March 2026 Board Highlights

The Board of Directors of the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Santa Monica met on Tuesday, March 10, 2026, via Zoom.

Board members attending included President Vilma Ortiz, Vice President Karl Lisovsky, Treasurer Sue Bickford, Secretary Linda Van Ligten, and Board Members at Large Larry Weiner, Cassie Winters, Jef Travis, and Anne Bridgins. Minister Jeremiah Kalendae also attended, as did guests Steve Chin, Melinda Ewen, and Alice Koga. Board Member Jila Tayefehnowrooz was absent.

Call to Order, Spiritual Grounding, and Opening Remarks

Vilma called the meeting to order at 7:03 pm. Jef lit the chalice and read the UU Value of Pluralism: “We celebrate that we are all sacred beings, diverse in culture, experience, and theology. We covenant to learn from one another in our free and responsible search for truth and meaning. We embrace our differences and commonalities with Love, curiosity, and respect.”

Attendees provided personal check-ins and answered a question related to this month’s worship theme, Paying Attention. Larry also shared experiences from his recent trip to a memorial service for his wife, Laura, in Ames, IA.

It was noted that Rebecca Avery resigned from the Board in February. 

At Linda’s request, the board read our Covenant.  Vilma reminded attendees to be mindful of each other, speak in turns, wait for others to speak before speaking again, avoid crosstalk, and be aware of the queue for speaking.

Reports, Motions, and Discussions

Steve Chin (with team members Alice Koga and Melinda Ewen also present) presented findings by the Financial Audit Team, identifying three main options:

1. Do nothing.

2. Fix correctable errors and leave the rest…then follow strict cash basis rules for non-profits.

3. Reset all accounts…then establish an appropriate Chart of Accounts, track Restricted Funds, and follow strict cash basis rules for non-profits.

After some discussion, Steve agreed to work on an implementation plan for Option 3, and to present it to the Board next month.

Next, Jeremiah proposed restarting the Committee for Shared Ministry, which he said, “Fosters a healthy, collaborative partnership between ministers, staff, and the congregation to advance the church’s mission.” Ann moved that Julie Nyquist, Kikanza Nuri-Robbins, Eileen McCormack, and Pat Gomez be appointed to the committee, and Cassie seconded the motion. During discussion of the motion, questions were raised about the lack of CYRE representation, and the fact that most of the proposed members are older. Jeremiah explained, however, that more members can be added to the initial group. He said suggestions can be sent to him, but will need board approval. The  motion passed unanimously.

Minister’s Report

In the introduction to his report this month, Jeremiah said that in keeping with our Soul Matters theme for the month – Paying Attention – we are “considering mindfulness as a regular part of our spiritual life as a community.”

“Unlike some traditions which may understand the spiritual to be otherworldly,” he said, “we find the spiritual in and through the mundane realities of this life and through our engagement with this world. Our Unitarian Universalist faith calls us to be mindful witnesses to the sufferings and the joys of life and to be present to the complexities of life in our communal life. We offer mindfulness prayer, hold space for silence meditation, name our joys and sorrows, and engage with spirituality in a way that brings us into a deeper relationship with our world and with each other.”

He also reported that, “We are in the liminal space of the national ministerial search process as our congregation’s search team and I am completing the pre-candidating phase of the search process in which we engage in weekend-long interviews and explore possibilities for the future. This process will conclude in the next week or so and then we will move into the candidating phase where finalists will be selected and presented for consideration. It is an exciting and exhausting time for many of those involved in this diligent work and we are grateful for our ministerial search team and all those who have contributed to these processes in so many ways over the last year.”

Jeremiah noted that he’s been away more than usual during the pre-candidating phase of the ministerial search process, but the congregation has gathered for four Sunday worship services since the last board meeting. In February, Jeremiah offered the service The Way of Yoga: Mahashivarati which considered the yogic paths to enlightenment in what was our seventh year honoring this important Hindu holiday. Then Rev. Kikanza offered two services – Watch Me! and What Did I Miss?, which explored our monthly theme in creative and engaging ways. And finally, Rev. James Ishmael Ford returned to our congregation with Forty Days – his reflection on Lent and the art of mindfulness. Jeremiah said our community continues to show up and be engaged on Sunday mornings and throughout the week.

