Nancy Thompson 

We are pleased to welcome Nancy Thompson as our new office and finance assistant.  She is a long-term resident of Santa Monica and is a graduate of Santa Monica College.  She had planned to continue her studies at UCLA, but fate and circumstances led to marriage in 1976.  She and her husband, Wesley Thompson, who is an employee of the City of Santa Monica, have four children.  Kevin, 31, is a musician.  Colleen, 29, received a MSW degree in social work from USC last June.  Kenny, 22, is completing his studies at UCLA, where he is majoring in Sociology and Urban Planning.  Caitlin, 18, is in the honors program and in the Wind Ensemble at Santa Monica College.

Nancy has extensive work experience, including 34 years in the banking industry and one year working part-time at the Santa Monica Methodist Church. She is looking forward to being part of our UUCCSM family.  She can be reached during the week at the church number, extension 102, or by email at assistant@uusm.org

Should the size of our Board ofDirectors be smaller?

The idea to reduce the size of the board has developed fromdiscussions about ways to focus board work on church programneeds and to create board meetings that are more efficient andmore rewarding for participants and that focus more energy onthe broader goals of the church. Much of this thinking wasprompted at the urging of three ministers who know us:Stephen Furrer, Roberta Haskin, and Ken Brown.

Currently board-meeting topics include much discussionof church administrative issues that have little significance tooverall church functioning. Other agenda items involveresponding to requests from committees for permission to proceed on a program or to seek board support for a new idea. Thisresults in micromanaging at the board level. Due to the longagenda, there is little time left for brainstorming, in-depth discussions about church programs and needs, developing policies, or evaluating how successfully we stay true to our churchmission.

New communication patterns would allow church leaders,committees, and staff to address their own administrativeissues; only issues they could not resolve would need to cometo the board. This would leave more board meeting time for indepth consideration of committees’ plans and needs and forpolicy development. Over time, this will result in decreasedmicromanagement and more authority being vested in committees who operate within parameters set by the board. Theboard would then have time to address the big picture: Do current programs meet the needs of the church? What will supportprogram innovation? How well are we meeting our mission andgoals? Are there new ways to fund church programs and support church stewardship? What long-term plans would benefitthe church?

This kind of brainstorming and deliberation is most effectively and enjoyably done in a small group (6 to 8 people). Working towards refocusing board energy is the reason for encouraging discussion about the size of the board. The board itself canrestructure how the work is done, but a bylaws change is necessary to reduce the size of the board.The board has supported the idea of investigating the possibility of a one-year experiment with a smaller board.

— Kathy Cook and Bronwen Jones

Should We Make the Board Smaller FAQ

Q. Can this be done quickly?
A. Yes. By creating a self-expiring bylaws amendmentto allow a one-year experiment with a smaller board.Then next year, if things work well, we can draw on ourexperience to develop bylaws to take us into the future.

Q.Who has to approve this?
A. Changing the size of the board requires changingthe bylaws. Amendments to the bylaws require a twothirds vote of the congregation.

Q. What happens if we don't agree on a plan at theend of the one-year experiment?
A. If no proposal receives a two-thirds vote at the2012 Annual Meeting, the bylaws revert to the way theyare now. To review, visit archive.uusm.org/about/bylaws.php

Q. Isn't a larger board more representative?
A. Church consultant Dan Hotchkiss argues that noboard is truly representative. The board's job is to servethe church. Dan argues that it is easier for a smallerboard to focus on keeping lines of communication openwith the larger congregation.

Q. Are board meetings really that time consuming?
A. According to our calculations, last year volunteerscollectively spent 1560 hours in board meetings whileonly 900 volunteer hours were spent on Sunday morning Religious Exploration.

Q. Why not just reduce the number of non-boardmembers bringing business to board meetings?
A. That may be a good idea. The board and ministercan experiment with different ways of running boardmeetings. Of course all church members will continue tobe welcome to come to all board meetings.

Q. Why don't we spend a year discussing this, perhaps with the help of a professional facilitator?
A. We could. Some of us feel that this isn't the sort ofissue to which the church should devote a great deal ofenergy. The whole idea is to spend less time on bureaucracy and more on worship, RE, etc. Spending a year debating the ideal form of bureaucracy seems self-defeating.

Q. Have recent board meetings really been thatlong and inefficient?
A. Board meetings currently run three or four hours.Ask a board member. If the board were not supportingthis discussion, it would not be happening.

