The Beacon - June/July 2007
Summer Worship Services
(Service is held Sunday at 11:00 a.m. in the Sanctuary, until June 10,
after which it is held at 10:00 a.m. in the Parish Room.)
June 3 – Religious Education Sunday. This service will include a celebration of our religious education program, presentation of the Ruth Bacon Award, stories, and a homily by Rev. Bill Metzger. Anne Slater will be worship associate.
June 10 – Music Sunday. Christopher Bernard and the choir will present a special selection of music for this final service of the regular church year. The Rev. Bill Metzger will have a brief final presentation of his interim ministry.
June 17–Summer Solstice Celebration. The Earth Based Ritual Group honors the Earth's transitions by celebrating its seasonal changes. Elizabeth Ralston and Connie Baker will lead our ninth annual Summer Solstice at 10:00 a.m. in the Parish Room. For more info, contact Elizabeth at 215-222-9507 or email elizabethriam[AT]yahoo.com.
June 24–Reclaiming Evangelism. Evangelism has become a dirty word in liberal faiths, but need that be so? Why have we relinquished this word, and this action, to the religious right? Do we not also have a good word (or knowing UUs, many good words) to share with the world? Seth Carrier says it's time we become UU Evangelists! Rick Womer will be worship associate.
July 1–To Know Myself… In Community. What about getting to know yourself requires other people to give you a complete picture? And it can't be just ANY other people, but an intentional community of people who have self-established ideals and expectations. Anne Slater explains how she got to this understanding, and digs a little deeper. Sharon Tomalin is Worship Associate.
July 8 – Asset-Based Community Development: Is the Glass Half Full? Elizabeth Terry will deliver a sermon with Luana Goodwin as worship associate.
July 15–Beyond Sunday. Our Sunday services provide contact with friends, music, spiritual enrichment and intellectual stimulation, but what then? Rick Womer will explore how services in our liberal tradition can affect our workaday existence. Luana Goodwin will be worship associate.
July 22 –W.E.B. Du Bois and the "Negro Problem.” W.E.B. Du Bois conducted a study in 1897 of black life in the Old Seventh Ward (downtown) for his book, The Philadelphia Negro. Amy Hillier Fraatz will explore the relevance of this classic to her own research and contemporary issues facing Philadelphia. Wendy Jastrzab will be worship associate.
July 29–Eliminating the Intergenerational Divide. Young Adults in our society tend to be isolated in terms of age-group associations. It is far to easy to move through single young adult life without interacting with children or with our elders, and this divide is reflected in our church dynamics. What are we as young adults missing out on? What are our children and elders missing out on? Here are some ideas to help all of us bridge that gap. Seth Carrier presents a sermon with Rick Womer as worship associate.
INTERIM TIMES
(A monthly column from our Interim Minister)
Here we are, at the end of our two-year interim experience, with the Rev. Nate Walker coming in August and Diana and I preparing for our transition to a new life in Texas.
Paul Wilkes, a religion writer, says that “Religion should be a great adventure and not a leisure activity.” Churches, he says, should stick their necks out and take chances.
I see First Unitarian Church of Philadelphia as a congregation that is prepared to take chances, and I hope you do. Actually, you already have taken chances—turning this church into the foremost alt-rock venue in the northeastern United States has been one risk-taking venture, and it has worked very well.
The way you make this church available for so many kinds of activities—two day care centers, the Little People’s Music Program, other religious groups meeting in the chapel, and numerous other organizations holding gatherings here—is extraordinary. This is the busiest UU church I’ve ever been part of.
I want to affirm the idea that maximizing the use of this space for activities for all ages is a worthy enterprise. At times, we have heard concerns about the scheduling challenge this presents sometimes for church activities. But I think this is a small price to pay for being such a vital place in Philadelphia for so many wonderful activities.
Indeed this is a major reason why First Church should obtain a grant from Partners for Sacred Places for repairs and improvements of this historic building. It is a beautiful building, but we are much more than our building.
