Meet a Renaissance Woman. Florida Ridley – As I have poked about in various biographical resources for these little essays, I have been pleased…and surprised to find the stories of many African Americans who have been members of UU congregations and who have worked prominently in the service of social justice long before the ‘60’s. … Continue reading Moments in UU History: Florida Ridley
By Bonnie Withers October 2, 1755 is the birthday of Hannah Adams. She was the first woman in America to earn her living (modestly) as a writer. A sickly child with no formal schooling, she was educated primarily through libraries, first her father’s and then others including the Harvard Library, the Boston Atheneum, and the … Continue reading Moments in UU History – Hannah Adams
By Bonnie Withers After the first Selma march ended in bloodshed on the Edmund Pettis Bridge onMarch 7, 1965, Dr. Martin Luther King called for ministers to join him in Selma. 125Unitarian-Universalist ministers responded to the call to join the second march forvoting rights for black Americans. One of them was 38 year-old James Reeb, … Continue reading Moments in UU History – March 11, 1965
By Bonnie Withers What name comes to mind when you think about the origins of the Universalist half of our name? John Murray? You’ll get half credit for that one, but Dr. George DeBenneville was preaching Universalism in America 30 years before John Murray landed. (Murray holds the distinction of insisting on a separate, defined … Continue reading Moments in UU History: Salvation For All
By Bonnie Withers Are you old enough to remember radio soap operas? Each day, after school, my mom and I would settle in for an hour of fifteen-minute dramas. Road to Happiness, Backstage Wife, and, of course, Stella Dallas. Now, many decades later, I learn that Stella Dallas was the creation of a Unitarian writer, … Continue reading Moments in UU History: Olive Prouty
By Bonnie Withers All I ever knew about Lydia Pinkham I learned from a rousing (bawdy) fraternity song: “The benefactress of the human race.She invented a vegetable compound,And now all papers print her face”. (many versions can be found on YouTube) But there is much more to Lydia Pinkham than her patent medicine (18% alcohol). … Continue reading Moments in UU History – Lydia Pinkham
Join with Oregon Farm Workers in Solidarity – Three Opportunities
THE MEMBERS OF THE MID-COLUMBIA UNITARIAN UNIVERSALIST FELLOWSHIP (MCUUF) Do Resolve at the Annual Congregational Meeting Held on June 29, 2025, as follows: WHEREAS, Unitarian Universalists share common values with “love at the center” including a tradition of community service and promotion of social and economic justice; and WHEREAS, The members and friends of MCUUF, both … Continue reading Resolution to Establish a Social Justice Council
This resolution was passed at the June 29, 2025 Annual General Meeting of the Congregation. WHEREAS, immigrants, past and present, contribute to the strength and vitality of our Columbia Gorge community; and WHEREAS, many in our community are living in fear as a result of heightened levels of anti-immigrant policies and practices promoted by national leaders; and … Continue reading Resolution to Support the “We Are Immigrants – Somos Inmigrantes” Campaign
By Bonnie Withers Have you heard of Egbert Ethelred Brown? He was one of Rev. Mark Morrison-Reed’s subjects in his book, Black Pioneers in a White Denomination, and that title tells you a lot about this story. The date we are commemorating is June 25, 1912, the year Brown was ordained at Meadville Theological School. … Continue reading Moments in UU History: E.E. Brown
