Contact Us

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110 S. 2nd Street
Geneva, IL, 60134
USA

630-232-2350

Planning & Publicizing Your UUSG Event

Planning and Publicity

How to Schedule an Event

  • To schedule an event, first check the church calendar for any obvious conflicts. In addition to conflicts on the desired day of your event, look at the weeks before and after for large events or fundraisers that may result in over-scheduling.

  • If you don’t see any conflicts, fill out the Room Request Form.

  • Our Congregational Administrator, Christine Imielski (office@uusg.org) will contact you within a few days to confirm your request or clarify any issues before doing so.

  • Please do not publicize your event or submit announcements about your event before formally scheduling it with Christine and receiving confirmation from her that it’s on the calendar.


Event Sign-Ups

  • If you would like an online sign-up (Sign Up Genius), request one from Christine at least 2 weeks before you would like people to begin signing up.


How to Publicize Your Event

To publicize your event, follow these guidelines and send your announcement to our Congregational Administrator, Christine Imielski at office@uusg.org.

For All Publicity

  • Deadlines are firm.

  • Submissions may be edited by staff for content, clarity, or length.


Mini-Pioneer Weekly Bulletin (Sunday Bulletin)

  • Due by 9am on the prior Wednesday

  • Send text of any length to office@uusg.org. The bulletin itself will only have 2-3 lines of text about your event or activity due to space limitations, but will include contact information and/or a link to more information on the church's website and/or your event sign-up page. If you’d like to submit a short version for the printed bulletin, please feel free to do so and limit to 50 words. A longer announcement can appear in the Weekly Email and on our social media channels.


“UUSG News” Sunday Email

  • Due by 9am on the prior Wednesday

  • Send text of any length to office@uusg.org.


The Pioneer Monthly E-Newsletter

  • Due by 9am on the 4th Monday of each month (check our calendar for exact dates, as this deadline may change depending on holidays)

  • Send text of any length to office@uusg.org.

 
Online Calendars and Press Releases
Sending information about your event or group is a great way to let the larger community know about what UUSG has to offer. There are two main ways to submit information to the local media—online calendar listings and press releases. Consider which approach is most appropriate for your announcement and if you can meet the timelines indicated.

Online Calendar Listings

  • Events are not automatically submitted to online calendars; you must make a specific request.

  • Send your event information (100 words or less) to office@uusg.org at least 2 weeks before your event.

  • Information will be submitted to online calendars 1-3 weeks before your event, depending on when you submit it to the office.

  • Late submissions (received less than 2 weeks before your event) cannot be accommodated.

  • Calendar submissions are sometimes chosen to run in the newspapers or in a more prominent location on the media’s website, but we do not have control over this.

  • Submitting events to online calendar listings does not guarantee that they will be included on the calendar or otherwise used by the newspaper.

  • Events that are already posted on online calendars cannot be re-posted.


Press Releases—Summary

  • True press releases take more time and consideration than calendar event submissions, and drafts must be submitted to Christine Imielski at least 4 weeks before the event.

  • If you feel your event is newsworthy enough to warrant more than a calendar listing, talk to the Marketing Committee (marketing@uusg.org) about the process and best practices for success.


Press Releases—Detail

  • True press releases take more time and consideration than calendar event submissions. Because many of the local papers are published weekly, draft press releases must be submitted to the church office at least 4 weeks in advance of the event.

  • We first ask you to consider the newsworthiness of your event. Keep in mind that local papers are devoting less and less space to original content, as staffing cuts and financial constraints have them running more stories from syndicated services.

  • If you believe your announcement is newsworthy enough to warrant more than a calendar listing, try to think of ways to entice the media. Can you offer interviews with local residents? High resolution, print-ready photos? Recipes?

  • If you choose to submit a press release, please send a draft press release to office@uusg.org at least 4 weeks before your event (the long lead-time is necessary because many of the papers are weeklies).

  • Press releases should be no more than one page double-spaced and be written in the style of a newspaper article.

  • Office Staff, the Marketing Committee, or other experienced volunteer will make appropriate edits to your release, format it for UUSG branding, and send it back to you for your prompt approval.

  • The release will be sent to local media three weeks before your event. Most newspapers don’t accept emailed releases, but require them to be submitted online through a press release form. For all events for which we submit a press release, we will also submit to the online calendars.

  • Please note that we have NO control over which papers (if any) choose to feature our events.

  • Press releases will not be submitted to the media more than once.