CYNTHIA ASPRODITES

I am a daughter, a mother, an educator, a learner, a lesbian, a wife, and a committed member of this congregation. I am the proud parent of a Unitarian-Universalist minister.

I began attending UUCB in the mid-1980’s, when our daughter, Aija, was a child. Like many who come here, I could not reconcile the religion of my childhood and wanted a faith community for our daughter. Little did I sense at the time that I would find my spiritual home here.

I regard UUCB as an essential part of my life. It provides me an anchor as I move about in the world. It offers solace, gives me hope, and brings me joy. I feel an ever-deepening sense of belonging to this community. I am encouraged about our future when I see new people walk through our doors, especially parents who may be entering this place called “church” for the same reasons I did years ago.

Over the years, I have served on lots of church committees and task forces, such as Safe Congregation, the Board of Trustees, and the Coordinating Team. One of the reasons I agreed to serve on the transition team is that I want to support our future so that UUCB continues to make a difference in people’s lives and in the world. By reflecting on who we are as a congregation and who we hope to become, we can prepare ourselves for the next chapter.

LYNNE CAHOON

John and I were married at this church in 1965, though we did not join at that time. I was teaching second grade in Oakland Public Schools. I retired in 1970 to start a family. We had three children, two girls and a boy. Unfortunately, our son Mark was severely retarded with Down’s syndrome. I spent frustrating years trying to find appropriate help for him, and in 1982, I went back to school to get a special ed. credential. I taught disabled preschoolers until my retirement. Mark died in 2006.

In 1977, we became members of UUCB, and slowly became more and more active. Do talk to me if you are interested in the Aesthetics or Landscaping of the church, or if someone needs a supercard.

LYNN HAMMOND

I received my Ph D. in English in 1974 and promptly became a Backcountry Ranger in Yosemite National Park. (Therein lies a tale.) That winter, I started leading cross country ski trips in Yosemite’s rugged and beautiful backcountry. I was lucky to meet adventuresome souls with whom I kayaked in Glacier Bay, Alaska, and skied across the Sierra. Much of my spirituality is tied up in nature, so watching Northern lights in Alaska or the ‘alpenglow’ on Mt Rainier, where I also was a back-country ranger, are peak experiences for me.

Eventually, in 1977, I got a job at College of the Atlantic in Maine, which allowed me to teach my dissertation on Aldous Huxley’s utopian society in Island, as well as Outdoor Education and Sex Roles. Since then, I have taught Writing, British and American Literature, Drama, Women’s Studies, and Legal Writing in colleges and law schools around the country. In my summers and other vacations, I have taught Nordic skiing, kayaking, canoeing, & Yoga. No matter what skill I am teaching, my underlying goal is always to help people grow in body, mind, and spirit–not just to learn new facts or new sports or new writing skills.

I came to UUCB in 1996, having been raised in the Methodist church and having chosen to be a Quaker and then a Hindu in my adult life. I lived for 2 1/2 years in the Kripalu Yoga ashram, where we celebrated Christmas and Hanukkah as well as Hindu rituals every December. UUCB’s inclusiveness is part of what drew me here.

I joined the transition team to help us as a congregation become clear about who we want to be and then attract a new minister who will lead us toward that vision.

KAREN PAULL

Craig and I found our way to UUCB in the late 1990s. We were a couple in search of a community that shared our values but weren’t at all sure we would find a religious community that worked for both of us, as our ethnic and religious backgrounds are different. I am Jewish and was raised in the tradition of “There is only One God and we do not believe in Him!”, while Craig was raised Methodist and had been part of a Buddhist community for many years. But to our surprise at UUCB we found a welcoming and inclusive community that soon became an important part of our lives. We were married at UUCB in 2000. Craig became a UU minister and was ordained by this congregation.

My day job as a public interest lawyer has been my main focus in recent years, but have joined members of UUCB at the Ceasefire Walks in Richmond and it feels good to engage with the community around us together. I’m not afraid of change or difficult conversations, so I can support the process of renewal that the congregation is about to embark upon

MARSHA SAXTON

I was a child in this church; my parents, Marylee and Earl Saxton, were active members. Their names on the memory wall and their ashes buried on the hill bring recollections of earlier years and connections. I left for Boston for some decades and came back. I’ve enjoyed and learned from roles I’ve played at UUCB, leading Chalice Circles, and co-chairing the Social Justice Council. I love working with groups, watching the group dynamics of our amazing human minds, struggling, working, playing, creating together, towards change, hopefully transformation.

