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This is a reprint of the announcement that was sent out on Friday, October 16.

Dear OUUC Community, 

I am so grateful for the ministry we have shared for these past seven years.  

It has been a privilege to serve as your settled minister.  

I’m writing to let you know that this will be my last year as the minister at 

OUUC. I plan to retire from full-time ministry at the end of July 2027. This 

decision is personal and what is best for me and my family. I am weary 

and looking forward to more time to care for myself and my relationships. I 

will also take some time to see what emerges next for my ministry.  

This may come as a surprise and will likely bring up many different feelings. 

I have many feelings, too. Transitions are hard. Over these next 10 

months, we will have time and space to practice the spiritual work of 

celebration and saying goodbye.  

We can be proud of the work that we have done together these past seven 

years. We have weathered many storms, including a pandemic and 

massive political and cultural upheaval. Amid all this, together we have 

created beautiful and inspiring worship services, crafted a new vision and 

mission, deepened our shared covenant, strengthened our organization, 

cared for our building, focused our justice work, created welcoming space 

for visitors and new members, and revitalized our program for children. 

Through it all, we have cared for each other and deepened relationships 

within and beyond our walls.  

I am especially proud of our work to build physical and social infrastructure 

at OUUC. We have made Thursday evenings a time of sharing food and 

fellowship, learning together and connection. Due to your generosity, the 

congregation is debt free, and the building is fully electric and well maintained. The staff team has expanded to include support for online ministry and member engagement. OUUC has robust teams of volunteers 

to support our shared ministry. The Board of Trustees has created 

committees to support the work of sharing power and making decisions. In 

a time when much of what we counted on is being dismantled, we have 

been building OUUC to be strong and sustainable well into the future.  

I have been in touch with UUA regional staff and Transitions Office staff, 

who are ready to support both you and me through this transition. On 

Sunday, October 18, OUUC’s regional liaison, Isaac Castro, will be onsite 

to co-lead the worship service with me and offer an after-service forum at 

12:15 about how the region can assist over these next months. Please join 

us! 

OUUC board leaders and I have talked about the next steps and how to 

best support a healthy goodbye. Board leaders are already hard at work 

taking the next steps regarding this transition. (See board president, Sally 

Alhadeff’s letter below.) 

Over the next months, I’ll offer opportunities to drop in to share tea, 

cookies, and stories about OUUC and our time together. And, if you would 

like an appointment with me, please reach out by email.  

Ministry is always shared. Thanks to all of you and the staff of this 

congregation, many who do so much, visible and less visible. 

I will be leaving after serving you for eight years, a bit longer than average.  

That you have had several long-term and dedicated ministers speaks well 

of you as a congregation and offers hope for the minister that you select 

next and your ministry in the future. 

I feel so fortunate to have been part of your congregational story. I love 

you and I believe in you as a congregation. You are what makes the 

church, and I think you will face this change as you have faced the 

challenges of these last years---with thoughtfulness, courage, and care. 

Thank you for the opportunity to partner with you in this meaningful 

ministry. For the next 10 months, let’s celebrate our shared ministry!  

With gratitude,  

Rev. Mary Mangione Gear 

Dear OUUC Community, 

Our congregation has been fortunate to have Reverend Mary as our settled 

minister for more than seven years. We have been through a lot together 

and accomplished a great deal. Although her departure next year may raise 

feelings of uncertainty or concern, please rest assured we have been 

preparing for the transition and OUUC is on solid ground.  

The Board and Reverend Mary have made transition planning a normal 

part of our congregational life by talking openly about it and preparing 

together. For example, this year we adjusted the minister’s salary to be in 

line with what a future minister might expect.   

The Board has begun working with UUA staff in the Congregational 

Transitions office and with Congregational Life staff for the Pacific Western 

Region. They will support us in the coming months. 

At its October meeting, the Board of Trustees will begin discussing options 

for our search. Ministerial searches have changed somewhat over the past 

seven or eight years. According to UUA staff, there are multiple options for 

transitional ministry – we could follow the same approach used in our last 

search or consider a different one.  

In the coming weeks and months, the Board will engage the congregation, 

utilize UUA resources, and decide on a path based on what we learn.  

Please join the Board for an after-church forum on October 25 at 12:15 pm 

in the sanctuary. We originally entitled it “Thinking About the Future”, but 

“Transitions and the Future” may better reflect the conversations we hope 

to have. 

The Board looks forward to working with Reverend Mary, the staff, and the 

congregation as we take the next steps together with gratitude and grace. 

Sally Alhadeff 

Board President

None this week - Happy October!

In this time of transition, come chat with Rev. Mary. When we’re onsite at OUUC, she’ll provide tea and cookies. When we’re online, please bring your own! 

You can drop in to share stories about OUUC and our time together and share feelings about this change.  

If you would like an appointment with Rev. Mary, please contact her by email at minister@ouuc.org 

Teas at OUUC: 

October 22, Thursday at 4 pm  

December 5, Saturday at 10 am 

Teas on Zoom (BYOT!): 

November 4, Wednesday at 1 pm

November 18, Wednesday at 5:30 pm 

December 15, Tuesday at 4 pm 

Zoom link:  

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/86375795970?pwd=N5g3F8028aj4vCe0ihYa3KcgMsGvUn.1 

Meeting ID: 863 7579 5970 

Passcode: 662302 

Help OUUC serve those in need. Every 3rd and 4th Wednesday a group of generous volunteers bring a main dish and/or side dish to (feed 10 to 12) for the dinner of the 53 adults at the Unity Commons Adult Shelter. If you are able to help once, twice, or regularly, please contact Whitney Godby.