This historic congregation does not have the membership numbers we would hope to have, but this is not unusual in our association of churches. Truth be told, membership in UU churches has been flat for fifty years, and while we might like to imagine that we can explode these numbers by forming large congregations, this is, we will eventually have to acknowledge, a fantasy.
Once again, I urge you to both gratitude and generosity—gratitude for this vibrant church, whatever our membership numbers, and generosity in the support of this place. What you do here is important and valuable, just as you are, and the new settled ministry should strengthen and grow your numbers over time.
Diana and I will remember you and will be watching from afar as you take the next steps in your ministry to this great city. UU’s rock, none more than the UU’s of First Church Philadelphia.
With love,
Bill
CHILDREN'S RELIGIOUS EDUCATION UPDATE
Greetings From Your CRE Director:
This past April 30 – May 1, the Joseph Priestley District of the UUA which encompasses the eastern 2/3 of Pennsylvania, southern New Jersey, Delaware, most of Maryland and northern Virginia, held its Spring Conference in Harrisburg. If you are like me and have a hard time getting to the General Assembly when it is at the other end of the continent, the JPD conference is a good alternative, since they are rarely more than a 2 or 3 hour drive to get to.
The Saturday morning workshop I attended, Inspired Faith - Effective Action, was very interesting. It was led by Rob Keithan, Director of the UUA Washington Office for Advocacy (www.uua.org/uuawo). He gave a concise, detailed presentation on effective social action. It was eye opening for me because it made me aware of the need for strategic planning and self examination in doing social action. We Unitarian Universalists have our hearts in the right place when it comes to caring and fighting for justice for oppressed peoples, improving the environment and promoting peace. We don’t always know the most effective way to advance those goals, and we can be pulled in too many directions to be effective in any one area. I will share one topic that we covered.
Creating a Strategic Plan: We UU’s tend to confuse goals, strategies and tactics. A goal is the concrete, achievable outcome we wish to see. The example Mr. Keithan used was to influence your local school board. Strategies are the concepts or plans that, when combined, will achieve the goal. Examples of strategies would be direct advocacy (i.e. lobbying) or educating parents and students. Tactics are the specific actions that, when done, will complete the strategy. Some tactics could be a letter writing campaign, a public forum or a press conference.
Steps in Strategic Planning
• Passion of the Congregation: Does the congregation care enough to really work on this issue?
• Issue Selection: Does the issue have relevance and grounding in the history and theology of the congregation? Who are we accountable to? (see below)
• Problem: clearly and concisely define the problem. You can start broad, but end up with a single, specific sentence.
• Goal: A clear and achievable solution to the problem.
• Strategies: Identify the strategies which, when successfully implemented, will achieve your goal.
• Tactics: The particular activities necessary to implement strategies.
What does it mean to be an Accountable Partner? An Accountable Partner
• Researches the work that is already being done on that issue
• Develops relationships with those that have a stake in the outcome
• Is willing to take a supporting role and take leadership from affected groups
• Is an active listener and shows respect for the work that is being done
• Partners with organizations recognized as legitimate representatives of the community
• Structures meetings and events in a manner that is inclusive and accessible to many different people, including those with special needs
Feeling good about the social action that we do is great, but being effective, actually making a difference is what it is all about. I am not saying that the work we are currently doing at First U is not making a difference or lacks strategic planning. I am saying that we can learn to be more effective in all the issues we take on if are conscious and intentional. If you would like a copy of the workbook from which I drew this article, call or e-mail me.
With affection,
Jansen Wendell
CRE Director
(215) 563-3980, ext. 305
CREDirector[AT]verizon.net
Summer CRE Worship Highlights
Sunday, June 3, 11:00 a.m., Sanctuary: Children will participate in CRE Sunday
Sunday, June 3rd, 1:00 - 4:00 p.m.: Church Picnic
Join us at Clark Park in West Philadelphia for the All-Church picnic, sponsored by the CRE Ministry Team. Last year was a great success, with grilled food, salads, fun and fellowship. Bring a dish to share.
Sunday, June 10, 11:00 a.m., Griffin Hall: All Together Sunday. We will have a blessing of pets in our lives both past and present and celebrate the year with songs and games
Sunday, June 17, 10:00 a.m.: Summer services start. Child care will be provided.
