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The Ad Hoc committee recommended hiring the Reverend Charles Gaines as a ministerial consultant for a three month contract, which is renewable in February for another four months. His biographical sketch, also in this edition, shows he brings a wealth of skills and experience in helping churches grow.

The committee is continuing to search for a half time minister, to start in July or September 2007. To be competitive we will need to increase membership and pledges sufficiently to pay a half-time salary with benefits, which will be around $30,000, plus expenses.

We have placed an ad in the next issue of the UU World, have notices at the placement offices of the following universities: Starr King, Meadville Lombard, Harvard, Andover Newton, and Claremont, and have requested an ad be placed on the Pacific Southwest District website: http://www.pswd.uua.org/.

"Why do you want to do this?" Rob Slothower asked me when I met with the Ad Hoc Committee on Ministry. One of the more interesting questions asked.

Here I am, looking out my study window, 125 miles away, having retired three years ago, 70 years old, having no young or college age children to support, in no need of the extra income, in no need of whatever prestige from this that may come (I already have a room dedicated to me in the Framingham, MA congregation), so "why am I doing this?"

I am an unrepentant evangelist for our faith. That's someone who eagerly promotes our message and cause in appropriate settings. So when I met your committee, I became convinced that you wanted to develop a strategy for membership growth, vitality, and institutional health.

West Valley U. U. Church Welcomes

the Rev. Charles A Gaines

The Ad Hoc Committee charged with finding a new minister recommended the Rev. Gaines to the Board of Trustees of WVUUC. On October 15, the Board voted unanimously to hire Dr. Gaines as a one-quarter time Consulting Minister. He will be providing two services a month and working with the church leaders and with the congregation to grow our church. His contract will be for a three month period during which he will assess our congregation and then make recommendations. His contract is renewable by mutual agreement for another four months. Below is a brief biographical sketch.

Charles Gaines retired from active ministry in 2003 after over forty years of service. For eleven years, he served the Unitarian Universalist Association, in the Department of Ministry as Ministerial Settlement Director for six years and then as Director of the Department of Extension, responsible for congregational growth, building loans, young adult, and international programs. While there, the department created the Decisions for Growth Program, continental mid-sized and large-sized church growth conferences, and the first international conference of Unitarian and Universalist churches from around the world.

During his career, he served as a settled or consulting minister in seven congregations in New England. The longest was for seventeen years at the First Parish in Framingham, Massachusetts, where he is currently Minister Emeritus. After leaving the Unitarian Universalist Association, he founded Turnabout Consultants to work with congregations on enhancing their institutional health through growth, ministry and generation transitions. His work in the UUA and as a consultant includes visits with over one hundred and twenty-five Unitarian Universalist congregations in North America, as well as leading workshops and assisting congregations in the United Kingdom, Europe and Southeast Asia.

Rev. Gaines served for nine years on the denomination's Ministerial Fellowship Committee, the

credentialing body of the Association. He was Chair for four years. He also co-founded the Greater Boston Unitarian Universalist Pastoral Counseling Service.

A graduate of Tufts University and Crane Theological School, he was ordained as a Universalist minister in 1961 just two weeks before the consolidation of the American Unitarian Association and the Universalist Church in America. In 1988 he received a Doctor of Divinity degree from Meadville Lombard Theological School in Chicago, Illinois.

Gaines is married to Carolyn, a retired certified psychiatric nurse, three grown children, and eight grandchildren. He and Carolyn live in Oro Valley, Arizona.

Sharing Information with the Congregation

Announcements

Each Sunday an opportunity is offered to share announcements with the congregation. Studies confirm that retention rates are higher when we read information rather than hear it. Your announcement will have more impact if it's printed in the Order of Service. Please contact Lucy Trissel at 623-977-0918 or trisself@juno.com by Wednesday each week to have your message read and remembered!

Joys & Concerns

Our congregation cherishes the sacred opportunity to light a candle during the Sunday Service to commemorate a significant personal event. There are many other occasions that allow discussion of political views. Please respect the reverence of this element of our Sunday Service as we share personal milestones rather than individual gripes.