Jeremiah further reported that:

• Our Worship Associates took a break because four Worship Team members are currently engaged with the ministerial search process. He said he and Chela did make time, however, to have their regular meeting to ensure everything is moving along smoothly.

• The Pastoral Care Team and Pastoral Executive Team met to deepen their relationships and explore pastoral realities in the congregation. The team also welcomed Jef Travis as its newest member, while Linda, Denise, and Jeremiah provided the team with a didactic on the Ethics of Pastoral Care.

• Jeremiah continues to offer Pastoral Meetings and Spiritual Counseling to members of the community as requested, which helps to strengthen trust and healthy relations in our communal practice.

• Jeremiah continues to hold weekly, biweekly, and/or monthly Ministry, Administrative, and Governance Meetings with each of our senior staff members, our president, the executive committee, worship chair, our consulting minister, pastoral co-chairs, and/or other congregational leaders as needed or requested.

• The Stewardship Team has been working on its Now More Than Ever! 2026-2027 Stewardship Campaign. The sizeable team (now six members strong), has begun meeting, and has so far articulated the stewardship calendar and campaign branding, while Jeremiah has been preparing written materials to support their efforts.

• Alfie has received more than 50 applications for our open office position (part of our larger Office Restructuring Update), and is now working his way through them.

• The Leadership Development and Nominating Committee completed its charter and covenant, and is now moving into leadership development work. The group is thinking about nominations for the next church year and how to ensure we preserve as much institutional knowledge as possible, since we’ve already transitioned our Administrators, and Jeremiah will transition out of his position this summer. Taken together, these will constitute the largest losses in institutional memory in almost a decade.

• The Intersectional Anti-Racism & Anti-Oppression Commission (IARAO) and Board Policies Review Team are both continuing their standing work.

• In addition to the Ministerial Search Process updates above, Jeremiah said he is continuing meeting with prospective ministers for our congregation, and also attending to his own search processes.

• The work of the Communications Team is ongoing. Team leader Pam Teplitz has been away due to health issues, and Jeremiah said we are holding her in the light as she heals.

• The UU Animal Ministry funding request and membership fees, to become a formal chapter of UUAM, has been approved.

• The work of the Santa Monica Area Interfaith Council & Leadership Team is also ongoing.

• Jeremiah continues to meet monthly with the UCLA Medical Center Ethics Committee, to discern policy and interventions or non-interventions in complex clinical cases. He also occasionally serves in emergency consults when requested and available.

In, conclusion, Jeremiah wished everyone a happy Women’s History Month…and extended his hope that “we continue to create spaciousness for all of the transitions that are underway in the life of our community as we celebrate new possibilities and hold space for grief. Thank you for all of your efforts on behalf of UU Santa Monica and Unitarian Universalism!”

Additional Motions, Updates, and Reports

• In response to a request from the Policy Taskforce to adopt new Social Media Guidelines (sent to Board members before the meeting), Eileen moved that the Social Media Guidelines be approved. Cassie seconded the motion, and it passed unanimously.

• Cassie also moved that a Special Congregational Meeting be held on Sunday, April 26 to vote on calling our new settled minister (who will be visiting from April 19-26).  It, too, was approved unanimously.

• Eileen moved that the Annual Congregational Meeting be held on Sunday, June 7. The motion was seconded by Ann, and passed unanimously.

• Vilma asked that everyone on the Board say yes to one request from the Stewardship team.

• The Board will host its Dining for Dollars event – the annual Pancake Breakfast – on Saturday, July 25.

• Board members unanimously adopted the minutes of the February board meeting.

• Board members unanimously approved this month’s Consent Agenda.

• 266 current church members were reported this month. New member Teri Lucas was read into the membership roll.

Treasurers Report

Financial details from this month’s Statement of Income and Expense, for both this month and year to date, can be found here.

