Beverly Unitarian Church

Beverly Unitarian Church is a certified Green Sanctuary - certified by the Unitarian Universalist Ministry for Earth (formerly the Seventh Principle Project).   The purpose of the Green Sanctuary Group is to educate, inspire, organize and support congregational and personal practices that honor and sustain our planet Earth.  Our plans for 2009-10 include the following:

upcoming event: Spring Farmers Market & Fair Trade Marketplace

Saturday, April 10, 2010, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Beverly Unitarian Church

Come to the Late Winter Farmers Market for a selection of organic produce and herbs, meat from grass fed animals, and poultry products produced without growth hormones.  There will also be other local farm products, including syrup, soap, cheese and flour. 

Buy products that interest you while helping small farmers extend their income beyond the growing season.
Winter Farmers Markets are a project of the Churches Center for Land and People (CCLP).  Through CCLP the farmers donate 10% of their receipts to the Harvest of Hope Fund to aid small farmers in crisis.
This Winter Farmers Market will also include space for Fair Trade Retailers to showcase their products.   

Meetings: We meet every two months at the Beverly Unitarian Church.  Our next meeting is Sunday, April 25, 2010, from noon to 1:30 p.m., on the second floor of the Castle. The Green Sanctuary Group welcomes new members and encourages any form of participation!  For more information about the Green Sanctuary Group contact Fran Sowa at 708-423-6392 or frannevpk@yahoo.com 

Worship:   In coordination with the Worship Committee, our Group sponsors several worship services celebrating a spiritual connection with the Earth and inspiring us toward better stewardship practices.

Education:   We will continue to offer Forums and other events, and provide educational literature that encourages better stewardship of the Earth.  We also funded three TreeKeeper scholarships for inner city adults to be educated on the care of trees in their communities.

Environmental Justice:   We continue to sell organic Fair Trade coffee at church and other venues, and donate coffee for use during the Sunday coffee hour.   We also continue to support local initiatives to reduce pollution and support environmental legislation, in cooperation with the Environmental Taskforce of the Unitarian Universalists For Social Justice.

Sustainable Living:   We continue to encourage good energy conservation and recycling practices on church property, and in the community.  In 2010 our Household Hazardous and Electronic Waste Collection will be held on the first Saturdays of March, July and November.   See below for more detailed information.

The Green Sanctuary Group is the proud sponsor of an electric vehicle rapid recharging station, located in our church's parking lot. Electric vehicles can recharge free of charge.

Household Hazardous and Electronic Waste Collection

The Green Sanctuary Group accepts household hazardous waste, including computer and electronics waste. Waste will be accepted on the first Saturday of March, July and November from 8:30 to 10:00 a.m. in the church parking lot. Household Hazardous Waste and non-computer electronics will be transported to Chicago’s Household Chemical Disposal and Computer/ Electronics Recycling Center on Goose Island later on those days.

The following items will be accepted, on the condition that any hazardous chemicals are properly sealed: antifreeze, used motor oil, old gasoline, oil-based (NO latex, NO acrylic) paints, paint thinners, aerosol paints, herbicides, insecticides, pesticides, lawn chemicals, solvents, drain cleaners, cleaning products, pool chemicals, hobby chemicals, mercury, fluorescent lamps and bulbs, small electronics and cell phones. This is a service that we will offer to residents of Beverly, Morgan Park and vicinity. Modest contributions to help offset transportation costs are appreciated.

We CANNOT accept any water based paints, freon gas, incandescent bulbs, water soluble calk or mortar, or bio-hazardous waste. We will refuse these materials.

Computers, monitors, printers, televisions, cell phones and microwave ovens will be recycled through Com2. Com2 has agreed to pick up the electronics, computers and televisions we collect for recycling on our collection day, provided it is all boxed in the containers Com2 drops off for this purpose.

Our household hazardous waste and electronics recycling collections during 2009 served about 500 members of our community. We were thankful for the assistance of several BUC members in loading the cargo van and Com2 for taking all of the electronics. Enterprise Car Rental of Blue Island rents us the cargo van at a reduced rate.

The Green Sanctuary Group will be the beneficiary of special collections held on the second Sunday of March and April, 2010.  Checks containing contributions to our projects should be made payable to "Beverly Unitarian Church" with "Green Sanctuary Group" in the note section.

The Green Sanctuary Group provides fair trade coffee for BUC at the church’s coffee hour after our Sunday morning worship services. The coffee is Moka Java, a medium roast made from beans grown on co-operatives in Ethiopia and Sumatra. We appreciate donations for the cost of this coffee. Donations can be given to Betsy Perrine. (If paid by check, please make payable to "Green Sanctuary Group of BUC.") You can also buy a pound of this coffee for $9.