Saturday Sept. 1-3: Labor Day Unitarian Retreat
Join members of Main Line Unitarian Church, UU Church of Delaware County and others at Camp Tockwogh in Maryland for a great weekend of worship, song, sports and games. If you register by June 15, you receive $5.00 off per person.
GETTING TO KNOW UU
Over the past two years, I’ve introduced you to a number of our sister UU congregations. In the first year, they were from our own Joseph Priestley District, while over the past year, they have been selected from some of the other districts around the United States. My goal was to show readers that there is a whole world of Unitarian Universalist activity outside our own congregation.
If our faith is to grow and thrive, if we are to become the religion of the future that the world is waiting for if they only knew we were an option, we need to remember to work together with other congregations and the denomination to spread the good words and good works of our UU beliefs.
As a good indication that we are on the road to expanding our purview of the UU world outside our doors, we have a delegation of at least five First Church members planning to attend General Assembly in Portland, Oregon this June 20-24. Led by President Debby Schultz, other attendees will be Virginia DeRolf, Gerry Parchman and his partner Ken Goggins, our new minister Rev. Nate Walker, and me. Have you signed up yet? There is still a little time left, by going to the UUA website, www.uua.org and following the links to General Assembly. Notify the First Church office if you’re going, so we can plan to keep in touch while there.
This will be my fourth GA, so I’ll be the veteran of the group, while none of my fellow travelers have ever attended before (except probably Rev. Nate). They will find that the countless great workshops, receptions, seminars, worship events, and networking opportunities provide an amazing and inspiring chance to really see our UU faith at work.
There are always too many interesting events for any one person to attend. It’s a powerful thing to be at a convention of a few thousand people with the realization that everyone there shares much the same religious view as you do. I hope you can all someday say that you’ve been to GA, and found renewal of your UU faith there.
Submitted by Ken Olin
COMMUNITY SERVICE & SOCIAL JUSTICE
Recycling
Recycling at Trinity Memorial (22nd and Spruce) continues every first and third Saturday between cardboard and No. 1 and 2 plastic bottles cleaned and crushed.
Good News from West Philadelphia - they are taking part in a curbside pickup weekly of cans, glass, and PLASTICS 1&2 all mixed together plus paper. Hopefully Center City will be next.
Books Through Bars
We continue to support this national program which sends books to prisoners in response to their requests. Packing and sending takes place at the A Space, 4722 Baltimore Ave. every Tuesday 7:30 - 10:30 p.m. and the first and third Saturday of the month 11-3 p.m. Take your books there if you can--if not there is a book bin in our lobby for donations. Pack-a-thon. The annual Books Through Bars Pack-A Thon took place Saturday, May 12th from 9 to 9. Volunteers who served 3 hours to raise money for postage and to help with the backloads of requests were Diane Frey, Tricia Way, Ginny Beier and anyone who came after 4:00 p.m., which I don't know about. Cathy McCoubrey led her sixth Grade RE class there recently on a Saturday.
Donations Bin. Thanks to these generous people who have emptied the contents of the Books Through Bars bin in the lobby and delivered the books to the A-Space in West Philadelphia: Amy and Jim Fraatz, Abbie Reponen and Lewis Wendell, Val Sandberg and Elizabeth Terry.
WinterShelter
Last month we thanked the 33 wonderful volunteers who helped support the Community Outreach Program (CORP) at Trinity Memorial Church at 22nd and Spruce Street by cooking and serving at their WinterShelter. We probably will be asked to serve again next year on the same nights of the first Wednesday and the 4th Friday, so think about your teams for November to May.
New Orleans Odyssey
On April 10, three of First Church congregation (Phyllis Belk, Luana Goodwin, Ned Motley) joined a group including Methodist, Unitarians and others from Delaware County in descending on New Orleans intent on rebuilding in that city. For some it was a third or fourth trip. We stayed in a Methodist church and worked under auspices of the Episcopal Diocese. While we had understood that we would primarily be involved in rebuilding, most of the work offered was still gutting damaged houses in preparation for demolition or rebuilding. Our leader also found us an opportunity to hang dry wall at a house intended to become a youth center of one Episcopal parish. Those with medical and social work skills could travel with a medical services unit and others could volunteer to do respite work, taking supplies such as toilet paper and detergent to residents in the most affected areas. These expeditions provided an opportunity to engage residents and to direct them to the medical services which were always located nearby.
