by WUUC | May 29, 2024 | Announcements
After the worship service on June 9th, we are having a Town Hall to present the proposed 2024-25 budget and for the candidates for the elected positions on the Board of Trustees, Endowment Committee, and Nominating Committee. On Sunday, June 23rd after the service we will have a Congregational Meeting where we will vote on the elected positions and upcoming budget. The members of the Nominating Committee extend our gratitude to those completing their terms this year, and to the following members who have agreed to serve in the coming years. We propose the following slate of candidates:
Board of Trustees Candidates
Barbara Brachtl
Nominated for Board, 3-year position
Barbara has been a member of the Woodinville Unitarian Universalist Church since 2005. Previously she served 3 years on the board and has been chair of BAG for a few years. Barbara moved to Bellevue in 2015 and was on the board of her condo association for 7 1/2 years. She moved back to Bothell in June 2023 and is eager to become involved.
John Gamble
Nominated for Board, 3-year position
John and his family (Katherine, Owen, and Ezra) started visiting WUUC shortly after it reopened for in-person activities, becoming members in 2022. At WUUC, John helps to keep the technology running during Sunday services. Before moving to Washington in 2017, John and family lived in Albuquerque, NM. John first got involved with Unitarian Universalism during graduate school, where both he and Katherine were members of First Unitarian Society in Madison, WI. Professionally, John is a physicist, and in his free time he loves bicycles, the outdoors, woodworking, and complicated board games.
Kerrie Vespaziani
Nominated for Board, 1-year position
Kerrie has called the WUUC community her spiritual home for almost 21 years. She has been very involved with the church’s music, including playing her flute, singing in the choir, and serving on the music committee (when it existed). She was a co-leader of family night for several years, taught RE, and has recently been a member of the COVID task force. She also served on the board one other time previously.
When not at church, Kerrie works as a nurse for an elementary school in Snohomish. She is mom to Remy (23) and Camlin (21) and her cat Solsken. In her free time, she enjoys gardening, puzzles, knitting, and margaritas with friends.
Endowment Candidates
Dawn Blomberg
Nominated for Endowment Committee, 3-year position
I have been a member of WUUC for many years and my kids have attended RE and youth groups and remain friends with some of their peers to this day. They are 32, 26 and 23! I have served on the board and on many committees over the years and am currently serving on Membership. I love attending the women’s retreat, helping with the rummage sale and attending community events. I am a pediatric speech/language pathologist and own my own company. I look forward to serving on endowment.
Dewey Millar
Nominated for Endowment Committee, 3-year position
Dewey joined the church in 1992. He’s been very active in BAG, Auction, Rummage Sale, Lay Pastoral Associates, Men’s Retreat and is the organizer and leader of the Blood Drive.
Nominating Committee Candidates
Cora Goss-Grubbs
Nominated for Nominating Committee, 3-year position
Cora Goss-Grubbs has been a member of WUUC for 28 years. She has served on the leadership of many church committees as well as the Pacific Northwest District youth conferences, and even on staff for one year as Youth Group Coordinator. Highlights include the music committee, religious education, a ministerial search committee, heading up the rummage sale, and starting our social justice committee that’s now known as ASJ. Strengths she brings to the Nominating Committee include knowledge of many different church ministries and a desire to get to know new attendees while maintaining connections to long-time members. Professionally she is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker and Substance Use Disorder Professional, and works at Youth Eastside Services as a high school mental health counselor. She is excited to help develop the elected leadership of our church.
Janet Putnam
Nominated for Nominating Committee, 3-year position
Janet Putnam, who joined WUUC in 2003, co-leads the Zen meditation group and sometimes plays oboe for services at church. She was co-chair of the Search Committee from 2009 – 2010, was a member of the Board of Trustees from 2006 – 2010. Janet has been involved with Sister Circle, RE, Membership, the Rummage sale, and the Women’s Retreat, and she has facilitated the Harmony for Hope concerts at WUUC. She particularly enjoys learning about the hidden talents and passions of the members of our WUUC community.
Steph Young
Nominated for Nominating Committee, 3-year position
Steph has been with the church for 5 years. She has been involved in planning the Women’s Retreat for 2 years and was involved in the kitchen when Rev Lo was here. She is a Boeing engineer. Steph has 2 children. One is graduating from college this year and the other is in high school. She is eager to get more involved with the church.
by Carol Taylor | May 29, 2024 | Announcements
The WUUC Endowment Fund is an investment in the long-term health of WUUC and can serve many significant purposes: a source for short-term funding of an activity WUUC would not be able to fund otherwise, or a means to take advantage of unusual major opportunities for growth or service, or even as a source of financial backup in case of major emergency. Consider making a pledge commitment as part of your estate planning or as a one-time donation. Learn more at wuuc.org/endow.
by WUUC | Apr 29, 2024 | Announcements
Approximately 1 in 5 adults in the United States experience a mental health condition. The National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) Eastside supports families, friends, and individuals living with mental health conditions in East King County. This month’s collection helps support NAMI Eastside’s mission to provide advocacy, education, support, and public awareness so that all people impacted by mental illness and mental health conditions can lead healthy and productive lives.
