Hello FUUSN! For those of you who don’t know, you are my “sponsoring congregation” in the process of my ministerial formation. This means that the board voted to affirm the congregation’s support for my process of formation. At this point, I’m wrapping up my third and final year at Harvard Divinity School. In the last couple of weeks, I was formally promoted from being an “aspirant” to being a “candidate” for ministry!

I moved out to Northampton, MA over the summer with my partner, and we decided to take advantage of my classes being online and stay. It’s been really nice to have access to hiking and skiing. This summer, we will move up to Burlington, VT, so I can do my ministerial internship with the First UU Society of Burlington. At some point (likely in the next year), I will interview with the UUA’s Ministerial Formation Committee. They will decide whether or not I’m ready for ordination. I’ve been learning so much through this process and think of you often. Hope you all are well!
Rowan Van Ness