News Articles

The Heritage UU Church Board of Trustees met on April 14, 2025. The following summarizes their activities.

1. Please plan to attend an important town hall meeting on May 4, 2025 to discuss the church finances.
2. Through a combination of factors, we found ourselves behind on paying out our commitments to our weekly Sharing Our Abundance recipients. The Board voted to pay out our currently outstanding commitments as soon as possible, as well as instituted a policy of distributing any future Sharing Our Abundance funds within 15 days of the service in which the offering is collected. 

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HUUC Board of Trustee members
Front row: Jaime Castle, Rebecca Pace
Back row: Luke Walczewski, Antonio Ciolino, Garry Wilson, Susan Conley, Roger Miller

Image source: https://huuc.net/huuc-board-members/

On Sunday, April 27, 2025, HUUC families came together for a spirited “Sunday of Service,” transforming our outdoor playground into a sparkling, refreshed space! With energy and smiles, volunteers of all ages rolled up their sleeves to plant flowers, pull weeds, power wash surfaces, rake leaves, clean the sandbox, and scrub the playground equipment. The result — a beautiful, welcoming space for everyone at Heritage to enjoy. Come out and enjoy the gorgeous spring weather!

Image source: https://tinyurl.com/3p8zp956

You may have noticed recently some subtle and some obvious changes to the Heritage physical facility. These changes include new security cameras and new doors as part of our involvement in a nonprofit security grant program.

Sixteen high-resolution, motion-detecting cameras are now installed in and around our building with video back-up and real-time views available on a computer or cell phone. All the equipment and cabling is installed, vendors have been paid. We have submitted for $23k reimbursement from the Ohio EMA (Emergency Management Agency.)

 Many new, more secure, sturdy doors of hollow metal with tempered safety glass have been installed. We still have paint, final touches, and repairs to make, but the new doors, locks, and the key fob system have been installed and hooked back up to our existing alarms. There are now just three access points to the building. Classroom and Heritage Room doors are “exit only” and the sliding glass doors in the Sanctuary have been replaced with proper swinging exit doors. We paid a $49k down-payment in September 2024 for the new doors. We now owe approximately $70k. Once that is paid, we can apply for an Ohio EMA reimbursement.

Image source: https://tinyurl.com/yp6udjdt

Quietly and behind the scenes, the Transitions Team, lead by Jaime Castle, has been diligently laying the groundwork on how to meet with potential candidates in the coming weeks. The team is crafting what information they wish to learn from the new minister candidates during the upcoming interviews to assure the best, great fit for our needs.

Due to the required confidentiality of the process, how many and who the candidates are cannot be shared. Future updates will be released whenever possible as they become available. Stay tuned!

Image source: https://tinyurl.com/3448ey6k

Heritage member Mary Pember launched the release of her book, Medicine River, A Story of Survival and the Legacy of Indian Boarding Schools on April 22, 2025 at Joseph Beth Books in Oakley. Mary Annette Pember is an independent journalist focusing on Native American issues. 

Amazon.com describes the book as, “A sweeping and trenchant exploration of the history of Native American boarding schools in the United States, and the legacy of abuse wrought by them in an attempt to destroy Native culture and life.”

Editorial reviews on Amazon.com indicate that this book is one of the New York Times’ nonfiction books to read this spring. It is a most anticipated book by The Minneapolis Star Tribune, Ms. Magazine, The Orange County Register, and Electric Literature.

Publisher’s Weekly starred review indicated that the book is “A devastating history. . . . Weaving into her narrative her own mother’s experiences . . . Pember explores the psychological ramifications the schools had on subsequent generations. She comes to many quietly ruinous insights about the emotional neglect she herself suffered at the hands of her wounded mother. . . . Concluding with a searing call for accountability, this strikes a chord.”

Image source: https://images.randomhouse.com/cover/9780553387315