cuc
annual
report
2000–2001
may 2001
for presentation at the
annual general meeting
May 18-21, 2001
montreal, quebec
Table of contents
1. Rules of procedure ......................................................................................... 2
2. Business meeting agenda ............................................................................... 3
3. Board of trustees 2000-2001.......................................................................... 4
4. Minutes of the 2000 CUC annual meeting.................................................. 5
5. President's report .........................................................................................13
6. Executive director's report ...........................................................................14
7. Administrative report ..................................................................................16
8. Growth project report..................................................................................17
9. Fundraising report .......................................................................................18
10. Investment advisory committee report........................................................19
11. Chaplaincy task force report .......................................................................20
12. Ministry and chaplaincy committee report .................................................20
13. Negotiating committee report .....................................................................20
14. Implementation task force report ...............................................................21
15. Volunteer canada/ontario screening initiative report ................................22
16. Social responsibility report ..........................................................................24
17. Report on communications.........................................................................28
18. Report of the UUA trustee-at-large from canada........................................30
19. Final report of the CUC nominating committee .......................................31
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canadian unitarian
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Cuc rules and procedure
Speakers
Motions
Visitors who are members of member societies
shall have the privilege of the floor after all
delegates have had the opportunity to speak on
any motion. Other visitors shall have the privilege
of the floor at the discretion of the chair.
Members of the Board of Trustees who may not
be delegates and Ministers currently serving or
retired from member societies shall have the
privilege of the floor on the same terms as a
delegate.
Motions shall be stated orally and immediately
handed in writing to the chair before action or
debate on the motion shall take place. Only
accredited delegates may introduce motions, and
all motions must bear the name of the delegate
and that of the society he/she represents.
To Speak
A delegate desiring to speak shall address the
chair giving his/her name and society affiliation,
and be duly recognized before speaking.
A delegate may speak for not more than three
minutes at any one time unless this time limit is
extended by two-thirds consent of the delegates
present and voting. No one may speak twice on a
particular question unless all delegates who wish
to speak on that question have had the
opportunity to do so except for the mover of a
motion who may also speak at the close of
debate.
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Limit on Debate
Not more than 20 minutes shall be allowed for
debate on any given motion, except by two-thirds
consent of the delegates present and voting, when
debate on such a motion may be extended for a
further period or periods of fifteen minutes.
Voting
Only accredited delegates shall be entitled to
vote, and their voting cards must be displayed at
the time of voting.
Other Rules of Procedure
Kerr & King Rules of Order (3rd edition) shall
apply
canadian unitarian
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Business meeting agenda
Only accredited delegates may move, second or vote on motions. Coloured voting cards must be shown
Business meeting times:
 Saturday, May 19 2:15-4:15 pm
 Sunday, May 20, 1:00-4:00 pm
 Monday, May 21, 10:30-11 a.m. (followed by board installation and closing worship11-11:30 a.m.)
AGENDA
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
INVOCATION AND CHALICE LIGHTING
GREETINGS AND INTRODUCTIONS
REPORT OF THE CREDENTIALS COMMITTEE
OFFICIAL CALL TO MEETING
ADOPTION OF/REFERENCE TO THE RULES AND PROCEDURE
ADOPTION OF THE AGENDA
APPOINTMENT OF THE PARLIAMENTARIAN AND TELLERS
APPROVAL OF MINUTES OF THE 2000 ANNUAL MEETING
ANNUAL REPORT
BUSINESS ARISING
a)
CUC-UUA Resolution
b)
Chaplaincy Resolution
NEW BUSINESS
a)
Social Responsibility Issues
b)
Activity at United Nations
c)
Social Responsibility Recognition
ELECTIONS
a)
Board of Trustees
b)
Nominating Committee
c)
Auditor
FINANCE REPORT
a)
Treasurer’s Report
b)
Presentation and Adoption of Proposed Budget
c)
Information on Future APF Increases
OTHER BUSINESS
a)
Announcement of Election Results
b)
Motion of Thanks
A closing worship service including installation of the new board will be led by Rev. Allison Barrett.
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canadian unitarian
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Board of trustees 2000 -2001
PRESIDENT
Yvonne Greig
348 Prince Edward Dr
Etobicoke, ON, M8X 2L5
416-232-2975 (h)
ydgreig@interlog.com
Kim Turner
71 Granite Cove Drive
Hubley, NS, B3Z 1A1
902-876-5098 (h) 902-423-7777 (w)
902-423-9588 (fax)
kturner@labour-law.com
Keith Jobson
1971 Ferndale Rd
Victoria, BC, V8N 2Y4
250-477-8947 (h)
250-477-8943 (fax)
kjobson@islandnet.com
Vice-President
Barbara Bowmar
208 Poplar Point Dr
Kelowna, BC, V1Y 1Y1
250-763-0169 (h)
250-763-9446 (fax)
bbowmar@silk.net
Rev. Brian Kiely
U. Church of Edmonton
12530 - 110th Avenue NW
Edmonton, AB, T5M 2L5
780-455-9797 (w)
brikie@aol.com
Treasurer
Rev. Mark Morrison-Reed
First U. Congreg. of Toronto
175 St. Clair Avenue West
Toronto, ON, M4V 1P7
416-656-8745 (h) 416-924-9654 (w)
416-924-9655 (fax)
donnamr@excite.com
ex officio
UUA TRUSTEE FROM CANADA
Rev. Katie Stein Sather
189 Dogberry Hill Road
Portugal Cove-St. Philips, NF, A1M 1C5
709-895-0478 (h)
ksather@thezone.net
secretary
Lisa Dessens
517 Oxford Street
Winnipeg, MB, R3M 3J2
204-489-5094 (h) 204-945-8937 (w)
Ldessens@msd.winnipeg.mb.ca
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
Mary Bennett
In Toronto:
55 Eglinton Ave. Suite 705
Toronto, ON, M4P 1G89
416-489-4121 (w)
416-489-9010 (fax)
mary@cuc.ca
In Vancouver:
2605 West 5th Avenue #4
Vancouver, BC, V6K 1T2
604-732-0141 (w)
604-730-5977 (fax-please phone first)
trustees
Keith Baxter
7 Park Street
Lennoxville, QC, J1M 1G9
819-346--8273 (h)
kbaxter@ubishops.ca
Elizabeth Bowen
154 Waverley Street Apt. 2A
Ottawa, ON, K2P 0V4
613-236-4504 (h)
erbow@cyberus.ca
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canadian unitarian
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minutes of the 2000 cuc annual m eeting
Kim Turner introduced the Parliamentarian, Floyd
Crowder, and indicated that members of the Credentials
Committee would act as Tellers.
Saturday, May 20, 2000
1.
CALL TO ORDER
The Annual Meeting of the Canadian Unitarian
Council was called to order by the President, Kim
Turner, at 2:15 p.m. on May 20, 2000, in Craigie Hall,
University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta.
2.
INVOCATION AND CHALICE LIGHTING
Carol Dahlquist was appointed as Timekeeper.
6.
ADOPTION OF AGENDA
Kim Turner noted changes to the agenda, particularly
the addition of two special resolutions.
The meeting was opened with the singing of “One More
Step”, led by Joyce Poley, and the lighting of the Chalice,
by Wendy McNiven.
Moved by Doreen Peever, St. Catherines, seconded by
Helen Backhouse, Calgary, that the agenda be accepted
as amended.
3.
 CARRIED
CALL TO MEETING
Lisa Dessens, Secretary, read the official call to meeting.
Official greetings were brought to the meeting by Linda
Henderson, President, Western Canada District, Jeffrey
Teagle, General Secretary, British General Assembly of
Unitarian and Free Christian Churches, and Denny
Davidoff, Moderator of the Unitarian Universalist
Association.
Other representatives of organizations and visitors were
introduced.
Kim Turner introduced the new Executive Director,
Mary Bennett. Mary will fulfill her role by
working half time in Toronto and half time in
Vancouver.
4.
REPORT OF CREDENTIALS COMMITTEE
Members of the Credentials Committee were
introduced: Henry Bosman, Norma Bosman, and
Jennifer O’Brien. Henry Bosman reported that, of 137
potential delegates, 101 delegates were registered to vote.
7.
MINUTES OF 1999 ANNUAL MEETING
Three corrections to the minutes were noted: They do
not specify where the meeting was held; on page 10, the
vote on the second amendment to the motion on the
conflict in the Balkans was not noted; on page 11,
Christine Johnston’s name was misspelled.
Moved by John Hopewell, Victoria, seconded by Yvonne
Greig, South Peel, that minutes be accepted, as
corrected.
 CARRIED
8.
ANNUAL REPORT
Kim Turner noted that the practice is to ask for any
questions on each section of the Annual Report, rather
than read the reports. There were no questions or
comments on the report.
Moved by Bruce Partridge, Capital, seconded by Bob
Spinney, Calgary, that the Annual Report be adopted
 CARRIED
5.
RULES OF PROCEDURE
Kim Turner pointed out that the rules of procedure for
this meeting had been changed to allow ministers
currently serving or retired from member societies to
have the privilege of the floor on the same terms as
delegates.
Moved by John Hopewell, Victoria, seconded by
Elizabeth Bowen, Ottawa, that the rules of procedure be
adopted.
 CARRIED
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Kim introduced Sylvia Bass-West, to discuss the program
“Screening in Faith”. Sylvia represents the CUC on the
Faith Consortium committee, which is promoting safety
for vulnerable people in our congregations. Sylvia
reported that the Faith Consortium includes
representatives of the Roman Catholic, Anglican, and
United churches, the Ontario Ministry of Citizenship
and Culture [which funds the consortium], and
Volunteer Canada [which provides program
management and expertise on screening volunteers].
After leading the group in a song, Sylvia invited
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minutes of the 2000 cuc annual m eeting
interested people to attend a networking session later in
the day.
 Evolution, not revolution, is about growing from
teenager into adulthood.
 Opportunity to direct change, not be overcome by it.
9.
BUSINESS ARISING FROM THE MINUTES
a)
Recommendations arising from the recommendations of
the Commission on Services to Canadian Congregations
Lisa Dessens, Winnipeg, and Brian Kiely, Edmonton,
reported on the discussion groups that had taken place
in the morning regarding the motion from the Board of
Trustees.
Moved by Barbara Bowmar, Kelowna, seconded by John
Hopewell, Victoria, that:
“Provided adequate resources can be made available, the
member congregations of the CUC endorse the
recommendations of the CUC Board as outlined in the
Board’s response to the Commission’s Stage II report.
"The congregations further direct the CUC Board to:
 Begin the changes recommended by the Commission
 Arguments in opposition included:
 Concern about losing district support.
