Local History

Beginnings

In April 1884, a religious society met in Ames that was composed of Quakers, Unitarians and Universalists (this was before Unitarians and Universalists merged). They gathered under the encouragement of a Mr. and Mrs. Harvey and called themselves the People's Church. The group of 25 met on alternate Sunday evenings to "study and practice morality and religion." It declared that "it welcomes to its fellowship all those who are willing to work for the promotion of truth, righteousness and love in the world." Denied meeting space by local churches for being too radical, it met in various places, often to standing-room-only crowds. Beyond June of 1885, we have no records of how long that society lasted.

The Early Years

In 1946, the small group of people who would become the UU Fellowship of Ames began meeting regularly at the Iowa State University Memorial Union. The group met every other week for discussions with the Des Moines Unitarian minister, the Rev. Grant Butler.

Early in 1948, Dr. Butler was called to Boston to a position with the national Unitarian Association to organize fellowships. On Nov. 7, 1948, he returned to Ames for a visit and gave a rousing talk about the fellowship concept, its benefit to individuals and local communities, and the strength it would add to Unitarianism nationally. That evening we voted to accept the invitation to join the national fellowship movement. Andy McComb was elected as the first president, and we were the third fellowship to be registered nationally.

In 1952, the group decided to move to the Alumni Hall on campus, and rented a suite of rooms to accommodate religious education needs.

Existential Crisis

In 1959, several active families left Ames, and a meeting was held to vote on whether the Fellowship should disband. Numbers had dwindled, and morale was low. Instead of disbanding, the group decided to begin plans for a building, and placed the entire amount of their treasury -- about $50 -- in the new fund.

It took 10 years to raise money, purchase a lot, and plan the building. The groundbreaking ceremony took place in 1969, and the new building was dedicated in 1970.

Growing Up

The Fellowship had been entirely lay-led, but we received some help from the Unitarian Universalist Association to guide us to operating more effectively.

In 1973, the Rev. Dave Sammons spent six weeks with us as minister-on-loan, and helped organize Sunday services and a committee structure.

When membership reached 100 in 1985, we began to recognize that we needed additional professional leadership, and a second minister-on-loan, the Rev. Ruppert Lovely, spent six weeks with us.

In 1986, after much discussion and soul-searching, the congregation voted to call its first minister.

Our First Minister

The Rev. Sydney Amara Morris was formally installed in the fall of 1987, as we celebrated out 40th anniversary. We were her first congregation, and she was our first minister.

Membership nearly doubled under Sydney's leadership. While a desire for intellectual stimulation seemed to dominate the early years, new members seemed more likely to seek spiritual enrichment and personal nurturing, as well. Fellowship members came to expect and rely on ministerial visits and counseling for personal crises.

The Fellowship continued to expand. In 1988, we hired our first paid Director of Religious Education. In 1992, a major addition to the building was completed.

Sydney's style and content were a good fit for most members, and she remained at her first church longer than most first ministers. In 1994, she resigned to accept a position at the Vancouver Unitarian Church in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.

Sydney is currently the minister at the Keweenaw UU Fellowship in Houghton, Michigan, on the upper peninsula.

The Interim

The Rev. Doug Smith, an ordained Episcopalian minister and a member of the Des Moines Unitarian church, served as a half-time minister during the ministerial search process in 1994/95.

Doug is now living in Madison, Wisconsin, and working nationwide as a professional speaker, trainer, and consultant. He is the author of several books, including The Tao of Dying, Caregiving, Being A Wounded Healer, and Spiritual Healing. His web site is at http://www.dougcsmith.com/.

Candidating week in May 1995 brought out many surprising reactions from Fellowship members, and our candidate decided to withdraw his application. This dramatic decision caused us to realize that we needed to know ourselves better before setting out for another search.

The Rev. Carol Hepokoski came to us as a full-time interim minister for two years to guide us in determining our vision and reaching new goals. Some of the decisions we had to face were initially not popular (such as the switch from one to two Sunday services), but Carol kept pushing us in the right direction, gently but firmly.

Carol is now the minister of the First Unitarian Universalist Church of Rochester, Minnesota.

The Present

The Rev. Dr. Brian Eslinger

In 1997, we called Brian Eslinger as our minister. Brian is a former member of the White Bear Unitarian Church in Mahtomedi, Minnesota, and a graduate of United Theological Seminary of the Twin Cities. He brought to the Fellowship congregational-centered ministerial philosophy and a strong desire for community outreach. In 2004, Brian completed a six-month sabbatical, partly spent in Scotland focusing on storytelling traditions. In 2007, the Fellowship marked his 10th anniversary in Ames, and he earned his Doctor of Ministry degree from Meadville Lombard Theological Seminary in May 2009. In 2006-07, the UUFA temporarily expanded its ministerial staff by welcoming its first ministerial intern, Dawn Cooley, also a graduate of United Theological Seminary. In June 2009, the Fellowship ordained Dawn into ministry, and she now leads the ministry at First Unitarian Church in Louisville, Ky.