Exciting News from the Board of Trustees and

the Ministerial Search Committee!

Dear Members and Friends:

When we last communicated with you, we reported that the Ministerial Search Committee had not found a minister but that the committee would continue with an accelerated, extended, round of search. It seemed like a long shot, but worth the effort to try.

The search committee received several strong applications during this second round. After intensive work, we could not be more thrilled to share with you that the committee has invited not one but TWO wonderful candidates to serve as co-minister: Rev. Dr. Debra Haffner and Rev. Joel Miller.

Revs. Debra and Joel will meet with the congregation during Candidating Week and, with your call through a positive vote at the end of that week, will serve together as settled co-ministers at FUUSN.

Rev. Dr. Debra W. Haffner and Rev. Joel Miller

Please check out this video provided by Revs. Debra and Joel as they introduce themselves. There are also links below to view sermons they provided to other congregations.

The Ministerial Search Committee has enjoyed every moment of getting to know Rev. Debra and Rev. Joel. Experiencing their shared worship was profoundly moving. During our intense interview process, their thoughtful answers made clear their deep love for Unitarian Universalism and serving congregations. Their vision for the future of FUUSN is one that seems very aligned with our congregation's wishes for health and growth. Our minds are abuzz imagining the good work we could do together!

Co-Ministry is an exciting change for the FUUSN congregation with many benefits. It is an increasingly common arrangement, and in our research, we’ve learned that congregations who have experienced co-ministers see it as the way of the future. The Board of Trustees and the Ministerial Search Committee formed a subcommittee to understand co-ministry better and will be sharing information about this model in the next few weeks.

We are looking forward to introducing the congregation to Rev. Debra and Rev. Joel in person during Candidating Week, May 25 – June 2, when there will be many chances to get to meet them. Since May 25 is Memorial Day Weekend and many members of the congregation will be at Sandy Island, Rev. Debra and Rev. Joel will be joining us for part of that weekend. Details for the whole week will be announced soon.

Questions? Contact ministersearch@fusn.org.

We hope that, as you get to know Revs. Debra & Joel, you will be as excited as we are!

With gratitude,

Ministerial Search Committee

Barbara Bates

Eric Haas

Julia Huston

Melissa Kogut

Eric Moore

Erin O’Donnell (Chair)

Cindy Orrell

Board of Trustees

RoseAnn Murray (Chair)

Hattie Kerwin Derrick

Stephanie Kendall

Brian Gill (Vice chair)

Demie Stathoplos

Devon Welles

Julia Dun Rappaport (Youth)

Myles Konary (Youth)

Here are links to sermons by Rev. Debra and Rev. Joel:

1. "Love is the Spirit" by Rev. Dr. Debra Haffner
2. "Braiding Sweetgrass" by Rev. Joel Miller
3. "Honoring Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr." by Rev. Dr. Debra Haffner
4. "Dreams and Dreaming" by Rev. Joel Miller