 Well served by the UUA; shouldn’t diminish services
in Pacific Northwest District to try to increase
services elsewhere.
 Identity can be articulated by the principles of the
UUA and the hymnbook. Both come from a large
organization that provides synergy.
 To suggest that there is a Canadian identity that can
be served by the CUC, given the resources of time,
energy and population, does not seem feasible.
 Most Americans are thoughtful because of
connections with Canadian Unitarians. Want
decisions made pragmatically vs. pride.
 Western Canada District will be compromised if any
dollars are diverted. Cannot see WCD surviving the
motion.
 If CUC wants to act like a UUA district, it should
become a UUA district. This would lead the UUA
to restructuring.
 Continue our discussions with the UUA
 Develop a financial plan for the changes.”
 Concerned about financial issues.
The Mover spoke strongly in favour of the motion.
Considerable discussion followed. Arguments in favour
included:
 The motion is prudent and addresses uniquely
Canadian issues that have been discussed for years or
decades.
 The north-south connection is important, but
making decisions and communicating within Canada
is being made simpler with technology.
 Western Canada is a wholly Canadian district that
works and the CUC works.
 Not sure all dollar issues have been addressed but
this is the right direction.
 Suggest we look at who we are as a UU community.
Barbara Bowmar, Kelowna, yielded to John Slattery,
Chair of the Commission, who closed debate, speaking
in favour of the motion, mentioning specifically that the
recommendations were based on the expressed wishes of
congregations.
The question was called, and the vote was 79 in favour,
11 opposed.
 CARRIED
After a song led by Joyce Poley, the meeting was recessed
at 4:15 until the following day.
Sunday may 21, 2000
 Better value for Canadian dollars spent in Canada.
 We need to make something greater than what we
have. We know what we have, but not what we will
create.
 Need to be intentional about maintaining
relationships.
2000 – 2001 annual
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10. CALL TO ORDER/INVOCATION AND
CHALICE LIGHTING/DELEGATES PRESENT
On Sunday May 21, 2000, at 1:32 p.m. the meeting was
reconvened. Rev. Ray Drennan and Joyce Poley led the
meeting in an invocation and chalice lighting. The
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minutes of the 2000 cuc annual m eeting
Credentials Committee reported 101 delegates were
present.
11. INTERNATIONAL COUNCIL OF UNITARIANS
AND UNIVERSALISTS (ICUU)
President Kim Turner called on John Slattery to report
on the International Council of Unitarians and
Universalists, a new organization, with 20 member
organizations from around the world, some representing
national organizations and others congregations. The
CUC and UUA are members. The ICUU will meet
next year in Montreal at the same time as the Ministers
of Canada, before the CUC AGM. This was scheduled
to allow as many members as possible to attend the
CUC meeting. Donations to the ICUU can be made to
the CUC and a tax receipt will be issued. Those who
were interested in providing financial support to sponsor
some of the ICUU members to attend the CUC were
asked to speak with Brian Kiely or Ellen Campbell.
Moved by Barbara Bowmar, Kelowna, seconded by
Elizabeth Bowen, Ottawa, that a vote of thanks be
extended to the members of the Commission for their
hard work. The members are John Slattery; Chair,
Elizabeth Benjamin, Herman Boerma, Lisa Dessens,
Brian Kiely, Sheila Laursen, and Sheila Moore. Ellen
Campbell and Stefan Jonasson staffed the Commission.
Today, 15 years later, Child Haven cares for over 500
formerly destitute children as well as several women in
four homes - three in India and one in Nepal. Child
Haven is also providing support for a home in Tibet . . .
Fred, one of your favourite Indian poets is Tagore whom
you quote in nearly every Child Haven Newsletter - "Let
me light my lamp, said the star, and never debate if it
will dispel the dark."
When you founded Child Haven, you lit a lamp that
glows in the far corners of India and Nepal and now in
Tibet, as well as in Canada. As a result you have
received many national and international awards for
your humanitarian work. A few of these are:
 UNESCO award for teaching children human and
religious rights
 Ba'hai Racial Unity Award
 in 1996, the Order of Canada
 Now, we want to add one more to that list.”
A CUC Special Award of Recognition was presented by
Kim Turner, President.
b)
By-law Amendments
Moved by Yvonne Greig, South Peel, seconded by Helen
Backhouse, Calgary, that the following amendment to
the by-laws of the CUC be adopted:
 CARRIED
Kim Turner announced that the CUC negotiating team
will be: Kim Turner, Brian Kiely, John Hopewell, Mark
Morrison-Reed, with Herman Boerma as advisor.
12. NEW BUSINESS
a)
Recognition of Fred and Bonnie Cappuccino
Kim Turner introduced Elizabeth Bowen to make a
presentation. The following are some of her comments:
“Yesterday morning, our speaker Christopher Levan
ended his rousing speech on the future of religion in
Canada by saying that we must "seek out those who are
vulnerable and need our help and ask ourselves - Where
do we begin?" That is exactly the question that Fred and
Bonnie Cappuccino must have asked themselves when
they lived in India for a short time in the 70's and saw so
many vulnerable, homeless children - "So where do we
begin?"
And that is the question that Bonnie and Fred answered
when they founded Child Haven International in 1985.
2000 – 2001 annual
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Addition to ARTICLE V: BOARD OF TRUSTEES
Section 10: Indemnification of Trustees
“a) The Trustees, their heirs, executors and
administrators and estate and effects shall be
indemnified and saved harmless, individually and
severally, from time to time and at all times from and
against:
i) all costs, charges and expenses which a Trustee
sustains or incurs in or about any action, suit or
proceeding brought, commenced or prosecuted against
him or her for or in respect of any act, deed, matter or
thing whatsoever, made, done or permitted by him or
her, in or about the execution of the duties of his or her
office or in respect of such liability; and
ii) all other costs, charges and expenses that he or she
sustains or incurs in or about or in relation to the affairs
of the CUC, except such costs, charges or expenses as
are occasioned by his or her own wilful neglect or
default.”
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minutes of the 2000 cuc annual m eeting
Discussion followed. Harold Koehler, London, asked
whether the insurance would pay for any lawsuit. Kim
responded that it would if there was no criminal activity
involved. Randy McKinnon, Vancouver, asked whether
any lawyer could be hired, at any price. Kim reported
that the Board has an arrangement with a specific law
firm that would defend the board member and other
arrangements would not be made.
 CARRIED
Moved by Yvonne Greig, South Peel, seconded by
Deborah Faulk, Victoria, that the following amendment
to the by-laws of the CUC be adopted:
Addition to ARTICLE X: GENERAL
Section 2:
Rules of Order
“a) Procedures for Meetings and Organizations, by M.K.
Kerr and H.W. King, Carswell Legal Publications,
Toronto 1996, or later editions, shall govern the
Association in all procedural matters not contained in
the Letters Patent and in these By-laws.”
 CARRIED
c) Social Responsibility Issues
i) Globalization Study
Kim Turner invited Joop Schuyff, the Coordinator of
this two-year study, to provide an overview of the report
and the process by which it had been developed. Joop
introduced the other members of the working group:
Mel Johnston, Alistair Mont, and Philip Symons.
Moved by Joop Schuyff, Victoria, seconded by Alistair
Mont, Victoria, that the CUC accept the Report on
Globalization and adopt the following resolution:
Considering that the forces and ideology of market
driven economic globalization and their consequences
are increasingly, and in mostly negative ways, affecting
the welfare of nations, people and their value systems as
well as the nature and quality of their interactions;
Considering also that the negative impacts of
globalization, as observed through the lenses of our
Unitarian principles, constitute major violations of the
personal, social and cultural lives and values of billions
of people around the globe;
Considering that the promotion of globalization is being
undertaken primarily by large transnational
corporations, financial institutions and other corporate
interest groups without the approval or consent of the
very large majority of individual citizens or specific
public interest organizations such as faith groups, labour
unions, environmental groups and a broad variety of
NGOs;
Considering that in general the main tenets of
globalization, as it is presently invading our lives and our
world, run counter to our vision of a just, equitable,
democratic and compassionate world community;
Considering that, as Unitarian Universalists, we have a
moral obligation to bear witness to our principles and
our vision;
The Canadian Unitarian Council agrees to encourage its
members, individually as well as collectively in their
respective areas, to:
 continue to study the consequences of globalization
in our own lives and in the world at large in light of
the UU principles;
 articulate and act on ways and means to change the
course of globalization to being ethically responsible;
 infuse into our world more democratic, just,
sustainable and compassionate alternatives;
 “Because as Unitarian Universalists we are
covenanted to affirm and promote:
 establish and reinforce interfaith and other alliances
with
 the inherent worth and dignity of every person,
 like-minded people and organizations to achieve
these objectives;
 justice, equity and compassion in human relations,
 the right of conscience and the use of the democratic
process within our congregations and in society at
large,
 implement the ACTIONS on globalization [attached
to the resolution].
 the goal of world community with peace liberty and
justice for all,
 create and support ongoing efforts to develop reading
materials for members and congregations concerning
the impacts and consequences of globalization, and
to encourage the development and distribution of
 respect for the interdependent web of all existence of
which we are a part;
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In addition, the CUC agrees to:
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 materials for adult religious education programs,
Sunday services and other events;
 establish a working group which will advise the CUC
and its members and stimulate them to implement
the above recommendations and the ACTIONS on
globalization (this working group will be mandated to
keep the issue of globalization in focus and before its
members, the public and other leaders of the
Canadian community and it will, in consultation
with the Board of the CUC, prepare briefs, press
releases, letters and other materials expressing the
commitments to our principles);
 accept the ACTIONS on globalization and ensure
they remain updated.”
 John Hopewell indicated that the Board formally
supported this motion.
There was no dissenting opinion on the motion.
