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UUSM - About Us - Annual Reports - 2002 Staff Annual Report
2002-2003 Staff Annual Reports
Religious Exploration Executive Council
Wendy Salz Johnston, Michelle Levesque, Jana Poirier
In looking over Susanne Intriligator’s report to you from last year,
we can’t help but smile at the optimism and happiness that everyone in
the entire religious exploration program experienced back then. We were so excited
to be working with a new DRE who held such promise! But what we discovered this
year is that our volunteers held the vision and carried it forward without the
leadership we had hoped for.
This past year has been a series of obstacles that we have had to overcome.
They’ve been more difficult than the regular issues of juice or attendance
sheets, too. It would have been easier on us all if we had a little more time
before the next obstacle arose to recover from conquering the one before. Ahh,
but we would have missed out on what we discovered was so precious. We would
not have come through so victoriously. We would not have grown closer as a group
of people who share common objectives and have become friends through the course
of accomplishing them. Despite our hardships, we have had fun, laughed and cried
with each other, leaned on each other as we nurtured the children of our church
through a very rewarding year for them. We have developed, within our congregation,
a strong sense of community that revolves around the children.
Way Cool Sunday School – Year One of a Two-Year Transition
At the end of last year, we had re-organized the RE Council and created committees
with Chairs to run the many different elements of the new program. We made the
commitment to the Board and Congregation at large that we would implement this
program in the least abrupt and disruptive manner. We knew that the transition
would require so much work that we would not be able to have the entire WAY
COOL SUNDAY SCHOOL program up and running the first year. We would have had
to overhaul the entire curriculum and how it was presented and taught in only
a few short months. That was, despite our desire, impossible. But we could implement
the rotational changes, which would be the most obvious for the children. We
began each month with a WAY COOL WORSHIP SUNDAY. Children from Kindergarten
through grade 6 come together outside under the big white tent to enjoy and
participate in a worship service designed just for them. This was followed by
two classroom Sundays in which the children split up, according to age to be
taught, in smaller groups. Then we ended the month with a WAY COOL SOCIAL JUSTICE
SUNDAY. Here is another opportunity for the children to gather together and
participate in a meaningful activity and discussion to help a group less fortunate
than themselves. We had only completed one full rotation before Susanne left
on a maternity leave for two months. But, with a little more effort, the volunteers
rallied, continued into the groove and made WAY COOL SUNDAY SCHOOL fly!
Worship Sundays and Susanne’s Departure
Now children are accustomed to going outside under the big white tent for their
Worship Sundays. The Committee Chair, Erika Valore, and the committee members--Chris
Brown, Diane Fletcher-Hoppe, Janet Goodwin, Jeff Greenman, and Jana Poirier–deserve
heartfelt congratulations from all of us. They kept this element of the program
going, as there was very little leadership or guidance.
Susanne returned in early January. But her hesitation led to a lack of leadership
for the Worship Committee, in particular. This had tremendous impact on Worship
Sundays and the volunteers. In response to their reiterated cry for leadership,
Susanne asked Jana Poirier to move over from her position as RE Chair to help
her create and lead Worship. Susanne then asked Wendy Salz Johnston to step
up from secretary to the role of RE Chair as Jana moved over. Michelle Levesque
then added the responsibilities of Secretary to those of the Treasurer she’d
been assuming. It was a difficult time. But we worked together as best we could
to help Susanne find her niche in the ministering of the children. She led the
WORSHIP SUNDAY in March. It was successful and the children seemed to enjoy
it. Granted, there were some bumps along the way, but the result was a great
relief. However, Susanne resigned abruptly on March 10th, changing her mind
about continuing until the end of June. Despite her departure, the Worship Committee
has continued to maintain their success.
Classroom Sundays
The curriculum is the foundation for the WAY COOL SUNDAY SCHOOL program. It
is different from any other we’ve ever used. It uses one of the seven
UU Principles as the basis of each lesson, Worship Sunday and Social Justice
Sunday. All of these elements are tied together through the curriculum. Due
to the overwhelming amount of work to create this new curriculum, Susanne and
the RE Council decided last year to take the necessary time this year to do
this work well. So this year, we used a regular curriculum in each class. In
PreK, Chalice Children and Superfriends, we used “We Are Many, We Are
One”; Rainbow Children and Imagineers, Kindergarten and First grade, we
used “Treasure Hunting.” In Seekers, 2nd, 3rd and 4th grades, and
Voyagers, 2nd and 3rd grades, we used “We Believe”. Explorers, 4th
and 5th grades, followed “Travel In Time.” Centerquest, grades 5,
6 and 7, and Grow For It, grades 6 and 7, used “Traditions With A Wink.”
