Dear BUC Family and Friends,

 

We have great news to share!

 

After a short but intense few weeks of research, interviews, listening, reading and seeing sermons of our top candidates, we are very pleased to tell you have we have a top notch, experienced Interim Minister who will lead us, work with us and nurture us next year!

 

Since the Interim Ministry is a newer concept to many of you and BUC has not had an Interim for over twenty years, we wanted to briefly share the process with all of you:

 

On April 22nd, we received a list of five candidates and their ministerial records for review.   We met the next evening to discuss the candidates and our plans for determining the best fit for BUC.   We agreed to thank two of the candidates for their interest but not pursue them further and focused our energy on the remaining three.   That evening and the next day we contacted all candidates to set up interviews and discuss the possibility of visits. 

 

By April 28th, we had interviewed the current board presidents of the congregations each candidate is currently serving and had initial interviews or visits with each of our candidates. This included one of our committee members, Bill Pratt, flying to Ottawa, Canada that weekend!

 

We met again as a group on the 29th and discussed our status for moving forward at which time we thanked and released one of these candidates leaving us with two strong candidates.  We continued discussions and interviews with each of them over the following weekend, ensuring that all members of our committee had a chance to talk with them and gain an informed opinion. 

 

On Monday May 5th we compared our candidates and the strengths they would bring to our congregation during the interim transition period.  Additional interviews with references and past board presidents were scheduled before we met for final discussion and sharing of information on May 7th.    At this meeting, last week, we unanimously endorsed Reverend Janet Newman, currently serving First Unitarian Congregation of Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, as our Interim Minister beginning August 1st, 2008.   Janet accepted our position on Friday May 9th, after we received Board approval; this was also the earliest date we could extend an offer based on the UUA Interim/Transition process. 

 

Below is a short list of highlights to introduce Janet and her background to you as well as some words from Janet herself.

 

  • Janet has been a UU minister since 1983, serving two congregations as parish minister, including the Tulsa OK congregation of 1100 members, at that time the largest UUA congregation.
  • She has served 19 UU congregations in the US and Canada as their Interim Minister since 1987.
  • Janet has strengths in many areas including finances and stewardship, presenting new ways to approach fundraising and talking about money with her Interim congregations.  She likes to work intensively with the canvass planning team!
  • She was a lay leader herself for 11 years prior to entering theological school and brings that experience to her leadership style.
  • She describes her leadership style as one of “empowerment with an emphasis on communication and appreciation.”
  • Music first drew Janet to a UU church in the middle 1960’s looking to join a choir.  Music continues to be a central point in worship for her and she often sings in congregational choirs!
  • Janet has a strong affinity for and commitment to social justice and service to the community.   She encourages social responsibility work in the congregations she serves.
  • Her dominant theology is that of a “religious humanist who cultivates a spiritual approach to the world.”   This spring she organized the main worship service for the CUC (Canadian Unitarian Council- Canadian equivalent to the UUA General Assembly) Conference.  She also led a workshop on finances.
  • Janet’s goal in her ministry with us is to work on a successful transition.  She looks for challenges and has a special interest in larger congregations.
  • Congregations Janet has served have had successful fundraising, capital campaigns and seen growth in membership during her tenure.

 

A surprise connection to us, Janet’s mentor, teacher and friend was our 1984-86 Interim Minister, Reverend Jo Bartlett.    Now, in Janet’s words, a brief introduction to her ministry with us:

 

“Perhaps some of you remember those years of transition and how hard you worked together with my mentor, teacher and friend in Interim Ministry, Reverend Jo Bartlett.

 

Jo’s title was “institutional innovator.”  I would like to think that I follow in his footsteps.  We may not have “apostolic succession” in our ministry, but we certainly can undertake a kind of “transition succession” for Interim Ministers!

 

I anticipate that you and I will work well together as we tackle the tasks of transition.  The interim period is truly a gift of time for a congregation to:

a) Learn from its past,

b) Examine its identity and create one that is more appropriate,

c) Encourage new lay leadership,

d) Renew connections with the denomination and beyond, and

e) Set a vision and direction for the new ministerial leader(s) who will follow the transition period.   

 

I will serve you as your parish minister in addition to my role as interim consultant.  I’m sure we will have a good year!

 

Best wishes, Janet E. Newman“ 

 

We hope that the excitement we feel for Janet is contagious and filters through the congregation as it did within our committee as we learned about and talked with her.  We have much work ahead together on our next journey as a congregation. 

 

We are confident Janet will inspire us on multiple levels to fulfill our mission as a congregation and as a spiritual community of many individuals growing together in faith. 

 

Warmly,

The Interim Minister Search Committee

 

Carol Ann Arvan, Donna Cunningham, Bill Fox, Maurice Lefford, Bill Pratt, Susie Sherman-Hall and Sydney Lentz, Chair.