All three of us found our New Orleans venture most rewarding. Our physical strength and endurance as well as our team-worthiness were tested by the gutting and building efforts. We were rewarded by hearing the stories of the people we were helping and spending time with the one homeowner, a teacher, whose house we gutted from start to finish. We got to know each other better as Ned and Luana led shopping and bathroom cleaning and Ned, a fine dining cooking crew. We heard some great music at the French Quarter Festival.
We attended the First Unitarian Church of New Orleans worship our first Sunday and found ourselves some of probably fifty Unitarian volunteers. We also found that the New Orleans church is still struggling to get back on its feet.
It was amazing to see and hear that it continues to be volunteers, like ourselves, to whom the people of New Orleans are looking for the most concrete and reliable assistance with their recovery efforts. FEMA contractors seemed to be efficient about picking up the trash after our gutting and word was that Road Home payments to homeowners and increased demolition to reduce the number of damaged and abandoned houses in reviving neighborhoods would soon be seen; but, the avenues for federal aid still seemed obscure for many. Those who rented before the hurricane, for example, are not being given any assistance in affording the now scarce and inflated rentals. Without such assistance, they cannot return.
Some photos of our New Orleans experience are posted at the back of the Sanctuary. We should put some on our website. A next trip for rebuilding is forming up for early November. Stay tuned for more information or ask Phyllis, Ned or Luana.
Submitted by Luana Goodwin
ADULT PROGRAMS
Interweave
Interweave is the local and national group of UUs that support and promote civil rights for the BGLT. The group has a regularly scheduled brunch on the first Sunday of the month, and members often go to brunch on other Sundays as well. Anyone may join us for brunch. We also participate in Gay Pride and street fairs in the gayborhood. Info: Gerry Parchman (lib2uus[AT]comcast.net, 856-829-4561) for details.
Depression Support Group
The group will continue to meet on the first Sunday of each month at 12:30 p.m., until July, when they will switch to an 11:30 a.m. time. For more information, contact Arcenia Rosal at 215-561-6506, or Lynn Rubin at 215-837-3371.
Women's Book Club
Last month's erudite discussion on Volcano Lover by Susan Sontag was facilitated by Becky Yamin and Shirley Trauger. An added treat was not only the visit by baby Landon Hansen and his mother Justine, but the addition to the discussion by Justine's mother, Jessica. She had lived in Naples which was the main setting of the book and was able to report the accuracies of Sontag's descriptions of people and places. On June 4 we will be meeting at 7:30 p.m. at the home of Devon Davidson to discuss The Middle Ages by Jennie Field. Please call her at 617-501-3230 or ddavidson[AT]afsc.org to let her know you are coming and to get directions. July's reading will be The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini at the home of Joan Forman( 215-732-5478 or joanforman[AT]verizon.net.
FLOWERS
June 3
In memory of John McNamara Connolly. From his sister, Kate.
June 10
In memory of my mother, Dolores Regina Carlson. From Christine Carlson.
PRESIDENT'S COMMENTARY
By Debby Schultz
A new Board is in place, emails are flying, we’re gearing up for a new church year with a a new minister! At the May Board, the Board kicked back and celebrated a bit at the end of our meeting. We toasted and thanked departing Board members Mike Dorn, Jennifer Hurley and Gerry Parchman and Rev Bill and shared our appreciation for all that happened this year. For the agenda item, “A Year in Review,” we had some fun remembering highlights of this year!
F un and Games Nights
I nterweave reenergized
R ebuilding Together – 13th year!
S unday Evening Workshop – an alternative service
T raining with Partners for Sacred Places – grants opportunities
U U Rocks at Philadelphia Cares
N ative American Women’s Spirituality Group
I nternet Website Renewal – Impressive!