Whereas the Canadian Unitarian Council supports the
establishment of an effective, independent and credible
International Criminal Court;
Whereas a proposal of the Government of the United
States appears to affect the viability of the International
Criminal Court as an institution that upholds the
aforesaid Unitarian Universalist Principles;
Whereas this proposal would prevent the Court from
prosecuting an individual without the consent of either
the Security Council or the accused's state of origin;
Whereas this will have the effect of exempting American
officials from prosecution by the International Criminal
Court;
 CARRIED
Kim proposed that a motion of thanks be extended to
the committee of Joop Schuyff, Alistair Mont, Mel
Johnston, and Philip Symons, for their work, and the
assembly agreed with enthusiastic applause.
ii) Hot Timber Presentation
Harold Koehler reported on upcoming issues related to
the CUC position on Justice for First Nations, and
asked for support and action within congregations.
iii) Activity at United Nations
Elaine Harvey reported on the work she has been doing
at the United Nations as a representative of the UUA
and, by extension, the CUC, to the Economic and
Social Council. Her work has been primarily on the
International Criminal Court. She recognized Justice
Paul Reinhardt, who has contributed to the thinking
about how to deal with child victims in the ICC.
iv) Social Responsibility Recognition
Mel and Christine Johnston of Victoria were recognized
for their years of social justice work. Willowdale
Fellowship was recognized for their work with the North
York Women’s Shelter. Recently the Fellowship raised
$1000 for a new refrigerator through an auction. The
Fellowship has been recognized as a supporter of the
shelter.
v) Special Resolutions
Whereas this proposal is not only regarded by many as
an amendment and modification of the Rome Statute,
but also drastically decreases the independence of the
International Criminal Court and its Prosecutor, and
significantly increases the power of the Security Council
over the International Criminal Court;
Whereas this proposal seriously compromises the
Nuremberg principle that official acts do not protect
individuals from responsibility for major crimes, and
disrupts the process of justice leading to reconciliation
and eventually to peace,
Therefore, be it resolved that the delegates at the Annual
General Meeting of the Canadian Unitarian Council
urge the Government of Canada to oppose the proposal
of the Government of the United States regarding the
International Criminal Court, specifically
(i) the Proposed Text of Rule to Article 98
(ii) the Proposed Text to Supplemental Document to
the Rome Treaty, and furthermore, that the
Government of Canada use its influence to encourage
other governments to oppose these proposals.
[The resolution was submitted with the required number
of signatures.]
Elaine Harvey spoke in favour of the resolution.
Moved by Dorothy Keeler, Edmonton, seconded by
Marianne Higgs, Kingston,
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Whereas Unitarian Universalists affirm and promote
justice, equity and compassion in human relations, and
the goal of world community with peace, liberty and
justice for all;
9
 CARRIED
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Moved by Jeff Brown, South Peel, seconded by John
Taylor,
Since we as Unitarian Universalists strongly affirm the
high ideal of a peaceful world community, recognizing
the crucial interdependence of all peoples as well as of all
creation;
WHEREAS the United States government is pressuring
the Canadian government to participate in a Ballistic
Missile Defence system;
WHEREAS this system undermines forty years of
nuclear arms control, especially the US-Russian AntiBallistic Missile Treaty, and pushes Russia and China to
reject the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty and to engage
in a renewed nuclear arms race;
WHEREAS, in response to the proposed Ballistic
Missile Defence system, nuclear weapons states (like
India, Pakistan, and Israel) as well as many non-nuclear
weapons states are likely to refuse to ratify the Nuclear
Non-Proliferation Treaty;
WHEREAS NATO allies, particularly France, insist that
any ballistic threat must be considered in the context of
a broader concern for the international community;
WHEREAS the U.S. Department of Defense has
claimed that the Ballistic Missile Defence system is
designed to protect against rogue states (like North
Korea, Iran, and Iraq, yet has planned to position
missiles on the Russian border in Alaska and Norway;
WHEREAS the US Department of Defense is working
on a Ballistic Missile Defence system for North America,
following in the tradition of the Strategic Defence
Initiatives ("Star Wars") that to date has cost $39 billion
(by Center for Defence Information estimates);
BE IT FINALLY RESOLVED that the delegates at the
Annual General Meeting of the Canadian Unitarian
Council urge Canada to continue its strong action in
support of nuclear non-proliferation. The Canadian
Unitarian Council calls upon Canadian congregations
and individual Unitarian Universalists to contact their
Members of Parliament and members of the Federal
Cabinet to voice their opposition.
Discussion ensued.
Amended by Richard Jack, seconded by Doreen Peever,
St. Catharines, that the motion be amended to read:
“BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the delegates at the
Annual General Meeting of the Canadian Unitarian
Council encourage the Unitarian Universalist
Association [delete “Canadian Government”] to urge the
United States to abandon the Ballistic Missile Defence
system.”
 CARRIED
Also amended by Cec Muldrew, Winnipeg, seconded by
Helen Ready, that the motion be amended to add the
following:
“BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the delegates at the
Annual General Meeting of the Canadian Unitarian
Council urge the Canadian government to withdraw
from any alliance which is involved in the use of nuclear
weapons.”
After some discussion, Kim Turner pointed out that
Special Resolutions are for emergencies only and that
there is an existing CUC policy covering nuclear arms.
 DEFEATED
After further discussion, the question (as amended) was
called.
WHEREAS Canada, as an ally of America, could have
an important influence on the United States;
 CARRIED
THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the delegates at
the Annual General Meeting of the Canadian Unitarian
Council strongly oppose Canada's involvement in the
Ballistic Missile Defence system;
13. ELECTIONS
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the delegates at the
Annual General Meeting of the Canadian Unitarian
Council encourage the Canadian government and the
Unitarian Universalist Association to urge the United
States to abandon the Ballistic Missile Defence system;
2000 – 2001 annual
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Beverley Leaman, Lakehead, presented the Nominating
Committee Report on behalf of the Chair, Marianne
Wood.
a) Board of Directors
Beverley Leaman reported that, because Mary Bennett
was hired as Executive Director after the deadline for
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nominations for a Board member, the vacancy will be
filled by the Board of Trustees.
Moved by Bev Leaman, Lakehead, seconded by Beth
Jenkins, Edmonton, that Lisa Dessens and Brian Kiely
be elected to the CUC Board.
 CARRIED
b)
It was suggested that if the RRSP benefit represents the
pension for staff, it is low, and should be addressed.
Nominating Committee
Moved by Bev Leaman, Lakehead, seconded by Joop
Schuyff, Victoria, that Janet Evans, Beth Jenkins, Beverly
Leaman, Bill Fulton and Marianne Wood be elected to
the 2000-2001 Nominating Committee.
 CARRIED
c)
Auditor
Moved by Bev Leaman, Lakehead, seconded by Joan
Harris, Toronto, that John Fenton be appointed Auditor
for 2000-2002.
 CARRIED
Concern was expressed that the budgeted amount for
Chaplaincy will not cover the training that is proposed
from the proposed task force. John pointed out that the
amount in the current budget is for committee expenses.
Budgeting for Task Force recommendations will begin
next year.
There being no further comments, there was a call for
the question.
 CARRIED
c) Annual Program Fund
14. FINANCE REPORT
a) John Hopewell presented the audited statement for 19992000, which reflected a balanced budget for the year.
Moved by John Hopewell, Victoria, seconded by
Hermine Hicks, Nanaimo, that the financial statements
be accepted.
 CARRIED
b) Presentation and Adoption of Proposed Budget 2000-2001
John Hopewell presented the proposed budget.
Moved by John Hopewell, Victoria, seconded by Elaine
Roberts, Edmonton, that the proposed 2000-2001
budget be accepted.
Questions:
Bernie Keeler asked how many staff were covered in the
budget line, and commented that the amount was low.
Mark Hamilton asked about the Religious Growth and
Learning: Youth line. Ellen Campbell pointed out that
it has been used to subsidize youth conferences and a
coming of age weekend. It is available for projects.
2000 – 2001 annual
Report
In response to a question, John pointed out that there
has been a change in our reporting system regarding
investment income. Earnings from the Endowment
Fund for one year are incorporated into the projected
income for the next year. However, no income from the
unrestricted fund is included in the budget projections.
It is used as needed to balance the budget when there is
a deficit.
11
John Hopewell announced that the Board is proposing
that, for the 2001 - 2002 year, the range of the rate for
APF will be between $46 to $50 per member, depending
on implementation of the Commission
recommendations.
d) Sharing our Faith Grants
John announced that the Board received a record eight
applications. There was $9100 available to distribute.
Grants were approved for six congregations, as follows:
 Winnipeg $1732. Youth program
 Neighbourhood $2310. One person to EAGLES,
improve website
 Westwood $1716. Remodeling of church school
space, ssalary for pre-school teacher
 Sarnia $1848. Guest ministers, larger facility
 Elora Fergus $1320 Administration
 Fredericton $500. Sign for new building
The meeting was recessed at 4:04 p.m.
canadian unitarian
council
minutes of the 2000 cuc annual m eeting
Monday, May 22, 2000
15. CALL TO ORDER / INVOCATION AND
CHALI CE LIGHTING / DELEGATES PRESENT
On Monday, May 22, 2000, at 10:35 a.m. the meeting
was reconvened.
Wendy Luella Perkins and Margaret Claveau opened the
meeting with a sung invocation and a bilingual chalice
lighting. Henry Bosman of the Credentials Committee
reported 101 voting delegates were present.
16. OTHER BUSINESS
a) Announcement of Election Results
The Secretary announced the new Board Officers:
 President: Kim Turner
 Vice-President: Barb Bowmar
 Secretary: Lisa Dessens
 Treasurer: Mark Morrison-Reed
b) Motion of Thanks
Lisa Dessens read a motion of thanks to all who had
contributed to the success of the meeting. It received
unanimous consent.
c) Recognition of Retiring Executive Director
Herman Boerma, John Slattery, John Hopewell, and
Kim Turner, presidents during Ellen Campbell’s time as
Executive Director, presented their compliments. After
a response from Ellen, gifts were presented to her.
17. CLOSING CEREMONIES
Helen Backhouse and John Hopewell, retiring members
of the Board, installed the new Board.
Members of the Montreal congregation extended a warm
invitation to everyone to attend next year’s meeting in
Montreal. Louise Kovar, on behalf of the Calgary
congregation, passed the earth to Montreal, as is
traditional
The meeting was adjourned, and was followed by a
closing worship serviceservice.
2000 – 2001 annual
Report
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canadian unitarian
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President's report - kim turner
What a year this has been! The CUC-UUA
negotiations have been at the forefront for most of
the year. The year began with the vote to move
towards greater autonomy for Canadian Service
Delivery. Then there were the see-saw negotiations
as we attempted, with the UUA, to give life to the
Calgary resolution. Then there was the final
tentative agreement and finally, the months of emails from people passionately in favour of or
opposed to this agreement. It has been a privilege
to be part of a conversation among so many
committed Unitarians and Unitarian Universalists.
The negotiating committee, including Mark
Morrison-Reid, Brian Kiely, John Hopewell,
Herman Boerma (and then Katie Stein Sather),
with Mary Bennett, have put many hours into this
work. As a member of this team, I have appreciated
their tireless devotion to these issues and their true
belief in and vision for a uniquely Canadian
Unitarian Service Delivery plan. The rest of the
CUC Board has continued to perform beyond the
call, once again visiting as many congregations as
possible to discuss the tentative agreement.
thanks to the Wendy Louella Perkins and the
HUUG (Helping Unitarians Universalists Grow)
Team who have shown us how very possible it is to
train volunteers to successfully carry out programs
in areas such as growth and extension.
