Cameron

To Be Seen

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From the Minister, June 12, 2026
by Rev. Alex McGee

One of the greatest gifts one human can give another is the recognition of being seen.  This is why babies thrive under attention from parents and community.  This is why you, or I, under duress, do better when we can share vulnerably with another person and feel “seen.”

As Unitarian Universalists, we can offer this gift to each other and people in society who often have to make trade-offs about being seen.  In June, for Pride month, we seek to make space in which people can bring their whole LGBTQ selves to UUFC.  

Further, the Juneteenth acknowledgement reminds us of how many people lived enslaved lives, and then had to wait to be seen as free.

This matter of “being seen” has arisen in a new form in the past week in our country.  The Department of Defense changed the forms that people fill out when enlisting in the military.  No longer can a person check a box to claim the identity of “Unitarian Universalist.”  Now, they are categorized as “Other.”  

Let us not let this pass unnoticed.  Please reach out to the military that you know who are also UU.  Tell them that you see them!  And read more in this statement from the UUA: https://www.uua.org/pressroom/press-releases/uu-military-chaplains-2026

The Right Relations Team is available

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The Right Relations Team is available for conversations about covenant and to support brave spaces where people can move from defensiveness toward resolution.  For the first step, reach out to rev.alex.mcgee@uucorvallis.org.

Members of the Right Relations Team

Mark Aron

Mark has attended the UUFC since 1986.  He has taught in the RE program for nearly all of those 40 years, including working with the teen-age youth group over the past twenty-five plus years.  In 2012-13, he served on a successful search committee that was tasked with finding a new settled minister.  In 2013, he was appointed to the Committee on Ministry, and became its chair several years later.  He chaired this committee until it completed its work in 2025.  He chaired the team that wrote our most recent congregational covenant.

Mark has particular interests in aiding groups to work in constructive patterns.  Specifically, he is committed to helping folks engage in respectful interactions, deep listening, and healthy means of dealing with conflict.  To these ends, he has served on the Right Relations Team since its inception in late 2025.

Susan Christie

Susan Christie and her husband Matt Mathews joined the Fellowship in November 1999. Since then, Susan has sung in the choir, served as secretary of the Board of Directors, led the Climate Action Team, and been a member of the Justice Council, the Democracy Action Team, the Right Relations Team, and the Fellowship Care and Support Team, which provided extensive training on deep listening. Her strength is understanding differing perspectives on social justice and other issues.

Susan is a retired scientific/technical writer and still does pro bono work in support of climate science. She is a strong advocate of bicycle transportation.

Joyce Marvel-Benoist 

With an orientation to helping people communicate and an ability to suspend judgement, Joyce has served as community mediator, life coach, holistic addiction treatment center director, child care center director and special interventions trainer, as well as group facilitator utilizing a mix of NVC (Non Violent Communication), the Option Process, and others.    Program developer and facilitator for trainings focusing on communication, parenting, couples, self care, staff collaboration, emergency procedures, and creative arts.

Joyce and her husband JF Benoist have attended UUFC since 2023 and have assisted with women’s and men’s retreats, offered an empowerment workshop, and enjoyed supporting justice work, as well as groups such as Queerly Beloved and Neuro Diversity Support.  A longtime activist, her approach is open hearted and minded with respect for differing perspectives.

Global Partners Team, 6/14

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With gratitude, the Global Partners Team acknowledges the “countless gifts that have been given – gifts of life and love and sustenance” – and what that brings to our work to deepen our relationships with partners around the world.

Please join us on Sunday, June 14 at 11:30 AM in the Library for our regularly scheduled Team meeting. We will discuss and develop a plan for distribution of funds in the new fiscal year.

Contact GPT lead, Heather E, at this link for more information.

CLOSING JULY 19: Jam, Cookie, Peanut Butter, and Fudge Hutch

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The goodie hutch operated by Nora C., Donn A., and Holley L. is open at 2921 NW Ashwood Drive in NW Corvallis! All money collected goes to Linn-Benton Food Share. Please help feed hungry people!

The stand is at the top of the driveway. The house is surrounded by a high deer fence, so you can’t miss it. Ashwood is one block from Elmwood, heading towards Walnut.

One jar of jam is $7. Two or more are $6 each.

To go with jam, there is homemade peanut butter, 100% peanuts at $4 per jar, made by Donn Z. He also makes the amazing oatmeal-chocolate chip-raisin cookies $1 each or 6 for $5.

Holley L. makes old-fashioned chocolate fudge, grainy dark chocolate like your grandma used to make from a 1946 recipe. It’s $1 per square, 6 for $5.

The stand is always open and works on the honor system. Take your goodies (put in a bag if you like in bottom right cubby) and put cash or check to LeoNora Cohen in the envelope in upper right cubby.

THANK YOU FOR HELPING LINN-BENTON FOOD SHARE!

Gratitude Letter from Minister Emerita Rev. Jill McAllister

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At the Annual Meeting of UUFC membership on May 17, 2026, the congregation voted to offer Emerita status to Jill McAllister.  The letter of agreement is here.  Jill retired from the role of minister at UUFC in Summer 2025.  Below is a note from Jill expressing her gratitude and well wishes to the Fellowship.  

Dear Friends – I’m writing with thanks for your decision to confer upon me the status of Minister Emerita of the Fellowship. Thank-you! I take on this new status with gratitude and appreciation for our many years of shared ministry in challenging times, and for all we learned and accomplished together.  I’m grateful every day for your support for my decision to retire – it was definitely the right time for me.  I am still “settling in.”  And, as Life has its own ways, I am exploring new horizons.  A sibling with cancer – now I can visit often.  And an upcoming move: due to a quite unexpected (and beautiful) job opportunity for Walter, my spouse, we’re moving to Germany for at least a couple of years, leaving at the end of June.  And I know that you, the members and friends of the Fellowship are exploring new horizons and moving ahead too! Thank-you to all who are dedicating yourselves to this work.  I look forward to what emerges between you. You will be in my thoughts, as ever, and I’m sending love to you all.

Jill McA

Café Justo coffee is available!

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Enjoy some delicious, aromatic Café Justo coffee. When you order Café Justo coffee, a part of your purchase will be used to provide Café Justo to migrant shelters in Agua Prieta, Nogales, Sasabe, Sonoita, Tapachula, Gomez Palacio, and Matamoros in Mexico, as well as shelters in Columbus, Ohio, and in Silver City and Deming in New Mexico — through our “Love Mercy, Do Justice” ministry. That’s the “compassion” part of the “coffee and compassion.” Café Justo makes a great cup for you and me. Many hands go into the processing of your coffee before it ever reaches your cup. Coffee is one of the most labor intensive crops. Your purchase here helps communities in Mexico thrive.
(We regret that DECAF is not available until further notice.)

New art in the Sanctuary

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Out with the old and in with the new. On June 2nd the abstract art by the Willamette Abstract Group will be removed and on June 3rd our new exhibit will be installed. Our featured artist for June, July and August will be Carol Chapel, longtime local resident and creator. Carol’s paintings usually focus on nature and our environment. When asked about her style, Carol said “I recently saw some drawings done by a young man who is non-verbal. The way he processes and reacts to information is through drawing. I realize that we share common ground. I certainly am not nonverbal, but I too react and process information through my artwork. It helps my understanding of the subject. I do not necessarily strive to make an accurate reproduction of what I see, but I do want to bring the viewer into my understanding of it.“

I hope you find Carol’s work thought provoking and inspirational. If you are interested in helping to choose art for future exhibits, please contact Brian E.