Exhibition Space and Workshop VII – Administrators

I called in to the Exhibition Space for coffee and some time to simply wander around, take in what’s happening, and nick a free chocolate from the 2Plan Wealth Management stall (who says bribery doesn’t pay in advertising)? I was informed by someone on the Unite Faith Workers stall that I should consider entering the ministry to ‘answer the call that he could see in my eyes’. I considered replying that as far as I could tell, the only call currently in my eyes was the one suggesting a lie down in a darkened room for a bit, but instead I went for a British Polite Smile.

Back to the Administrators’ Workshop, the final one of the meetings and, for me, a chance to catch up with old friends.  Lizzie Kingston-Harrison, Simon Bland and Jenni Durrell introduced the Unitarian Administrators’’ Network and the Congregational Toolkit, successor to the old ‘Help Is At Hand’ guidebook. Perhaps it’s worth clarifying that it’s for administrators with a small ‘a’. Most of us don’t have the formal title ‘Administrator’, anyone who does any admin work for a Unitarian group – church, chapel, congregation, fellowship, society, group – is welcome to join the group, which exists to provide mutual support, advice and guidance via WhatsApp and monthly Zoom discussions.

I’m a member myself, and have found it invaluable. As much as anything, the importance of the admin side of maintaining Unitarian communities hasn’t received as much recognition as it should have done (in my opinion), and that we now have this support is fantastic. Given how widely distributed across the UK we are, being able to find answers from people who have dealt with similar issues – be it whether you need a PRS logo, whether you can get grants to fix the roof, setting up hearing loops, or sorting out Zoom settings – in real time is useful, both in practical terms, and in the wider sense of knowing, you are not alone. It was also nice to see people in person for once, rather than tiny Zoom squares, and the free Jaffa cakes didn’t hurt either! Come join us, folks!

Closing Session

We awarded Honorary Membership to Jeffrey Teagle for his long contribution to UK Unitarianism. Jeffrey made a moving speech about the long-term contribution of the Unitarian Young People’s League to UK Unitarianism, and how many of its alumni were in the room today. We voted to appoint John Bates as Hon. Treasurer, thanked him for his service in the past 12 months (as the President commented, he hadn’t managed to escape in time), send greetings to churches and societies abroad, thanked rev. Maud Robinson and all involved in the Anniversary Service, and thanks to the GA staff and volunteers for their help in organising the meetings.

The President commented that whilst these are formalities, they are important as the one occasion when we can publicly thank our staff and volunteers, and the Executive Committee, for their work on our behalf. Liz Slade expressed thanks for Andrew Mason’s many years of work on our behalf, followed by a round of applause. Rev. Jo James proposed a vote of thanks to the “entirely unique entity” that is President Geoff Levermore, both for his service of the past 12 months, and for his continuing in the role for the next 12 months (Rev. Jeffrey Bowes has elected not to take up the role for personal roles). We heard his Presidential address, reminding us that his goals when he became President were to promote Unitarianism as a liberal, open religion, being open to doubt, open to democracy, and getting a Research Fellow to look at current and future Unitarianism. This last hasn’t happened – at least not yet!

Finally, our Closing Worship rolled around, featuring a stirring rendition of ‘Tomorrow Is A Highway Broad and Fair’, and a new element – a closing parade of banners. I hope we keep this, it’s a nice symbolic closing of the Annual Meetings, allowing us to say farewell to our space for another year, before we said our farewells over lunch, and dispersed to our homes.

Quote of the Day: “Your mind is most likely on your journey home, and your bum is numb.”