As most of you who are members or friends of Westside Unitarian Universalist Church know, our dear friend and President of the Board of Trustees, Carol Coffey, passed away unexpectedly in August of 2022.  As I was President-Elect of the Board at the time of Carol’s death, I have assumed the office of President. I was honored when Carol recommended me for the office of President-Elect and was looking forward to his mentorship during this church year.  Now that I have assumed the presidency, I will do my very best to continue Carol’s leadership, vision and high standards as Westside moves through the coming church year with a sense of rebirth and rejuvenation after the trying 2-plus years of Covid-19.

I am relatively new to Unitarian Universalism having joined the congregation at Westside about 5-1/2 years ago.  I was born and lived my whole life in Northern California until I moved to Knoxville in 2007.  I had been raised in the Episcopal Church until my teenage years when I left Christianity and chose to base the way I live my life on secular principles.  Being a secular person living in a highly religious area, I yearned for a sense of community, and with a mostly “let’s see what this is about” attitude, I attended a service at Westside in March of 2017 and have been here ever since.  I certainly found community at Westside where every individual is valued and welcome regardless of their identity or the specifics of their beliefs.  The size of the congregation makes it possible to get to know almost everyone in a fairly short time and yet is large enough to support not only our members, staff and facilities, but to engage in activities to support the larger community of which we are a part.  

The pandemic years have been a chaIlenge for Westside, as they were for most churches and other institutions, limiting the ways in which we could interact and be with each other.   Not surprisingly, the isolation imposed by Covid-19 encouraged us to be inward-focused.  This wasn’t necessarily a bad thing as it gave some of us a welcome break from too-busy lives and time for reflection.  But as we are emerging from the restrictions imposed by the pandemic, we can begin to shift some of our focus outward and look forward not only to resuming many of our traditions, but also to engage in our larger community in new and meaningful ways.  

Westside has always been a source of support for others in our community.  We have been a long-time participant in the Family Promise program that supports homeless families.  We have been a Welcoming Congregation for the LGBTQ+ community, and many members participate in Pride activities.  In the early part of each year, Westside volunteers participate in the VITA program which offers free tax preparation for low-income, disabled and limited-English-speaking individuals.  Now we are also resuming the Our Whole Lives (OWL) sexuality education program for pre-teens and teens that has been on hiatus during the pandemic, and we hope to have more religious exploration activities for young people in the future.  Since the Supreme Court’s Dobbs decision, several members have formed a group actively engaged in working on reproductive care issues.   Interest in a Green Sanctuary program and other environmental causes is bubbling up, too.   These are welcome signs of renewed energy and purpose.  

Westside describes itself as a community based on warm hearts, open minds, and caring hands. We look forward to ever greater opportunities to live these values and welcome you to join us.