Rev. Heather Rion Starr

September 14, 2012
Recommendation for Rev. Heather Starr

It is with great pleasure that I write in support of Heather Starr. I have known Heather for over six years, since she began serving our Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Central Oregon. During that time I served on our Board of Directors and also worked closely with Heather on our Committee on Ministries, Worship Committee, and Caring Committee. Heather came to us as a young, energetic, deeply committed, and relatively inexperienced minister. After her [six] years with UUFCO she is a seasoned leader and leaves behind a much larger, more focused and engaged congregation ready to embark on a capital campaign and a major building project.

Heather came into a congregation that had existed for over four decades as a fellowship without a minister. She was only our second minister, and the first who was actually a resident of Central Oregon. As a young minister stepping into a congregation that had functioned largely with lay leadership, Heather was extraordinarily skilled in drawing on the wisdom and existing leadership of UUFCO, while bringing fresh ideas, stronger connections with our Pacific Northwest District and the Unitarian Universalist Association, and a commitment to making our congregation a more visible and active liberal presence in Central Oregon. She helped us understand the challenges and opportunities of moving from a family- to pastoral-size congregation and beyond. She served as great resource for our board and committees, some of which were just beginning to take shape when she arrived. Heather leaves behind a stronger and more clearly defined infrastructure and depth and breadth of leadership that we trust will sustain us through the challenges of a building project.

Historically, UUFCO has been a liberal but not necessarily activist congregation. With the support of Rev. Heather’s leadership, UUFCO became a stronger presence in the local interfaith organization, began serving meals on a regular basis to Bethlehem Inn--our local homeless shelter for individuals and families, instituted a Sunday offering for the greater community once a month, and began educating ourselves and taking an active role in immigration rights. We reaffirmed our identity as a welcoming congregation through a three-month class that helped us learn about GLBTQ and other diversity issues.

Rev. Heather’s strengths are many. She is a poet and a wordsmith—of both the spoken and written word. She communicates clearly, passionately, and often with humor. Her sermons are unfailingly thoughtful, often challenging, always beautifully crafted and effectively delivered. She is direct but also diplomatic and aware of the nuances of language. She is widely read and is generous in recommending and sharing books and ideas. Heather has great vitality and enthusiasm. Upon her arrival in Bend, she immediately embraced the beauty and opportunities for physical activity that Central Oregon offers. She began holding trail hours, a weekly opportunity to talk while walking some of our beautiful local trails. She is also skilled at pastoral care. As a co-chair of our Caring Committee I had numerous opportunities to observe the ways in which Heather was able to make connections and encourage congregants who were facing disappointments, losses, and hard times.

The [six] years that Rev. Heather devoted to UUFCO presented their share of challenges—lean budget years, frustration over inadequate physical space for our children’s and adult religious education program, several unsuccessful attempts to buy a building, two suicides in our congregation. In all these instances, Heather worked tirelessly with us to address the issues and related emotions and then to move forward with courage and a renewed sense of direction. We have grown in numbers every year since she joined us, are on solid financial footing, and have just chosen an architect for a building project that should result in our completed new home by 2016.

It is telling that when the time came for Heather’s ordination five years ago, she chose to be ordained in Bend with her new UUFCO family rather than in the Portland First Unitarian Church where she grew up. By including our congregation in this deeply significant passage in her professional life, she established a bond that has grown and deepened over the years, and has changed us for the better as both a community and as individuals. I am deeply grateful for all she contributed to UUFCO.

Sincerely,
//s
Marean Jordan
Marean.jordan@gmail.com
541-549-1450