This marks Mary Bennett’s first year as Executive
Director, and our first attempt at decentralizing the
Executive Director Position. Mary’s success at
“connecting and empowering” congregations in
person or via the web, has been especially notable,
whether she is working from Vancouver or
Toronto! In addition, the office staff, Carol
Dahlquist and Kevin Virtue have continued their
hard work and valuable contributions to the CUC
during this last busy year. Thank you to all of them.
I have learned much over the last year and I look
forward to the time to reflect upon it all more
closely as my Presidency ends. I do know that
whatever the outcome of the vote in Montreal, the
CUC will continue to be a strong and vital voice
for Canadian Unitarians and Universalists.
The CUC-UUA agreement was not all the Board
focused on this past year. We began work on a long
range plan which will, after May, hopefully include
our larger mandate. The Chaplaincy Task Force
continued it’s hard work, some of the results of
which will be voted upon at this meeting. It was a
difficult job and my hat is off to John Hopewell
and his Task Force. Elizabeth Bowen has worked
diligently on the RE Video, which will be
presented, at our meeting. Thank you to Elizabeth
and to all the other people who have put their time
and energy into this project. Our Social
Responsibility monitoring groups continue to help
the Board speak on many issues including same sex
marriage, globalization, and native fishing rights.
Thank you to all of the chairs, participants and to
Yvonne Greig, for coordinating their efforts. Our
refugee sponsorship program is now in full swing –
and we are happy to be making it easier for
congregations to help others. More kudos to
Elizabeth Bowen for all of her work. Similarly
2000 – 2001 annual
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canadian unitarian
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Executive director's report - mary bennett
This year, the dominant motif has been
“transition,” both on a personal and institutional
level. (Last year, my predecessor Ellen Campbell
began her annual report with much the same
sentence, but the word in quotations then was
“pending.”) It began last spring at our annual
meeting, when delegates voted to move towards a
more autonomous CUC, and I was hired to replace
Ellen. After this year’s annual meeting, there will be
more (but not complete) clarity around this
transition.
In William Bridges’ books, he identifies the first
step in transition as “letting go of the old,” and
then entering a “neutral zone” before being ready
to really “claim” the new beginning.
During the past year, the reality that the status quo
is not an option has become clear to most of us.
But the new CUC is a ways off — July 2002,
perhaps, and probably a year beyond that, as we
develop new ways of doing things with new staff
and structures and financial arrangements. In
between is the neutral zone — that’s where we’ve
been and where we’ll be for a while longer (and I
realize it is not always an easy place to hang out!).
“After you’ve let go of one trapeze and before
you’ve grasped the one on the other side,” is one
image that Bridges uses to describe this place. As he
says, our society is not geared to hanging out in the
“middle of the road.”
my first month, and year
There is much complexity to this organization and
therefore to the job of executive director. I easily
recall the wide-ranging variety of requests for
information I received during my first month or so
in Toronto. Once, during the week that Ellen and I
were in the office together, the phone rang, and
like a deer in headlights, I looked at her and said:
“I’ll answer it!” When it turned out to be a sales call
from a carpet cleaning company we both had a
good laugh!
In that first month, I would write as fast as I could
and trust that after I got off the phone I would find
the answer in our well-organized files (computer
and paper), or in the Mary Manual Ellen left for me.
During that time I said, “I’ll get back to you,” a lot!
Slowly but surely, however, I was more able to give
an immediate answer. And with all that’s been
going on at CUC, there will be more and more
projects that I will see from the beginning, which
makes it much easier to really “get” what it all
means.
For example, I was able to attend the negotiating
team meetings between our organization and the
UUA representatives in Regina last fall and in
Toronto in January. Without that opportunity, the
task of understanding the tentative agreement and
subsequent discussions with congregations would
have been far more difficult. While there have been
unprecedented challenges in my first year with the
CUC, it has also meant I’ve received a real
education. Through discussions about the
negotiations (largely conducted by email), I got to
“meet” Canadian Unitarian leaders past, present
and future and hear their stories, their hopes and
fears, and their passion.
For this first year —such an important year for the
CUC to be in contact with our members — I made
it a top priority to travel to as many congregations
and meetings as I could possibly fit in. The coming
year will be one of deepening and broadening some
connections while continuing to forge new
relationships as well.
I see my role as carrying out the part of the CUC
vision statement that talks about “connecting,
nurturing and empowering” — or to put it another
way, “to talent scout, cheerleader and mentor.” The
good news is that there is much talent and expertise
out there ready and willing to be connected with
the CUC in a myriad of different ways. What a
wonderful part of the job this is — to meet so many
different and talented Unitarians!
communications first
2000 – 2001 annual
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canadian unitarian
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Executive director's report - mary bennett
Developing our communication systems has been a
key area where the CUC staff and I have worked
together to get timely information out. We are
building a system that can support many more
Unitarians and Universalists, and many more
congregations in Canada. Whenever we look at
how we do things, I ask: “How can we do this in a
way that would still work if we had 25,000
Unitarians in Canada?”
While working to accommodate my telecommuting
half the year from Vancouver, much of what we’ve
done puts us in a better place for building a
communications network among additional staff
persons across the country. Over the coming year,
we will continue to refine the ways in which we can
ensure a good information flow and collaborative
and creative discussion among staff members and,
by extension, with others working with us.
have at my finger tips the names and contact
information for all 5,200 Unitarians.
Wendy Luella Perkins is the other telecommuter
in our staff of four and her experience working
from a distance has shown us the way to integrate
staff working from home offices, well away from
Toronto. Also, Wendy’s model for building
volunteer teams is an excellent one for working
with volunteers across the country in the future, by
using a combination of in-person meetings and
then phone and email follow-up.
Thanks to Art Kilgour for his competent and
gracious style of work — and for taking my columns
in the Canadian Unitarian and making them
shorter, but still sounding like me talking. Thanks
also to Barb Wallace and Pat Webber for being in
regular contact on religious education issues as well
as the production of CANUUE.
thanks to the following
What a good board the CUC has — such a
committed group of people with diverse talents,
backgrounds and interests. Welcome to new
members, Joan Foster and Heather Lunergan; your
contributions will be a great addition.
As much as I love connecting and travelling, thank
goodness for Carol Dahlquist, who, besides the
almost 50 per cent of her job that deals with our
financial records and budgets, is the key person for
connecting with our chaplains and theological
students. In both areas, Carol’s responsibilities
have grown, and with the recommendations from
the Chaplaincy Task Force and the increased
numbers of individuals in Canada preparing for
UU ministry, I can see Carol’s role here continuing
to expand.
Kevin Virtue has been the person that carried a
large portion of the load of increased email
communication this year. Kevin, also, was key in
updating our database with information from
congregations — going way beyond the information
we had before. This work was immeasurably
valuable to me during my time in Vancouver. I now
2000 – 2001 annual
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I have also enjoyed working with the AGM
Planning Team chaired by Beth Jenkins, the many
youth enthusiasts who worked with me to pull
together a youth program for the annual meeting,
the social responsibility monitoring groups, Elaine
Harvey, our UUA/CUC link to the United
Nations and John Taylor, People’s Coop Bookstore
liaison. The number of people who have given their
support, advice, expertise — and practical, hands-on
help — are too many to mention here.
I’ve also had a chance to meet with the Steering
committee of the Canadian Unitarians for Social
Justice and consider even more ways we can work
together in the future. I look forward to meeting
the UU Ministers of Canada at their annual
gathering prior to the CUC AGM.
gracious hosts
A special thank you to all the people who gave me
home hospitality, drove me around, fed me,
organized meetings and potlucks to welcome me to
their congregations. It made a challenging travel
schedule a very enjoyable part of my first year
canadian unitarian
council
Administrative report - carol dahlquist
This past year has certainly been one of change for
the staff of the CUC and may continue to be such
over the coming years. I am reminded that change
is good-painful, but good-and a necessary part of
growth.
The CUC staff continues to adjust to these changes
by working towards an environment that fosters
growth by being respectful, open, honest and openminded. We are processing the changes in our staff
as result of having a new Executive Director with
different work styles, as well as adapting to an ED
who is currently working part-time in Vancouver
and part-time in Toronto. It's amazing how much
work can be accomplished through
teleconferencing and email. One of the positive
changes among staff has been a weekly staff
meeting, which includes Mary Bennett, ED, Kevin
Virtue, Administrative Assistant, Rev. Wendy
Luella Perkins, Growth Coordinator and myself.
These meetings consist of at least one of us
communicating by telephone. The consistency of
these meetings helps to build our relationships as
well as keeping us all informed of all the details we
need to attend to in our various roles. As well we
had a first ever staff daylong retreat at the home of
Art Kilgour and Nichola Martin.
Another of the changes to our Administrative staff
is that Kevin Virtue is currently working full time
in the office, having taken a break from his
University studies. Kevin’s role in managing the
CUC database has become a major and important
task among his many other duties. The CUC has
changed over to using Microsoft Access as our
membership database and subsequently our
membership information is more accurate and
easier to use. Another area in which Kevin’s job
has grown is in the area of email, email-groups, web
site and Internet access. Kevin now handles most of
the information coming in and out of the office.
Kevin continues to be a valued and important staff
member of the CUC.
The Regional Sub committee on Candidacy
(RSCC), which I have the pleasure of providing
2000 – 2001 annual
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staff support to, held their first ministerial
interviews to assess the potential of students for the
UU Ministry this past October. This was a very
successful and challenging task for the committee.
The interviews came at the end of a 3-day student
retreat in Surrey, BC, in which students and
potential students came together to explore what
being a UU Minister is all about.
Another first this past year was our involvement in
the conference in support of Afghan women. Over
300 individuals from across Canada, of whom
many were Unitarians, came together to discuss the
horrific living conditions for the women in
Afghanistan. The conference took place at York
University and was a huge success. Currently the
National Coalition Committee, on which I
represent the CUC, has been working with the
Afghan community in Toronto. Our goal is to
empower the Afghan community to develop and
monitor the communications for the work that
needs to be done, while at the same time providing
leadership support as needed.
As we look to the future, and to the inevitable
increase in work and tasks, the CUC will be relying
more and more on the assistance of volunteers.