The Curriculum Committee, chaired by Alicia Van Ooyen, with Anne Saldo, Liza
Cranis, and Wendy Salz Johnston working diligently, has spent this past year
reviewing each curriculum we have used in the past. Every lesson has been evaluated
and associated with one or more UU Principle. Once all curricula have been read
and categorized, we will organize all the lessons together by Principle. We
will gather other resources for teachers to use to create fun, challenging,
and stimulating lessons. We will compile all this into a handbook, designed
to give each classroom teacher several different options for each Classroom
Sunday, divided age-appropriately.
In the homestretch of this year, we are hoping to hire a consultant who has
experience in completing this very task. We do need leadership and expertise
in the curriculum area and we have no one in the Church with these skills. To
expedite the curriculum development, we will work closely with this person to
ensure the results we create will work best for our children.
The curriculum will be completed by the end of June. The Committee aims to
distribute copies to all teachers and volunteers to receive feedback on what
works and what doesn’t. In time for Volunteer Training, August 23rd, the
curriculum handbook will be ready, fun, and easy to use!
Social Justice Sundays
Under the untiring leadership of Michele Prichard-Lane, chair of Social Justice
Committee, with the never-ending support and enthusiasm of her committee members,
Beverly Alison, Cathie Gentile, Donna Perkins-Johnson, Stephanie DuPont, and
Linda Van Ligten, the children have experienced the gamut of social responsibilities.
Because of the newness of this aspect of our religious exploration program,
we wanted to share with you some of the questions that were posed and some of
the actions that were taken in response. Here are some examples:
What happens to the food we donate every Sunday? Westside Food Bank’s
Bruce Rankin gave a presentation on hunger in our community. They made sack
lunches for people at Step Up on Second.
What’s UNICEF? This presentation lead to the success of the UNICEF Carnival.
We gave UNICEF $1,000!
How does it feel to have plenty when others only have some? This interactive
question truly impacted the children, especially those who only had rice to
eat. They made GUEST AT OUR TABLE boxes and learned about UUSC.
What is it like to be homeless? After creating 50 “emergency survival
kits,” children tried to imagine what it would be like to be one of the
homeless they see in our community every day.
What makes a good shelter? Teams scavenged for materials to make decent places
to sleep. Were they successful? What made it so?
How does it feel to work so hard and not be able to support your family? Holding
down two or three jobs and not being able to afford food or clothing for your
family is a difficult way to live. What can we do to help?
What does a homeless shelter look like? The first SOCIAL JUSTICE FIELD TRIP
answered this question. About 25 children went to Turning Point Transitional
Shelter where they made sack lunches for the residents, immersed in their environment.
The overall effect of these Sundays was that the children were empowered to
take social responsibility for others within our community. They want to continue
to work for social justice!
Nursery
There are 8 children from both services who are registered for the nursery.
Lily Ruano, Danielle Dickens, and Carol Frayre (who will be coming back from
maternity leave) are the trained child caregivers, who work with paid assistants,
Adrienne Silsbee, and Tom Ahern. The children are cared for in a healthy and
loving environment while their parents are free to tend to themselves in the
sanctuary during the worship services.
Since Susanne’s departure, Jana Poirier, and Michelle Levesque have been
reviewing and improving the time card policy and its reliability. Under their
watchful eyes, the nursery will maintain accurate records and accountability.
Coming of Age (COA)
Four eighth grade girls are well on their way to presenting their COA Worship
Service on June 1st. With the support of their advisors, Emmy Laybourne, Robert
and Analee Simon, and Jeff Greenman, they have been guided through UU history
and the elements of our faith to create their own credos. The group, which was
already close before this year started, has developed even stronger bonds.
The YOUTH PROGRAMS COMMITTEE, chaired unofficially by Karen Patch, has been
putting together monthly activities for COA and YRUU (Young Religious Unitarian
Universalists) members to gather and have fun. “Youth Groupies”
(formerly known as chaperones) are reliably Jana Poirier, Liza Cranis, and Michelle
Levesque. Other volunteers and organizers of this committee are the dynamic
parents of the children involved – as well as the children themselves!
