The New Year is always a time for looking back and evaluating where we have come in the last year and developing some fantasies and plans for where we hope the new year will take us. It has been an interesting year for our church.  We have lost some longtime members and gained many new members.  We have gone through two cycles of Wisdom Wednesdays which have been a great learning and community building experience for many of us. 

We have enjoyed many celebrations together, pulled off another successful Empty Bowl project, seen the rise of a great teen group, and added a new men's group and the UU Sisterhood to our available program offerings. The Young Minds in Fellowship group has had potluck and movie nights.  We have a new regular music program, The Labyrinth Cafe, that is bringing great folk music to our community and attracting some new members to our church.  

We have a very good religious education program for our children and have developed our own curriculum based on a UU Seven Principle City. We had the very successful Culture Camp here this summer. Our choir is growing again after a slow period.  We have a Jazz concert and Chamber concert coming up.

Our Endowment Committee has given out some grants that will help us tighten up our membership system and enhance or audiovisual programs.  We have hosted events like the Hemlock Society and the Starhawk presentation on the Free Trade Agreement of the Americas meetings. Many people are graciously increasing their pledges to support our community financially in the coming year. Our NPR campaign is on the air. We have reasons to be proud.

    We also face new challenges. Our long time tenant Congregation Etz Chaim will be leaving us early this year which will have a financial impact on us.  Our national consultant Dave Richard has laid out some challenges for us and some goals we need to meet before we proceed with a capital campaign to expand our facilities. We are hoping to start the much touted Covenant group program this year also.

    I feel certain that when we look back a year from now, we will find that we have met many of these challenges and have much more to look back on with pride.  Church life is not easy but every week we are here we save someone's life quite literally, and that is really what this whole enterprise is all about.  We are not a business. We are here to serve people and help each other get through life when things are difficult. Blessings on our on-going struggle for a kinder and more just world.