When I was growing up in my Christian household, I was frequently reminded by my parents to “count my blessings.” As a child, I usually enumerated the comforts of life and expressed my gratitude to a beneficent creator for the material goods bestowed: notably chocolate ice cream, my bedazzled jean jacket, Jasper (my gerbil) and trips to Rye Playland. Rarely did I express gratitude for people. Sure, I appreciated my parents, a caring teacher and a few “besties” at school. But for the most part, I viewed myself as a loner and didn’t recognize the impact other people had on my life. Now, so many decades later, counting my blessings primarily entails naming the people all around me who have enriched my life and given my work meaning. Leading the list are the 62 volunteers who worked alongside Courtney Firth, Melissa Campos-Poehnert and me this year to produce a robust Religious Exploration program for UUCF children and youth.
Back in September, I didn’t know what would unfold this year. Our student enrollment numbers had dropped significantly due to the pandemic, and although we planned fewer classes, recruiting enough teacher volunteers was still very difficult. We started the year with several teams short of teachers. We also had a large Coming of Age class, and all those students needed mentors. Would enough adults volunteer to meet the needs of RE? While adults were coming back to in-person UUCF activities, they seemed slow to commit. (Other UUCF activities like the Hypothermia Prevention Shelter and the Auction struggled for volunteers this year, too.) Thank goodness, we got there in the end. RE just can’t exist without the cadre of adults who plan engaging lessons, collaborate kindly with co-teachers, show up on time and nurture our children and youth with compassion and love.
This year, in addition to gaining the core number to run RE, the RE Committee asked even more of the volunteers. In keeping with UUCF’s mission, the committee charged the teachers with increasing social justice activities and connecting more with other UUCF committees. The volunteer teachers followed through, collaborating with Property Stewardship to plant a tree, coordinating with Social Justice’s Food Justice Team to supplement the monthly food drives and creating a presentation on food choices and climate change with support from Act for Climate Today! This year, too, RE students and volunteers made numerous trips off campus for learning. They visited the Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History and Culture, All Souls Church Unitarian in DC, Rosie’s Farm Sanctuary in Maryland; Buddhist, Islamic and Jewish houses of worship, and in 2 weeks the Coming of Age students will visit Boston. While a director of Religious Exploration can dream, and plan and hope – it is the volunteers who say, “Yes, I’ll do it” who make it all happen.
Earlier this month, the Coming of Age students presented their credos in worship. There can be no better testament to the importance of RE volunteers than the poise and confidence the students displayed that day, and the ideas they readily shared with the congregation. The students talked about the values of friendship and community, the importance of living a full life, of helping others, being just, fair, creative and being true to themselves. Those values they lifted up were the very values displayed consistently by the RE teachers and mentors who worked with the students not only this year but in so many prior years. RE volunteers create a safe and loving environment where students blossom.
May 21 is RE Volunteer Appreciation Sunday. We will be honoring the service of all the Religious Exploration teachers, liaisons, mentors, greeters and leaders – the people who enable RE to exist. Those RE volunteers are a great blessing to me. The joy and satisfaction I have in my job is directly due to their involvement. I thank each of them for their friendship, collaboration, commitment and love – blessings that are infinitely better than material goods – including chocolate ice cream.
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