Milestones

A chalice lit with people in the background — © UUA

Milestones—vital steps and transitions in our religious professionals’ journeys—are compiled by the UUA’s Ministry and Faith Development staff group.

The UUA Ministerial Fellowship Committee grants Preliminary Fellowship status to ministerial candidates who are qualified to pursue ordained ministry and grants Full Fellowship after a period of review, usually several years. Ordination takes place when a congregation votes to ordain someone a minister. Interim ministers are hired for a year or two by a congregation to help prepare for the next settled minister. Developmental ministers address longstanding concerns specific to individual congregations. Contract ministers are hired on renewable terms. Departures occur when ministers leave their ministerial positions. Retirements are when a minister retires, usually at the end of a church year. The title Emeritus/Emerita is bestowed by congregations on ministers to honor years of meritorious leadership and service.

Milestones will only appear for congregations who have completed and sent in their Notice of Call or Hire form and/or Notice of Ministerial Transition form. Don’t see your Ministerial Transition included in this list? Please fill out the appropriate form below to let our Transitions Office know. Your transition will be included in the next edition of Milestones on uuworld.org.

Notice of Ministerial Transition

Notice of Ministerial Call or Hire

Spring/Summer 2026 Milestones

Full Fellowship

Tiffany Anderson
Elizabeth Assenza
Ali K.C. Bell
Walter Clark
Alice Diebel
Claire Eustace
James Field
April L. Frazier
S. Sangye L. Hawke
Erin Dajka Holley
mandi huizenga
Daniel Joseph Lawlor
Shay MacKay
Justin McCreary
Nicole McKay
Juniper Meadows
Elizabeth “Liz” Murphy
Ali Peters
Jill Schwendeman
Elizabeth Haralam Shuba
Laura E. Solomon
J Sylvan

Preliminary Fellowship

Ronald Ahnen
Kyle M. Belmont
Carolyn Bjerke
Sarah Clark-Farnell
Michael DeSantis
Rêve Eltringham
William Humphrey
Nicole M. Jacobson
Wendy Karn
Laura Jean McGuire
Sunny Joy McMillan
QuianaDenae Perkins
Ellen Plummer
Samara Powers
RUMNI SAHA
Nick Sanchez
Sámhna Erin Scott
Adam Slate
Jennifer A. Springsteen
Martina (Marti) Thompson

Minister Emeritus

Greg Chute, Unitarian Universalists of Central Delaware, Dover, DE
Margot Campbell Gross, First UU Society of San Francisco, San Francisco, CA
Alyson Jacks, First UU Society of San Francisco
Tony Larsen, Unitarian Church North, Mequon, WI
Alison Wohler, Unitarian Universalist Society of Amherst, Amherst, MA

Retired

Marta Morris Flanagan, First Parish, Arlington, MA
Patricia M. Franz, UUA Staff
Norman Horofker, The UU Church of Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada
Gregory A. Jones, UU Fellowship of La Crosse, WI
byrd tetzlaff, Bakersfield UU Church, CA
Melissa C. Thomson, Kaiser Foundation Hospitals, Redwood City, CA

Chaplain Board Certification

James Field
Jill Schwendeman

Began Contract Ministry

Florence Caplow, Vashon Island Unitarian Universalists, Vashon, WA
Cara Fortner, UU Congregation of Sterling, VA
Erin Dajka Holley, All Souls UU Church, Kansas City, MO
Shay MacKay, Unity Church-Unitarian, Saint Paul, MN

Began Settled Ministry

Stephen Sieck, First Unitarian Church of Des Moines, IA

Ministers Removed from Fellowship

Robert LaVallee
Benjamin W. Meyers

Resigned Fellowship

Jessica Star Rockers

For clergy obituaries, please visit the UU Ministers Association’s website.