Friday, June 5, 2015

Gehrmanns Called to Carmel

Dear Friends,
As you hopefully heard a few weeks ago, Elaine and I spent the last days of May visiting the UU Church of the Monterey Peninsula (UUCMP) in Carmel, California, meeting members and friends, and exploring the area. Last Sunday, the congregation voted to call us as their new co-ministers, and we accepted. This means Elaine and I will indeed be leaving Urbana-Champaign this summer, after nineteen remarkable years with you.

My last Sunday in the pulpit will be June 21st. The next day Elaine and I will head off to the UU General Assembly in Portland, Oregon, and after that I will enter my summer period of study leave and vacation, which – this year – will be spent packing up our possessions and, hopefully, selling our house in Urbana. My official last day as your minister is August 15th. August 15th also marks the arrival of your new interim minister, the Rev. Janet Newman.

In the Uniter and the E-News, you can find additional information about the upcoming transition, as well as events planned to celebrate the many good years we have shared.

The upcoming weeks will be busy, and I look upon them with mixed feelings. On the one hand, the changes and possibilities that lie ahead are exciting. On the other hand, it is difficult to imagine leaving this community and all our friends after many happy and rewarding years here. In the midst of it all, I feel a growing sense of gratitude for countless blessings, both past and future.

Please know that, despite the busyness, I am available to talk, to listen, and to answer questions you might have.

Deeply gratefully yours,
Axel

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