UUFA News

UUFA Art Exhibit “Black in White” Runs Through July

In the UUFA Welcome Hall Gallery from June 3 to July 28

The gallery is open each Sunday from 10:30 until 1 p.m. and on Wednesdays from 5:30 until 7:30 p.m. Contact the office for other times/days.

“. . . I look for what is forgotten in a shared history, and I use that past to interrogate our present condition.” Rodney Grainger

On June 19, 2022, at 12:30 p.m. the Racial Justice Team will sponsor a lecture by local artist Rodney L Grainger whose work will be on display starting June 3rd..Rodney’s work focuses on the American Black experience, both the terrors of racism and the comforting Black household workers with whom he grew up in Alabama. 

Rodney art has been exhibited in various galleries: Atlanta Art Gallery, Spirull Gallery, City Gallery East, Gertude Herbert Institute of Art, Georgia State University Gallery, Agnes Scott College, Beacon Hill Artists, among others. He is the recipient of the Artist Merit Award, Gertrude Herbert Institute of Art, Augusta, GA and is a Fellow at the Artist Residency Program at The Hambidge Center in Rabun Gap, GA. 

About his work, Rodney says “Race, gender and class are recurrent themes in my work as I seek to give voice to those in our collective history who are less often, if ever, heard. I am interested in creating an appealing aesthetic that accesses deeper levels of personal awareness rather than simply polemical or editorial statements. My narrative works examine cultural forgetting and acts of remembrance which are deeply influenced by my experiences of growing up in a racially segregated Birmingham, Alabama during the 50’s and 60’s. I have relied on charcoal drawing (actually paintings in black and white) as my principal medium because it is so closely aligned to writing. It is the most visually graphic, and black and white is the primary language of memory, dreams and the unconscious. “

You can see some of Rodney’s work from the Atlanta Art Gallery here: http://atlantaartgallery.com/Artist%20Pages/Grainger.html

Upcoming


Here are all the events, meetings, and other happenings open to all for May and June. For details of these meetings, look to the left! Remember to join your groups in Realm/Connect to receive direct updates and last minute schedule changes.

Rather see this as a calendar grid? Visit uuathensga.org/calendar . 


June

Groups on hiatus for the summer include Book Talks Discussion Group and Second Lookers. Check with your group for updates.

  • 1st – 
    • First Sunday Forum
    • Social Justice Action Team Business Meeting
    • Historical Jesus Book Discussion
    • Let’s Make Pride Posters
  • 4th –
    • Morning Meditation
    • Palms of Fire Weekly Drum Circle
    • Chalice Choir
  •  5th – Tai Chi Flow Class
  •  6th – Art Exhibit Reception, 5-7 p.m.
  •  7th – Anton Flores from Casa Aletnera workshop – Midwives of Justice: Hospitality and Resistance in an Era of Mass Deportation (at Milledge Avenue Baptist Church)
  •  7th – Pride Parade and Pride Festival (downtown Athens)
  • 11th – Morton Theatre Worship Service, led by Rev. Pippin 6:30 p.m., Hot Corner Celebration (UUFA Choir & Drum groups will not meet. All are invited to attend the service instead.)
  • 12th –
    • Tai Chi Flow Class
    • Racial Justice Team
  • 13th – Next Bigger Vision Meal Provided by UUFA
  • 13th – Book signing for Rev. Brandan Robertson’s forthcoming book, Queer and Christian: Reclaiming Our Bible, Our Faith, and Our Place at the Table (SJAT + Alphabet Fam sponsoring)
  • 15th –
    • Third Sunday Forum: Meet Your Justice Partner: AADM
    • Peace Advocacy Team 
    • Historical Jesus Book Discussion
    • Goddess Group
  • 18th –
    • Morning Meditation
    • Palms of Fire Weekly Drum Circle
    • Chalice Choir
  • 19th –
    • Tai Chi Flow Class
    • Juneteenth Music and Arts Festival (an AADM Justice Partner event)
  • 20th – Summer Solstice Celebration in Song and Dance
  • 22nd –
    • Compassionate Presence in Times of Strain, a Pastoral Care Team Workshop open to all, 2-4 p.m.
    • Alphabet Family
  • 23rd – Earth Ministry Team
  • 25th –
    • Morning Meditation
    • Palms of Fire Weekly Drum Circle
    • Chalice Choir
  • 26th – Tai Chi Flow Class
  • 29th – Journeys Newcomers’ Class

Below are highlights of upcoming special events.

Regular monthly events will be added in mid-June. 

July

  • 19th – Lead with Love: Leadership that Meets the Moment A Cluster Event offered by the UUA Southern Region at UUFA. Register here. 
  • 20th – New Member Recognition

August

  • 17th – UUFA Leadership Summit (2025-2026) (9 a.m.-noon)
  • 24th – start of Family Promise Week (partnering with Holy Cross Lutheran Church)

November

  • 9th – start of Family Promise Week (partnering with Holy Cross Lutheran Church)