Congregational Meetings

1U Spring Congregational Meeting 

The Spring Congregational Meeting was held on Sunday, March 16, 2025.

The Agenda for the meeting is here.

The minutes from the December 1, 2024 Congregational Meeting, here, were approved without changes.

Gregg announced that the draft minutes for this meeting, and future congregational meetings, will be shared with all who attended the meeting via email shortly after the meeting. Those with comments will be asked to return them to the Board Secretary, Debbie Reinhart. The Board will then review and approve the minutes at their next meeting.

The slides, approved minutes for the meeting and the video will be posted when available. Members will be notified and a link provided in the Weekly Update.

Gregg Buckingham, Board President

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Congregational Meetings are held as needed throughout the year, typically in the fall, winter and spring. Our congregation holds an Annual Meeting each May at which the Board of Trustees and the Nominating Committee are elected and a budget is adopted for the coming fiscal year.

This page will provide information about upcoming Congregational Meetings three weeks before they are scheduled to occur, and include

  1. The date, time and location of the meeting,
  2. The Zoom link for access to the meeting.
  3. Links to the the Agenda, and other documents that are posted,

After the most recent Congregational Meeting is completed, links to the minutes of the meeting, slides presented during the meeting, and a video of the meeting will be posted here as they become available.

1U 2024 Fall Congregational Meeting 

December 1, 2024

The Fall Congregational Meeting was held on Sunday, December 1, 2024.

We approved two items:

  • The minutes from the Annual Congregational meeting on May, 2024 [link here]
  • The First Unitarian Strategic Plan [link here]

Links to the slides, video, and the minutes for the meeting are here. Going forward, the Board will be reviewing the Congregational Meeting Minutes and voting to accept them at the next Board meeting.

This was a wonderful opportunity for us to be together as we reach the end of another church year and plan for the next.  On behalf of the Board, I can express our gratitude for all the ways our 1U community continues to serve our mission and to make a difference in the world.

Yours in Service,

Gregg Buckingham, Board President

1U Annual Congregational Meeting 

Sunday May 19, 2024 

The 2024 Annual Endowment and  Congregational meetings were held on Sunday, May 19, 2024, both in-person in the Sanctuary and online.  

Further information and the meeting documents can all be found at the links below: 

The Agenda for the Annual Meeting is here. 

We voted on several items. All were approved.

  • The minutes from the February 11, 2024 Congregational meeting, here.
  • FY 2024-25 Budget and Narrative, here.
  • Slate for Board of Trustees, here.   
  • Slate for Nominating  Committee, here. 

The meeting packet, which contains copes of the documents for the Endowment Annual Meeting and the Annual Meeting of the Congregation, as well as the Annual Reports from staff and all groups at 1U, is here.

The slides presented at the meeting are here.

The direction of the Strategic Plan was informally endorsed by the congregation. There is a cover letter and summary of the Strategic Plan, both here, for your review.

The Endowment had a short business meeting preceding the Annual meeting. Their Annual Report is here.

You may direct questions to BOT@Orlandouu.org. 

1U Spring 2024 Congregational Meeting 

February 11, 2024

Greetings 1U Members and Friends:

The Spring Congregational meeting was held on Sunday, February 11, 2024, both in-person in the Sanctuary and online.  

Links to the meeting documents are below:

  1. Meeting Agenda
  2. Minutes from the December 2023 Congregational Meeting.

We voted  on these items: 

  1. The minutes from the December 2023 congregational meeting- Approved
  2. New Vision, Mission and Values Statements below – All approved.

The Strategic Planning Task Force and congregation have moved forward on a Vision and Mission statement and a set of values for First Unitarian.  About 100 people voted in the straw poll on the draft statements presented at the December congregational meeting. 

Vision:

First Unitarian brings together a vibrant, inclusive, multi-generational community of spiritual seekers, grounded in love. We sustain each other in joy and sorrow, promote lifelong learning, and act for justice in the world. 

Mission:

We nurture a spiritual community grounded in love that celebrates diversity and promotes justice.

Values:

  • Inclusion
  • Spiritual Growth
  • Community
  • Justice
  • Love

On behalf of the Board, I can express our gratitude for all the ways our 1U community continues to serve our mission and to make a difference in the world.