Please recognize Buudha Quant, Linda Marten, Jacki Paddock, Dorothy Steinicke,
Emily Hero, Pam Teplitz, Daniel Teplitz, Dawn Figueroa and Jessie Figueroa.
Young Religious Unitarian Universalists (YRUU)
Chris Brown, Michelle Levesque, and Simon Huss have been casually getting together
with last year’s COA group, now called YRUU, Daniel Teplitz, Emily Hero,
and Chris Marten on Sundays. Sometimes, the advisors have a specific program
planned, sometimes not. YRUU is designed by the UUA to be self-run. The kids
have occasionally come up with their own ideas and topics, but, as they grow
more comfortable with this freedom, they’ll be able to take over. They
also participate in Area Cons (conferences) in the area with other churches'
YRUU programs.
Social Justice issues are becoming a more important focus for YRUU. They went
to a soup kitchen one night and helped out there. They created and implemented
the entire Haunted House at the UNICEF Carnival. For those of you who had your
ankles grabbed, you now know whom to blame! And, yes! It is now a tradition!
One impressive act of one of these kids is taking the church and its membership
seriously. Daniel Teplitz became the first YRUU at UUCCSM to join the church!
Our Whole Lives Lifespan Sexuality Education (OWL)
Our church has been exemplary in the implementation of our OWL program. We
are one of the few churches who have invested in the program in terms of teacher
training for all available age groups. Beth Rendeiro, the PSWD District OWL
Trainer and our own OWL Support Group Chair, has been a strong advocate of this
program. Its success is due, in great part, to her tenacity in seeking funding
from the congregation and explaining the vital part of and impact on our children’s
lives that this program should have.
Currently, we are teaching two elementary school programs, a teen program,
and an adult program as we educate and support the parents of the children participating.
Beth with Stanley Johnston, Karen Canady, and Carl Hoppe teach the teen program
(8th and 9th graders). Sue Bickford and Kevin Pierik teach the parents of these
teens to support their children through this experience. Linda Van Ligten, Robert
Simon and Victor Paddock along with Beth teach the two elementary programs,
one for Kindergarten and 1st graders and another one for 5th and 6th graders.
These classes are taught on a rotational basis, so they will be available to
your family when you are ready.
We look forward to training the facilitators for the Senior High OWL program,
sometime next year, to implement that program the following year.
For your further information, Adult OWL, taught by Cynthia Cottam, Shannon
Murphy, Steve Young, Sylvia Young and Achim Jung, is part of the Adult Religious
Growth and Learning course offering. It is not part of RE at this time, but
it is part of OWL.
We cannot forget the support Beth receives in her work with all these teaching
volunteers. The OWL Support Group functions like a fine-tuned machine in organizing
teacher planning meetings, parent orientations, schedules, fun events and everything
in between. These celebrated volunteers are Lara Davis Del Piccolo, Stephanie
DuPont, Judy Federick, and Michael J. Farrar along with Linda Van Ligten. You
can tell this is a major time commitment in and of itself. We are privileged
to have such dedication and effort devoted to this program. It is well worth
it!
Events
With her amazing spontaneity, effervescence, and all-around love of a good
party, Lisa Stewart guided this committee consisting of Liza Cranis, Josh Fouts,
Jacki Weber, Iris Jue, Karen Payne, Nancy Giordano, and Jerry Patierno to fantastic
celebrations throughout the year! They created the UNICEF Carnival, Christmas
Cookie Bake (special thanks to Gretchen and Celia Goetz!!), Holiday Pageant,
and the Mystery Pals Exchange and Party to name just a few of those memorable
occasions. We’ll have a Beach Picnic and Kite Flying before the year is
over. Break out the sun block!
Other Items Worth Noting
RE Sunday will be on June 29th this year. You will experience a WAY COOL SUNDAY
SCHOOL Worship Sunday presented to you by the children themselves.
Upon Susanne Intriligator’s departure on March 10th, Jana Poirier, Michelle
Levesque, and Wendy Salz Johnston worked with the Rev. Judith Meyer and assessed
all the elements of Susanne’s job. We, as the RE Exec Council (with Judith
actively involved) decided not to hire an interim DRE. Instead, we distributed
the workload among the three of them. These three continue to provide the administrative
and organizational support the program needs until the end of this fiscal year.
