Clara Barton Sisterhood

Ann Stebbins enrolled in the Clara Barton Sisterhood

At the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Madison County (UUFMC) in Richmond, Kentucky, Ann Stebbins was presented on Sunday, May 20th, 2018 with her enrollment in the Clara Barton Sisterhood, an honor reserved for women over 80 years of age who have made significant contributions to a UU congregation.  Ann Stebbins was a UU in Minneapolis, Minnesota, and then in Lexington, Kentucky prior to becoming a member of the UUFMC.  In fact, Ann and her husband, Bob, were part of a group of fourteen people who began thinking about establishing a UU in our area in about 1965, and succeeded in having our Fellowship officially recognized by the UUA in 1978.  Ann is the last remaining founder in our congregation and we owe her a great debt.  For as long as anyone at the UUFMC can remember, Anne has always been active in anything that is happening in our small congregation, chairing committees, leading children’s religious education, organizing parties, making sure visitors and new members feel welcomed, and being our most steadfast member to participate in board meetings no matter who is officially on the board.  Our congregation was founded by, and has been completely shaped by, Ann Stebbins.

Joan Boewe enrolled in the Clara Barton Sisterhood

At the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Madison County (UUFMC) in Richmond, Kentucky, Joan Boewe was presented on Sunday, May 20th, 2018 with her enrollment in the Clara Barton Sisterhood, in honor of her many years of service to its music program.  As a professor of voice at Eastern Kentucky University and an experienced vocalist on the stage of opera productions in the United States and abroad, she brought to the UUFMC the great gift of her musical talents and knowledge.  Beyond her many areas of service on the committees of the Fellowship, Joan has been unstinting in her musical support of Sunday services, as a pianist, a singer, and the founder and continuing leader of a small but ambitious choir, the U-Notes.  Without the good fortune of having Joan Boewe as a member, the UUFMC would have been a much less musical, and thus a less inspiring and spiritual, place for us all.