Photo Gallery

2024

September 20-22 “Spirituality, Community and You!”
Congregational Retreat at Garden Michigan with
UU’s from Marquette, Bay de Noc, Petoskey and Keweenaw congregations.

Click here to view video of Rev. Lund speaking on
What Small Congregations are Doing Today

2023

Our congregation gathered at Petoskey’s Carnegie Building after this Thanksgiving for a Gratitude potluck. [Thanks to Kim for photography]

July Freedom Picnic at the Bear River Pavilion

Memorial Day Picnic at the Bear River Pavilion [thanks Mark for photo]

2022

August 21 – Water Communion [thanks Kim for photos and Diane for hosting]

July 31 – 5th Sunday Surprise at Vivios [Thanks Mark for photo]

July 3 – Freedom Picnic [Thanks Kim for pictures]

May 29 – Spring Picnic [Thanks Kim, Marla & Alice for the photos.]
This event provided us the first opportunity to meet our ministers in person: Amy and Alice traveled up to Petoskey to be with us and share their music, poetry and spiritual support with us. Along with members of his family who attended, we also celebrated Roger’s birthday at the Picnic Shelter on Petoskey’s Bear River. We even had an international attendee, Keegan, who came down from Canadian Soo.

2021

July 4 – Freedom Picnic (thanks to Marla & Audrey for photos)
The picnic this year was “freedom” in an additional sense: as a result of available Covid vaccinations we were free from wearing masks and the months of worrying about spreading the virus. John and Diane again graciously offered their Little Traverse Bay lakeshore home for our picnic.

2020

August 2 – Flower Communion
(tip of the hat to Marla and Mark for photos)

June: With donations from congregation members, matching funds from the church and help from Petoskey District Library Director Val Meyerson, UUCOP supplemented the library’s LGBTQ+ collection in celebration of Pride month June 2020. Pictured are Valerie Meyerson Library Director (left) and UUCOP Welcoming Committee representative & Board member Audrey McMullen (right)

2019 Gallery

December 15: Weaving the Wind’s local musicians Gretchen Van Loozen and Linda Hammond provided the music for a Children of the Milky Way service about awe, wonder and the holiday season. If you missed it, here’s a fragment.

October 20: In celebration of UN Sunday (Oct 24) Connie, a UUCOP congregration member and former board member and 2nd Vice-president of the Unitarian Universalist United Nation’s Office Board, spoke on the history of UU and UN relations and current work on just migration.

September 15: Water Communion
Our Water Communion concluded with pebbles: “If we want to make change, we must be willing to ripple the water. And if the first stone is too small and the ripples lose energy, we must be ready to drop another pebble, perhaps a larger pebble, generating larger, more powerful ripples.”

May 5: Arbor Day

Seamus Norgaard led an interactive service with a gentle movement meditation to remind us of our primal kinship with trees. We were invited to visit a tree and ask its permission to take a small cutting to bring to the service, remembering to say thank you!

April 21: Easter – The Deep Magic Breaks Through

We know that somehow, in our hearts and souls, resurrection is real; not that of the body, but of the spirit — a spirit renewed, even reborn, in the midst of our lives and our living. “May we join with the miracle that is Easter time, and enter into life with hope and love.” Elizabeth Strong

February 15: Jim Scott, a Unitarian, a friend of Pete Seeger and composer of a number of hymns in our hymnals visited us for a concert in centennial celebration of Pete Seeger’s birthday

February 10: Congregation member Betty led a silent meditation Valentine’s service including information on Fair Trade chocolate

2018 Gallery

December 16: UUCOP was fortunate to have Mary Stewart Adams former Program Director and founder of the International Dark Sky Park at the Headlands lead our winter solstice service.

November 4: Celebrating Dia de los Muertos

October 21: Bruce Knotts, Director of the Unitarian Universalist United Nations Office, spoke on the UN Compact for Migration and Advancing Just Migration for All at our annual UN Sunday Service

September 18: Drum Circle. Lynn Turner of Northern Michigan Drum Village introduced us to drum circles and world drum traditions and guided us through a drum circle in which we created our own unique percussive song.

July 1: Freedom Picnic hosted by John and Diane on the Lake Michigan shore

June 10: Tibetan Singing Bowls Service
Before using the bowls as part of a meditation service, presenter Alan provided a history of bowl use as an adjunct to meditation and an opportunity for congregation members to try sounding the bowls.

: An array of Tibetan singing bowls.

: Alan strokes the edges of a small bowl to make it sing.

: Congregation member got a chance to try the bowls.

: Kim and John hold the bowls to produce the best sound

: Tom tries stroking a bowl

2017 Gallery

January 8: First Soup and Discussion – on the first UU Principle “The inherent worth and dignity of every person”

: Discussion of the first of UU’s Seven Principles: “The inherent worth and dignity of every person”

: The discussion prefaced a vote whether to support a change to the first principle at 2017 General Assembly

2016 Gallery

October Halloween Party
The Lakes hosted the UUCOP’s 2016 Halloween Potluck, and guests included everybody from Grant Wood’s American Gothic and other hayseeds to angels, candy bars, witches and even Donald Trump. Good Fall weather, a bonfire with pyromaniacs and good company made the holiday complete.

August 21 Water Service

: Anishinaabe Elder Gennie Morgan Again Conducts our Water Service

July 4: Freedom Picnic
John and Diane hosted this year’s freedom picnic at their new home on the shore of Little Traverse Bay. Bob shared Billy Collins’ poem “Forgetfulness” with us. This year’s turned out to be a no coleslaw picnic, but there were many tasty items to choose from.