Greetings from Rev. Michelle

Dear friends,
Greetings!
As I write this, I am in my home office, surrounded by boxes and papers that still need to be shredded. I’m in a stage of mixed excitement and nervousness—as perhaps you are as well—as I look toward a future with many possibilities and unknowns. Melva wrote so skillfully in her last letter about interim ministry, and I’m grateful to her for that because it frees me to talk about my style in particular.

While I will be your minister for the time being, you are the ones who are making the decisions about your church and its future. My role is to act as a sort of moral compass and spiritual guide, reminding everyone of our highest aspirations as people of faith and as Unitarian Universalists. Interim ministers (and other ministers as well) often talk about “holding up the mirror” to the congregation: I reflect back to the congregation my experience of them, and the congregation sees if that matches their experience of themselves—and if that’s the experience that they want others to have!

I rarely give advice and prefer to ask questions, and the interim period is all about answering the big questions: Who are we? Where do we come from? Where are we going? I—and the Transition Team—will listen for the answers to those questions over the course of the next two years. I like to use a process called Appreciative Inquiry, where we focus on strengths and what is going well, and dream together about what else might be possible.

Also, I am well aware that change is very, very hard. Even in the best of times it is exhausting and nerve-wracking. Two years is not a lot of time, and I also see no reason to rush. As the saying goes, “If you want to go fast, go alone; if you want to go far, go together.”

And finally, a little bit about me, as a person: I was born in Los Angeles County and lived my adult life in the San Francisco Bay Area, which was also where I discovered Unitarian Universalism. I moved to the Cleveland area in 2018 to take a position as intern minister at West Shore Unitarian Universalist Church, where I fell in love with interim ministry. I then spent two years completing seven units of Clinical Pastoral Education as a chaplain trainee at the Cleveland VA Medical Center, where I gained experience working with a wide range of people and learned to listen to not only words but also emotions. In my spare time, I like to cycle, take walks, play Pokémon Go, cook, try new foods, and paint. I look forward to learning how to kayak, eating plenty of fresh seafood, and taking walks in the Croatan National Forest with—I hope!—my new dog.

And most of all, I look forward to being with you, in whatever form that takes.
Blessings

Rev. Michelle Ma

President’s Column:

Happy August My Friends,
I am so grateful to have had the opportunity to attend the 2021 UUA General Assembly. Attending GA is always a highlight of my year as it enables me to reinvigorate my faith and address subjects that are important to me.

Expanding on last year’s theme of Draw the Circle Wide, this year’s GA theme was Circle Round: Justice, Healing, Courage. This year, every service, seminar, and meeting I attended demonstrated the enactment of principles outlined in the Report of the UUA Commission on Institutional Change. Every leader identified themselves within the human family and in relation to others, and a focus was brought to bridging differences. A connection was made to indigenous people and the land currently occupied by the speaker. Harmony with the earth was highlighted. The value of all ages, cultures, abilities, gender identities, and contributions surfaced in each topic.

Practically every seminar I attended highlighted the use of worship to expand how we view social justice and equity within our congregations and within the larger society. A seminar, entitled “Beyond Belonging: Transforming Community,” demonstrated how worship could help uncover the various Truths about human relationships and expand our knowledge about the realities faced by our fellow travelers. Showing more empathy for those who are different transforms communities and strengthens our commitment to equity.

Another seminar I attended, entitled “Pedagogy Matters: New Directions in Teaching Racial Self-Knowledge,” suggested clear and demonstrable success when education and worship worked in tandem to teach anti-racism. Together, for example, religious education and worship can teach the realities of White Supremacist culture, while providing a means for self-examination about racial attitudes and behaviors. Congregants are able to learn from their heads and their hearts, and their spirits can thrive from the endeavor.

The last seminar I’ll mention here was entitled “Questioning Cultural Norms: Committing to Equity”. True equity dwarfs every offer of equality. Equity requires that we learn how different kinds of people value different things. Furthermore, it requires that we actually find value in the values of others. This seminar suggested that worship and other programs commit to teaching the goal of equity by helping congregants be more aware of cultural norms different from their own and how those norms offer social and spiritual value to all of us.

Finally, the Ware Lecturers focused on Voting Rights. The first speaker was Stacey Abrams from Fair Fight Action in Georgia. She inspired me to imagine what could be done, even if it takes a long time to achieve and there are many failures along the way. The second speaker was Desmond Meade from Florida Rights Restoration Coalition, who was instrumental in helping restore the vote to returning citizens after they complete parole. He shared many stories about the emotion felt by these men and women when what had been taken away is again restored.
I hope this brief overview provided you a glimpse of the evolving nature of our UU faith.

All the best!

Melva

Board of Trustees Business:

*On behalf of the congregation, Melva signed the papers for a Construction Loan for $150,000 with First Citizens Bank. This loan enables UCF to use the money if costs go beyond what has been collected to pay for the building project. Smithson Builders required that we have this money available for any cost overruns. It is the Board’s intention to see that no money be needed from this loan to properly complete our project, thereby avoiding the need for expensive monthly payments.

*On behalf of the congregation, our Treasurer Dave Hughes prepared a Promissory Note for repayment of the Endowment Fund borrowed to help pay for the building project; and on behalf of the congregation, Melva signed that Promissory Note. The terms of that Note include the “Promise to Pay” the total amount of $125,299.83 together with interest at the rate of 2% per annum. “Repayment” is detailed as follows: “The amount owed under this Promissory Note will be repaid in equal interest-only installments of $208.83 made every month for a period not to exceed five years. The remaining principal balance shall then be repaid in equal monthly payments of $806.32 for a period of fifteen years or until the principal is repaid. The first payment will be due on 01/31/2022. All payments shall be first applied to interest and the balance to principal.”

*The Board voted to pave the parking lot at 2900 Bridges St. with a combination of asphalt and ecoraster to be consistent with UCF’s commitment to be good stewards of the earth.

*A typographical mistake related to survey measurements has been discovered on the deed to the property at 2900 Bridges St. To avoid issues during title search in the event of the future sale of the property, an attorney has been hired to fix the mistake and refile the deed.

*The Board has decided that in-person meetings can be scheduled at the Sunday School Building at 2900 Bridges St. Please see the floor plan below to calendar such meetings with our Office Assistant, Jamie DeRose. [email protected].