October’s 5th Sunday – Holiday Giving

•

At UCF, whenever there is a month with five Sundays, we collect donations for a charity during that month and all plate contributions on the 5th Sunday that are not designated as pledge money go to that cause as well. October is a month with five Sundays and the special collection this month will be for our Holiday Giving projects.


For many years now, Unitarian Coastal Fellowship has given generously at holiday time to those in our community who are often left out at this season. During the last two Holiday seasons, we have been very limited in how we can interact with these groups due to COVID, but we still were able to give everyone the gifts. This year we hope to resume more in-person contact with the groups mentioned below.
There are three holiday traditions that we have established:


We put together Holiday Gift Bags containing gift cards ($20 or $25) and items hand-made by the Twisted Sisters needlecraft group and give them to those at Hope Mission’s Homeless Shelter and Recovery Homes and to clients of Beach House, a program for adults with severe and persistent mental illness.

Cars loaded up with Gift Bags
Staff at Beach House receiving Gift Bags last year


We also adopt children from the Angel Tree through Project Christmas Cheer. These are children whose parents can’t afford to give them much for the holidays. Those selected are vetted by Carteret County Social Services. Our children and youth shop for these Angel children, wrap the presents and have a pizza party.

Halle and Ella wrapping presents
More present wrapping


We also bring gift bags with handmade hats, scarves, etc to the clients of Empower (formerly Station Club) – our neighbors on Church Street. Empower is a program that provides vocational training for adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Before the pandemic, we held an annual Caroling Party for the Station Club but we haven’t been able to do that for the last two years. Hopefully we will be able to reinstate the Caroling Party this year.

UCF Members and Friends singing Christmas Carols with the clients of Station Club


Please give generously during the month of October to help us fund our holiday giving. You can write a check to UCF and put 5th Sunday in the memo line. You can either put that check in the collection plate or mail it to David Hughes, Treasurer, UCF, PO Box 425, Morehead City 28557. You can also donate through your Breeze account or on Paypal on the this website at the bottom of every page . Again, be sure to select 5th Sunday if you give online. On October 30th (the 5th Sunday in October) all cash donations in the collection plate that are not marked as a pledge, will also go to the 5th Sunday collection for Holiday Giving.