Reverend Mary and the Pastoral Care Team would like to remind congregants that a Personal Care and Support Record form is available on the OUUC website.

To find the form online, log into OUUC and locate Connect at the top of the home page. Scroll down to Congregational Care where the Personal Care and Support Record will be an option on the right. Finally, click Personal Care and Support Record fillable.

Hard copies of this form are also available in the Commons and may be turned into the office when completed.

PCT members will be available after services to answer questions. Look for the green stoles and smiling faces.

The information you provide us on the form will allow us to better assist you in times of need and will also let us know your end of life wishes.

Forms become PDFs and will be added to the member’s Realm personal profile, which is private, Only Reverend Mary and Reverend Sara will have access to them.

The OUUC Board of Trustees will hold their October meeting via Zoom on Tuesday, October 20 from 7-9pm. Contact Secretary Ryan Baye for the log-in information and the agenda.

https://www.ouuc.org/request-for-contact-information/

The Healthy Congregation Team will conduct a listening circle 29 October, 6:30, Classroom 3 and you’re invited! 

The primary purpose of a listening circle is to create a structured, safe, and equitable space where participants can speak honestly and listen deeply without interruption, debate, or pressure to problem-solve.

In this time of transition at OUUC, we will ask participants for their thoughts about these questions:

•   What do we want OUUC to be? 

•   What are the important conversations we should be having? 

We will capture the ideas you bring to be shared with Rev. Mary and the OUUC Board.

Each year OUUC invites community nonprofit organizations that serve the South Sound area (Lewis, Mason and Thurston counties) to apply online to the Share the Plate program. Bi-monthly awards are made to six organizations that align with Unitarian Universalist Core Values, with an emphasis on racial, economic, and climate justice. The amount of the grants typically total $3,000 - $4,000. The deadline for applications is October 31, 2026. More details and the application can be found at

https://www.ouuc.org/give/share-the-plate/stp-guidelines-and-application/ .

If you know of any deserving non-profit organizations that fit the criteria and might be interested in applying, please forward this information to them. We will be accepting online applications soon, but they can better understand the process and requirements and even download the application now. The application is very straightforward and not lengthy.

-Bob Brennand

You are invited to register for AGUA's next Immigrant Accompaniment Volunteer Training

Saturday, November 7th, 9:30am to 1pm (we ask you to arrive ten minutes early)

Olympia location to be announced after registration and will not be open to non-registrants.

In a time of fear and uncertainty, AGUA: the Accompaniment Group for Unity and Action provides transportation, resources, and support—because no one should face these experiences alone. We stand with our immigrant neighbors! 

AGUA volunteers accompany and provide transportation for our immigrant community members going to court hearings, ICE check-ins, & other appointments in Seattle & Tukwila & Tacoma. We typically work in pairs to support accompaniments. At this moment in time, we are without capacity to coordinate visits with local detained community members at the NW ICE Processing Center (NWIPC) in Tacoma. Some of our volunteers are still visiting detainees and witnessing court hearings. We hope to continue supporting Vecinos Unidos in accompanying/transporting local family members to visit their detained loved ones, albeit through plexiglass.

We need volunteers from Thurston, Mason and Lewis counties to drive community members from their homes to Seattle and/or Tukwila. We also need volunteers with conversational Spanish to commit at least one day per month to this shared work. Most accompaniments take place on weekdays. If you are not available on weekdays, consider supporting local family visits with detained loved ones in the NWIPC, which has visiting hours 7 days/week.

To join AGUA, we require that you attend an in-person training. Our next training will be Saturday, Nov. 7th, 2026 from 9:30am to 1pm, location TBA in Olympia. Registrants must give at least one full weekday each month to our accompaniment work. We hope to offer another training in early 2027. 

We are part of a growing community mobilizing to protect and defend the rights and lives of our immigrant neighbors. JOIN US!

Please send questions to agua.of.oly@gmail.com

REGISTER HERE

AGUA Accompaniment Training Facilitators: Jean Eberhardt, Lourdes (Alfie) Alvarado, Marilyn Gilman, Holley Rauen, Anne Fischel (we are all volunteers!)

October 18 Weekly Actions

Get inspired to take action with this week's action sheet.

October 2026 Faith in Action Digest 
Find events and learning opportunities collected here.

There’s a new way to support OUUC! Hosted by a worker-owned business founded by two of our congregants, the new online OUUC Store features over a quarter-million products from hundreds of small and medium businesses nationwide. We have new books, plants and gardening equipment, pet supplies, and so much more, all available 24/7. Every time you shop at Little Red General Store and use discount code OUUC, you save 5% on your purchase and another 5% goes directly to support OUUC.

Would you like an official OUUC mug with a lid? These are the kind that are allowed in the sanctuary now.Order from Zazzle to get your very own!

The Yellow OUUC Side with Love Shirt! Get ready to represent OUUC and Side with Love at gatherings and justice events. Order your yellow T-Shirt here!