By Beth Brownlie and Larry Weiner
Wow! Folks, we passed our refreshed by-laws at the Special Congregational Meeting on February 26, 2023. Thank you to so many people who made this all possible. First of all, to the Bylaws Refresh Task Force — Patricia Wright, Chair; Rev. Jeremiah Kalendae; John Zinner; Bob Dietz; and Beth Brownlie, Board Liaison — thank you for the countless hours spent on this difficult work.
A shout out to UUSM Board President Eileen McCormack, the chair of the meeting, for leading an excellent, long, and sometimes challenging meeting. And another huge shout out to our very excellent Parliamentarian, Lois Hutchinson. Man, she knows her stuff! Great work!
Thanks also to Jeremiah for his superb PowerPoint that clearly explained how we got from the starting gate to the finish line of the Bylaws Refresh process.
Our process observers, Cathie Gentile and Amy Brunell, were simply amazing. You ladies rock it! Cassie Winters was our flawless time keeper. Karl Lisovsky and Laura Weiner did a great job counting so many votes. New members Rafael Ibay and Supriya Knair, along with Joyce Holmen and Church Administrator Nurit Gordon, managed our welcome table. And thanks to Board Secretary Larry Weiner who served as inspector of ballots and also took the minutes of the meeting.
Our chaplains were pastoral associates Denise Helton and Gretchen Goetz. They were there to help those who were feeling overwhelmed at the meeting and needed some pastoral care. It takes a village…
And a huge thanks to our tremendous Hospitality Team for this event!! What a party!!! Thank you to Linda Van Ligten for her organizing and all her hard work. Thanks to Karl Lisovsky for shopping in the rain and buying the food at Costco to help keep the cost reasonable. And if that was not enough, Karl also came in early on Sunday, baked the pizzas, set up the tables, plated the pizzas, veggies and fruit, and helped clean up after the service. Thank you to Barbara Gibbs and Judith Martin-Straw for the homemade desserts, chocolate bars, blueberry cake and a beautiful two table spread. And thanks to Johnny Canales and Sandra Trutt for keeping the coffee flowing and helping with cleanup!
See the more in-depth article on the Special Congregational Meeting from our esteemed journalist, Judith Martin Straw.
Our draft minutes will be published in the members’ section of this website, and can be requested by emailing our church administrator, Nurit Gordon.
