I have never been more grateful for this community than I am at this moment. It’s been such a rough time for so many of us. Between the tragedy of the fires and the tragedy of what is happening to our democracy every day, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed to the point of numbness. UUSM is a bright spot in so many ways. I am grateful for our Pastoral Care Team for their efforts to contact everyone in the congregation to find out if they were safe, if they needed help, or if they had help to offer. I’m grateful for every one of you who made guest rooms or other forms of support available.
I am so grateful that, as we approached Sunday, January 12th, we had congregational leaders come forward with concrete ideas of how we could serve our community in the midst of a trauma. Pam Teplitz, our Communications Chair, brought our Zoom Coffee Hour back for the week, for people who couldn’t make it to church but needed connection. Julie Nyquist, our Mission and Vision Co-Chair, turned a small lunch that she had planned for a Mission and Vision Circle into a major effort that fed everyone who showed up to church that day. I am immensely grateful for both of them, and for all who volunteered to help make those things happen. I was also grateful for the opportunity to serve in a small way that day. Talking with my fellow congregants while I handed out bowls of chili helped bring me out of my fog. There was great comfort, being in community.
We had an abbreviated board meeting on January 14th. It was lovely to be joined by Nurit Gordon, our Congregation Administrator, as our guest staff member at the meeting. We had an extended check in, handled the necessary items on the agenda, and called it an early night. It was a week that called for us to be gentle with ourselves and others.
That said, UUSM continues to progress. I met with our fantastic Leadership Development and Nominating Committee (LDNC) earlier this week. Assisted by the Board and Mission and Vision, LDNC about to embark on a comprehensive outreach, with the goal of speaking with all members of the congregation about the upcoming Ministerial Search Committee. Per the UUA’s best practices, and aligned with our democratic values, LDNC is working to ensure that all of our members have an opportunity to share their thoughts, as they go through the careful process of finding the slate of settled minister candidates.
We’re also interviewing Administrator candidates, as we prepare for Nurit’s retirement. Nurit, another person for whom I am immensely grateful, will be impossible to truly replace, with her deep care for our community, institutional knowledge, generous spirit, and unflappable professionalism. But we are working to ensure that we find a suitable person for the Administrator role. We’re also planning for Stewardship, as well as continuing to work on our Developmental Goals as we head into settled ministry.
So, our congregation moves forward, in a lovely building at 18th and Arizona that’s been ours since it was built in 1930, against a background that sometimes feels apocalyptic. We continue to do our work and worship together, with love and in faith that we can help build a brighter future, for ourselves and far beyond our walls. Thank you for being part of this community. We’re resilient. And we will continue to make a difference.