January – Perspective “Objects in mirror are closer than they appear.” That’s what the side-view mirror in the car tells us every time we check our blind spots. This exercise is to check your blind spots—that is, the ones you know about. How has a change in perspective (or in knowledge, experience, age, authority, etc) … Continued
The Library Task Force is pleased to announce that the Eliza Cabot Follen Library is shelved and ready to go. This is the culmination of over a year of work to weed, purchase, process and organize a re-invigorated collection. The goal of the library is to house a highly curated and useful collection of circulating books … Continued
Rev. Tom Schade, our sabbatical minister, has left us with a few more gifts. His sermons (and other musings) are now all posted on follen.org in the service archive. He shared the following benediction with us, and it is fitting for us to share it now, with gratitude for his presence at Follen for the … Continued
Director of Music Vivian Montgomery’s Music Notes are published in the weekly order of service and here at follen.org. Music Notes for November 24: Some of today’s music needs no introduction, especially to those who’ve heard Rimsky-Korsakov’s “Russian Thanksgiving Anthem” sung each year by Follen’s choirs and alums for at least two decades. The Children’s … Continued
I recently needed to go back to collect a little of the verbiage from a big grant application I submitted (with essential help from Follen mainstay Jack Donahue) to the Unitarian Universalist Association to support the Music Friendships Initiative/Follen Responds to Racism project hosting song activist Melanie DeMore in February and March of this coming … Continued
The Italian harpsichord given to Follen by Anne Engelhart is built by one of the most prominent contemporary builders, Keith Hill of Grand Rapids, Michigan. Keith is author of an authoritative book, The True Art of Making Musical Instruments—A Practical Guide to the Hidden Craft of Enhancing Sound, and he provided many of the instruments … Continued
In this post, Director of Music Vivian Montgomery reflects on her father’s life. This Friday, November 15, she is part of a concert at Follen featuring his songs. My father grew up in Chicago, where he and his brother went to all the jazz clubs downtown from their early teens. Their parents were fellow travelers … Continued
Follen Directory UpdatesDo you know someone’s name but don’t know what they look like? Too afraid to ask someone’s name for the third time and you think their name is Pat? Breeze, our directory, can help but only if it is up to date. Please take a moment to create/update your account including a photo of yourself. Start here.
by Robin Tartaglia, from Follen Responds to Racism (FRR) Two years ago, the FRR committee shepherded a proposed resolution through a year-long process of discussion and education that resulted in an overwhelming vote at Annual Meeting to adopt an antiracism resolution. This resolution declared the church’s desire to be an intentionally and proactively antiracist congregation; … Continued
Director of Music Vivian Montgomery’s Music Notes are published in the weekly order of service and here at follen.org. Music Notes for October 20: Finally, we get to hear our Children’s and Youth Choirs sing, for the first time this year! Children’s Choir will stay with us through the silence, but first regaling us with … Continued