Q. Board meetings haven't always been long. Whycan't we just figure out how to run the meetings so theyare shorter and still keep the same board size?
A. Even in the days when the meetings ran 1 to 2hours, there were too many people in the room toinclude everyone in a discussion. The same peoplewould contribute to discussion month after month. Newboard members rarely spoke up at the meetings, andthere was no structure to draw them in and catch themup on how things work. The president and the treasurerdid much of the work and most of the board listenedand raised their hands for voting and that's about it.

Congregational Polity

A number of people have asked, "Does this have anything to do with'policy governance'?" No. "Policy governance" is a fashionable buzzwordfor a system where the board, acting as a board, controls the organizationby delegating power to a CEO. UUCCSM does not practice policy governance and this framework will not change that.

UUCCSM practices "congregational polity," a system originating incolonial Massachusetts with the 1648 Cambridge Platform. Congregational polity is based on separation of powers and a system of checks andbalances. The president, treasurer, Nominating Committee, other boardmembers and minister are all separately elected. None can fire any of theothers. If they disagree among themselves, the matter is referred to a congregational meeting where we all thrash it out using direct democracy.This system arose because our predecessors feared giving too much powerto any one individual or group. They'd had enough of bishops, kings, andpopes and wanted to try something new. This 360-year-old tradition isenshrined in our bylaws. This potential change doesn't alter it at all.

- Tom Hamilton

How Do Other Groups Do It?

Most psychologists recommend 6 to 8 as a natural sizefor small group discussion and decision-making. Manydifferent organizations have boards this size.

Santa Monica City Council - 7 members
Los Angeles Airport Commission - 7
Apple Corp. Board of Directors - 7

Many non-profits prefer much larger boards as a way tohonor donors. These boards meet only a few times ayear.

Sierra Club - 15
Planned Parenthood - 29
ACLU - 83

Here is a list of largish UU churches and the size of theirboards (including officers).

Westside Seattle, WA - 7
Phoenix, AZ - 8
Sacramento, CA - 9
Santa Fe, NM - 9
Golden, CO - 9
Arlington Street,Boston, MA - 9
Neighborhood,Pasadena, CA - 11
San Diego, CA - 12
Portland, OR - 12
Tulsa, OK - 18

Smaller Board Endorsements

Cynthia Cottam: "I support a smaller board. I believe it would allow for more thoughtful conversation about leadershipand less focus on mundane tasks, most of which should be handled elsewhere. The ministerial Search Committee had eightmembers.We achieved the goal of hearing each member's opinion about every major issue.We were able to efficiently assigntasks, and we had enough people to work, when there was work to do."

Ron Crane: "Yes. Give precious time and energy to programs, not governance."

Rhonda Peacock: "The board's job is to ensure our church is on mission - not micro-manage day-to-day events."

Joyce Holmen: "Yes, smaller board - and more trust in and delegation to committees."

Peggy Rhoads: "A smaller board focusing on policy making will mean more autonomy for committees, but also moreresponsibility, a good thing, I believe, but also sobering."

Patrick Meighan: "Yes! I am a big proponent of a smaller board, and especially a board that delegates much more to thecommittees, and doesn't second-guess the resultant decisions."

Robin Lowney-Lankton: "All of UUCCSM would benefit from a smaller Board of Directors. First, reducing the board from12 to 7 members would free up five leaders to redirect their attention to other activities in the church. They could serve as cochairs of committees, mentor up-and-coming leaders, participate in District activities or take a well-deserved break."Secondly, a smaller board would necessitate that more decisions be delegated to appropriate committees. During mytenure on the board, I participated in dozens of hours of discussions regarding shade structures, dishwasher cycle lengths, andfurniture. This is not an efficient use of our church resources. We have experts in many fields within the church. Delegatingmore decisions to committees will make use of our content experts and free up the board from minutiae. I would welcomethe chance to see a revamped Board of Directors focus on the big picture and visioning for our future."

Thanks from Dining for Dollars

Thanks from Dining for DollarsA big thank you to all the hosts and hostesses andthe bidders who made 2011 Dining for Dollars so successful, and who allowed it to hit a new record of $30,000in winning bids. Although most of our events are soldout, the Choir Concert on May 7 featuring music of theBeatles still has lots of space. As of March 13, we havecollected 80% of the bids. If you won and haven't paid,please contact the office and make arrangements to doso. Thank you.

