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Three new trustees-at-large have been serving on the Unitarian Universalist Association Board of Trustees since beginning their terms at General Assembly 2016 last June in Columbus, Ohio.
Richard Jacke has been a member of East Shore Unitarian Church, in Bellevue, Washington, since 1981. He served there as president and with 20-plus committees and co-chaired the Earth and Social Justice Coordinating Council. He also served as president of the Puget Sound Unitarian Universalist Council and the Pacific Northwest District, where he served four terms as president. He chaired the Open UUA Committee and served as chair of the Commission on Social Witness and as vice chair of the Annual Program Fund. A founder and president of the Northwest Unitarian UU Justice Network, he is also active in interfaith and justice organizations in the wider community. He is a retired systems analyst and computer programmer.
A member of the Church of the Larger Fellowship, Sarah Dan Jones, a professional musician and composer, has been active in the UU Musicians Network (UUMN) for years, and has served in many capacities there including as president. She was the GA music coordinator for two years, and has been the musician for the GA service of the CLF. Born and raised in south Georgia, she became aware of UUism in the late nineties when she became pianist for Georgia Mountains UU Church, in Dahlonega, Georgia. Jones, who holds degrees in history and in piano performance, lives in Concord, New Hampshire, with her wife, Abby Charbeneau, and serves as director of music at Starr King UU Fellowship in Plymouth, New Hampshire. In response to the events of 9/11, she composed “Meditation on Breathing”—also known as “When I Breathe In”—which is sung in congregations around the globe and at social justice and peace rallies worldwide.
Elandria Williams is a lifelong UU and a longtime member of Tennessee Valley UU Church in Knoxville, Tennessee. Active in organizing Black Lives of UU (BLUU), Williams was the featured speaker in the closing celebration at last year’s GA. She’s held a wide variety of positions within Unitarian Universalism including as a youth advisor, young adult leader, regional organizing consultant for the UUA Office of Youth and Young Adult Ministries, and a trainer and consultant with the UUA’s Identity-Based Resources for Youth. She was the only youth member of the Thomas Jefferson District’s transformation team and served as a board member. A graduate of the University of Tennessee, Williams is on the organizational leadership team at the Highlander Research and Education Center, a catalyst for grassroots organizing and movement building in Appalachia and the U.S. South. She is a member of Black Lives Matter Knoxville.