By the Rev. Roger Bertschausen

The beauty of a UU building project is that everybody has the opportunity to participate in the project. This makes for a slow and deliberative process. It also makes it possible for all of us when we walk into our new space to feel like it’s ours—because we’ve helped create the space.

As individual Fellowship members and friends and as a congregation, we’ve already had a lot of opportunities to participate in our building addition project. We did so as a congregation when we adopted our long-range plan in 2004 that calls us to do a building project so that we will have adequate facilities to remain welcoming and growing. We also did so in the fall of 2006 when we voted on a design scheme for the addition. And we’ve had lots of opportunities to give our individual feedback, including during the “Dream Phase” when we brainstormed our dreams for the addition. And the Building Design Team has frequently invited our feedback on its work, as it will continue doing in the coming months.

The Feasibility Study next month provides another opportunity for feedback. The Feasibility Study will help surface concerns about the project and give us an idea of an appropriate financial target for a capital campaign. See Lisa O’Connor’s article for more information on the Feasibility Study.

A capital campaign (perhaps next fall) will provide yet another opportunity for all of us to have a significant part in the creation of our addition. This is a point where the rubber really meets the road, and we find out whether our dreams will indeed have adequate foundations laid underneath them.

I urge each Fellowship member and friend to take very seriously your role in creating our building addition.