Nl May 6: And Now It Can Be Told

 

Congregants and Friends,

It has been our honor to serve as your Ministerial Search Committee. We are extremely pleased with the outcome. We are excited to return to the pews where we will share in our new ministry along with you.

Along the way, we learned a great deal -- about you, about us, about the denomination. We met many great people: members and friends of the congregation; ministers; UUs in other congregations. The work has been grueling but rewarding. It was a labor of love. Thank you for entrusting us with it.

We’d like to thank Tracey, Donna, Jennifer, Scott, Seth, Wendy, our partners, our 3 terrific Pre-Candidates, Georganne Green, the UUA, our 3 neutral pulpits, and our fab congregation.

“And now it can be told”: Special gratitude goes to Susan Anderson, for exiling herself while Skyping and Group Skulking took place in our Secret Undisclosed Location!

“Food for thought”: To feed our 3 Pre-Candidates, we were forced to consume quite a few meals together. Some highlights: vegans feasting on alligator and moose in a Western Massachusetts eatery; the pear soup at the WAM; Jesse Anderson’s homemade pancakes in our very own First U kitchen. And was it just a coincidence that all 3 times when we walked in to the WAM for lunch w/ a Pre-Candidate, a certain member of the congregation was always there?

The Ministerial Search Committee, over and out!

--Jesse Anderson, Alison Barrows Ronn, Jane Beckwith, Noel Cary, Shannon Kirshenbaum, Diane Mirick (chair), Lee Reid.

NL May 6: Above & Beyond!

       

Above and Beyond!

It is human nature to praise the people who are out front in a production. But there are other folks, behind the scenes, who put the pieces together.

The Ministerial Search Committee (MSC) wants to sing the praises ♬♪♫♫ of our unsung heroes, Donna Rossio and Jennifer Bowes. This Committee could not have accomplished its mission without their tireless support. In addition to their usual tasks of administering the church, managing the stewardship campaign, and producing the annual report, Donna and Jennifer took on the weekly demands of the MSC. They accepted our requests, understood our pressure, worked with our confusion, and faultlessly delivered what we needed. We are grateful for their countless hours of support, their graciousness, and the high and timely quality of their work. They went “above and beyond,” and our whole congregation owes them its thanks.