One of Mary Bennett’s strengths is her ability to
network among our many talented members across
the country. We now have volunteers working with
our web site and technology needs, assisting in
editing and proofreading documents and reports, as
well as having volunteers, like Joan Elgar from
South Peel to assist with mailings and
photocopying, John Lewis from Toronto First, who
has become the CUC’s handyman around the
office, Karen Dunk-Green who is helping us
develop a performance review system and Bill
Dunk-Green who is providing his expertise in
financial policy making. We are also grateful to
Charlie Walker, who has been the CUC’s web
weaver over the last couple of years. Charlie kept
our web site up to date as well as providing useful
and helpful advice. We are thankful for all those
people who volunteer their time and energy to the
CUC.
canadian unitarian
council
grow th project report – wendy luella perkins
GROWTH COORDINATOR
Our vision for the CUC’s Growing Vital Religious
Communities in Canada program is to develop
programs, leaders and networks that nurture
vibrant congregations across the country. We
understand growth to be much more than
numbers—growth also happens as we mature in our
faith, develop healthy organizational structures and
incarnate our deepest values in service to the world.
Growing Vital Religious Communities in Canada is
made up of four sub-projects: Helping Unitarian
Universalists Grow; Building Our Identity; Les
Cercles unitariens francophones du Canada;
Successful Stewardship.
deeply, speak honestly, listen lovingly and continue
on the path of growth.
Some of the highlights from 2000-2001 include
that we:
 Updated the Planning for Growth and Vitality
workshop and manual and offered the weekend
workshop to seven congregations in Vancouver
(for teams from British Columbia) and six
congregations in Saskatoon (for teams from
Western Canada)
 Completed and distributed a bilingual worship
book
 Developed and disseminated a Planned Giving
resource guide
 Selected the Building Our Identity core team
 Presented several workshops at the AGM
It is through the shared ministry of many
volunteers that we have accomplished so much
since Growing Vital Religious Communities in Canada
began in the fall of 1999. Thank you to everyone
who said/says yes! Many thanks also to the
Unitarian Universalist Veatch Program at Shelter Rock
which has generously given us $90,000 (U.S.) so far
to bring our vision to life. We hope to hear back
from them in June that we will receive continued
funding into the fourth year of the program.
Growth equals Change, and change often produces
many feelings (both negative and positive). The
CUC is in the midst of dramatic change and we’re
feeling it! May we as individuals, congregations and
as a movement have the courage and faith to feel
2000 – 2001 annual
Report
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canadian unitarian
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Fundraising report – Rev. mark Morrison -reed
Annual Program Fund
Once again Canadian congregations have
demonstrated excellent performance in achieving
Honour Society status. For the 2000-01 year 41 out
of 45 societies paid their fare share to the Annual
Program Fund (APF). Thank you to all our
members for your continued support of the
Unitarian movement across Canada.
Canadian societies paid a total of $223,860 for
2000-01, which is 98% of fair share in dollars for
the CUC. Many societies also paid APF
contributions on a quarterly or monthly basis,
providing a fairly consistent cash flow for our
national organization.
The following are Honour Societies for 2000-01:
Pacific Northwest
Friends of the CUC
Friends of the CUC are people who make personal
contributions in support of the Canadian
Unitarian Council. In 2000-01, Friends of the
CUC contributed an unprecedented amount of
$38,873. Over 400 individuals or couples made
donations to Friends during 2000-01. We are
especially grateful this year to have surpassed our
budgeted amount by over $10,000. This is in part
due to our faithful contributors but also to many
new people who joined as Friends of the CUC this
year.
A major component of the Friends campaign's
success is Alyson Shcafer, whose fundraising
expertise is invaluable to the CUC.
Beacon, Capital, Comox, Kelowna, Nanaimo,
North Okanagan, North Shore, South
Fraser,Vancouver, Victoria
The Board of Trustees would like to thank all the
individuals who have provided this on-going
support to the CUC.
Western Canada
Endowment Fund
Ottawa Fellowship, Peterborough, Kingston,
Hamilton, Elora Fergus, Guelph, South Peel,
Northwest Toronto, Toronto First, London,
St. Catharines, Willowdale, Waterloo, Ottawa,
Montreal, Lakeshore, Don Heights
The Endowment Fund was established in 1992
through a fund-raising campaign, “Making the
Flame Brighter.” The purpose of the fund was to
provide resources to enable the CUC to be more
pro-active in our support of congregations and the
work of our religious body in Canada. While the
campaign was completed in 1995, the Fund
continues to grow through occasional bequests and
other gifts. The fund currently stands at over
$600,000.
New Hampshire, Vermont
Sharing Our Faith
Calgary, Edmonton, Lethbridge, Red Deer, Regina,
Saskatoon, Arborg, Westwood, Winnipeg,
Lakehead
St. Lawrence
North Hatley
Northeast
Fredericton, Avalon
heartland
Sarnia-Port Huron
Canadian Honour Societies, which are UUA
members, also are Honour Societies for the UUA’s
General Assembly in June 2001.
The 2001-02 fair share amounts will be $50.00 per
member. Societies paying this amount on or before
March 31, 2002 will be Honour Societies for the
coming year.
2000 – 2001 annual
Report
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This year over 30 congregations participated in
Sharing Our Faith Sunday, raising over $10,000 for
grants for congregational growth projects. This is
ten more congregations than in the previous year!
In 2000-01 six grants were made, to the
Neighbourhood UU congregation, an emerging
group and to congregations in Winnipeg,
Westwood, Elora Fergus, Fredericton and SarniaPort Huron. Thank you to all individuals and
congregations who participated in this event.
canadian unitarian
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Investment advisory committee report - John taylor,
Chair
The Investment Advisory Committee this year
welcomed our new broker and financial advisor
Alan Harman, MBA, a Director and Senior
Investment Executive with Scotia McLeod in
Toronto. Alan brings with him a Unitarian
background and is a founding member and former
board member of the Social Investment
Organization of Canada. He is managing over half
a billion dollars for various institutions including
foundations and faith organizations and has an
excellent reputation as an investment manager. An
important concern of ours has been met by Alan's
long standing practice of using Canadian ethical
and environmental performance reports produced
by Michael Jantzi Research Associates Inc. of
Toronto and the US equivalent produced by
Kinder, Lydenberg, Domini & Co., Inc. in Boston.
We believe this change in brokers and addition of
resources of information will make it easier to
address concerns raised by our membership about
individual investments being compatible with our
principles.
The committee continued to provide information
to individuals and congregations requesting
assistance in developing ethical investment policies
for managing their portfolios. The policy developed
by the investment committee of the Vancouver
church was circulated as a suggested model as a
beginning for discussion. Each person and
organization contacted were free to revise it to
reflect their situation and values. The committee
was also delighted by requests for information from
members to include in articles for their
congregation's newsletters.
2000 – 2001 annual
Report
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canadian unitarian
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Chaplainc y task force report - john Hopewell, chair
The Chaplaincy Task Force received feedback
from congregations, chaplains and others on its
Draft Report presented at the 2000 annual
meeting. The Task Force considered all input
carefully and presented an amended and final
report to the Board in January 2001. The report
was distributed widely prior to the 2001 Annual
Meeting. The Task Force members were John
Hopewell, Doreen M. Peever, Rev. Ray Drennan,
M. Ruth Patrick, Elizabeth McGugan, Ken
McLachlan and Carolyn Humphreys.
Ministr y & chaplaincy committee report Rev. Wayne walder, chair
In the last year the M&C committee has
been preparing to initiate changes that the
task force has requested. Without yet
implementing any of the changes
recommended, the committee has: increased
the committee size in order to take on its
expanded role in chaplaincy training;
compiled a partial list of past training
programs; carefully examined and become
familiar with the Task Force report; done the
day to day work of the program.
After handling the sometimes stressful
concerns that people have expressed to the
committee we are now in surprisingly good
spirits to further the work of the chaplaincy
program. Our wish is to become more
supportive and transparent to chaplains and
chaplaincy committees. In the next year we
will be contacting each chaplaincy committee
to give a face to our work and to inquire how
we can support them. We do this so that
our faith can grow in our chaplains and in
our congregations within a new framework.
Negotiating Committee Report - Kim turner, chair
The CUC Negotiating Committee was
mandated to meet with the UUA
Negotiating Committee to negotiate a new
relationship in line with the wishes of the
Delegates at the annual meeting in Calgary.
The members of the Committee include Kim
Turner, Mark Morrison-Reid, Brian Kiely,
John Hopewell, the UUA Trustee from
Canada (Herman Boerma, replaced by Katie
Stein Sather). Mary Bennett attended our
meetings as staff.
We met with the UUA Negotiating Team
(Denny Davidoff, Gini Courter, Kath
MacIntyre, Judi McGavin and Larry Ladd) in
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September 2000 and January 2001. A subset
of both committees also met in Feb 2001 to
finalize a number of details regarding our
tentative agreement.
The tentative agreement itself has been the
topic of much discussion and will be fully
canvassed at the AGM. I will not repeat it
here.
I will say that that although the discussions
were difficult, they were respectful
throughout. Both teams remain focused on
the long term goal of acting in the best
interest for the health and growth of
Canadian Unitarianism and Universalism.
canadian unitarian
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Implementation Task Force Report - Rev. Brian Kiely,
chair
The Implementation Task Force was created
in January of this year by the CUC Board.
We were given a mandate to advise the Board
on matters relating to the implementation of
the CUC - UUA Service Delivery Agreement
proposed at the Montreal CUC Annual
Meeting. We were tasked with liaising with
staff on the transition and both providing
information and seeking feedback from
congregations, interest groups and interested
individuals.
In advance of the ratification vote we were
asked to draft a preliminary plan for
delegates to consider. This 11 page memo
was sent out in April with delegate materials.
It is meant to be a discussion tool more than
a finished product, something to spark
discussion and reveal areas where more work
is needed. Since the Task Force was only
forming, the memo was largely the work of a
few Board members. While the Task Force
members approved sending out this
document, the team had little time to review
it before publication.
Task Force members will have their first face
to face meeting following the close of the
Annual Meeting, should the agreement be
ratified. In the coming months we will seek
input from all congregations in Canada and
debate possible revisions. We intend to keep
congregations and interested groups
informed every step of the way through
2000 – 2001 annual
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electronic communications, the Canadian
Unitarian and CUC monthly Society
Mailings. We will also encourage listserv
conversations on (uus-cuc@uua.org).
Our goal is to create a workable plan that will
allow us to deliver services effectively and
flexibly while remaining within budget. We
welcome and encourage any comments or
ideas.
