We are so pleased to officially introduce our four new Pastoral Care Associates: Virginia Brubaker, Alice Engelbretsen, Jenny Hunt, and Cloydia Larimore.
After going through an application process that included personal interviews & letters of recommendation, these four extraordinary women participated in many hours of training over the last nine months to become our first ever cohort of Pastoral Care Associates (PCAs).
In this new role, they will work alongside Rev. Florence and Rev. Sally to provide emotional support and confidential care to UUCUC members in need of a listening ear during times of hardship and loss.
Be sure to join in heartily welcoming and thanking them for their caring commitment to the UUCUC community.
Alice Engelbretsen: Alice has lived in Urbana, Illinois for 40 years. She worked at the University of Illinois until 2001 and served as Office Administrator from 2002 to 2004 at the UUCUC. She has two children and five grandchildren. She has been active as a volunteer member of the Sierra Club for 25 years, first as a national outings leader, and currently serves on the Executive Committee and Political Chair for the local Prairie Group. When the opportunity was presented to train volunteers in the Pastoral Care Advocacy program, it felt like a good fit and a valuable way to contribute to the wellbeing of fellow congregants.
Cloydia Larimore: After attending events and services at UUCUC for about 4 years, Cloydia signed the book earlier this year. Her desire to engage more fully and contribute to the greater good of our community has led her to the Pastoral Care Associates Program where she hopes to offer a compassionate presence and a listening ear to those in our community seeking such support.
Jenny Hunt: Jenny Hunt has been a part of UUCUC for about 8 years, becoming a member in 2015. Jenny was a counseling therapist working in both mental health organizations and private practice, specializing in grief and loss issues, trauma and life transitions. During the 1990s Jenny obtained ordinations from two different faith organizations. At that point she began incorporating spiritual wellness and counseling into her private practice work. This work is what she has missed the most since leaving her private practice. The Pastoral Care Associates program offers the opportunity to give back to the UUCUC community in a way that allows her to express many aspects of her background.
Virginia Brubaker: Virginia Brubaker has been a Witch and Pagan since 1971 and a UU since 2009, when she moved to Champaign from Chicago with her wife, Gail Schiesser. At UUCUC, she and Gail worked with the Membership Committee for several years and they led the production of membership directories in 2011 and 2015. They have organized a few Sunday services and several Pagan rituals for Yule and Samhain. Virginia hopes that her own experience with cancers in 2012 and 2017 will be useful as she does pastoral care work.
I see 4 remarkable women listed as New Pastoral Care Associates. Thank you for your caring and wonderful attitude to become members of this so necessary
and vital group. Looking forward to meeting Cloydia in the near future, I hope.