Director of Multi-Generational Religious Education Report 

In her report to the board this month, DMRE Jessica TenHave-Place wrote that, “The short month of February flew by quickly, ending with the horrible news of the US attack on Iran. This war has already resulted in the deaths of hundreds of civilians, including (by current counts) 165 little girls killed in a targeted attack on an Iranian elementary school.”

“While my monthly reports are usually more zoomed in on our local church’s programs and activities,” she said, “this month I had to start out with this statistic, because I do not see the well-being of the children in Santa Monica as separate from the well-being of the children in Iran. This new war – which should really be seen, I believe, as an expansion of the ongoing crimes against humanity in Palestine – makes children everywhere less safe. I fail in my responsibility to them if I do not say this clearly and often, and I look forward to supporting the efforts of the UUA and UUSM to do everything in our power to both obstruct war and build peace.”

Jessica also said that, “Recent events will, unfortunately, make the Adult RE book discussion that I am leading more timely than ever. This month eight people signed up to participate, and I anticipate more before we get started on discussing Peter Beinart’s Being Jewish After the Destruction of Gaza on March 22nd (the second meeting will be the following week, March 29th).”

Moving ahead a few months, Jessica said, “I’m looking forward to another opportunity to engage with adult religious education this summer, since my workshop proposal “Healing Religious Wounds by Conjuring New Symbols” was accepted for the 2026 General Assembly. I have also begun, on my own time, an online Spiritual Direction training program through the Urban Spirituality Center in Portland. The program is approved by the UUA, and its pluralist, interfaith approach has already been beneficial to how I think about providing spiritual support and a listening ear to the people of all ages that I work with at UUSM.”

In addition, Jessica said she’s “happy to report we had a successful youth event this month, with 6 students along with a few parents and other members attending the late night screening of Rocky Horror on February 28th, led by our wonderful volunteers Erik Paesel and Maddie van Beek. We are still a small group, but I feel like Erik and Maddie are cracking the code on what will draw in older teens to our UUSM activities! Maddie led a great discussion the week prior which touched on the history of the film and underground LGBTQ community-building, and how that relates to similar movements and values in the UU world. We have discussed doing another high school meet up soon that can continue to tap into the educational and activistic potentials of subversive youth culture – like a zine-making workshop or an all ages punk show! Erik and Maddie have also helped recruit more young people for the next Esperanza International service trip to Mexico, led by our friends at Neighborhood UU in Pasadena. I’m very excited about these developments in our programs for older teens, and all credit is due to Erik and Maddie! I will continue to do all I can to support their efforts – in the coming month I’d love to get one or two more young adults in their 20s to commit to be regular youth volunteers, since it makes a huge difference to have younger people who teens can relate to in these roles.”

“In our Preschool, Beginners, and Middle Grades RE classes this month,” Jessica said, “we have started a new unit on Lessons from Science. It’s been wonderful to have the support of our scientifically knowledgeable parents and volunteers in these lessons – I know a lot more about theology than science, but I was able to hand our Beginners lesson on evolution over to Jennifer Silvers, an RE volunteer and research scientist equipped with answers to any science questions our kids might come up with. Preparing this curriculum is helping me learn a lot, both about some things I may have missed out on back in science class, but also about the spiritual depth of the rich humanist worldview shared by so many of our members.”

And, finally, Jessica reported that, “In addition to our weekly RE lessons, in the next few months CYRE will be looking forward to our multigenerational services on 3/15 and 4/12, the annual Easter Egg Hunt on 4/5, a service day at the Westside Food Bank tentatively planned for 5/17, and a “multigenerational field trip” to the California Science Center on 3/28. This last event is new experiment in multigenerational community building – CYRE will be organizing monthly outings for all ages, starting with no-cost options like the Science Center or a day at the beach, and depending on the feedback and participation we get, building to more ambitious field trips that would require more of a budget. I’m excited to keep you in the loop about how it goes! As always, I’m open to any new ideas on how to improve and enrich our multigenerational programming, so please reach out anytime.”

Gratitude and Adjournment

Board members expressed their gratitude to the Financial Audit Team…and the meeting was adjourned at 8:59 pm.

 

Draft minutes used to prepare this story were provided by board Secretary Linda Van Ligten. Documents and reports used at the meeting can be found here.