We anticipate presenting a reasonably
complete plan for Board consideration in
January 2002. If the Board desires, we will
do more work between January and May
when a final plan will be presented to
delegates for approval at the 2002 Annual
Meeting in Kelowna. The plan goes into
effect July 1, 2002.
Task Force members are: Brian Kiely of
Edmonton (Chair), Ann Buckmaster of
Vancouver (RE), Mary Ann Higgs of
Kingston (Growth and Extension), Allison
Barrett of Hamilton (Ministry and
Chaplaincy), Lee Dickey of Waterloo
(Finance) and Art Brewer (Affiliated Groups).
The current CUC staff are providing various
support roles and input. Executive Director
Mary Bennet participates in an ex-officio role.
We are still seeking a Youth and Young
Adult representative.
canadian unitarian
council
Volunteer Canada/Ontario Screening Initiative - Screening In Faith
report - Sylvia Bass West
We have just completed year two of the three
year initiative, Screening In Faith, which the
Ontario Government funds through the
Ontario Screening Initiative, in cooperation
with Volunteer Canada. The CUC is one of
a four part faith consortium including the
Roman Catholic, Anglican, Unitarian and
United Churches. Three Ontario UU
congregations, Toronto First as a large
congregation, London as a mid-sized
congregation and the Ottawa UU Fellowship
as a small congregation, were chosen to act as
"case study" churches to begin development
of appropriate Screening Policies. Each of
these churches has established a Screening In
Faith "task force" and are in the process of
meeting with a Volunteer Centre consultant
to develop guidelines and policies to suit the
volunteer screening needs of their particular
congregations. This information will be
shared with all CUC congregations next year,
once we have some guidelines in place. You
will then be invited to use, or adapt, these
screening guidelines within your
congregations.
Basically, Screening In Faith shows us that we
have a legal and a moral imperative to look at
our screening procedures. Really, these are
common, good human resources
management practices.
10 ‘Safe Steps’ of Screening In Faith
(not all of these steps need be used for every
position. Low risk positions require fewer
steps)
Screening is based on risk and the position,
not the person.
Preliminary issues
Determine the risk of various volunteer
positions
Write and provide a clear volunteer ministry
"job"description
2000 – 2001 annual
Report
22
Establish an intentional recruitment process
Actual screening process regarding specific
volunteer positions
Use some type of application form for data
collection
Conduct interviews
Follow up on references
When appropriate, request police records
check (high risk positions)
After the job has been filled
Conduct orientation and training sessions
Supervise and evaluate volunteers
Follow up with program participants
What do we need to begin to do in our
congregations?
Here are some ways of thinking about how
and where to start:
 Educate and inform our congregations of
the need for screening procedures using
the materials available through Volunteer
Canada and CUC.
 Help the members develop a sensitivity
regarding the need to screen and deal
appropriately with misconduct - help
volunteers understand their responsibility
to ensure a safe environment for
themselves and those in their care.
 Establish a working committee or task
force to look at issues/implications
surrounding volunteer screening confidentiality, process, etc.
 Invite a local Volunteer Centre Executive
Director to a Board meeting to talk about
screening. Determine if you have some of
the 10 Safe Steps in place already - you
may be surprised!
 Determine the "risk" in various volunteer
positions within the church’s
organizational framework (Committees of
Council, Board positions of trust,
Religious Education, Child Care, Music,
etc.) and determine if appropriate "job
canadian unitarian
council
Volunteer Canada/Ontario Screening Initiative - Screening In Faith
report - Sylvia Bass West





descriptions" are in place for all volunteer
positions. If not, start working!
Model what we hope to encourage from
others within the congregation! Begin
with one area - perhaps RE volunteers and ensure there is clear understanding of
teacher roles, guidelines, application
process, code of ethics, teacher contracts,
orientation, training, supervision, etc. as
appropriate for your congregation.
Determine if you can easily make the high
risk positions lower risk with some simple
modifications or changes (ie. Add
windows in hallway doors in classrooms
where there are none)
Screen the RE Director’s position, the
Minister’s position, the Youth Advisors
and all other potentially "high risk"
positions as soon as possible
Ensure that the documentation regarding
screening that you presently use is
complete and on file and check your
congregation’s liability insurance policies
and look into vicarious liability clause.
Establish a set of guidelines for use when
volunteers are working with children at
the congregation, to present to the Board
for inclusion in your congregation's
Operations Manual.
2000 – 2001 annual
Report
23
canadian unitarian
council
Social responsibility report - Yvonne greig
Social responsibility policies and procedures have
been developed by working groups, adopted by
delegates at the Annual Meeting, and implemented
by monitoring groups established for each of our
more recent policy initiatives. The most recent of
these was the Policy on Globalization adopted at
the Annual Meeting in Calgary, 2000.
Our monitoring teams and their chairs are as
follows:
Choice in Dying: Rev. Brian Keily
Economic Justice: Keith Jobson (newly appointed)
Native Justice: Harold Koehler
Environment: Richard Bocking
Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transsexual issues: John
Hopewell
Globalization: Joop Schuyff (co-ordinator)
Elaine Harvey continues to serve as official UUA
and CUC representative to the United Nations,
and was featured in an article in the Catholic New
Times about her work with other faith groups
involved in the establishment of the International
Criminal Court. An encounter with Mr. Victor
Navarotsky of Belarus, led to her helping the Youth
of the Kingston Unitarian Fellowship in a plan to
bring some Bellarussian children to Canada for a
vacation. These children have health problems
associated with the Chernobyl disaster.
She also proposed the Emergency Resolution about
a proposal by the US government that would
compromise the International Criminal Court.
This proposal, and the one made by Rev. Jeff
Brown opposing Canada's involvement in the
Ballistic Missiles Defence system, were adopted at
the Calgary Annual Meeting, May 2000. CUC
made representations as directed by the meeting.
Careful research and speedy communications on
the part of the Native Justice and the Environment
SR Monitors facilitated CUC's two representations
to the Federal Government supporting the Mi'kmac
fishing rights, and one to the Canadian
government's representative at The Hague
environment conference on global warming. We
appreciate the work of Harold Koehler, Native
Justice, and Richard Bocking, Environment who,
2000 – 2001 annual
Report
24
with their respective teams, drafted these letters.
President Kim Turner's energy and cheerfulness
encouraged positive thinking about their timely
arrival.
We are grateful to Joop Schuyff, Mel Johnston,
Alistair Mont and Philip Symons for authoring the
Globalization policy, continuing to make
presentations and linking with like-minded outside
groups. An announcement was released to major
newspapers across Canada endorsing the Canadian
Council of Churches' and the Canadian Council of
Catholic Bishops’ ethical position on globalization.
Many congregations have also independently
studied various aspects of globalization.
Early in 2001, Rev. Mark Morrison-Reed swore an
affidavit on behalf of CUC supporting two gay
couples whose attempts to get their marriages
legally recognized were denied. Information
regarding changes in Old Age Security and Canada
Pension Plan Benefits for Same-Sex Common Law
Relationships was included in the October 2000
Society Mailing. A memo about the Welcoming
Organization program, and the CUC Board's vote
to become one, was also distributed to all
congregations.
Social action related material sent out in the
monthly mailings included: an update on the
Canadian Coalition in Support of Women in
Afghanistan, information about the UU United
Nations Office, the Bulletin of the Aboriginal
Rights Coalition, of which CUC is a member, new
Canadian developed curricula on social
responsibility for 10 to 13 year olds, and
information about CUC's new status as a Refugee
Sponsorship Agreement Holder with Citizenship
and Immigration, Canada. To further help
congregations with refugee sponsorship, CUC
Board member, Elizabeth Bowen, prepared a
comprehensive manual "CUC Sponsorship
Agreement: A guide for congregations".
We thank our on-going monitors for their
continued alertness to outside events related to
those issues for which we have developed a social
responsibility policy. The work entailed in
canadian unitarian
council
Social responsibility report - Yvonne greig
preparing statements or press releases usually allows
very little lead time. They deserve special
congratulations and our best wishes for their future
work.
Native Justice Monitoring Team
A Native Justice Workshop at the Annual General
Meeting, 2000, with 18 participants, reviewed the
many concerns of Native nations all across Canada
and the activities of the local societies to obtain
some relief.
Representations were prepared from the CUC to
the Prime Minister, the Honourable Herb
Dhaliwal, Minister of Fisheries and the Honourable
Robert Nault, Minister of Indian Affairs asking the
government to stop their harassment of Mi'kmaq
lobster fishers in Burnt Church, N.B.
Environment Monitoring Group
The CUC environment monitoring group includes
members from most regions of the country, linked
by email. It is mandated to develop programs
related to the environment at the CUC and
congregational levels, and to advise the CUC board
on environmental issues.
The committee agreed on a position opposing
Canada’s stand in negotiations at The Hague
intended to implement the terms of the Kyoto
protocol on climate change. A letter to this effect
was sent by our CUC President to the federal
government. Unfortunately, the government
refused to commit Canada to comprehensive cuts
in greenhouse gases, thereby contributing to the
collapse of the global negotiations.
The CUC is a member of the Aboriginal Rights
Coalition (ARC), a Canadian national coalition of
ecumenical groups and Aboriginal representatives
who promote justice for Aboriginal people. The
Coalition of churches prepared a 'Call for Creation
of Independent Aboriginal Land Rights
Commission' which was signed by the CUC. It
resulted in a petition circulated for signatures by
church members during the past winter.
In keeping with our mandate to establish links with
other faith groups concerned about environment
issues, a member of the committee is representing
the CUC at meetings of the Interchurch ecology
group (ICCE).
Keith Jobson, one of the members of our
Monitoring Team, has authored "Aboriginal
Sovereignty Must Be Affirmed." See justnews
Winter 2001 page 3.
Correspondence among committee members has
established a number of areas of interest that may
develop into action programs. These include:
Another member of the Team, Anthony
Carfagnini, gave a Sunday morning service address,
"Understanding Residential School Claims."
The CUC thanks are due to the Team presently
including Anthony Carfagnini, Thunder Bay; Peter
Hill-Carrol, Winnipeg; Keith Jobson, Victoria;
Harold Koehler, London; Lydia Sayle, Vancouver;
and the support of CUC President Kim Turner,
Halifax.
The Team would welcome a member from the
Toronto area and from the Atlantic Provinces.
Contact <hkoehler@execulink.com>.
Respectfully submitted, Harold P. Koehler - Team Chair
2000 – 2001 annual
Report
25
The committee has agreed to the draft of the
CUC's position on genetically engineered food,
and this is in progress.
