Join us for our first monthly potluck for the new program year. Bring a dish to share with your friends.

Karin Van Vlack, Tahoma UU member and Buddhist chaplain, will provide our program. Karin will discuss the Upaya Buddhist Chaplaincy Training, and her experiences during her studies.

The Upaya Buddhist Chaplaincy Training is an innovative two-year program open to those who wish to serve as Buddhist chaplains, as well as those who wish to deepen their understanding of service from a Buddhist and systems perspective. The training is intended to prepare people to have the skillful means to transform all kinds of suffering, including suffering induced by structural violence. The program is part of the Zen Peacemaker Order, a leader in integrating spiritual practice with social action.

Karin Van Vlack is a Buddhist chaplain dedicated to reflection and dialogue. She graduated in 2015 from the Buddhist Chaplaincy Training Program at Upaya Zen Center in Santa Fe, NM, and was ordained as a lay minister by Roshi Joan Halifax, Upaya’s founder and abbot, the following year. Her ministry of presence spans both traditional and alternative chaplaincy settings, including interfaith efforts through Associated Ministries, as well as volunteering with Franciscan Hospice and the Humane Society for Tacoma-Pierce County. A member of TUUC since 2003, she serves as a worship associate and facilitates an annual workshop cycle on living fully in the face of one’s inevitable death. Based on Anderson Island, Karin shares her life with her husband, Scott Redman (TUUC Board President), and their home-schooled teen-aged daughter, Annika. She enjoys long quiet walks with the dog, canoeing, relaxing with the cat, road trips, and watching movies or sports with her family.

A welcoming collection of men exploring questions of masculinity, character, and wisdom. In this safe, caring circle we support and encourage one another to be authentic, mindful, and present in an ever changing world.