Unitarian Universalist Fellowship
of the Mendocino Coast

We are a lay-led Fellowship, with Rick Childs as our Lay Leader. We have a five member Board of Directors which sets policies and direction for our Fellowship.

New! Spirituality Essays is a collection of some of the essays our lay leader, Rick Childs, has written in the Fellowship's monthly newsletter. We added them to the site in May 2008 and will keep adding new ones as they are written.

A long-time Coast resident and Fellowship member, Rick has been our Lay Leader since 2002. He leads our services and delivers the sermons about half the time (guest presenters give the sermons the other times).

Rick writes:

"My own life has been one of immense spiritual growth. Raised in a dysfunctional authoritarian religion, my life-long journey has been finding and building my own spiritual identity. Unitarian Universalism was a natural fit for me - a place where I could open a wide variety of spiritual doors and become "who I was meant to be," with the company and help of others who'd also left religions with a lot of messy beliefs and 'shoulds.' I've been fortunate in being able to explore many spiritual realities and practices, and, now, I greatly enjoy sharing these with others who are actively seeking more meaningful and connected spiritual lives.

As Lay Leader, I strive to create sermons and services that are inspirational, that give us warmth, humor, and hope, and that connect us to each other at ever deeper levels. My goal is that everyone leave "moved" in some unexpected way - feeling different, richer, and more in touch with themselves and the universe.

I feel privileged to be able to help shed whatever light and warmth I can to fellow pilgrims on similar spiritual journeys . . . those, like me, trying to be their optimal, most complete, loving selves - and living and enjoying life to its fullest."