The Special Plate collection is a ministry of our church that connects us tangibly to our neighboring agencies and social justice partners. Once a month, First UU Berks designates a Sunday offering collection to benefit a Reading-Berks non-profit organization working on issues that reflect our spiritual values and principles. Beneficiaries of these offerings are recommended and voted on by the congregation.
At this time, we are seeking your nominations for organizations to support during our next 5-month cycle which begins in September. While there are many, many deserving agencies, we ask that you suggest programs that are most in line with our UU values and also in the most need. Please check that it has 501(3)c status and has not received a plate collection in the last 12 months. For your reference, you will find a list of previous Special Plate recipients and the amounts that we donated to them on the nomination form.
As a reminder, our primary social justice concerns, as determined by the survey conducted in Summer 2018, are:
1. Anti-Racism2. Immigration Justice3. Economic Justice4. Environmental Justice
It was agreed that we would not put ongoing programs within our church on the ballot because they are supported through the church budget. We know that this can be a difficult decision as we know that all of the programs we support are worthy causes.
Please send your suggestions on this form by midnight Sunday, August 16, 2020 ( https://uuberks.org/special-plate-suggestions) or email the name of the agency/program, its website link and a brief description to g.social.justice@uuberks.org.
Questions? Contact Cyndi D. at cdimovitz@gmail.com