Building community is to the collective as spiritual practice is to the individual.
~ Grace Lee Boggs, Community Organizer
My Dear Ones,
A year has gone by since I last wrote a formal letter for you and our congregational packet. As most of you can attest, a great deal has happened in this year.
We said good-bye to our beloved home on Yankee Street and moved to our new home on Third Street. Led by our AMAZING Board, you all worked really hard to sort, rehome, and save a full building’s worth of stuff: beautiful pieces of memory (like our stained glass window), practical items that served us well but would no longer be needed (our gorgeous sanctuary chairs), things that were at the end of their usefulness (our grand piano from First Unitarian), things we
couldn’t take with us (our wetland and labyrinth), and so, so many treasured memories. Thank you ALL for ALL your hard work!
Although we moved only 15 miles, it felt like a bigger move for some of us. We moved from suburban South Dayton to urban downtown Dayton. For some of us, our move North means a
shorter commute to church and for others it means a longer commute. For some of us, moving into the city feels safer and for others it feels less safe. For all of us, the building is less
accessible (universal accessibility), which has meant changes to how we gather, over meals especially. In addition to the location change, our Sunday service time has moved 2 hours later in the day, from 11am to 1pm.
As we expected, some of our congregants have resigned their memberships or attend less often due to these changes. Although we knew this would happen, we have felt sadness over these losses. We value each member as a unique part of our community. Each and every one of us matters.
And.
We also have had our largest year in membership growth since I arrived in 2018. We have had 17 members join since 2023 (12 in December 2024 and 5 in May 2025). Our new members have come and stayed for many reasons—some are due to our new location and service time, some
are due to the election of President Trump, and some are private personal reasons. The joy in welcoming our new members does not affect the sadness we feel for the members who no longer attend. Like we acknowledge in our Joys and Sorrows ritual each week, they sit beside
one another as part of the sacred circle of life.
Many of us have had a lot happen in our personal lives too. Some of us have had either unexpected or worsening health problems. Some of our loved ones have died. Some of us have lost our jobs. Some of us have welcomed children, grandchildren or great-grandchildren. I sold my home in Centerville and purchased a townhouse in Vandalia. Our Director of Religious Education, Somaya Bernard, and her partner bought their first home as well. We welcomed a
new nursery teacher, Latiusha Harvey, and said goodbye to the outgoing nursery teacher, Lizz Halfpap (we’re happy to say that Lizz still helps out occasionally).
One of the biggest personal events has been our fellowship administrator’s, Jennie Freiberger’s, diagnosis of pancreatic cancer in March. Jennie has been with us for over 12 years and will be on medical leave until at least November 1. I am so proud of our congregation’s commitment to its staff. Although MVUUF is not legally required to hold Jennie’s position or pay her during her medical leave, we are doing both. We are creating the world we dream about, here together. Although it has been a wee bit difficult, Catherine Queener (CQ), Lynn Buffington, Jen Linck, Emily White, Kris Steel, Brianna Kempe, and I have taken over the position’s most important functions. Please continue to send love to Jennie (your cards and messages mean so much to
her). While you’re at it, please send gratitude and grace to those of us trying to fill her small but mighty shoes.
Wow, what a year, right?!? And we haven’t even talked about what has happened in our larger world: the continued genocide in Gaza, Israel’s and America’s war with Iran, Trump’s reelection to the presidency, the gutting of our Federal government and non-profit organizations through
DOGE, the removal and criminalization of DEI, the attack on higher education, the onslaught of legislation against the LGBTQ+ community (especially trans folx), the destruction of economic and diplomatic relationships with our foreign allies, the deportation of immigrants with no legal representation, and the Supreme Court’s and Congress’s complete capitulation to the new administration’s lawlessness.
Unitarian Universalist minister, historian, and author Rev. Dr. Mark Morrison-Reed asserts:
The central task of the religious community is to unveil the bonds that bind each to all. There is a connectedness, a relationship discovered amid the particulars of our own lives and the lives of others. Once felt, it inspires us to act for justice.
It is the church that assures us that we are not struggling for justice on our own, but as members of a larger community. The religious community is essential, for alone our vision is too narrow to see all that must be seen, and our strength too limited to do all that must be done. Together, our vision widens and our strength is renewed.
My paraphrase of Morrison-Reed’s words goes like this:
Unitarian Universalism’s main function is to affirm the worthiness and dignity of every human being (the sacredness of each of us) within the framework of community (the sacredness of the larger whole).
I think this role is incredibly important right now, when both our federal and state governments are trying to erase and/or harm many of us, especially those of us who are immigrants, BIPoC+, women, poor, disabled, and/or LGTBQ+. We need both: the sacredness of the individual AND the sacredness of the larger whole. This is why “Spiritual but not religious” is not enough. This is why MVUUF is important to each of us and the greater Dayton community.
MVUUF does this by…
Helping people make / find meaning out of their lives.
We do this by…
Creating community that has deep roots and thick branches.
We do this by…
Stretching people so they keep growing and learning.
We do this by…
Teaching people how to lead courageously and stay at the table during conflict.
We do this by…
Providing comfort and practical care to our own congregants and members of the larger community.
We do this by…
Working in our larger communities to make real MLK Jr.’s dream of the Beloved Community through social service support and social justice organizing.
I have so much excitement for us in the years to come!
We are very close to hiring a membership director who will help us integrate visitors into our community and support our existing members so they can discover and grow their portion of our shared ministry. The governance task force is hard at work simplifying our governance structure so it can change as we need it. The mission & vision task force is getting started on the important work we did in our two workshops this spring (March and May). Last but not least, our AMAZING Board will continue working with Rachel Maxwell of Stewardship for Us to develop a five-year strategic financial plan. Along the way, we’ll be asking you for feedback on all that we’re doing, including our lease with St. John’s. Love is transforming us. I can feel it. Can you?
I pray for your health, growth, and flourishing.
With much gratitude and love,
Rev. Kellie Kelly