Jim Reay Sunday Services Committee

(Rev. Gaines continued from Page1)

You, too, will have ideas to share. I hope, as well, energy, loyalty, and following up on a project or two, without becoming overwhelmed or burned out. And can we have some fun doing this? If we believe and feel we are together in this venture and we can see some accomplishments, it will be fun and we'll celebrate every one of them. In doing that we'll evolve an atmosphere that newcomers will be attracted to and want to join.

How to Reach Me?

I have asked Sandra Mahoney to be my On-Site Coordinator for my consulting ministry. She will be responsible for scheduling my time when I am in Glendale. This will save me telephone and email time, since my at-home time for your ministry is quite limited. I am confident that you will support Sandra in her work on your and my behalf.

I am interested in seeing individuals, and Sandra can make appointments from 15 to 30 minutes. But most of my time will be spent with committees and focus groups such as a workshop on growth that I will be sponsoring on Nov. 11th, Saturday afternoon from 1-5, with a social hour to follow.

Here are the dates that I shall be on-site: Nov. 11 & 12, Dec. 9, 10 & 24, Jan. 6, 7, 13 & 14. Since I made travel plans for most all of the other weekends, the schedule is somewhat inflexible.

My email is cgaines36@msn.com. My cell phone is 520-275-1024. I am not addicted to it, so it isn't always on, but I promise to check messages on a regular basis. In case of emergency, my home phone is 520-297-1787. And my mailing address is: 430 E. Strada Patania, Oro Valley, AZ 85737.

My Attention Span

For the next three months, I shall be paying attention to offering six Sunday services that I hope you will find spiritually informative and inspiring.

I shall also undertake a study of all aspects of the congregation and use my experience and insights to reflect with you on what you may need to change in order to be in a better position to grow. During this time, there will be various questionnaires and three workshops.

The first of which is on Nov. 11th - called "Highly Effective Habits in a Healthy Congregation" or "Almost Everything You Need to Know to Have a Growing, Healthy Congregation."

Sunday Services 10:30 a.m.

November 5, 2006, Speaker: Rev. Ken A. Van de Ven "Issues of Morality: How far do we have to reach? Natural law vs sacred texts? Which version of the Ten Commandments applies to our lives today ? Do the answers already exist, within ourselves ?

November 12, 2006, Speaker: Rev. Dr. Charles Gaines "Is That All There Is? Let's call it a prelude to the coming Thanksgiving season when we wonder about such things or acknowledge with gratitude that it's true and it's okay for most of us. Mr. Gaines will be traveling to the east coast to visit family members from Maryland to Maine over the Thanksgiving holidays He will be away from Nov. 20th to Dec. 3rd. and return on-site the weekend of December 9/10.

November 19, 2006, Speaker: Rev. Roy Phillips "The Two Essentials of A Religious Liberal's Faith" - A sermon for the Sunday before Thanksgiving. It astonishes me when I hear liberals and their critics saying we need to be more faith-based and that we are light on values. Ours religion is an alternative faith perspective on the world and on life, a perspective with a deep and rich history; yet somehow we have allowed oursleves to be put on the defensive. This sermon will be an attempt to let the coming national hoiday of adventure and appreciation empower us to become " out loud and proud" about our way of the spirit.

There will be a Thanksgiving Potluck after the service.

November 26, 2006, Speaker: Joel Foster "Big Bang, Just Another Myth Of Creation" Joel's talk is a comparison between the latest story of Creation and the oldest story of Creation. The 40,000 year old myth called "Dreamland" and the account called "The Big Bang". What possible common elements might these two have?

West Valley Unitarian Universalist Church

PO Box 2505

5904 W Cholla Street

Glendale, AZ 85311

Phone: 623-846-6004

Newsletter E-mail: uniquedorothy@cox.net

This Church provides a safe place to celebrate diversity, draw inspiration for our lives, foster

social and environmental justice, and compassionately support each other in our spiritual searches.

We currently have 84 members and many more friends.

Our Sunday Services begin at 10:30 AM followed by a coffee house style social hour and light lunch.

Newest Addition to WVUU Kids

This year we have a bumper crop of

babies. Here, Audry and Kailin share

Bo's lap.

Sunday School

In November, both the older kids and the Eagles will be studying stories from the Hebrew Bible. Watch for a bit of brick making….

If you have any questions about Sunday school or children's programs, call Kathy

623-915-2678.