Membership Council
Welcome!
Membership Council Chair: Margaret Moschak <mjm713@lightlink.com>, 607-277-6448
Board Liaison: Phyllis Smith-Hansen <psmithhansen@hotmail.com>, 607-277-3966
If you have come to this page in hopes of finding the protocols for becoming a member or maintaining a membership in the First Unitarian Society of Ithaca, please click on membership protocols.
If you cannot find the information you need here or on linked pages, you may contact either the Council Chair <mjm713@lightlink.com> or the Board of Trustees Liaison <psmithhansen@hotmail.com> (identified at the top of this page).
MISSION STATEMENT
The mission of the Membership Council is to oversee and coordinate the efforts of those committees seeking to serve the needs of the Church by bringing our Unitarian–Universalist message to an ever-increasing number of people, not only through outreach but also through seeking to fulfill the needs of both newcomers and members.
GOALS
It is our goal to foster friendship and camaraderie while working to support the congregational community of the First Unitarian Society of Ithaca. We do that by sponsoring activities aimed at furthering individuals’ understanding of Unitarianism and of our own Church in particular, and by encouraging volunteerism.
We invite participation, and we celebrate diversity in all its forms. We try to make everyone feel comfortable and welcome, starting with the first time a person visits our church.
We greet newcomers and plan orientation gatherings, newcomer breakfasts, and formal induction ceremonies for new members. We arrange for greeters to be present at the Church door on Sunday mornings before service, and after service in the parlor.
We organize and manage a list of volunteers available for short-term tasks throughout the year. We keep an active usher list for Sundays, plan for public media advertising, keep communication going with other UU churches, talk about our beliefs and our lives, and break bread together.
Probably one of the Committees and Groups included in this Council would be perfect for your interests and talents. They are:
* Denominational Affairs
Joan Lewis <jl154@@cornell.edu>, 607-387-7027
Dorothy Buerk <buerk@localnet.com>, 607- 844-4945
* Foundations of Fellowship
Marie McRae <mmmcrae@juno.com> , 607-844-8783
* LGBT Group
Doc Kinne <kinnerc@14850.com>
* Membership Committee
Margaret Moshak <mjm713@lightlink.com>, 607-277-6448
* Newcomers Welcoming Committee
Martha Ferger <jhferger@pol.net>, 607-844-8184
* Nominating Committee
Jennifer Streid-Mullen <streidmull@aol.com>, 607-275-8134
* Outreach
Bill Pardee <wdp5@cornell.edu>, 607-257-0832
Flo Smith <flosmith42@aol.com>, 607-273-6147
* Ushers
John Gaines <GHYHJAG@clarityconnect.com>, 607-898-3943
Of those groups and committees listed above, the two most closely involved with planning for new members are the Newcomers Welcoming Committee and the Membership Committee.
Membership Committee
Contact person Margaret Moshak <mjm713@lightlink.com>, 607-277-6448
The Membership Committee is involved in planning for UU orientation gatherings, newcomers breakfasts, and newcomer induction ceremonies, as well as scheduling greeters for the front doors on Sundays.
Newcomers Welcoming Committee:
Contact person: Martha Ferger <jhferger@pol.net>, 607-844-8184
This group provides staffing for the Newcomers Table in the parlor on Sundays, arranges the schedule for the greeters who make each coffee hour a bit friendlier throughout the church year, and makes phone calls to everyone who asks to have their name added to the church mailing list.
If you feel called to participate in warmly welcoming newcomers to our Church, your help would be enthusiastically received. Please contact the Chair <mjm713@lightlink.com> for more information.