- Melanie Sharp, chair D4$

Infusion

On March 6 fUUsion held its first-ever businessmeeting to brainstorm ways to make the group for"younger adults" more sustainable over the long-termand more integrated into the church community. ElevenfUUsionites attended, and the result was a new leadership structure based on five committees. Robin LowneyLankton and Katrina Thompson will co-chair Communications and Church Relations, managing fUUsion'sFacebook page, Yahoo e-mail list, connections to thenew church website, and monthly contributions to thisnewsletter. Jennie Roberson will chair Social Events,including fUUsion's ongoing Awful/Thoughtful moviescreenings, monthly lunches after church, and other funoutings. James Witker and Felipe Findley will co-chairSocial Justice, continuing our tradition of service projects and adding new goals of connecting with other likeminded folks, including not only other church committees but also other younger adults in the L.A. area. DanPatterson will head up Spiritual Events, including circleworship and visits to local religious institutions. RyanHumphrey will handle Fundraising, with the aim of subsidizing fUUsion activities for those who might not otherwise be able to join us. In June we'll re-evaluate howthese committees are working out and then begin ayearly cycle of committee leadership.

As part of our efforts to be more integrated into thechurch, expect to find more fUUsion members at boardmeetings and involved in other church activities. Moreof our events (especially Social Justice and Spiritualones) will be hosted by fUUsion but open to all ages, sobe on the lookout for announcements.

- Katrina Thompson

Our effort to update and re-design the church's electronic communications wound up its primary researchphase in January after the Project Dazzle Committeeconducted interviews with many key stakeholdergroups for the uusm.org website. Over the past threemonths, we have spoken one-on-one with individualssuch as the Rev. Rebecca Bijur, administrators MelindaEwen and Holly Nguyen, and Director of Religious Education Catherine Farmer Loya. We also interviewed ourBoard of Directors, as well as committees representingFaith in Action, Music, fUUsion, Long-Range Planning,Adult Programs, and Membership and Leadership. Inaddition, we gathered comments from individual members. In each case, the goal was to hear first-hand whatthese often very different users and groups would like tobe able to do with a website and how a new site couldenhance their particular programs and goals.

The next phase of our development process will betranslating the wants and needs of the many stakeholdersinto specific features for the site and designing the site's"architecture"-the organizational scheme that pullseverything together into a cohesive, logical, easy-to-navigate whole. Hand-in-hand with this task is designing the"look and feel" of the site to reflect our church's cultureand the image we want to project to visitors.

Don't worry though-our formal interviews may bedone, but if you still have comments or ideas for the newsite, we're still listening. Just drop us a note atdazzle@uusm.org to share your thoughts. The websitewill continue to evolve and change in the years to come.Our goal is to give all of the stakeholders satisfaction,and that includes you.

- Liz Fuller, CommUUnications Committee

The Fifth Annual UUCCSM Malibu Campout

SAVE THE DATE! MARCH 18 - 20

Join 50 of your fellow Santa Monica UUs at the LaJolla Group Campsite, near Point Mugu, Malibu (just 30miles from church!) for a weekend of hiking, beachcombing, games, campfires and s'mores!Nominal per-person fee to cover campsite. Tentcamping. Hot showers, flush toilets, running water.Meals are potluck. More details to come.For more info contact Chris Brown.

Dining for Dollars Event List

This is a preliminary list of the events offered for the biggest fund-raising effort ofthe year. Bidding will take place on February 20th and 27th after the early service,from 10 a.m. to 11 a.m., and after the second service, from noon to 1:00 p.m. Therewill be a final list available on the days of bidding. Look at your calendars now, soyou can bid on as many events and goodies as possible. Please note that the moneydonated (paid) for the winning bids is non-refundable. (The board-approved cancellation policy is available from Melanie Sharp, chair of D4$ Committee

