The Board kicked off our new year on Saturday, August 19th with an all-day workshop led by Sarah Schurr, our UUA Pacific Region field representative. We explored the relationship between governance and ministry, and discussed ways to effectively differentiate the roles of each within TUUC. It was a productive day and great opportunity to introduce new Board members to a concept we began to explore several months ago.
Going forward we will be developing ways of further refining and implementing the goals we as a church community established last year: engagement, social justice, and financial stability. Remember those?
I mentioned in last month’s blog that we are at a time of New Beginnings—a time when we can begin to look toward the future rather than focusing on recovering from the past. To be a strong, vibrant congregation we must engage with each other and with the community beyond our walls. There are so many ways to become engaged at and through TUUC: make coffee now and then, be an usher or greeter, volunteer at Horace Mann Elementary School, wear a yellow t-shirt at a demonstration (there are many of those to choose from these days!), help weed the garden, host or attend a Circle dinner or some other social event, help with the auction . . . I could go on and on — and you probably have more ideas. If so, let us know. If we haven’t or don’t reach out to you in the next few weeks, don’t be shy about reaching out to Linda or to me. The more each of us becomes involved, the more dynamic our church will become, and, ultimately, this will lead us to a strong sustainable financial footing as well.
Let’s keep wondering as I suggested last month . . . What will our future look like? How well will we have become known in the community? What more can we do to make a difference? Where will we be located? How much will we grow? Let’s wonder together, weave our strong communal web, create a common vision, and go through the step-by-step planning that leads us to the fruition of whatever dream evolves.
Barbara Tripp
President, Board of Trustees