On Sunday, July 27th, during a joint worship service of the Tennessee Valley Unitarian Universalist Church in Knoxville and nearby Westside UU Fellowship, an armed man unknown to the congregations entered and began shooting. In this chaos, two members were killed and seven others wounded before the gunman was taken under control by a number of other members.

Members of our faith and friends from many places remain deeply shocked and saddened by this event. Neighboring fellowships, representatives from the Unitarian Universalist Association, and a local trauma response team have all lent their support to the Knoxville congregations since that Sunday. Many churches have met in vigils throughout the week, and all congregations are encouraged to gather this Sunday, August 3rd, to recognize and mourn this tragedy in our midst. (Please see the message from UUA moderator Gini Courter on the UUA web site regarding services this Sunday.)

In addition to caring and praying for one another, members of all UU congregations are invited to use the resources made available by the UUA to support the Knoxville congregations.

• The UUA News page has posted over a dozen articles from many different points of view about the events and the responses of Unitarian Universalists everywhere.
• The UUA has created the “Supporting Our Friends in Knoxville” blog site for any and all individuals to share words of hope and caring with the Knoxville congregations and with each other.
• The UUA and Thomas Jefferson District announced on Tuesday the formation of the Knoxville Relief Fund, a nationwide effort to gather and direct resources to these two congregations.

Please visit the UUA News page for additional information and resources over the coming weeks.

This Sunday at University Unitarian Church, our own UUC Care Team, assisted by the Summer Drop-In Covenant Group, will have tables in Nathan Johnson Hall after the service to provide information about all  the UUA resources, as well as an opportunity to send shared, written words to the Knoxville congregations on behalf of UUC.

Please join us this Sunday, August 3rd, at 10:00AM for a worship service with Reverend Deborah Raible, to reflect on this experience and reach out to each other and to our wounded and healing congregations in Knoxville.