1 Sun 3/13 2 - 6PM Tea & Symphony (Young Musicians Foundation) HELEN BROWN & KATIE MALICH

2 Sat 3/19 10:30AM - 2PM Outdoor Performance of Celtic Music with Pizza Lunch TERI BOND & KATIE MALICH

3 Sat 3/19 6PM Texas Hold'em & Texas Bar-B-Q JERRY MOORE

4 Sat 3/19 6:30PM Traditional Saint Patrick's Day Dinner CYNTHIA COTTAM & TOM EARLY

5 Fri 3/25 6:30PM Italian Dinner Soir

Wanted

WHO: You
WHAT: ComUUnity Greeter Program
WHEN: Each member/family volunteers to greet at oneSunday service a year
WHERE: The courtyard before church and the coffeehour after church
WHY: A friendly and welcoming community for ALL-visitors, newer members, and longtime members alike
HOW:

• 1. Sign up at the Greeters' Table beforeservices on Sunday or in the church officeanytime
• 2. Take written instructions and refrigeratorreminder of your time and date
• 3. Join Greeting Committee members atGreeters' Table before the service on yourassigned date and time

The CommUUnity Greeting Program resumes thisJanuary after a brief hiatus. The purpose of CommUUnityGreeting is to have each member/family/friendparticipate in our greeting program at least one Sundaya year. This investment of a mere hour or so a yearfrom each of us will help make this church truly welcomingand truly a community. The sign-up book willbe at the Greeters' table on Sunday mornings. You'llfind it in the church office after the 11 a.m. service andduring the weekRemember the first time you visited this church?

Remember the first person or persons who welcomedyou, who took the time to talk to you during the coffeehour, who told you about the church programs andactivities you joined and enjoyed? The CommUUnityGreeting Program gives you a chance to pay this welcomeforward to new visitors and friends. And, it hasthe extra bonus of weaving a stronger communitybetween all of us, longtime members and first-timevisitors alike.With our country and world poised withpromise and fraught with uncertainty, belonging to awelcoming, caring community is vitally important forall of us.

Our formal name is the Unitarian Universalist CommunityChurch of Santa Monica. The word communityhas 13 different definitions in my dictionary: a geographiccommunity, a voluntary group of individuals,a population sharing unifying characteristics or interests.The list goes on. But most of us are here forreasons that my dictionary did not list: A warm,welcoming, caring community. Meaningful servicesand sermons. A family place for children. A chance toparticipate in something special. A chance to give backto our church community and the community at large.Thus, the CommUUnity Greeting Program plays a vitalrole in strengthening our community.

Our consumer culture prompts us to look for"What's in it for me?" Twenty-first century life can beso stressful and harried that the thought of settingaside an hour to participate as a CommUUnity Greetermay seem daunting to overloaded multi-taskers. Anhour is actually just 1/8760 of a year. A small investmentof time. And a rich return on your investment.

If you're still wavering about signing up for oneSunday a year, perhaps UU science fiction writer KurtVonnegut, Jr., Stanford scholar Robert McAfee Brown,or the public radio program"Speaking of Faith" couldpersuade you.

"What should young people do with their livestoday? Many things, obviously. But the most daringthing is to create stable communities in which this terribledisease of loneliness can be cured," advised KurtVonnegut, Jr.

"How does one keep from 'growing old inside?'Surely only in community. The only way to makefriends with time is to stay friends with people. Takingcommunity seriously not only gives us the companionshipwe need, it also relieves us of the notion that weare indispensable," counseled Robert McAffee Brown.

"Religious institutions at their best," says KristaTippett, host of the public radio program Speaking ofFaith, are a "heart of community." Quaker authorParker Palmer, in his recent conversation with Tippett,spoke of "reweaving a knowing community of mutualaid, mutual knowing, mutual assistance which is initself the abundance [spiritual wealth] we seek.We arelooking for the type of abundance that comes fromknowing that we are willing to feed one another,knowing that we are in those generative relationshipsthat when you need my support I am able to offer it asbest as I can and when I need yours the same is trueof you."

- Katie Malich

Meet and Greet with Calvary Baptist Church

In an effort to reach out to other cultures, the Multi-Racial Development Committee arranged to meetfor dinner with four members of our neighborhoodchurch, Calvary Baptist on 20th Street in Santa Monica.Pastor HermanKemp and his wife Mayattended along with VictoriaJohnson andMartha Johnson.

From UUCCSM wereour own Rev. Robertaand Dennis Haskin,Edna and Phil Bonacich,who hosted the event attheir home, John Raiford,Rick Rhoads, Ron Francis,and Sandra Trutt.

