On April 2, about 62 of us gathered to do the Interim work of “Who Are We?” with Rev. Eric Posa. He led us through a process to define what a mission statement is and its role in describing what we do, different from our “Vision” (where we want to be in the future) and our “Covenant” (how we will be together in the process). We examined out past mission statements, noting that there were several. We talked about the mission’s critical function in guiding our actions, to whom we are accountable for living up to our mission, and where there are gaps.

We discussed the significance of our Covenant Statement, which hasn’t changed since it was crafted by Marcia Lewton many years ago. Eric asked whether it had just become “rote” over time, and we said it was still vibrant and meaningful. Working individually and then in pairs, we refined our own values to three statements of three words each. This input will be passed along to those working on developing a ”short and snappy” mission statement to help guide us as we consider the “fit” between the congregation and our next settled minister.

On April 3, the Board, Search Committee, Transition Team members, and people potentially interested in working on the Mission Statement Task Force met with Eric Posa to hear his recommendations for next steps. The Board is to develop the charge to the task force with a timeline, and the task force is to gather information about what is important to the Fellowship. In answer to a question about whether this should wait till a settled minister is called, Eric said that being clear who we are is important separate from the person of the minister, as in “how can the minister know if it is a good fit if we don’t know, or haven’t articulated, our mission.” He recommended a process of discernment so that everyone understands the implications of our mission. “A good, fruitful, deep conversation equals greater understanding of who we are and how we live our mission.” He challenged us to define “how many congregations are there here,” and “what holds us together.”

One further note: during the information-sharing part of the April 2 meeting, Search Committee co-chair Kendra Golden reported on the plans to gather Fellowship input as they proceed with the search. She talked about the comprehensive nature of the survey they are developing, including demographics, theological preferences, and specifics about our needs here. “May 1 is our target date for survey release. The results will be published. Following the survey are Focus Groups, which we hope to get going toward the end of May, and Cottage Meetings.” I looked on the UUA website under Sample Congregational Survey, and was amazed to see the comprehensive nature of the questions they asked. Participating in the survey is going to be key going forward. Please take this seriously!

Respectfully submitted,
Colleen Johnson, QUUF Board Vice President