 Action at the local level related to global
warming, "greening'" of churches (for example,
perhaps with the help of Green Sanctuary or
Green Communities initiatives);
 Development of an environmental short course
for congregational use, Ecospirituality is also
suggested as the basis of programs to be made
available to congregations;
 The promotion and adoption of a GPI
(Genuine Progress Indicator) as one means of
steering Canada in a more sustainable direction;
 Development of a CUC position and program
related to the impact on child development of
environmental exposure to chemicals;
canadian unitarian
council
Social responsibility report - Yvonne greig
 Development of a CUC position related to
water export.
Respectfully submitted,
Richard Bocking, chair
Globalization Monitoring Committee
The resolution "Globalization or Global Diversity"
has been significant both internally and externally.
Internally it has been the trigger for various
congregations to start discussing the theme and its
consequences while for others it has been a vehicle
for further social and political action. Externally it
has made it easier to link up with like-minded
NGO's, churches and interfaith groups where we
received ample recognition not just for our effort
but also for being the first faith group to express a
clear position regarding Globalization.
The course of events in the area of Trade
Agreements, Foreign Policy, International financial
arrangements and democratic sovereignty have
dramatically validated our efforts. No explicit
decision was taken to establish a Monitoring
Committee, but the members of the initial study
group (Mel Johnston, Philip Symons, Alastair Mont
and Joop Schuyff) have helped to keep our activities
focused. A variety of presentations were made in
B.C. Others, notably in Toronto and Ottawa,
undertook similar activities and initiatives.
The establishment of an e-group by our Executive
Director did not really meet expectations. Only
forty postings were processed, sixteen of which were
from the Executive Director and undersigned, and
the rest from three of four others. There were
several cross postings with the CUSJ listserve. The
latter made major contributions to the debate on
Globalization and its ethical basis in the seven UU
principles so it can be assumed that the CUSJ
listserve did most of the work in this regard.
Thanks to all those thoughtful and knowledgeable
people.
In summary it can be said that the Globalization
resolution has made significant impacts, both
internally and externally, and promises to keep
2000 – 2001 annual
Report
26
doing so in the future. The FTAA meetings in
Quebec will tell us where we will have to go from
here.
On the day of writing this report both the
Canadian Council of Churches and the Canadian
Council of Catholic Bishops published some of
their strong ethical and religious objections to
globalization, as well as a joint communiqué calling
on negotiators at the summit to "build a
neighbourly economy that respects human rights,
protects aboriginals, cancels paralyzing Third
World debts, preserves publicly funded health care
and protects the environment."
The content of our Resolution empowers us to call
on the Board to immediately and publicly support
and endorse this statement, pointing out the role
the CUC has played in this debate and the related
activities.
Joop Schuyff, Victoria
Economic Justice Monitoring Team
The main activity this year has been recruiting team
members. Thanks are due to Rosemary Cleves,
Professor of Social Work, Fredericton, Forrest
Smith, First Unitarian Church of Victoria, and
Tim Richards, Friend of the Unitarian Church,
Victoria. They have all agree to serve on the team.
We are looking for three more people from other
parts of Canada; suggestions and offers of help are
welcome.
Contact: Keith Jobson, kjobson@islandnet.com
Keith Jobson, pro tem facilitator/chair of the team
CUC REPRESENTATIVE AT THE UNITED
NATIONS ANNUAL REPORT
This has been a year in which I have worked to
increase the involvement and presence of
Unitarians at the United Nations. I have:
canadian unitarian
council
Social responsibility report - Yvonne greig
 attended three sessions at the United Nations, a
conference in Winnipeg, Manitoba and
meetings in Ottawa, in my capacity as the
Official UUA Representative to the United
Nations
 written articles for the International Criminal
Court Monitor and for the Kingston [Ontario]
Whig-Standard
 sent a report to the national legislation
committee of the Canadian Federation of
University Women
 made presentations at the UUA General
Assembly, and to the Ottawa branch of the
World Federalists Movement
 prepared and presented a UN Sunday Service at
the Kingston Unitarian Fellowship
 given oral reports on the International
Conference on War-Affected Children in
Winnipeg at meetings of the Coalition for the
International Criminal Court (ICC) and the
Canadian Network for an International
Criminal Court
In these ways I am informing people of the
significant work at the United Nations with which
I am privileged to be involved.
The recent sessions of the PrepCom have been
devoted to working groups on aggression, financing
the Court, and the relationship agreement between
the UN and the ICC. I was a Coalition team
member on the relationship agreement.
The Steering Committee on Children and Justice is
planning a second seminar--after the very successful
first one held in Siracusa, Italy. This seminar,
which will be held in New York, is designed to raise
awareness and increase knowledge for dealing with
child victims and witnesses in international
tribunals and truth commissions. Both legal and
psycho-social experts will participate, and judges,
lawyers and others involved in international justice
mechanisms will be invited. I attended planning
sessions of this committee during the past year
along with representatives of UNICEF, Save the
Children, the office of the UN special
representative on children and war, and an expert
on traumatic stress syndrome.
The International Conference on War-Affected
Children, at which I represented the Canadian
2000 – 2001 annual
Report
27
Unitarian Council, was a ground-breaking
conference attended by 50 youth (25 children
affected by war), civil society, experts and
government representatives. Each group prepared
agendas for action which will be presented at the
UN General Assembly Special Session on Children
in September.
The Seminar of the Unitarian Universalist United
Nations Office April 5 - 7, 2001, prepared a
statement on children for the UN General
Assembly Special Session on Children at which I
will lead the UUA delegation, and an Action of
Immediate Witness for the UUA General Assembly
regarding the UN Conference on Racism to be
held in South Africa. Through the UUA’s
consultative status with the Economic and Social
Council, we will have a delegation at both of these
conferences involving both UU adults and youth
from both countries as well as the Conference on
the Illicit Trade in Small Arms and Light Weapons
in All Its Aspects. Having statements from the
participants of the UU-UNO Seminar will add to
the meaningfulness of UUA participation.
At the Winnipeg Conference I met Mr. Victor
Navrotsky, representative of Belarus in Canada. He
discussed with me the very serious health problems
that the Belarussian children are subjected to as a
result of the Chernobyl disaster, and he wondered
whether Canadians could participate in helping to
improve the health of some of these children by
providing accommodation for them with families in
Canada for a minimum of a month during the
summer period. The Youth of the Kingston
Unitarian Fellowship plan to conduct a small pilot
project which, if successful, may involve Canadian
Unitarians in other centres at a later date.
It is heartening to experience the increased
involvement of UUs on UUA delegations at the
United Nations.
Respectfully submitted
M. Elaine Harvey
canadian unitarian
council
Report on Communications (the Canadian Unitarian and the Visibility
Project)- art kilgour
Overview
The Visibility Project
Nichola Martin and I are into our fourth year as
co-editors of the Canadian Unitarian, which we
produce quarterly, in January, April, July and
October. In addition, over the past year we agreed
to do public relations and communications for the
CUC under the rubric of its “Visibility Project.”
We work out of a large home office in Elora,
Ontario, 100 kilometres north-west of Toronto.
The foundation of much of what we do, believe it
or not, is the newsletters we receive from individual
congregations. We read them, clip them and use
them for all sorts of ideas and starting points. Keep
those newsletters coming!
This aspect of our work is less concrete than the
newsletter, naturally. We handled a diversity of
“visibility” related tasks for the CUC this past year:
We have other sources, of course. We brainstorm
ideas with Mary Bennett before each issue of the
Unitarian, we have regular contact with Kevin,
Carol and Wendy, and Nic monitors several email
groups.
The Canadian Unitarian
We spend about five full-time equivalent days
producing this each quarter (spread over about two
weeks). We write or edit all the stories, plus edit the
columns contributed by others. We solicit or buy
artwork and photos (this year we bought a couple
from Canadian Press), do the layout, deliver it to a
nearby printer, and even monitor the mailing,
which is done by a bulk mailer near us (the data for
the labels are sent by email from Toronto!).
This year, we were also responsible for producing
the four-page insert on the deal negotiated between
the CUC and UUA in January. This delayed the
January issue (and by domino effect, the April issue
as well), because we wanted full and timely coverage
of this important news.
Our internal division of labour has changed a little
here over the past year. Nichola has taken on a fulltime contract with the Pay Equity Commission of
Ontario, so as of 2001 she is no longer doing the
editorial preparation for each issue of the
newsletter.
2000 – 2001 annual
Report
28
 publicity at the 2000 annual meeting in Calgary,
which resulted in national media coverage on
CBC radio
 follow-up publicity after the annual meeting,
which resulted in a national profile of
Unitarianism in the Globe and Mail (“The Pick
and Mix Religion”)
 a news release in March 2000 stating the CUC’s
support for federal Bill C-23 on legal rights for
homosexuals
 a news release in October 2000 detailing the
CUC’s support in the Mi’kmaq fishermen’s
struggle
 design of the 2000 CUC annual report
 research and negotiations to secure the
www.cuc.ca web domain (we got it for free),
which had been held, but not used, by an
unrelated company, CUC Broadcasting (a
division of Shaw Cable)
 redesign of the CUC logo, stationery and visual
identity – not a full-scale overhaul, but an
attempt to make our look more friendly,
modern, professional and faith-oriented
 creation of Word templates for CUC
administrative use, incorporating the redesigned
identity
When Nichola took her contract with the Pay
Equity Commission last November, we advised
Mary Bennett that we could no longer fulfil the
obligations of the Visibility Project, and we have
resigned from that position, although we did
commit to helping with media relations at the 2001
annual meeting in Montreal.
canadian unitarian
council
Report on Communications (Religious Education Video & canuue)
Religious education video -elizabeth bowen
Religious Education Spans a Life Time makes its debut
at the Montreal AGM. The video focuses on our
Religious Education programs for all ages and
presents a sense of the ideas and values that we
introduce to our children and youth.
The video's producer, Kem Murch directed filming
in Ottawa and London. During a Religious
Education Renaissance module held in London,
exuberant Canadian and US participants were
caught on tape as they discussed the abundant RE
programs offered by their societies.
Ottawa was chosen as a major film site because it is
home to a large congregation and a smaller
fellowship. That circumstance allows the video to
highlight a wide variety of life span RE programs
offered at the First Unitarian Congregation of
Ottawa. The video is also able to contrast the
Sunday morning activities in the Congregation's
large church school with those at the Unitarian
Universalist Fellowship of Ottawa, where the DRE
meets the challenge of teaching a single class of
children whose ages range from 6 to 12 years.
The many congregations from Vancouver to
Halifax who submitted photos and tapes for
reproduction in the video, allowed Religious
Education Spans a Life Time to present a view of
Unitarian Universalist life span Religious
Education programs across Canada. In addition,
many people contributed their time, energy and
financial support. Without you, this project would
never have been completed. My sincere thanks to
all of you.