T wenty K Matching Grant – We met the Challenge.
A rts Ministry – New Offering!
R ev Nate Walker – Thanks Search Committee
I ntergenerational – CRE, Prom, and More!
A bbott/Kammerling Bequests – THANKS!
N oel Concert A First!
C hoir – They both sing and party well!
H omeless Support – WinterShelter & Solar Cookers
U U JPD recognizes Young Adults ~Seth Carrier.& Jasen Kelley
R eaders - New and Old Book Clubs abound
C ircle Dinners
H olidays from the fall’s High Holy Days to Easter.
This hardly captures all that occurred. To each and everyone, thank you for your support, energy, contributions, talent! Looking forward to another year!
Love,
Debby Schultz
BEACON BITS
Women’s Choir Concert, June 2
First Church member Joan Bauer is also a member of Anna Crusis Women’s Choir. This is Joan’s first year in the choir. Anna’s (ACWC) Saturday, June 2nd (7:00 PM) concert will be at The Church of St. Luke and the Epiphany (330 S.13th Street). Joan will have tickets available during coffee hour ($15 in advance; $12 seniors.) She would like very much to share her joy of singing with this amazing group of 40+ women with you. Come for a varied, inspiring and fun music evening.
Update on Parking
The College of Physicians parking lot on Van Pelt street, flush with the church, is no longer available for church parking. The large parking lot across from it is available free of charge most Sundays of the year. Access via 21st Street is the best bet (right off Market onto 21st, right into the lot) as the Van Pelt Street exit is frequently chained. Meanwhile, the Central Parking System has issued vouchers for parking at the Ambassador Garage (21st and Chestnut) on Sundays and weekday evenings for $5. Pick up vouchers from the ushers or by contacting the church office. Free parking is still permitted on the east side of 22nd Street from Walnut to Market Streets on Sundays from 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.
WANTED: Greeter/Usher Coordinator
We need a Coordinator for Ushers & Greeters for the rest of the church year. This is a great position for someone who likes a defined volunteer job, and one where you will have the chance to become acquainted with many church members. If you are willing to offer your services, you will be given lots of help and many hosannahs. If you don’t want to do this alone, find someone to be Co-coordinator. It should take no more than one hour a week. The coordinator lines up four persons to be ushers and greeters for each Sunday, gives them instructions (already available), and reminds them on Friday to show up Sunday. It’s not hard to recruit people, we just need an organizer. Contact Phyllis Belk (Phyllis.belk[AT]verizon.net).
2007 UUA General Assembly
Interested in attending GA this summer in Portland Oregon? Let’s make sure First Unitarian Church is well represented. Please speak with Debby Schultz, schultzd[AT]comcast.net, this month if you are interested. This will be her first GA and she’d be delighted to have you join her.
Low-Life Auction Update
The 21st Annual Services Auction - the Low Life Auction - was a Bada-Boom success, raising $10,060 for the church!
The guys and dolls, mugs and molls attending, as well as the rugrats, all had a ball, with good food and drink, conversation and lots of wonderful items to bid for. It was made possible by the enthusiastic help of many people:
First, Joan Forman, Anne Slater and Karin Tetlow, who spent many an hour in advance discussing, arranging, planning and working to ensure our success, and then pitched in on the night to do everything that needed doing. The Fundraisers Anthony Hodnett, George Girman, Beth Ralston and Lynn Rubin, as always, were there for the whole evening. And all the people who worked on the innumerable tasks, large and small, which we had to deal with.... Jennifer Lohmann, who designed the delightful decorations, and Olivia Lohmann, who circulated the 50/50 Raffle tickets; Barbara Higgins, Connie Mast and George Shinn, at the Admissions table; Debbie Schultz, Arthur Salter and Steve Lynch, covering the Bar; Carl Denlinger, acting as M.C.; Seth Carrier, who so effectively auctioned off the items and Ken Olin, keeping track; Jim Fraatz, overseeing the sound system; Luana Goodwin, Abbie Wendell and Amy Hillier in the kitchen; Val Sandberg, Lewis Wendell and John Lehman, who collected all the money; and Joan Bauer, Carol and Mark Peterson, Heather Spiers, Dea Silbertrust, Arcenia Rosal and Paul Vazuka, who cheerfully worked on set-up,clean-up, work-up, touch-up and everything else that had to be done before, during and after the Auction. And a tip of the fedora to Norman Fouhy, Mike McKee and Christina Doe, who did all the office and maintenance work we needed; also to Jonathan and Jim. Kudos and thanks to you all. Be proud of yourselves!
