Each week this congregation gives half of all offerings collected in our plate to local organizations whose work furthers our mission. Here are some of our prior recipients. All members and friends are invited to nominate an organization that they’re familiar with or inspired by.

• Share the Plate – 10/13 & 10/20 – Ho-Chunk Housing

  In honor of Indigenous People’s Day, the Share-the-Plate recipient for Oct. 13 and 20 is Ho-Chunk Housing and Community Development Agency. They maintain affordable rental units and provide programs for rental assistance, home buyer education, home repair and lead inspection, and other housing improvements for the Ho-Chunk community throughout Wisconsin.  

• Share the Plate – 9/29 & 10/6 – River Food Pantry

  The Share the Plate for Sundays September 29 and October 6 is The River Food Pantry.

  The River is South Central Wisconsin’s busiest food pantry. Services include free groceries and freshly prepared meals for pickup or delivery, online grocery orders, mobile meals, and emergency food lockers. The River also redistributes rescued food and resources to local partners to increase access while minimizing waste. Since 2006, The River has grown to serve over 2,500 people every week in pursuit of its vision: a fully nourished community. The River food pantry was nominated by Susan Podebradsky.

• Share the Plate – 9/15 & 9/22 – Wisconsin Examiner

  The Share-the-Plate recipient for Sept. 14 and 21 is the Wisconsin Examiner. They are the largest nonpartisan, nonprofit new bureau covering Wisconsin state government, and they have no advertising, subscription fees, or paywalls. Their inspiration is the motto painted on a ceiling in the Capitol building: “The Will of the People is the Law of the Land.” For that to work, the people must be informed with reliable information. They were nominated by Erik Gunn.  

• Share the Plate – 9/1 & 9/8 – Worker Justice Wisconsin

  The Share the Plate for September 1 and 8 is Worker Justice Wisconsin. Rachel Avery nominated them because of the important work they do, including:

  • Educating workers, religious congregations and the broader community on workers’ rights and advocacy
  • Fighting workplace injustice by partnering with low-wage and immigrant worker leaders for collective actions and campaigns
  • Mobilizing a coalition of individuals, labor unions, faith communities, and community organizations to stand with workers as they lead campaigns and struggle for justice.

• Share the Plate – 8/18 & 8/25 – OutReach

  The Share the Plate for Aug. 18 and 25 will be OutReach LGBTQ+ Community Center. They provide numerous community, harm reduction, housing, elder, and transgender services for Madison’s LGBTQ community. They also host Madison’s annual Magic Pride Festival.

• Share the Plate – 7/28 & 8/11 – Jawdat Family

  The Share the Plate for Sunday July 28th & Sunday August 11th is the Jawdat Family in Gaza. Yasmine Jawdat Arafat Madi, a 37-year old mother of five children, lives in a displacement camp in Deir al-Balah on Bahr (in Abi in Karak Al-Thaniyya next to the Water Authority), with her husband, Josie Abdul Karim Ibrahim and her children. Having lived in the north of Gaza, they are currently in the south of Gaza because of the displacement. Words do not do justice to the difficult situation the family is in now. The money raised will be used for food, clothing, clean water, more hygienic conditions and medicine. The Jawdat family was nominated by Jennifer Hedstrom. 

• Share the Plate – 7/14 and 7/21 – Nehemiah Center for Urban Leadership Development

  The share-the-plate for July 14 and 21 will be Nehemiah Center for Urban Leadership Development. They cultivate youth empowerment, community leadership, and reentry services. They also offer the Justified Anger series of educational courses on systemic racism and Black history. They were nominated by Kelly Kearns. 

• Share the Plate – 6/30 and 7/7 – Sjorgen’s Foundation

  The Share The Plate for Sunday June 30 and Sunday July 7th is the Sjogren’s Foundation. Sjogren’s (pronounced: show grins) is a serious autoimmune disease that affects the moisture producing glands in the body. For some people it affects the eyes and the mouth leading to irritation and possible vision and dental losses. For many it involves multiple organ systems. There currently are no FDA approved treatments for this disease which approximately 59,000 people in Wisconsin live with. Ninety percent of people with Sjogren’s are assigned female at birth. For 40 years the Sjogren’s Foundation has worked to support people with this disease and has pioneered research and provides educational programs for patients, caregivers and medical practitioners. Medical research has been a significant part of systematic white supremacy and this organization is working to rectify this. The Sjogren Foundation was nominated by Jeanette Clawson.

• Share the Plate – 6/9 and 6/16 – TRUUsT

  This Pride Month the Share the Plate for June 9 and 16 will be Transgender Religious Professional Unitarian Universalists Together (TRUUsT). Founded in 2004, TRUUsT supports and advocates for transgender, genderfluid, genderqueer, agender, and two spirit UU ministers, youth directors, music directors, administrators, etc. They are also working to transform UU congregations into spaces that are truly inclusive of trans people. They were nominated by Rev. Bowie. 

• Share the Plate -5/26 and 6/2 – Veterans For Peace

  The Share the Plate for Sunday May 26th and Sunday June 2 is Madison Veterans for Peace, the local chapter of a global organization of Military Veterans and allies whose collective efforts are to build a culture of peace by using our experiences and lifting our voices. They inform the public of the true causes of war and the enormous costs of wars, with an obligation to heal the wounds of wars. Their work includes: educating the public, advocating for a dismantling of the war economy, providing services that assist veterans and victims of war, and most significantly, working to end all wars.

Share the Plate Past Recipients

2024

• Allied Food Pantry
• Great Turning Hospitality House
• Get Kids Outside Wisconsin

2023

• Odyssey Behind Bars
• Wheels for Winners
• Raza United
• Veterans for Peace
• Wilma’s Fund
• Ho-Chunk Housing and CDA
• Centro Hispano
• Operation Fresh Start
• GSAFE
• One City Schools
• Moms On a Mission
• Black Business Hub
• UUSC
• Urban Triage – Inspired House
• Centro Hispano (x2)
• White Helmets
• Nehemiah Center for Urban Leadership and Development
• Illustrated English Dictionaries for Madison Public Schools
• UUA Disaster Relief Fund
• Neighborhood Food Solutions
• Yahara House

2022

• Community Action Coalition
• Ho-Chunk Housing and Community Development Agency
• Goodman Community Center
• Movin’ Out
• Community Immigration Law Center
• Briarpatch
• Solace Friends, Inc
• UW Nurses Union
• Literacy Network
• League of Women Voters
• The River Food Pantry
• Women’s Medical Fund
• POWERS
• Focused Interruption
• Urban Triage
• UU Service Committee’s Emergency Fund
• The Farley Center
• The Catfish River 4H
• The Progress Center for Black Women
• Social Justice Center
• Wisconsin Network for Peach and Justice and Sustainability
• WUUSAN
• Wisconsin Faith Voices for Justice
• The Center for Black Excellence and Culture
• The River Food Pantry

2021

• Catalyst for Change
• East High Food Pantry
• Porchlight Drop-In Shelter
• Goodman Center Thanksgiving Baskets
• MOSES
• Open Doors for Refugees
• Worker Justice Wisconsin
• JSS Madison Refugee Resettlement Project
• Madison Tenant Power
• Freedom Inc Books & Breakfast
• Honor the Earth
• Madison Adaptive Cycling
• TRUUst
• DRUUM
• Wisconsin Network for Peace Justice & Sustainability
• Safe Skies Clean Water
• DANEnet
• Second Harvest
• Domestic Abuse Intervention Services
• Women in Focus
• Giniw Collective
• Tenant Resource Center
• Occupy Madison Village
• River Food Pantry