When the next issue of CANUUE (6.4, Summer
2001) is mailed, it will mark the completion of six
years of this publication for religious educators in
Canada. As its co-editors, (Barbara Wallace and
Pat Webber,) we take pride in remembering its
beginnings as an idea in our heads, and the
initiative of the then CUC Board in deciding to
publish it. Over the years, we are satisfied that it
has improved in both content and appearance. It
has, we believe, been an important initiating
catalyst for a developing network of religious
educators across the country. It has led to the
CANUUE list, and to the increasing success of
R.E. Days at CUC AGMs. Although it has only
been distributed in Canada it has become well
known and appreciated all over the continent.
It is with sadness, therefore, that we have decided
to retire as its co-editors. During the past several
years both of our careers now take us away in many
different directions. Particularly in this last year, we
have found it very difficult to find the several days
together that it takes to carry an issue from
inception to completion, and to meet the
deadlines. We have worked well together as a
complimentary team, and neither of us feels we
have all the skills needed to take it over
independently.
We want to express our appreciation to all those
who have contributed to CANUUE over the years,
and so would like to reflect this in the last issue we
edit. We hope the CUC will choose to continue
this vital publication, and that it will find a suitable
person(s) to take over as editor(s). And finally, we
want to thank the CUC for having had the
confidence in us to let us create CANUUE .
Canuue - Pat webber
2000 – 2001 annual
Report
29
canadian unitarian
council
Report of the uua trustee -at-large from canada Rev. Katie stein sather
Having been appointed mid-term to this position
last December, I started this report by reviewing a
few previous ones. I am struck by the continuity of
the conversation about our relationship within and
to the UUA. My predecessor Herman Boerma in
1997 speaks of the initial planning stages of the
Fulfilling the Promise process, a re-covenanting and
planning exercise for the whole of the UUA. They
wished to examine our congregational
relationships, and how they are reflected in service
delivery at the District level and at the headquarters
level. Their final report has just recently been
completed, and received by the UUA Board. It’s
online at
http://www.uua.org/promise/finalreport.html.
The gist of it is that they want to strengthen the ties
at all levels: District, and inter-District, and
between congregations within regions, especially for
the delivery of services. They are looking at a
number of models to accomplish this with an
emphasis on de-centralized and participatory
delivery ideas.
Universalists. While there is some sadness about
Canadians possibly leaving the UUA, there is also
the recognition that we should have the resources
to envision and accomplish our own future.
Herman reported in 1999: “The experience of
having served on the UUA Board for almost four
years leads me to believe that an independent
Canadian Unitarian and Universalist Association
would be a healthy development for us.” That has
indeed been the major conversation among
Canadian congregations this winter and spring, and
also been a major focus for the UUA Board.
Should you wonder how I feel about the sunsetting
of this position: I feel that our energies would be
much better directed to the joint commission
which would focus directly on bi-lateral issues.
Many of the issues before the UUA Board would
not be relevant if most or all Canadian
congregations were not members of the UUA. The
future for the CUC is challenging, but also
inspiring and exciting!
The Canadian examination of service delivery
started in 1998 with the Commission on Delivery
of Services to Canadian congregations. We too are
working on finalizing that process. This brings us to
the place where I jumped into this position:
negotiating with the UUA on the Accord in early
January, and hearing that their current offer was a
$1.5 million US endowment! It took me some time
to appreciate just how startling that position was,
how much that meant from the UUA Board of
Trustees' perspective.
In doing this, they are living out the anti-oppression
work they have been focusing on in the Journey
toward Wholeness program. They have realized
that their relationship to Canadian Unitarians and
UU’s is not as mature as they would like it to be.
While they wish they could be truly inclusive of
Canadians within a continental UUA, they now
understand how incredibly difficult that is. That’s
what the whole “let’s give you $1.5 million as an
endowment” is about: enabling the Canadian
Unitarian Council to be a full-service as well as
governing body for Canadian Unitarians and
2000 – 2001 annual
Report
30
canadian unitarian
council
FINAL REPORT OF THE CUC N OMINATING COMMITTEE
The following candidates have been nomintated by the Nominating Committee for the 2001 elections to be
held at the 40th Annual Meeting of the Canadian Unitarian Council, in Montreal, Quebec, May 18-21,
2001. They have indicated their willingness to stand. Biographies are attached.
Board of Trustees for election for a second three-year term
ELIZABETH BOWEN
154 Waverley St. Apt. 2A
Ottawa, ON, K2P 0V4
613-236-4504
erbow@cyberus.ca
For Area E – Eastern Ontario
and Quebec
Board of Trustees for a two-year term
KEITH JOBSON
1971 Ferndale Road
Victoria, BC, V8N 2Y4
250-477-8947
kjobson@islandnet.com
For Area A - British Columbia
Board of Trustees for a three-year term
HEATHER LUNERGAN
199 St. John
Fredericton, NB, E3B 4A8
506-459-1621
notabene@nbnet.nb.ca
For Area F – Atlantic Canada
JOAN FOSTER
412 Enfield Road
Burlington, ON, L7T 2X6
905-637-8923
foster1@cgolcable.net
For Member At Large - Ontario
For auditor 2001 - 2002
John Fenton, 302 The East Mall, #608, Etobicoke, ON M9B 6C7
2000 – 2001 annual
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canadian unitarian
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FINAL REPORT OF THE CUC N OMINATING COMMITTEE
For 2001 – 2002 Nominating Committee
A. British Columbia
Lynn Price, Victoria
B. Alberta
Beth Jenkins, Edmonton
C. Saskatchewan, Manitoba, N. Ontario
Beverly Leaman, Thunder Bay
D. Central Ontario
Bill Fulton, Hamilton, Chair
E. Eastern Ontario and Quebec
Marilynn Kuhn, Ottawa
F. Atlantic Provinces
Laura Hody, Halifax
Respectfully submitted by the
2000-2001 Nominating Committee
Region
Name
First Elected
A. British Columbia
Lynn Price, Victoria
Board appointment - 2000
B. Alberta
Beth Jenkins, Edmonton
1998
C. Saskatchewan, Manitoba, N. Ontario
Beverly Leaman, Thunder Bay
1998
D. Central Ontario
Bill Fulton, Hamilton (Chair)
1999
E. Eastern Ontario and Quebec
Marilynn Kuhn, Ottawa
Board appointment - 2000
F. Atlantic Provinces
Laura Hody, Halifax
1998
NOMINEES FOR THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES
BIOGRAPHICAL INFORMATION
Elizabeth Bowen has been a valued member
of the CUC Board for the past three years. She
has been an active member of the First Unitarian
Congregation of Ottawa since 1971. In March of
1995, Elizabeth retired from the Federal Public
Service of Canada.
Elizabeth's involvement in the Ottawa
Congregation has included serving on the Board
of Directors for two terms as well as working on
and chairing a wide range of committees.
Elizabeth has served on the Board of Directors
for her condominium corporation and the
Ottawa Memorial Society. She is also a member
of IARF. An active member of the University
Women's Club and of Friendship Force
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International, Elizabeth has travelled to many
countries to promote its motto "A World of
Friends is a World of Peace".
Soon after joining the Board, Elizabeth
developed the CUC's Guidelines, Policies and
Procedures for New and Emerging UU Groups in
Canada. Through Elizabeth's efforts, the CUC
signed a Master Refugee Sponsorship Agreement
with Immigration and Citizenship Canada and
published A Guide for Congregations on the
Agreement. She has devoted innumerable hours
over the last 2.5 years to ensure the successful
production of the CUC video Religious Education
Spans A Life Time.
canadian unitarian
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FINAL REPORT OF THE CUC N OMINATING COMMITTEE
Keith Jobson is a retired law professor and
former schoolteacher. He was born and raised in
Saskatchewan and taught school both in
Saskatchewan and Ontario. Later he taught law
at the Faculties of Law at Halifax and Victoria.
He and his wife, Florence, live in Victoria.
Keith and Florence have a family of three boys,
all currently residing in the United States. The
Jobson family came to know Unitarianism
through their contacts with congregations in
Calgary, Halifax, Ottawa (where they lived for
three years), and Victoria.
In Victoria, Keith has served as chair of the Social
Responsibility Committee and remains active
with that Committee and with the Policy,
Planning, and Evaluation Committee and the
Funds Committee (long range financial
planning). He is also a former member of the
Board and former President of the First
Unitarian Church of Victoria.
Keith has been serving on the CUC Board for
the past year.
Heather Lunergan has been connected with
Unitarianism since the mid-nineties, following an
educational/spiritual journey that took her to
graduate school and to the Unitarian Fellowship
of Fredericton. Currently, Heather serves as
Vice-President, Ministry and Programs. Prior to
this year, she served on the board for three years,
as Chair of the Sunday service committee and
then as Secretary. Heather also chairs the
Fellowship’s “Group of Five” who have assisted a
Kosovar family.
Heather completed the Northeast Leadership
School program in 1998, and has attended
AGM’s of both the CUC and Northeast District.
Heather says she can bring “my enthusiasm for
new challenges, my keen interest in the
denomination, my ability to listen and learn and
then jump in with energy, and my love of life.”
Joan Foster graduated from Sheridan College,
Oakville, Ontario in 1977 from one of their early
childhood programs. She was married the year
before and shortly after gave birth to her first son,
Michael Joseph. Joan was a stay at home mom.
Three years later her second child Elizabeth Ann
came along. Heather feels the experience she
received at college greatly benefited her parenting
of her children. Joan also became involved in
various leadership roles related to her children’s
activities such as Brownies and Religious
Education.
Joan has been a member of the Hamilton First
Church for about twelve years. Joan taught
Religious Education classes and was a member of
the Religious Education Committee for four
years, of which three of those years were as
chair. During this time she also spearheaded a
Covenanting Process for DRE as well as being
part of the DRE Evaluation Task Force.
In the summer of 1999, Joan attended Eagles.
The experience has helped her immeasurably in
many ways such as gaining a real appreciation of
different styles and approaches and the
importance of process in congregational work.
Joan’s current activities in the Hamilton Church
involve working on the development of Small
Group Ministry, as well as on a Sabbatical task
force to help guide the congregation through
their upcoming sabbatical for their minister.
Joan has also joined her congregation's Board of
Trustees.
Heather teaches Political Science and Humanities
at St. Thomas University and is the coordinator
of the University’s Transition Year Program for
international students. Hobbies include reading,
music, good food, and spending money on
grandchildren.
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canadian unitarian
council