Submitted by Phebe Shinn, for the Auction Mob
BUILDING USE REPORT
5 The number of objectives set forth in the 2001 First Unitarian Church of Philadelphia’s Building Use Business plan. Goals: decrease dependency on rental income from outside sources; decrease the amount of rental activity while increasing the quality of rentals; create effective working area(s) for church staff; rent to tenants whose building usage does not conflict with our UU values and members’ use of the building; work in conjunction with the Third Century Committee’s “Locus of Civic and Cultural Activity” goals.
1569 The number of meetings and events held in our building May 2006 - April 2007.
492 Total church events during this time, or 30% of total building use.
1077 Total non-church rentals during this time, or 70% of total building use.
1955 The number of people on average who pass through our building each week.
164,253 The rental income dollars generated in the past 12 months.
69 The percentage decrease in number of renters since 2000.
58 The percentage increase in rental dollars since 2000.
18 The average number of hours daily we are “open for business”
1 Number of times First Unitarian Church was mentioned as an awesome indie-rock venue on a recent episode of “The Gilmore Girls” prime time TV show.
The saying “the numbers speak for themselves” applies when looking at our building use, yet they cannot tell the full story. The numbers are indeed impressive. As the charts below indicate, our building serves many purposes, people and groups. It’s a truly diverse resource that fulfills a mission of caring, outreach, and growth.
But it’s impossible to put a numerical value on how our building touches those who visit it. From the spiritual growth of many whose lives are enriched here, to the joy of brides and grooms, to the delight of children making noisy and joyful music, our building serves its members, guests and community well. It’s therefore gratifying to see recent refurbishment such as the new Parish House flooring, interior painting, roof repairs, and the ongoing porch renovation, and to acknowledge the outstanding and hard work of our sextons, the dedication of our volunteers, and the excellent stewardship of our Property Committee.
Submitted by Norman Fouhy, Church Administrator
MINISTRY LEADERSHIP TEAM
The MLT has picked up its pace a bit in the last two months, working with Mark Peterson as consultant on developing its Roles and Procedures, developing a plan for congregational input into program planning for the coming year, continuing with staff job descriptions, thinking about members who could fill three additional seats on the team next year.
We also met with Rev. Nate during his candidating week and were encouraged by the partnership that he envisioned. We look forward to receiving your input regarding goals and to joining with Rev. Nate and our new members in preparation for the coming church year.
Lay members -Luana Goodwin, Co-Chair; Connie Baker, Carol Peterson, Phebe Shinn, Dan Widyono. Staff members – Rev. Bill Co-Chair, Norman Fouhy, Chris Barnard, Jansen Wendell.
WHEEL OF LIFE
First Church member Dennis Fariello, who is currently incarcerated, has been moved to a new facility. He strongly appreciates your thoughts and letters, and is grateful for any correspondence. His new address is:
Dennis Fariello (HB0657)
P.O. Box 8837
2500 Lisburn Rd.
Camp Hill, PA
17001-8837
We share in the sorrow of Bill Grieb, whose mother—long time church member Mary Grieb—passed away on April 10, less than 4 months shy of her 100th birthday. Mary described herself recently as a sexton during the ministry of Victor Carpenter and others. She said that the church had been the site of many grand weddings, funerals and receptions during that period. She was very pleased to have been a part of all of that and reminisced about it with great enjoyment. Mary donated her body to science.
We share the sorrow of Judy Haraburda whose mother passed away on April 24. Donations in her name (Clara Haraburda) can be made to the American Diabetes Association (www.diabetes.org).
