November 23, 2025
thanksgiving
“Thank You, Lydia Maria Child” with Cornbread Communion
November 19, 2023
- Anna Fadden
- Bob Williams
- Cindy Malley
- Rev. Lara Hoke
- Sara Cope
- Thea Shapiro
- Cornbread Communion
- gratitude
- Lydia Maria Child
- thanksgiving
- UU history
Our annual Cornbread & Cider Communion Service, the Sunday before Thanksgiving, co-led by DRE Thea Shapiro, the Deacons, and me. I talked about one of our great UU forebears, Lydia Maria Child.
“Counting Our Blessings” with Cornbread & Cider Communion
November 20, 2022
- Bill Duston
- Cindy Malley
- David Gaynor
- Monica Pilman
- Rev. Lara Hoke
- Thea Shapiro
- Cornbread Communion
- gratitude
- thanksgiving
- Time for All Ages
An annual tradition! The FCU Deacons serve communion, and we give thanks. Wonderful guest musicians, including Carolyn McCreary, Emma Bruns Riffelmacher, Eric Semple, Sara Weeks, and Charlie Weeks.
“Giving Thanks”
November 21, 2021
We did something a little different this year. Because of “yellow light” Covid-19 conditions, we could not do our traditional Cornbread Communion. Instead, the Deacons and I used menti.com to have folks share something that made them feel grateful.
“Giving Thanks in All Things”
November 22, 2020
- Andy Leyenaar
- Bill Duston
- Cindy Malley
- Patricia Stern
- Rev. Lara Hoke
- Tatum Joy Hammer
- 1 Thessalonians
- Cornbread Communion
- coronavirus
- covid-19
- healing
- online worship
- thanksgiving
- Time for All Ages
On November 22, 2020, our virtual service featured our traditional Cornbread Communion, led by our Deacons. My homily was “Giving Thanks in All Things”. We also had virtual greetings from FCU members and friends far and wide. If you watch on YouTube, click on “Show More” to see the Order of Service.
“Tisquanta’s Gift”
December 1, 2019
The guest preacher at First Church Unitarian in Littleton, Massachusetts on December 1, 2019 was the Rev. Dr. Clyde Grubbs. Rev. Dr. Grubbs’s sermon was “Tisquanta’s Gift”. Description: “According to written sources, an American Indian came among the settlers in the Plymouth Plantation soon after arrival and taught them essential knowledge that was key to their survival. Who was this mystery man whom the English speaking Pilgrims called Squanto?” The Rev. Dr. Clyde Grubbs is a Unitarian Universalist minister who served congregations in Indiana, Quebec, Massachusetts, Texas, Florida, and California. He is presently serving as Minister at Large of the Tuckerman Creative Ministries for Justice and Healing. Clyde honors his Native American heritage (Texas Cherokee) which informs his spiritual understanding and practice, and his anti-racist and anti-oppressive commitment. He has worked for peace, justice, and equality since he was in the Unitarian Universalist youth movement, Liberal Religious Youth.
“Giving Thanks” Whole Church highlights
November 24, 2019
On November 24, 2019, we had a “whole church” (multi-generational) Thanksgiving service. You will see some of the highlights here, including the time for all ages, led by DRE Vicki Merriam, where we made a tapestry together; a gorgeous performance by the choir (led by Music Director Molly Lozeau) of “Alleluia” by R. Thompson; a homily by me; and the end of the cornbread and cider communion, led by our deacons.
Reflection for “Whole Church” Thanksgiving Service
November 18, 2018
The highlight of FCU’s annual Thanksgiving Service is really the Cornbread and Cider Communion. But you really need to be there for that! Here’s my reflection, to share one small piece of the service.
Abundance at Tinker Creek: A Homily
November 19, 2017
Annie Dillard’s book “A Pilgrim at Tinker Creek” is an account of time she spent living in a rural area outside of Roanoke, Virginia in the early 1970s. Here’s how she describes her home of that time: “I live by a creek, Tinker Creek, in a valley in Virginia’s Blue Ridge. I think of (my) house clamped to the side of Tinker Creek as an anchor-hold. It holds me at anchor to the rock bottom of the creek itself and keeps me steadied in the current…It’s a good place to live; there’s a lot to think about.”