Dear Unity Church-Unitarian Members and Friends,
When the Ministerial Search Team asked me to become Unity Church-Unitarian’s candidate for Senior Minister, I could feel the “yes” deep in my bones. It is an honor and privilege to be asked to serve a community with such rich history and bold dreams for the future. From liturgy to governance, from fundraising to prophetic witness, this congregation approaches ministry with a depth of intentionality and spiritual maturity that resonate deeply with my own dreams for what Unitarian Universalism might do and be in our world.
Even as we embark on this journey of new possibilities together, we do so holding the grief the community feels at the news of Rev. Rob Eller-Isaacs’s cancer diagnosis. This is a complex and transformative time for Unity Church-Unitarian, and I know we will find ways to hold life’s possibilities and pain, our joy and our woe, woven together in our hearts.
Last week, I hiked to a hidden waterfall at Curt Gowdy State Park near our current home in Cheyenne, Wyoming. The cascading snow melt, imposing boulders, and soaring pines grounded me in the creative, all-embracing love that holds us together through the fullness of life’s many turns. I took the opportunity to gather some water in hopes of sharing it at Unity this September for the Merging of Waters -- a manifestation of my yearning to bring all that I am to all that we will do together. I feel profoundly blessed to be asked to join your community as your minister.
In faith and gratitude,
Rev. Hannah Roberts Villnave
