One of my favorite parts of the New Year are those quick retrospectives that encapsulate all that has happened in recent months. So, in that vein, here is a brief review of all the Board has been working on:
- First and foremost – It seems like such a short time ago that we held the Groundbreaking on Labor Day weekend and where we are now! So exciting to see our vision becoming a reality. And a big thank you to our Construction Committee, Sanctuary Campaign and the Finance Council for keeping everything on track. Also, applause to Steve Morihiro for his creative video updates which give us all a visual of the progress being made. I’m always eager to see what the next one will be.
- And you might be surprised about how many details have been worked out related to the new building – signage, logos, acknowledgement of our campus partners, etc. It’s all coming into focus.
- The Groundbreaking pushed the issue of relocating all our Ukrainian residents; we can be proud as a congregation of the many refugees we aided who passed through our doors.
- Leadership Development within our congregation has been a significant emphasis. In August, the Leadership Retreat brought together 30 leaders within OCUUC to develop a relevant road map for the coming fiscal year. The extensive input was distilled into the following 2024-25 Board goals:
- Support the Construction of the New Sanctuary
- Increase Member Engagement, with emphasis upon new members
- Increase Membership of Families/Youth
- Develop a Long-Range Plan
- Rev. Judy Tomlinson has identified her first cohort of folks to go through the Harvest the Power leadership course in January-March; also identified were on-line modules from the UUA for training Board Members.
- In September, OCUUC participated in the nation-wide Climate Justice Revival and our group continues to plan specific activities. We appreciate Katherine Martin and Craig Preston stepping up as co-chairs.
- Our Religious Education Director, Danielle Lewis, has provided a number of new directions in which the RE program could expand. Rev. Sian will be asking the congregation to develop a clear vision of where we want to go, as we will need everyone’s investment.
- Efforts continue to revive our LGBTQ group headed by Jamie Pendarvis.
- After consideration of a proposal from our Animal Ministry group, the Board voted to implement a pilot program which will be evaluated in one year’s time. More to come from Rev. Sian on this topic.
- Our Committee of Stewards led by Dave Carlson will be providing more information about Legacy Giving. Stay tuned!
- And lastly, it’s important to note that in the past few months, the Board has reviewed and made adjustments to the compensation and benefits of staff. None of the above-listed work would be possible without the collaboration of Rev. Sian and her outstanding staff.
So this is a lengthy list of where we’ve been, and rest assured that Long-Range Planning will be a focus in the coming months. We’ll keep you posted as we make progress in 2025.
Kathleen McFarlin is Orange Coast Unitarian Universalist Church's Board President.