz Perkins, Cassi Schaffer, Pat Ulbrich, and Milt Wolfson. If you would like to serve on the Core Team and help our congregation address significant local issues such as Transit, Education, Racial Profiling, and Gun Violence, please contact Rev. David Herndon at 412/621-8008, extension 102, or
dherndon@first-unitarian-pgh.org. You can learn more about PIIN by visiting www.piin.org.

Pittsburgh Interfaith Impact Network (PIIN) Public Action

The work of the Pittsburgh Interfaith Impact Network (PIIN) will culminate in the Public Action which will take place at 7:00 PM on Thursday, November 3, at Rodef Shalom (just down the street from our church). We are aiming for a turnout of one hundred people from our church for this event!

Social Justice Calendar

Pittsburgh Interfaith Impact Network (PIIN) Public Action: November 3, 2011
Pittsburgh Interfaith Impact Network (PIIN) Fall Training: November 6-12, 2011
First Unitarian Church Alternative Gift Market: November 20, November 27, December 4
East End Cooperative Ministry (EECM) Martin Luther King, Jr., Celebration: January 15, 2012
Black and White Reunion Summit Against Racism: January 21, 2012
East End Cooperative Ministry (EECM) Have a Heart for Hunger Campaign: February 14-March 31, 2012
Pittsburgh Interfaith Impact Network (PIIN) Banquet: April 22, 2012

Men’s Shelter Meal Preparation takes place on the first Sunday of each month. Share the Plate usually takes place on the third Sunday of each month. Social Justice Council meetings usually take place on the first Wednesday of each month. Unitarian Universalists for Justice in the Middle East usually sells Palestinian Olive Oil on the second Sunday of the month and usually meets on the third Sunday of the month. The Anti-Racism Committee usually meets on the fourth Sunday of the month. The PIIN Core Team usually meets on the second Sunday of the month. The collection for the East End Cooperative Ministry Food Pantry takes place on the first Sunday of each month, but non-perishable food items are welcome on any Sunday.

Standing on the Side of Love T-Shirts:
Essential Equipment for Unitarian Universalist Social Justice Activists!!

The Unitarian Universalist Association is promoting a new social responsibility campaign called “Standing on the Side of Love.” This campaign began in response to the anti-gay shootings at the Unitarian Universalist Church of Knoxville, Tennessee, on a Sunday morning in August 2008 when two church members died of gunshot wounds they suffered while protecting the congregation from a man who used gun violence to express his disagreement with the church’s support for human rights for gay and lesbian people. “Standing on the Side of Love” has since been expanded to include immigrant justice in Arizona and other places.

As members and friends of First Unitarian Church, you are encouraged to purchase bright yellow “Standing on the Side of Love” T-shirts and you are further encouraged to wear these T-shirts whenever you are engaged in public social responsibility work. For example, you could wear your T-shirt whenever you participate in activities sponsored by the Pittsburgh Interfaith Impact Network (PIIN) or East End Cooperative Ministry (EECM). Ditto for other public social responsibility events you and your family may be attending.

You can purchase “Standing on the Side of Love” T-shirts and other items at the “Standing on the Side of Love Store” after church on many Sundays or online at www.sslonlinestore.com. Sizes are available for both children and adults. More generally, you can learn more and the “Standing on the Side of Love” campaign at www.standingonthesideoflove.org.