Dear UU Nashua friends,
Any day now, Tristan, Olympia and I will be welcoming our new little one into the world. Thank you all for the love and support you have offered to us. Thank you also for the time to be away on parental leave. I will be taking 11-12 weeks of leave, starting October 6 at the latest. I will be back to work on December 18, just in time to lead our Christmas Eve services. I expect to spend my parental leave getting to know our baby, recovering, and transitioning to being a family of four.
This page has all the information you need to know about worship, pastoral care and leadership during my leave. Our staff and lay leaders are available as always if you have questions or concerns about anything going on at church. I will not be checking my email or office phone while I am on leave nor will I be involved in responding to ordinary church issues. However, please rest assured that either the staff or our Board leaders will get in touch with me in the event of a true emergency. I have great confidence in our staff and lay leaders and I trust that things will go well at church while I am away.
Thank you again for the space and time to be on leave, and a special thank you to everyone who is stepping up their leadership to help cover for me while I am away. I am so grateful to all of you, and I look forward to introducing you to our new little one on Zoom this winter!
Blessings,
Rev. Allison
WORSHIP
Worship will be led by a mixture of guest preachers, church staff and Worship Associates. Rev. Allison will be back in time to lead our Christmas Eve Services. Here’s the schedule of worship leaders for the next few months:
October 4 – “Building Our Vision” led by the Building Our Vision Team
October 11 – “The Stories We Listen To” led by Sadie Kahn-Greene
October 18 – “Music Lessons in a Time of Dissonance” led by Matt Meyer
October 25 – “Active Listening” led by Ben Atherton-Zeman
November 1 – “All Souls Day: A Remembrance Service” led by Sadie Kahn-Greene
November 8 – “Healing our Nation” led by Ben Atherton-Zeman
November 15 – “The Gift of Life: Hospice Stories on Living and Healing” led by Cynthia Knowles
November 22 – “Breathe in, Breathe out” led by Rev. Aisha Ansano
November 29 – led by Worship Associates*
December 6 – “What to Expect When You are Expecting” led by Rev. Kimberley Debus
December 13 – led by Worship Associates*
December 20 – “Winter Solstice Pageant” led by Sadie Kahn-Greene
December 24, 5pm & 7pm – Christmas Eve Services, led by Rev. Allison, Sadie and Ben
*watch your newsletter for descriptions of these services!
PASTORAL CARE
Our Pastoral Care Associates will be available throughout Rev. Allison’s leave to offer support and care for our members. They will be supported during this time by Ben Atherton-Zeman, our Ministerial Intern, who is also available for pastoral care.
LEADERSHIP
Sadie Kahn-Greene and Sherri Woolsey will take on the role of Parental Leave Acting Co-Executives, managing the day-to-day operations of the church. Sherri will take the lead on the administrative aspects of this work and Sadie will take the lead on programs. Feel free to reach out to either of them at any point with questions.
Our Board of Trustees and other lay leaders are also stepping up to support our ministry during this time. We are lucky to have a talented staff and many committed lay leaders who will help make sure everything runs smoothly while Rev. Allison is away!