News from your
Board of Trustees
22 November 2021
To keep you informed on the actions and activities of your UUSP Board,
we feature highlights from the most recent Board meeting, Board member profiles, financial information, details on specific initiatives, and more.

Monthly virtual meetings are every 3rd Wednesday, 6:30-8:30 pm.
To submit agenda items, receive the agenda and the link in advance, email Bill Motter by noon on 2nd Tuesday
For password reset & technical support, contact Communications.
Message from Board President
There seems to be some confusion regarding Rev Ben’s role. I hope this will help. 

Ben was hired under a one-year contract to perform several ministerial functions and to also lead our congregation’s Interim Work. So he is a Contract Minister, and he reports to the Board. 

He is not an Interim Minister because, as a new minister he did not have that training or experience. However he agreed to take the next available course that the UUA offered. That course began in August and concluded in October 2021.

Settled Ministers are called by the congregation and thus technically report to the congregation. Per our bylaws, the Minister shall be chosen by Church members upon the affirmative vote of at least ninety percent (90%) of the members present who also approve his/her contract by the same vote. For most of his tenure at UUSP Rev Jack was a Contract Minister. In March 2020 we called him to be our Settled Minister
~ Karen Coale
Feature Story:
FAST - Meat of the Sandwich: What happens between house meetings and Nehemiah Actions
Faith and Action for Strength Together (FAST) is a significant church-supported community justice project.  The 46 member congregations use the power of organized people to demand specific solutions to three annually chosen community problems.

Some of you have attended fall house meetings and told us what local issues keep you awake at night. Even more have attended the Spring’s Nehemiah Action.  Perhaps, feeling perplexed at the process, you thought FAST was too demanding or unfair to our political guests.  We ambushed them! No, that is common misconception. 

Those two events are just the bread that makes the FAST sandwich.  The filling is the research to action phase.  Team members are busy interviewing key people to understand all sides of the problems. Last week a retired judge told us what she liked about civil citations, what needed to change, what frustrated her.  This research guides our specific asks at the Nehemiah Action.

Leaders attending the Action know what we will be asking? Having to say yes to a solution can be difficult and causes tension. But tension like that got $100 million dollars awarded for affordable housing. 

For more information, contact Pat Fling or John Motter
Highlights from the Nov 17th Meeting
Board president Karen Coale expressed appreciation for the events and projects supporting membership engagement: (Re) Connect Project, Beloved Conversations, Trunk ‘r Treat, and the upcoming Stone Soup service on 11/21. 

Rev. Ben reported that outdoor services are going well and that he’s excited about a return to services in the sanctuary on Nov. 28. The theme, Thankful Gathering, speaks volumes for how lovely it will be to inhabit our beautiful sanctuary once again. We can also look forward to Rev. Ben incorporating more spiritual development and adult education into his ministry. He also  announced new chairs for the Worship Committee and the Care Team: Susan Burnore and Linda Paul respectively.

Paul Craig provided financial highlights. Operating expenses continue under budget due to the delays in reopening the church. Operating revenue is also under budget due to shortfalls in pledge income and property usage revenue. Our inability to host fundraisers also makes a dent. Over all and due to the investment income we are showing the surplus.  There’s more good news: A new accountant, Teresa Rae Gay has been has been hired to replace Melanie who is leaving us for a full-time job. The kitchen project is tracking under budget as we near completion.

Kathleen Rehl with Barbara Archibald of the Legacy Builders team gave a presentation on how members/friends can set up a plan to make a gift from their estate to the UUSP Endowment Fund.  An anonymous donor has offered to give a gift of $500 for each of 25 legacy gifts made before 1/31/22.  This generous matching donation would put $12,500 into the church coffers! Contact Kathleen Rehl or Barbara Archibald for more information. ~ Karen White
Meet Your Board Members
Karen Coale
Board President

Upon retiring from senior management positions in the high tech field and a second career in management/ leadership consulting, Dave and I moved to St. Petersburg with our daughter, Stef, her husband Ross and then 14 month old grandson David. They were seeking an improved quality life in which to raise a family which expanded in 2006 when Ellie joined us. 

Having been active in the UU congregation in Reston, VA we gravitated to UU St Pete and, because of Betsy Filz’s warm welcome, we joined in early 2004. 

We formed a covenant-like group that first year, and I became engaged with the Social Justice Committee beginning with outreach to migrant farmworkers. Then added advocacy for all immigrants by partnering with the Immokalee Workers, the League of Women Voters and currently the Pinellas Coalition for immigration Justice.

The past 20 months has been an emotional rollercoaster for all of us — but it is family and you, my community, that have not only sustained me but also challenged me to grow. Thank you. I see great potential for UUSP.  Together we will explore our history and plan our future. I look forward to traveling on that journey together.

Editors' Choice: The Long Read
A new feature highlighting stories that align with UU values.
As a hearing-impaired person, my heart is warmed when I read a story that highlights the advantages that sometimes come with disabilities, This is my favorite story of the month... and I'm not even a football fan. -- Sharon

Underdog No More, A Deaf Football Team Takes California by Storm by Thomas Fuller, The NY Times - The California School for the Deaf, Riverside, is steamrolling its opponents, electrifying a campus that has seen more than a few athletic defeats.
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RE & Communications Coordinator and ex officio Board Member