I work as a faculty member at UC Berkeley and at the World Institute on Disability, as researcher and trainer in the disability rights community. I’m compelled towards equity and inclusion of marginalized people, stemming from my parents’ good values, this privileged progressive geographic location, as well as my experiences being a girl with metal leg braces and all the well-intentioned but unhelpful fuss made about my difference. I joined the transition team to learn about and contribute to the process of community and how to make it effective, enjoyable and powerful.

GAIL SIMPSON

I found UUCB in 1984, was married to David Roberts in the sanctuary in 1987, and in 1994, with her birth mom, we celebrated the “giving and receiving” of our second daughter through adoption – a ceremony that was memorialized in Meg Cox’s book “The Heart of a Family”. I have sung in the choir, taught Sunday School, and served on the Endowment, RE and Music Committees. As chair or co-chair, I helped hire RE and music staff, including Bryan Baker. Among my biggest projects for the church was Light Works, a scripted and fun holiday pageant that involved more than 100 singing, acting, dancing and music-making congregants ranging in age from 2 to 92 years.  

Since graduating from UC Berkeley, I have worked as a consultant, economist and social scientist primarily in three fields: the financial sector, government welfare programs and international development. For 15 years I worked in two of my own businesses, one of which made the Inc 500 list. During my work on the Endowment Committee at UUCB, I discovered the soulful work of advocating for socially responsible investing which I briefly pursued professionally as the ED of the Council for Responsible Public Investment.

For the past 5 years, my passion has been opera. I founded a scrappy little opera company that creates full-length shows and performance pieces from the opera repertoire, but always with a twist. (You can find clips on YouTube or visit www.OperaFrontier.org.)   Our “PopUp Opera at the Palace Hotel” has logged over 100,000 views.

I also served as volunteer lay Chaplain at San Francisco General Hospital.

JOHN S. TUCKER

I was born in San Francisco in 1929, a third generation depression survivor. I have been interested in science since the seventh grade. I also enjoy sailing and racing on SF Bay. I went to Pomona College and along the way I got a taste of the excitement of research. I graduated in 1951 and was accepted by Stanford in a Ph.D. program but the draft board would not give me a deferment, so I joined the Navy, and became an officer serving over a year on a Victory ship in Asia. I loved sea duty. Next I was sent to Guam’s Naval Station—hot and dull but I spent many hours snorkeling the reefs. I was overwhelmed by the beauty and complexity of that ecosystem. I returned to Stanford and earned a Ph.D. in biology. I found a job at College of the Pacific marine lab. I also taught in a small intense liberal arts program in the College. I left teaching to look for a place to make a difference in environmental science. I failed and a friend and I bought a boat equipment business. After 14 years I turned 65, the lease was up and we were losing money. We quit and I happily retired. I had joined UUCB in 1981. I have spent the last 30 years studying the interface between science and religion and I am having fun. This church is an important part of my life. I want it to have a thriving future.

REV. GREG WARD

I’ve worked as a dishwasher, baker, clown, cook, tutor, elevator operator, baseball player, dancer, lab tech, pharmaceutical engineer, aerobics instructor, Youth Advisor (here at UUCB), Chaplain, DRE, and minister. I was selected by UUCB’s Board of Trustees and report to them. I am a member of the Coordinating Team, oversee staff, help coordinate worship, pastoral care, rites of passage, and the many programs which uphold our mission. As Transitions Minister, my aim is to help us look at our past, understand our heritage, gifts, resources, tools and challenges; develop a process to understand the views of UUCB’s stakeholders; chart a course and work together with the Board, Coordinating Team, staff and lay leaders to organize and channel efforts toward that vision. The end result will be placing a stake in the ground as to what kind of church we want to be so the Search Team can find the minister most aligned and compatible with our energy, skills, commitment and vision.