OBITUARIES Professional Religious Leaders 2020–2021 VIRTUAL GENERAL ASSEMBLY JUNE 2021 © Unitarian Universalist Association 2021 Contents KHOREN ARISIAN ................................................................................................................................................................................1 ELLEN LOUISE BRANDENBURG .......................................................................................................................................................3 CARL V. BRETZ ......................................................................................................................................................................................5 WILLIAM E. DAVID ..............................................................................................................................................................................7 F. JAY DEACON ......................................................................................................................................................................................8 BARBARA EARL ..................................................................................................................................................................................10 LINDA HANSEN ..................................................................................................................................................................................11 NANCY HOLDEN ................................................................................................................................................................................13 HOPE JOHNSON .................................................................................................................................................................................14 RICHARD A. KELLAWAY ..................................................................................................................................................................16 BRUCE KENNEDY ...............................................................................................................................................................................18 GERTRUDE V. LINDENER-STAWSKI ..............................................................................................................................................20 DAVID HICKS MACPHERSON ........................................................................................................................................................21 WILLIAM CHESTER MCCALL III ...................................................................................................................................................23 THOMAS J.S. MIKELSON ..................................................................................................................................................................24 JAMES BRADBURY MITCHELL JR. .................................................................................................................................................26 KENNETH R. MOCHEL .....................................................................................................................................................................27 VERNON C. NICHOLS .......................................................................................................................................................................28 DAVID B. PARKE .................................................................................................................................................................................30 DAVID A. PETTEE ...............................................................................................................................................................................32 OLIVER E. PICKETT ...........................................................................................................................................................................34 SHERMIE L. SCHAFER .......................................................................................................................................................................36 GLEN W. SNOWDEN ...........................................................................................................................................................................37 BERTRAND H. STEEVES ...................................................................................................................................................................38 ELIZABETH M STRONG ...................................................................................................................................................................40 LESLIE D. TAWNAMAIA ....................................................................................................................................................................42 ROBERT P. THRONE III .....................................................................................................................................................................43 GEORGE C.B. TOLLESON .................................................................................................................................................................45 WILLIAM WELCH ..............................................................................................................................................................................46 JUDITH CLYMER WELLES ...............................................................................................................................................................47 RICHARD M. WOODMAN ...............................................................................................................................................................49 © Unitarian Universalist Association 2021 KHOREN ARISIAN (1932-2021) he Ministries and Faith Leader of the Boston Ethical Society Development staff offer our from 1966 to 1968 after which he served condolences to the family and as a Leader of the New York Society for Tcolleagues of the Rev. Dr. Khoren Arisian, Ethical Culture (1968-1979). He was who died on Jan 14, 2021 at the age of 88. director and co-founder of the Ethical Culture School of Adult Education, NY, Khoren was born on November 24, 1932 and an associate editor of The Humanist in Boston, MA to Khoren and Florence (1969-1977). In 2000, he returned to Arisian. His father’s experiences as a the NY Society for Ethical Culture, this survivor of the Armenian pogrom, time as Senior Leader. Upon his final greatly influenced Khoren’s lifetime work retirement in 2005, he became Senior for justice. He graduated Phi Beta Kappa Leader Emeritus. from Tufts University, MA in 1954 with an Associate degree in History, following which he received Rev. Dr. Arisian co-chaired the Humanist and Ethical Union a Certificate in Religion and Philosophy from Manchester Congress held at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology College, Oxford University, England (1955). He earned his in 1970. He was a member of various organizations Bachelor of Divinity from Crane Theological School, Tufts including: The Council on Foreign Relations, Minneapolis, University in 1957 and was a Merrill Fellow at the Harvard MN; Minnesota Civil Liberties Union; The Citizens League Divinity School (1966). In 1989, Starr King School for the of Minneapolis; and Chaplaincy Task Force for the New Ministry, CA granted him an honorary doctorate degree. York Board of Corrections. In addition, he assisted in establishing the New York Society for Prison Reform Task Rev. Dr. Arisian was ordained on September 9, 1958 by the Force, a social service and advocacy organization helping First Unitarian (now UU Society) of Iowa City, Coralville, IA prisoners and their families successfully restructure their where he carried out his ministry from 1958 to 1964. Prior lives during and after incarceration. In the early 2000s, he to his ordination, he served the UU Society of Amherst, MA created the New York Ethical Culture’s Advocacy Forums, an as a student minister (1956-1957). Following his ministry outreach to the greater New York public, co-sponsored with in Iowa, he served at the UU Church of Sarasota, FL (1964- The Nation, Demos, Amnesty International and the ACLU. 1966). In 1979, he accepted a call from the First Unitarian The Forums offered huge audiences informative discussions Society of Minneapolis, MN and ministered for eighteen from the likes of Al Gore, Paul Krugman, Cornel West, Toni years. On June 1, 1997, the Minneapolis congregation Morrison, and many more. conferred him the title of Minister Emeritus. Rev. Arisian’s pulpit addresses were broadcasted over Within the UUA denomination, Rev. Dr. Arisian served WQXR, the radio station of The New York Times. He had as a member of the UU Denominational Grants Panel over 100 articles written on religious philosophy, humanism, (1981-1984); and as a Chair of the UU Social Concerns and social ethics. Some of his writings are: “Unitarian Grants Panel (1984-1987). He was Coordinator for the Humanism,” Faith and Freedom (Autumn 1963); “The UU Theological and Historical Traditions of the Meadville Intellectual Evolution of Unitarian Universalism: A Critical Lombard Theological School (August 1980), and Associate Portrait,” Crane Review (Fall 1963); “The Clown, Magnus, Faculty for Starr King School for the Ministry. and Selma,