Saturday Sept. 17 FAN Rollout

Mark your calendar for Saturday, September 17, 2011! That’s the date of our Launch Celebration for this new ministry created by the union of the Washington Association of Churches and the Lutheran Public Policy Office. We’ll gather for worship, refreshments, and recognitions as we publicly roll out the new organization. Saturday, September 17, 5:00-7:00 PM University Congregational UCC Church 4515 16th Ave NE Seattle, WA 98105 Pastor Rich is a board member of the Fath Action Network and will be part of the celebration.

Friday September 16, Movie at Keystone

Meaningful Movies 7pm. Fridays FILM: "THE FINLAND PHENOMENON: INSIDE THE WORLD’S MOST SURPRISING SCHOOL SYSTEM" (62 min, Bob Compton, 2011) Finland’s education system has consistently ranked among the best in the world for more than a decade. The puzzle is, why Finland? Documentary filmmaker, Bob Compton, along with Harvard researcher, Dr. Tony Wagner, decided to find out. The result of their research is captured in a new film, "THE FINLAND PHENOMENON".

Port Protest September 15

You are invited to the Westin Hotel to participate in a protest: Thursday, September 15, from 11:30 a.m. to about 1 p.m. at the Westin Hotel at 5th Ave. and Stewart St. in downtown Seattle. The Port of Seattle this year celebrates its 100th anniversary, and is host to the annual American Association of Port Authorities at the Westin Hotel, from Monday the 12th through Thursday the 15th. About 1000 port executives, staff, administrators, shipping company executives, etc. will be present. As you know, the Church Council of Greater Seattle has been working with Puget Sound Sage for well over two years on this issue. Various groups, from the religious community to community action groups, to the Sierra Club and other environmental groups, as well as unions, and Change to Win, a national umbrella group for some unions, see this as an opportunity to make their voices heard, and to focus concretely on alternative policies. The Port of Seattle, together with other ports in the nation, is not sufficiently addressing the question of air pollution, caused by the roughly 2000 diesel trucks which daily haul their loads on and off ships and onto railroad cars or to the major warehouses locally (Costco, Wal-Mart, etc). Second, those who drive these trucks are mostly independent contractors, without health benefits, social security, etc. and whose paychecks have huge deductibles for insurance, truck payments, etc. in Seattle many of the drivers are recent immigrants from African countries. Their plight has been amply documented, and Church Council members have heard from them directly on various occasions. Thursday, September 15, from 11:30 a.m. to about 1 p.m. at the Westin Hotel at 5th Ave. and Stewart St. in downtown Seattle. Pastor Rich is planning on being there.