YOUNG ADULTS PROGRAM
The young adult group continues to be active as the summer rolls in. Our biggest recent event was a "prom night" that happened on May 5. This is part of a continuing effort for the young adults to sponsor events that are intergenerational. The turnout was large, and the celebration was grand.
As the weather warms up the young adults are getting outside for our monthly potlucks. They are turning into a monthly barbeque instead!
The young adults continue to be active and thriving, with many upcoming activities. Some include: a day of free hugs on the streets of Philly, visiting the elderly at UU house, and participating in Fairmount Park Day. For more information on activities contact jason[AT]phillynvc.org.
Seth Carrier Receives JPD’s Outstanding Young Adult Award
Congratulations to Seth Carrier for receiving the Joseph Priestley District (JPD) Outstanding Young Adult Award. The award recognizes Seth for “his excellent leadership and networking skills, passion for Unitarian Universalism, and active participation in Young Adult Ministry in his home congregation and in the larger association.” The award was first announced at the JPD annual meeting on April 28. During the Sunday, May 13 worship service, Rev. Dr. Richard Speck, JPD District Executive, presented the award plaque to Seth.
Ken Olin nominated Seth. Ken stated that Seth “clearly embodies the promise of our young adults as vital members of our community of faith.” His comments noted Seth’s numerous contributions to First Church including: co-organizer of our vibrant Young Adult Network; co-drafter of the proposal for a JPD grant that led to the hiring of Jason Kelley as our Young Adult Coordinator; co-creator and leader of the Sunday Evening Worship; initiator of the Intergenerational Games Night; creator of and trainer for the ConnectU Welcomers, our revitalized greeters program; creator of the slogan for the “UU’s Rock!” t-shirts; Ministerial Search Committee member; Membership Ministry Team member; and recently, Worship Associate.
This is the second consecutive year that an exceptional young adult from First Unitarian received this honor. Last year, Marisa McClellan was recognized as the Outstanding Young Adult for her initiation of the Young Adult Network. In addition to her valued leadership with the young adults, Marisa served this year on the Ministerial Search Committee.
CONGRATULATIONS
Congratulations to Cat Adler-Josem as she graduates as a high school senior from Friends Central School on June 9. Cat has been accepted to Sarah Lawrence College.
Farewell to Erica Ward. We regret that Erica's last Sunday with us will be June 17. For the short year she has been with us, she has contributed much to our church community. She has been a member of the choir (soprano) since October and leader in the Young Adult Ministry. As a member of the young adult group, she has been instrumental in launching the Sunday Evening Worship services. This year she served as an AmeriCorps volunteer at Daroff K-8 school in West Philadelphia. Now Erica will be moving on to new adventures. This summer she will be a camp counselor at Unirondack, a UU camp in the Adiorondacks mountains of New York. Concurrently, she is seeking a Director of Religious Education position in a UU church. Erica wants us to know that "the First Unitarian Church has been a life-saver for me during this stressful year working for AmeriCorps in a totally new city." She would enjoy keeping in touch with us. Her email address is EWard06[AT]gmail.com.
Farewell to Nikyia Rogers. With great sorrow, we say good-bye to Nikyia Rogers at the end of July. Nikyia joined the congregation this year. She's been a member of the Young Adult Network for two years and co-leader for the past year. Nikyia also has been a leader/participant on the Philadelphia Cares and Rebuilding Together. Professionally, for the past four years she has been managing a non-profit center at the University of Pennsylvania. In August, she begins her MBA program at George Washington University in Washington, D.C. Nikyia shares this reflection about her time at First Unitarian:
"I used to be able to say goodbye with little trepidation. I moved from one stage of my life to the next with ease--cutting ties was a piece of cake. But this one, leaving Philadelphia, leaving First Church, has presented me with the hardest goodbye I have ever had to say. See, First Church, you have taught me to love. Because of your teachings, these last two years have been the richest and most profound of my eight years in Philadelphia. I eagerly anticipate moments in the near future when we will reunite and I will once again become your pupil. As for all those other times when I will be physically absent from you, I will carry you in my heart always."
You, too, will always be in our hearts, Nikyia. We will miss you!
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