Social Action On November 26, the RE classes extended the spirit of Thanksgiving by hosting the second annual Soup Sunday during Coffee Hour. This year, Soup Sunday was part of the Empty Bowls Project, an international effort to raise awareness and funding to assist people who are chronically hungry. Supplies and materials for the Empty Bowls Project were funded through the generous support of the UUAC Social Action Committee's Good Works Program. RE classes prepared soups to be served in special soup bowls they had created. With a minimum donation of $10, congregants could choose one of these keepsake bowls as a reminder that there are always "empty bowls" in the world. The event succeeded in raising more than $450 in donations which will be divided among three local food pantries in our UUAC area: the Holliston Pantry Shelf, the Ashland Food Pantry, and the Basics Food Pantry in Hopkinton. This Soup Sunday/Empty Bowls Project kicks off a larger RE effort to engage the children and youth of our church in social action. The new multi-year initiative is called "RE At Your Service" and is currently focused on hunger, which affects many of the people and towns in our UUAC service area. "RE At Your Service" will sponsor a variety of other social action projects focused on hunger throughout the year. Earlier in November, RE coordinated the very successful Halloween Candy (and Food) Drive that brought in over 400 pieces of candy for the Natick Service Council and enough food donations to help the church reach its 1000 item goal for the year. Future projects under consideration include the Great American Bake Sale, a Hunger Banquet, and the creation of "Birthday Boxes" for the Un- Birthday Party Potluck. We also encourage families to support existing church initiatives including Salvation Army dinners and the 1000 Acts to End Hunger Food Drive.