“From My Attic to the UUCD Bylaws”

by Jeff Asher

I have been in the same home in Pawling for the last 38 years. I expect that some of our UUCD Bylaws go back 200 years

What do they have in common? Just like articles in my attic accumulating for these last 38 years, our UUCD Bylaws have text that was adopted in 1973! 

But while I may throw away one old, wall phone, I never can work up the strength to get rid of all the other stuff that should similarly be thrown out.

When you look closely as I have done, our UUCD Bylaws have the same problem. From time-to-time, we only change what is required and do not take the time to review adjacent text. 

So, as a naïve UUCD Board member, I volunteered to come up with a Bylaw language change when I realized that there was no provision for our Minister to attend our Board meetings as an ex-officio or non-voting member. Long ago, this provision was included as standard in UU Bylaws.

Once I proposed adding this innocuous provision to the Board, I noticed other language needed serious attention. The situation snowballed!

I prefer spreadsheets and really dislike being a wordsmith for changing dry Bylaws that have gone by their expiration date many years ago.

Which brings us to the place your Board is right now where we are currently developing and prioritizing our Annual Goals. Should the congregation invest considerable time and effort in making many, many changes—some truly significant and others relatively minor?

Stay tuned whether we will shortly begin a thorough cleaning of our UUCD “attic.“ Or not.

Don’t worry, any changes made will need to be approved by members at our Annual Meeting in June 2025. And you will have the happy task of reviewing all of them.