Dear Friends,

Sadly, it has come to our attention that former UUWF Executive Administrator Ellen Spencer passed away earlier this month. Ellen was a vital and consistent part of the UUWF leadership team for almost four decades.

During an interview in 2007, she said that she worked with the UUWF because, “I need to feel that what I am doing with my life is somehow helping make some small part or parts of the world ‘better’ … closer to a place where the innate worth and dignity of every person is not only recognized and celebrated, but nurtured and helped to flourish.”

As we have witnessed the unprecedented spread of the novel coronavirus that causes COVID-19, the UU Women's Federation is committed to advocating for a United States where catching a preventable illness and seeking medical care does not bankrupt a person. Read more.

It is with deep and profound sadness that we share the news of the death of Betty Habach McCollum from COVID-19. Betty was a UUWF Board member since 2018 and a UU for over half a century, most recently at All Souls in NYC.

As her daughter so perfectly wrote, "The tragedy and heartache of the circumstances of her death will never overshadow her life which was full and rich and active. I know that if she could, she would have done anything to be with all of us for one more meal, one more holiday, one more summer at Sagamore and on Shelter Island, one more Woman’s Alliance meeting, one more UUWF meeting, one more mountain to climb, one more game of tennis or golf, one last lap in the pool, one more philharmonic concert, opera, ballet, museum exhibit or Broadway show. She is leaving us with so many wonderful memories and as a model of how to live life to the fullest."

The UUWF transitional board is devoting considerable effort to listen to UU women across the country. Click here to learn how you can participate.

With great sadness we share the news of the passing of former UUWF President Phyllis Rickter. In the words of (also former President) Nancy Van Dyke, "Phyllis was a constant, a mentor, a friend, an incomparable listener and supporter. Feminism, UUism, UUWF, she touched many lives, hearts and issues! She is so missed."

Full obituary here.