06/26/2019 by Shannon Day

Transition Working Group Update 6.26.19

Greetings!  It is with great excitement that we can announce two individuals who have said ‘yes’ as Transition Working Group Co-Chairs in preparation for Reverend Christopher Wulff’s arrival!  Thank you to Laura White and Judi Finney! See Judi and Laura’s bios below. Purpose of the Transition Working Group The Transition Working Group will play a very important role in these coming months between Rev. Alex’s departure and Rev. Christopher’s arrival. The transition work comes in three parts: (1) maintaining a healthy and vibrant congregational community in our gap time, (2) supporting the effort to bring Rev. Christopher to us, and

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06/26/2019 by Shannon Day

Are you a PNWD Chalice Lighter?

Are you a PNWD Chalice Lighter? Do you know about this vital program that supports congregational growth throughout our region? The Chalice Lighter Program assists the growth of new and existing Unitarian Universalist member congregations in the Pacific Northwest with grants to provide vital capabilities and infrastructure. Grants are funded exclusively through contributions from Unitarian Universalists who participate as Chalice Lighters. Being one of the more than 2,000 Unitarian Universalists who are PNWD Chalice Lighters brings you the joy of watching your modest contribution multiply to a grant of typically $17,000 to support the growth of our liberal religion in

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06/19/2019 by Shannon Day

Minister’s Musings Among the Mountains – Week of 6.21.19

“Angry people want you to see how powerful they are… loving people want you to see how powerful you are.  ~Chief Red Eagle, c 1800 These are times of profound anger in America and the world. Who among us isn’t angry these days? I know that I’ve carried anger as well as sorrow for many years of my life. I can point to people or events and say, “They caused my anger.” Really? Is that really true? Do we not have a choice whether to take on anger – or not? Is it someone else’s fault that we carry the

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06/05/2019 by Shannon Day

President Elect Report from Annual Meeting 2019 – Jade Lowry

Thank you for this new opportunity to serve Westside! I am honored to be in this role, to serve with this amazing slate, and to be one of the many Westside leaders who shape, guide, and grow this congregation. In thinking about what I wanted to say to you today, these are the points that came forward most strongly. This is not a time of waiting. We might feel like we are waiting as we sit here today – waiting for our called minister to join us so we can step into a new flow. As I step into this

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05/22/2019 by Shannon Day

Love Will Guide Us – Rev. Christopher Wulff

It has been a bit of a whirlwind since I left all of you and beautiful West Seattle a few weeks ago, floating on air and pretty wiped out from our incredible ten days together. Ariel has just returned from five days away in Calgary serving as the Adult Chaplain at the Canadian national youth conference; Rowan and I are heading to Toronto on Thursday for a week for my grandfather’s memorial service. I know things at Westside have likewise been proceeding apace, with the 501c3 application submitted (thank you Shannon and all the volunteers who helped) and more preparation

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05/21/2019 by Shannon Day

Westside’s Social Justice Council Proposal to Join Faith Action Network

The Social Justice Council proposes that the Westside UU Congregation join the Washington Faith Action Network (FAN) as a congregation on an ongoing basis. We are submitting this proposal to be considered as part of the June 2, 2019 annual meeting. Who is the WA Faith Action Network (wafan.org) From their website: …a statewide interfaith advocacy 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization through which thousands of people and over 140 faith communities across Washington State partner for the common good. Mission Faith Action Network is an interfaith statewide partnership striving for a just, compassionate, and sustainable world through community building, education, and courageous

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04/11/2019 by Shannon Day

Origins and Purposes of the Racial Justice Change Team

The Racial Justice Change Team (RJCT) formed in 2018, in part to fulfill a commitment that our congregation had made in 2016, when the Congregation voted at a special meeting to hang a “Black Lives Matter” banner prominently on the side of the building.  The banner initiative was led by an ad hoc committee that included Cecelia Hayes, Theresa McCormick, Fred Matthews, Nikki Roberg, and Rev. Beatrice. The initial organizers of the RJCT team, Fred Matthews, Kerrie Schurr, and Tracy Burrows, were inspired by the work that the East Shore UU, University Unitarian, and Woodinville UU churches were doing to

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03/14/2019 by Shannon Day

What is a Change Team and what does it have to do with Racial Justice work?

Greetings from the WSUU Racial Justice Change Team! We’d like to give everyone a better sense of what we’re all about, starting with why specifically we decided to call ourselves the “Racial Justice Change Team.” A “Change Team” is a group who identifies existing barriers to achieving desired outcomes in a specific area of an organization and who then supports the organization in creating and implementing a plan to address those barriers. The WSUU’s Racial Justice Change Team formed last spring and we’ve been focusing on how we, as a church community, can examine white privilege and our own place

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03/13/2019 by Shannon Day

Lift Update – March 15, 2019

Judi Finney and I met with the contractors this past Monday to finally learn the fate of our new lift which will transport people from the Social Hall directly into the Sanctuary. Mark Olsoe, Judi, and I (along with input from Robert Pacht and Peggy Tlapak) have been working together since last summer to try to get this project on its feet. We finally found a reputable construction firm last September and have spent the last almost six months waiting while the professionals did their work: the architect, the electrician, the structural engineer and the construction company all trying to

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