Hi everyone! I hope you are enjoying the beginning of spring.

I’m excited about the overall energy within the church, which I think is exemplified by the fantastic services that we’ve had, and the wonderful events which have happened recently (such as the very fun Family Dance) and are planned (such as the Easter Breakfast and the always amazing Rummage Sale). I’m happy to see so many of you supporting the church in so many different ways; at the end of the day, that is what is required to help the church thrive and grow. Just a reminder – one major way you can support the church is to recommit your financial support for the upcoming church year. We’re hoping to have all pledges in by this coming Sunday, so please reach out to Dana MacNamee, Carolyn Cronin or your canvasser if you haven’t done so yet.

I wanted to share some more exciting news: At our most recent board meeting last week the board unanimously voted to extend Rev. Marta’s contract through the 2018-19 church year! I’m extremely excited to have Rev. Marta on board for another year and have an opportunity to hear more of her wonderful sermons, learn from her, and deepen the connection we all share.

One thing that I’ve become more aware of recently is that the board can do a better job communicating expectations around half-time ministry. For instance, some have asked whether it is possible for Rev. Marta to be present at services that she’s not leading, so we have more time to get to know her. It is important to understand that someone in a half-time position is generally also doing other work to be able to successfully sustain themselves from a financial perspective. Rev. Marta is no exception to this – on Sundays that she’s not at UUCM, she is generally either preaching elsewhere, or is taking a well-deserved Sunday with her own family to worship at her home church, so being present with us on those Sundays is usually not possible.

Another question that has come in is whether it is reasonable to expect pastoral care from a part-time minister. In our case, the answer is yes! The best way to do this is to work directly with Rev. Marta and schedule time that works for both of you.

Finally, we are looking to create more opportunities for us to get to know Rev. Marta and vice-versa. Part of this gets to challenges around scheduling, and so we will look to be mindful of this when scheduling events, and try to do so with enough lead time so they can work with Rev. Marta’s schedule.

Thank you again to all of you who contribute so much to our church – I really appreciate it!

Happy Springtime,
-Brendan Shea
UUCM Board Chair