Yours in Service,

Paul Knight, Board President

Endowment Meeting

Immediately after the Congregational Meeting

The congregation is invited to remain after the end of the congregational meeting to attend a brief meeting of the Endowment and vote on the last two Minutes for the Endowment meetings before the Annual Meetings in May 2022 and May 2023, and a change to the Endowment by-laws.. Links to the documents related to the meeting are below. Items 2, 3 and 4 were approved by the congregation.

  1. Endowment Meeting Agenda
  2. Proposed Amendment to the Endowment by-laws
  3. Endowment Annual Meeting Minutes May 2023
  4. Endowment Annual Meeting Minutes May 2022

Yours in Service,

Michael Cohen, Endowment President

1U Fall Congregational Meeting

Sunday December 3, 2023  12:00 Noon 

 Links to the documents for the meeting are below:

  1. Meeting Agenda
  2. Minutes from May 2023 Annual Meeting [approved]
  3. Proposed Changes to 1U Bylaws [approved]  See Paragraphs 5.5,3 and 5.5.4.

You may direct questions to BOT@Orlandouu.org. 

Strategic Planning Straw Poll: During the meeting the Strategic Planning Task Force announced it has collaborated with a writing team to create potential statements that reflect the congregation’s input from surveys and workshops about mission, vision and values.

As discussed at the congregational meeting, we are asking you to tell us your preferences!  While this poll is not an official vote, it will move us to the next steps in the process. 

We are beginning to narrow down choices, so be sure to add your voice to 1U’s future!! It will only take about 10 minutes.  

Here is the link, which closes December 23rd:  https://forms.gle/xZ8vRq8WW3ono7G86

We appreciate the support the congregation has provided so far!  As usual if you have questions, email us at g.strategicplanning@orlandouu.org; or contact Gregg, Kathy or Joan.

  

Important note: We approved the bylaw change in #3 above. During COVID our leadership did a great job of reacting to the needs of the congregation, keeping us safe, and structuring meetings to accommodate isolation during COVID. Now, we have revised our bylaws to reflect that capability.

Yours in Service,

Paul Knight, Board President

Endowment Annual Meeting

Annual Meeting of the Congregation

First Unitarian Church of Orlando

The Endowment Annual Meeting  for 2022-2023 was held on Sunday, May 21, 2023.  This meeting included Endowment Board elections, a financial report, and an update on the Caroline Gore Legacy Society. The slate for the new Endowment Board was approved. Members are encouraged to read the details in the Endowment Annual Report located here. 

The Annual Meeting of the Congregation for 2022-2023 began after the Endowment Board meeting and included a recap of the year, a look at what’s ahead, and voting on the documents noted below.  All documents for the meeting can be viewed at the links below:

The Spring Congregation Meeting minutes, the 2023-2034 Budget and the nominations for the Board of Trustees and the Nominating Committee were all approved by the congregation.

Note: You must login to the Members Area of the 1U website to view the following folder, which contains the Budget and Budget Narrative:

Please review the Budget Narrative included in the folder with details about the FY 2023-2024 Budget.

It truly has been an “Exciting Time at 1U!”  We enjoyed being together for this annual tradition to conduct important business, share highlights of this past year and build excitement  for what lies ahead. Please feel free to contact your BOT with any questions at BOT@orlandouu.org. 

Yours in Service,

Joan Nelson, Board President

Spring 2023 Special Program and Congregational Meeting

The Spring Special Program and Congregational Meeting was held at noon on Sunday, March 19, 2023, both in-person in the Sanctuary and online. A special program with guest speaker Commissioner Patty Sheehan ended with unveiling the new historical marker  honoring Rev. Mary Safford on Hampton Street, This was followed by the congregational business meeting that included a discussion of the 8th Principle. After the discussion, it was announced that the congregation had voted to adopt the 8th Principle.  The minutes for the Fall 2022 congregational meeting were also approved.

Details include:

  • Agenda for the meeting is here.
  • Fall 2022 Congregational Meeting Minutes are here.
  • Information on the 8th Principle here.

This was a wonderful opportunity to celebrate Reverend Mary Safford, an important figure in 1U’s earliest days, and to participate in the democratic process that shapes our values.