The Advocates for Social Justice (ASJ) Committee thanks WUUC members and friends for their generous support of our monthly special collections, which take place during services on the third Sunday of every month (May 19th). Instructions for giving are posted during the service, and you can also donate anytime at https://onrealm.org/wuuc/-/give/now, or by sending a check to WUUC at P.O. Box 111, Woodinville, WA 98072. Please make checks out to WUUC and write “ASJ Special Collection” in the notes.
by WUUC | Apr 29, 2024 | Announcements
The WUUC Board of Trustees has set a meeting of the congregation for Sunday, June 23,2024 immediately following the service for the following purposes:
• Vote on the proposed 2024-2025 budget
• Vote to fill vacant church governance positions for the 2024-2025 church year
Attendance at this meeting can be in-person, by phone, by absentee ballot or by proxy (per current WUUC Bylaws). WUUC members will receive e-mail notification of the meeting and associated documents by Sunday, June 2, 2024. A Town Hall Meeting will be held on Sunday, June 9, 2024 immediately after the service to answer questions about the proposed budget, learn about the candidate’s interest in serving for the next church year, and have the opportunity to dialogue with the Board regarding any other church-related topics of interest. Questions? E-mail board@wuuc.org or contact any Board member.
by WUUC | Apr 29, 2024 | Announcements
My 3-year Board term and past year as your Board President will be completed on 6/30/24. The next few months promise to be busy with the Men’s and Women’s Retreats, Rev. Dan’s Installation, a Congregational Town Hall and Meeting, June school transitions, and wrapping up the 2023-2024 church year.
I just want to tell you what an honor it has been to be on this year’s Board of Trustees and work with Rev. Dan and our amazing WUUC staff in doing the governance work that continues to create the environment and culture so that our ministries can flourish. Governance work is like the work of creating a garden which will produce the fruits that sustain us. Governance work is enriching the soil, bringing in the water and sunshine, creating the rows, planting the seeds or seedlings, pulling the weeds, providing the labor and money to sustain our garden of ministries over time. When we eat the fruits (and vegetables) of ministry, we do so because the garden environment is healthy.
I see so many signs of health in our congregation. The Worship services have been consistently engaging and inspiring. Ditzler Hall was finally dedicated in January. The choir has sustained its size and regularly provides beautiful music for our services. We had our first Lunar New Year celebration in February which was graced by the presence of many community members who were visiting WUUC for the first time. We are enjoying the many social events and gatherings offered at the November 2023 auction. The Annual Budget Drive is wrapping up and our congregation is very close to achieving the budget drive goals. Planning is underway for Rev. Dan’s Installation on May 19th. There are many social connection groups meeting regularly. The RE program is being rebuilt and we are consistently seeing more children in our services and at church events. Our Caring Community support teams were highlighted and described through a skit at our 3/24 service. A New Member Ceremony was held on 4/28 and where we welcomed many new members into our community. Most of the Committee/Team charters are completed, and the Board is working diligently to approve new and revised policies. Our voting members voted on Bylaws amendments and selected our WUUC delegates to virtual GA2024 at the April Congregational Meeting. I could share many more examples, but suffice it to say, all our efforts are contributing to the health of our congregation.
I just attended in-person the UUA Pacific Western 2024 Regional Assembly held at the First Universalist Church of Denver, Colorado on 4/19-4/20/24. The Assembly theme was: Threads that Connect, Stories that Inspire. I also met with members of the host church’s Mission and Vision Renewal Team to learn about their processes and work with their congregational members in defining a mission and vision that reflects their congregation’s values, embraces inclusivity, and inspires meaningful change. I will bring back and share what I learned through the many interactions I had with UU’s from all over the Pacific Western Region as well as the First Universalist Church’s Mission and Vision Renewal Team.
As we transition into the last 2 months of this church year, I want you to know that your Board of Trustees is fully committed to the governance work we are doing to support the health of our beloved community. We look forward to your attendance and participation in the coming Congregational Town Hall and Meeting in June where you will have the opportunity to discuss and vote on the budget for the coming church year and nominees for elected positions in the church. This is the “garden work” that keeps the fruits of our ministries flourishing.