It didn't take long forthe awkwardness of newacquaintances to wearoff, and we began sharingour life experiences.Rev. Kemp told a storythat occurred during hisreligious training whenhe and fellow divinitystudents were droppedoff in a different city,with no money, dressedas homeless people, and had to survive for two and ahalf days days until they were picked up. Pastor Kempsaid living this lifestyle for a few days gave him insightinto another world. He learned first hand how it felt tobe looked down upon, to beg for money to buy food,and to seek shelter from the cold.

Everyone shared times in their lives when they wereinexperienced and didstupid things, or survivedon very little but theirwits.

We felt like old friendsby the end of theevening. I shared ourefforts at making ourchurch more sustainableand the members fromCalvary Baptist wereeager to get more informationabout things theycould do.

Future contact withCalvary Baptist membersmay be when we bothparticipate in a treeplanting activity with theU.S. Forest Service in theSanta Monica Mountainsin March.

The Multi-RacialDevelopment Committeemeets the second Sundayof each month. Join us next time and participatein our attempts to get to know other faith congregationsin our area.

- Sandra Trutt

Oh, Christmas Tree!

The annual tree decorating in our sanctuary was led this year by the expert team of Hanson-Lisovsky.

Pictured (left to right) are: Nels Hanson, Hildreth Simmons, Lauren Way (center front), Alyssa Wood, Greg Wood, Sarah Sullivan, Brit Malpiede, Jennie Roberson, Alex Baker.

A Message from Our Treasurer

The church needs your help. To continue ourmission of helping our congregation and those in ourcommunity to find a spiritual home or charitable help,our finances will need a significant boost. The economyhas affected our pledge receipts this year, andnew pledges made for the 2009 calendar year, significantlyand adversely-as it has undoubtedly affectedyour budget as well. In fact, the church faces an anticipatedshortfall of $90,000 over the next twelve months,perhaps more, which could completely deplete ourunrestricted savings. Additionally, we will haveexpenses related to our settled minister in 2009 thatwould present an additional $30,000 in expenses. However,the church has fixed expenses that cannot easilybe cut without hurting church services and employeeand congregational morale alike, and the church is offinite resources.While we do have some emergencyfunds, it is our sincere hope that we do not need to tapour "life savings" to maintain our mission.

We want to bring better services to our congregation;we want to add to adult religious education; wewant to bring new social programs; we want to be yourresource for not only spiritual, but also social needs.However, we now find our church with a very leanbudget, and we need funds to maintain the status quo,let alone bring new and better services to our congregationand community.We pledge that as a church wewill invest into expanding our services to provide moreopportunities for you to explore, learn, and socialize ifwe do not have to commit those resources to meetingour operational budget. This will help our church grow,adding new members and adding new programs tohelp more people realize what it means to be a UU.These efforts and investments may help improve ourfinances down the road.

We hope that you can reach into your hearts to helpyour church and your friends achieve our mission ofhelping each of us explore our faith and providingmeaningful services to help those in our communitywho are truly in desperate need.Sincerely,

- Gene D Balas,Treasurer

Progress in 2009 Pledge Campaign

The economy is tanking. People are losing jobs.Retirement savings are shrinking. Given this background,the 2009 Pledge Campaign is not doing badly.As of December 9 we had 172 pledges, up from 120 lastyear on the same date. Total pledges were $240,123,versus $200,170 a year ago. Although among those whopledged this year and last, average pledges are down10%, we have heard that nationally church contributionsare down 15% to 25%, so we are doing well in arelative sort of way. Below is a picture of the brickswe've been using to symbolize the building of ourchurch community through pledges.

However, in absolute terms we are in trouble. Ourcurrent projections are that we will run a deficit of$90,000 this year, depleting our unrestricted (nonemergency)savings if we use this to make up thedeficit. The paradox is that a healthy vital church canbe especially important in difficult times. The churchprovides a supportive community. Church activities,such as musical and RE events, are low or no cost. And,we will soon be faced with the added expenses associatedwith a settled minister.

What I'm going to say now applies only to those ofus who are lucky enough to have not lost our jobs orwhose retirement savings have not been halved. Thechurch will not stay the same for very long as it is if wemaintain the same level of contributions as in the past.Borrowing from Dickens, picture some future Christmaswith a dingier, drabber church, with an unimpressiveRE program, a half-time minister, no musical programming,and an inadequate staff, which is less ableto contribute to the wider community. It's up to us.

- Phil BonacichChair, Stewardship Committee