Thank you for registering your family to participate in the Children, Youth and Family Ministries  - including Religious Education - of First Universalist Church of Minneapolis for the 2024-2025 year. 

This form is how you register your family for Sunday morning Religious Education, as well as our other ministries for kids and families such as our Junior and Senior High Youth Groups, family overnights, parent/caregiver groups, Saturday Sprouts, the Christmas Pageant, and more. Our ministries for families also include our Sunday worship services, especially our multigenerational services which are intentionally kid-friendly. There are so many ways to plug in at church!

Our church year begins with Water Communion Sunday with one worship service at 10 a.m. on Sunday, September 8. Religious Education classes begin the following Sunday, Sept. 15 at 9 & 11 a.m.

The last Sunday of Religious Education classes in the 2024-2025 school year is Sunday, May 11, 2025. 

Programming for families beyond Religious Education spans the entire church year, from September through May. 

Families must register for each new church year, regardless of whether they've registered in prior years.

We will be reaching out to families to confirm their enrollment and service time in late August 2024. 

Please reach out to Allison Connelly-Vetter, Interim Director of Children, Youth, and Family Ministries, with questions, for more information, or simply to connect. You can email her at allison@firstuniv.org. 

We look forward to seeing you at church!

Please note that all email addresses provided on this form will be subscribed to our Children, Youth, and Families newsletter, the Weekly Family E-News, as well as our church-wide newsletter, The Weekly Liberal. You will also receive periodic emails at these addresses regarding your child(ren)'s class activities and events.

There is no fee to participate in the Children, Youth, and Famiy Ministries of First Universalist Church. These ministries are supported by the annual gifts of our members and friends, just like our other essential ministries, including worship, small groups, pastoral care and faithful action. Upon registering for Children, Youth, and Family Ministries (for children and youth) and Circles/Small Groups (for adults), we ask members and friends to let us know their annual giving plan so we can budget accordingly. Your family's registration status and priority are not affected by the amount you give.  

Please enter the total amount you plan to give to the church this fiscal year (July 2024-June 2025). Accounting staff will contact you to set up your giving, including the option of dividing your gift into monthly or quarterly payments.

If you are struggling with what a committed contribution might look like, here are some ideas of what you could give either monthly or annually:

$30 - Covers the cost of markers for a classroom

$65 - Covers the cost of bagels for breakfast after an overnight adventure

$150 - Covers an honorarium for a guest speaker for Coming of Age

$350 - Covers training for one new OWL facilitator

$600 - Covers one grade level at our summer camp

Every dollar matters. We have a goal of 100% participation in our Annual Giving Campaign by our registered families, at any and every level!

That said, if you are experiencing financial hardship and are unable to give, simply enter "0." Your family's registration status and priority are not affected by your annual giving amount.

Thank you for giving generously, as you are able. A gift in any amount is appreciated!

Sunday morning childcare (for children ages 6 mos-PreK) and Religious Education for children and youth in grades K-8 is offered on most Sundays from September 15-May 11 during both the 9 and 11 a.m. worship services. Religious Education for 9th grade youth is offered at 9 a.m. only. 

Our capacity at each service time is determined by child/youth age and classroom space. We often will reach our capacity at a given service time. When that happens, families who register after we have reached capacity at that service time will need to enroll at the other service time. For example, if we have reached capacity in the K-1 classroom at 9 a.m., subsequent families would need to enroll in the 11 a.m. class time.

Priority is given on a first-come, first-served basis. 

We need volunteers - like you! - to help make our ministry happen. If you are able, we encourage you to volunteer in a Religious Education classroom or elsewhere in our Children, Youth, and Families programming. Or, we would love to have you volunteer in another element of our church life.

Volunteering is a great way to connect with other folks in the congregation while getting a wider window into what our church is all about. We have an intentional focus on building intergenerational relationships at First Universalist, and volunteering in Religious Education is one of many ways we facilitate opportunities for multigenerational engagement.

In the question below, please indicate your interest (or a family member's interest) in volunteering with these program areas. Please select all that apply. A staff member will follow-up with you to share next steps.

In our community of communities, folks who share particular identities may gather for fellowship, fun, support, learning, and leadership opportunities throughout the year. 

A beloved First Universalist tradition is for kids and youth to light our chalice on the chancel at the beginning of our Sunday morning worship services. This opportunity is available to kids and youth in 3rd-6th grade. Kids and youth must be trained as Chalice Lighters in order to light the chalice in a worship service.

Please let us know below if you have a child/ren interested in being Chalice Lighters this year and whether they need to be trained. One of our staff will reach out with next steps on scheduling and training. 

A meaningful Unitarian Universalist ritual is Child Dedication. During the Child Dedication ritual, the congregation pledges itself to partner with and support parents and families in the religious upbringing of the child. Infants and children of members and those on the path to membership at First Universalist Church may be dedicated.

At First Universalist, we generally offer Child Dedications twice per year. Our next Child Dedication service will take place on August 18, 2024 at our 10 a.m. worship service at the Lake Harriet Bandshell.

Please indicate below whether you or your family are interested in dedicating a child at First Universalist in the coming year. You are always welcome to reach out in the future if you have a new child come into your family. 

If you have questions or would like more information about Child Dedications, please reach out to Allison Connelly-Vetter, Interim Director of Children, Youth, & Family Ministries, at allison@firstuniv.org.

At First Universalist, we offer the Our Whole Lives (OWL) comprehensive sexuality education program for multiple grades and age bands. You can learn more about OWL here.

OWL is our primary Religious Education option for our 8th graders, so all 8th grade families will automatically be contacted about OWL. However, we also offer OWL for 1st/2nd graders, 5th/6th graders, and 9th graders (who can join our 8th grade OWL class). 

Please indicate below whether you would like to opt-in one or more of your children into our non-8th-grade OWL programs.

Please note: each child may only particate in the OWL program for each grade band once (for example, if your rising 2nd grader completed 1st grade OWL last year, they would not be eligible to participate as a 2nd grader this year). 

Please reach out to our OWL Program Coordinator, Claire Tralle, with questions or for more information about OWL: claire@firstuniv.org. 

I understand that First Universalist Church may take and use photographs of my child(ren)/youth to help publicize their programs. I do not expect any compensation for the use of any images. I understand that child(ren)/youth will never be named in published photographs.

I agree to release First Universalist Church, its staff and volunteers from any and all liability which may arise for damages, loss or injuries, either to person or property, which my child(ren)/youth may sustain while participating in childcare, Religious Education, Children, Youth, and Family Ministries, and other activities at First Universalist Church.

I agree to assume responsibility for any liability which may arise for damages, loss or injuries which may be caused or contributed to by my child(ren)/youth to the person or property of others at First Universalist Church. 

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