For the summer, we have hired Liza Cranis to function as the DRE to organize
and execute CAMP WAY COOL, the newly created program for children during the
summer. She will recruit and organize the volunteers needed as well as supervise
each Sunday’s events.
At the Board meeting on March 10, the evening Susanne Intriligator resigned,
the RE Transition Team was formed to support the RE Council in determining the
staffing requirements. At the helm of this committee is the Rev. Judith Meyer.
With their work, we ask that you, as a congregation, support the needs of our
Religious Exploration program. It will be only with your help that we can afford
a full-time leader in this area. We hope that you will realize how incredible
our program is and how much greater we want it to become. But, we cannot do
it without the proper leadership that we cannot provide our volunteers and children
without your help.
Music Director
Steve Wight
A year ago I wrote my first report to the congregation. That report dealt mainly
with the many changes brought on by my directorship of the music program, including
change of repertoire, instrument and choir placement, use of guest musicians,
and other items. For the choir, adjusting to my approach to choral music making
must have been challenging and at times uncomfortable, as it has very little
in common with the approach they had come to know previously.
If our first nine months together was marked by change, I believe the last
year has been marked by consolidation of gains. Professional musicians of the
highest caliber have become regular participants on Sunday mornings. The choir
consistently sings with confidence, purpose, and polish. Musical events such
as the Choir Dining for Dollars night, Christmas Eve services, Children's pageant,
Coming of Age service, and the Samoso Woodwind Quintet Family concert featuring
Peter and the Wolf have become musical events of the highest caliber.
An important step in this continued growth was the addition of a choir Soprano
Section Leader. Angela Meade has done an admirable job of fulfilling the duties
of this position, as Michael Lamb has done for some time in the role of Tenor
Section Leader. Together with these two fine musicians the entire choir has
taken on an intense work ethic and has shown itself to be willing to be challenged
to the highest levels of achievement. Within just the last several weeks, for
example, they have given masterful, authoritative, moving accounts of music
as diverse as a movement from the Faure Requiem, a Russian Orthodox acapella
Easter hymn sung in Russian, Gershwin's "Summertime", Bob Dylan's
"Blowin' in the Wind," and a song from the musical "Sweet Charity."
As always, pianist/organist/composer Louis Durra has performed a wide array
of duties with the greatest professionalism. Week in and week out, he performs
difficult instrumental and vocal works at the nine o'clock service which he
has often not seen prior to 8:30 that morning, then accompanies the choir at
11:00, moves from piano to organ, from Baroque to jazz improvisation, and frequently
includes his fine compositions and arrangements. For the recent Dining for Dollars
evening, he wrote a wonderful Cole Porter medley for piano, keyboard, string
quartet, and an array of soloists. All of these duties he performs with no extra
pay and no special fanfare.
In addition to the paid staff, a number of talented church members have regularly
volunteered their time and talents. These include Wally Giffen, Christine Mourad,
Scott Roewe and others. This has added a dimension to our musical experience
that we could never afford to pay for, given the size of the congregation.
When I was hired in 2001, I was told that one of the church's biggest assets
was "the best minister in the conference." In the ensuing time, I've
come to know the truth of this assertion. Judith Meyer's extreme self-discipline,
intelligence, and kindness are self-evident. What many may not know is that
it is her reasoned, compassionate leadership that transforms the huge diversity
of background and outlook contained within the church from a potential source
of turbulence into focused, propulsive energy. Her guidance has been and continues
to be invaluable to the formulation of the church's music program.
Given the diversity, which is a hallmark of the church's makeup, it will always
be a challenge to create a meaningful musical experience for each congregant.
My desire is to continue to find ways to meet this challenge. As I see it, the
difficulty is in finding the right height versus width versus depth with regard
to musical style. For a group which is not adept in a certain style to give
a shallow, stylistically inappropriate performance of a piece just to say we're
being diverse is not a virtue, in my opinion. On the other hand, as we move
forward, I'd love to see the performing groups and soloists of the church explore
and become expert in more and more styles of music. Even more, I'd like to explore
ways to incorporate World Musicians of all kinds, gospel groups, Mariachis,
and what-have-you into our church experience. If we can broaden our palette
of musical experiences without sacrificing quality and authenticity, we will
truly have the music program the church needs and is worthy of.
