Rev. Carol Bodeau

By Rev. Carol Bodeau Happy New Year, The very last few hours of 2025 are upon us as I write this, and what a year it has been! The year saw great losses and challenges, but it also brought some incredible gifts and opportunities. As I look back on 2025 at Westside, there are a few things I am especially grateful for. Festive decorations and sparkling lights create a joyful atmosphere as balloons and streamers celebrate the arrival of the New Year 2026. - The wonderful lead

By Rev. Carol Bodeau Happy Holiday Season! It is the time of year when people of a wide variety of religious traditions celebrate a 'season of lights.' Christians (and most everyone in the secular sense) celebrate Christmas; Jewish people celebrate Hannukah; earth-centered people celebrate the Winter Solstice. At Westside, we honor many of these traditions, and some others in the late fall and early winter, as a way of honoring our neighbors of many cultures. At the cente

By Rev. Carol Bodeau Dear Friends, I am writing this message to you only a couple of hours after learning that a beloved member of our congregation, Elizabeth Corbett, died peacefully this morning. It is a hard loss, and I am grieving not only a friend and fellow Westside staff member, but also someone who was an incredible presence in our larger local community. Elizabeth was a passionate advocate and activist for justice, particularly fighting for the rights of immigrants

By Rev. Carol Bodeau Dear Friends, This last weekend, a group of 14 Westsiders spent the weekend at Rock Island State Park, for our annual fall church retreat. We hiked, shared meals, talked about a wide range of topics, and got to know one another better. The group included Westsiders who have been attending the retreat for many, many years and also brand-new folks, for whom it was their first retreat. A group of Westsiders enjoys a sunny day by the waterfall at Rock Islan

By Rev. Carol Bodeau Dear Friends, Our theme this year is 'neighborliness.' The worship team, in coordination with some priorities the...

By Rev. Carol Bodeau Dear Friends, Each year, in the autumn and near the Fall Equinox, Westside's Earth Church community holds a retreat...

By Rev. Carol Bodeau Dear Friends, It was lovely to see so many of you, and hear your stories, at our recent Water Communion. This UU...

By Rev. Carol Bodeau Well, friends, summer is in full swing and that is a mixed blessing. It is wonderfully warm and wet, which the...

By Rev. Carol Bodeau In our new "Westside Stories" format, we are sharing more personal narratives from the voices of our community, and...

By Rev. Carol Bodeau Dear Friends, This month, the Marketing Committee and the staff at Westside have been talking about how to share...

By Rev. Carol Bodeau Dear Friends, Have you ever witnessed a traditional May Day celebration? Most of us are familiar with the...

Rev. Carol Bodeau Lately, you have probably heard me saying something along the lines of “we need to focus on love to deal with the...

By Rev. Carol Bodeau Dear Friends, It seems like every conversation I get into these days is intense. We are all, it seems, feeling...

By Rev. Carol Bodeau Dear Friends, This week, I would like to tell you a story (a totally true story) of perseverance, interdependence,...

By Rev. Carol Bodeau Dear Friends, This last Sunday, Chris Edkins gave our annual Janus service at Westside. This is a New Year’s...

By Rev. Carol Bodeau Dear Friends, The last few weeks have been an emotional roller-coaster for many of us, from both a personal and a...

By Rev. Carol Bodeau Dear Friends, It is currently the late afternoon of November 5th, 2024. I considered waiting until the polls close,...

By Rev. Carol Bodeau Dear Friends, It has been just one week since hurricane Helene moved through the southeast and brought catastrophic...

By Rev. Carol Bodeau Dear Friends, Many of you participated in our annual Water Communion this last week, in which we use a ritual of...

By Rev. Carol Bodeau Dear Friends, As a UU congregation, many of our newest visitors and members come from religious experiences that...