Church Administrator
Marie Kashmer-Stiebing
Reading over my report from last year, I can see that the Church Administrator's
job has continued to evolve and grow. During the past year, I was an active
participant of the Subcommittee on Committees but withdrew from that committee
when invited to attend Personnel Committee meetings as a staff representative.
I now attend the following committee meetings, most of which are monthly: Board
of Directors, Caring Committee, Finance Committee, Personnel Committee, Administration
Committee, and Long-Term Planning.
Working with the Administration, Finance, and Personnel Committees, we hired
a 20-hour per week sexton, Kevin Roller.
We ordered, installed, and implemented Church Windows software, and Steven
Andrews and I took a one-day overview class. Currently, Steven is using the
Contributions and Finance modules, and I have taken on the Payroll and Membership
modules. Though time consuming, it is important that both Steven and I learn
all of the Church Windows modules so that we can back one another up during
vacations and times of illness.
The use of time cards was initiated in January 2003. A time card reporting
system helps us to more accurately track vacation, sick leave, bereavement time,
personal business, and other absences. We are working with the Personnel Committee
to determine how to account for those individuals who do not submit time cards.
Networking of the church calendar to enable staff to check for available space
and dates is underway. When completed, all staff members will be able to use
the computerized calendar to check dates and room availability. Also, the office
assistant and finance and administrative assistant will be able to complete
rental agreements and pass them to me for final approval; thereby, freeing time
for me to address other administrative duties.
Throughout the year, several projects have been completed through joint efforts.
1. Worked with Ellen Boag to replace the blinds in the offices.
2. Served on an ad hoc committee established by the Executive Committee to determine
how the kitchen can be improved to meet desired sanitary conditions and reported
the findings to the Building Committee. Some of the ad hoc committee's findings
will be incorporated in the Building Committee's plans.
3. Hosted the first office volunteer recognition in over two years, a luncheon.
Assisting me were Peggy Butler, Steven Andrews, Alberta Wyluda, George Kashmer,
and Susanne Intriligator.
4. A number of forms were revised this year in coordination with changes in
Bievenidos, and a new form, the pew card, was created. Originally designed by
Kelly Bryan, revisions to the pew card were made by Pam Teplitz after Kelly
moved to Houston.
5. Each long-term renter was contacted to obtain information needed to complete
the Case Statement for Facilities Development Program. At the same time, renters
were requested to renew their rental agreement and review the guidelines for
proper use and securing of the building.
6. Equipment problems arose with copiers, printers, and computers indicating
a need to consider new equipment purchases in some cases and upgrading in other
cases.
The Administration Committee that was ratified at the last Annual Meeting was
joined by Kevin Pierik, a CPA with non-profit experience, a general contractor,
and knowledgeable about computers. However, a few months later Kevin resigned
when he took a job in Santa Barbara.
Recognizing that the office staff is not sufficient as currently structured,
the Administration Committee is considering how this situation might be mitigated.
The committee is reviewing current job descriptions and creating a job description
for a new 20-hour staff position. Emphasis is on meeting the church's current
needs, and those that will arise when a ministerial intern and DRE/MRE join
the staff in September 2003.
After discussing whether it is possible, feasible, and desirable to reorganize
staff offices to provide privacy and security for staff and church documents,
the committee decided to move forward with creating a new office layout. Greg
Wood measured the space and prepared a drawing to be reviewed at the Administration
Committee meeting in May 2003. The drawing takes into consideration the needs
of the nursery, of Sunday volunteers, and of members of the congregation and
visitors on Sundays.
A major concern is the lack of a Building and Grounds Committee since Jay Gobus'
resignation. It has been necessary for the administrator to take on tasks ordinarily
handled by this committee. Please see the Building and Grounds report beginning
on page 17 of this book.
Some activities for the coming year are:
1. Participate in recruitment of a Building and Grounds chair and creation of
a Building and Grounds Committee to work closely with the Administrator and
Building Committee to address the needs of our facilities.
2. A review of our Order of Service, and guidelines for order-of-service announcements
and bulletin board postings.
3. Preparation of rental agreement packages for weddings, memorials, and concerts.
4. Meet with church committees and activity groups before the church year begins
in September to discuss schedules and needs in order to best achieve our goals
The coming year will present opportunities to work with new staff and new volunteers
who, together, will meet the needs and desires of our congregation, friends,
and visitors. My gratitude, appreciation, and thanks to all of you who have
so graciously and generously volunteered this year. I look forward to continuing
to work with you and to building our volunteer ranks.
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