Category: Celebrations of Life

“The World’s On Fire (And We Still Fall in Love)”

This year of pandemic has been a rollercoaster. Some days we may feel almost normal, while other days bring us to our knees. Drawing upon scripture, spiritual practice, and original music, Unitarian Universalist Rev. Erin Walter will reflect on how we can face pain and struggle faithfully while also embracing moments of joy and gratitude where we find them.

Rev. Erin Walter serves as the Affiliated Community Minister for Wildflower Church, a Unitarian Universalist congregation in Austin, Texas. Originally a newspaper journalist, Rev. Erin earned a Masters of Divinity at Meadville Lombard Theological School, won UU Women’s Federation Sermon Award in 2017 (preached at GA), and is a board member of the Texas UU Justice Ministry. Her work is rooted in the powerful connection between the arts, justice movements, and multicultural community in her engaging roles as ordained minister, nonprofit director, writer, musician, and Zumba instructor. You can find her band Parker Woodland and her music at ParkerWoodland.com.

“Freedom is a Constant Struggle: Facing Alienations with Radical Acceptance”

Janna Nelson currently lives with her husband, Scott Hooker, and her younger son, David Nelson-Hooker in Albuquerque, New Mexico, where they have now lived for almost six years. They moved there after 40 years in Atlanta to be closer to family, and they have always preferred the New Mexican climate and open skies and country.

For Janna, it is a return to a land and people of her youth. Born the youngest of six in rural Alabama in 1958, she moved with her family to New Mexico in 1963. Her father, a Southern Baptist missionary, and the family spent the next seven years in various locations on the Navajo Reservation before moving to Albuquerque. Witnessing and being part of several traumatic and life-changing events left her a seeker.

She moved with her parents to Atlanta in 1975 and culture shock ensued. Due to accessibility issues with high schools at that time, she took a GED and went to Clayton Junior College, then GSU, taking whatever she wanted, working various interesting jobs until she started working at Sevananda, where she worked for seven years. During this time she had her older son. At age 25, she returned to GSU and graduated with a teaching degree three years later, starting a career in education that was deeply satisfying. She also started performing music solo and with others, starting her lifelong partnership in song and love with Scott.

She discovered First Existentialist Congregation in 1981 and it was the first place that felt open enough for her mind and spirit, as she had left religion behind at this point. After years of involvement in various aspects of the community, she entered into a five-year Existential Ministerial Studies Program with Rev. Lanier Clance and was ordained as a minister by the Congregation in 1999, which she continued to serve in a varying capacity until moving to Albuquerque in 2014. She is delighted to see the flourishing of this intentional community and still calls it one of her homes.

“Fraudulent Elections and the Peaceful Transfer of Power in American History”

Dr. H. Robert Baker is Associate Professor of History at Georgia State University and is the author of Prigg v. Pennsylvania: Slavery, the Supreme Court, and the Ambivalent Constitution (2012) and The Rescue of Joshua Glover: A Fugitive Slave, the Constitution, and the Coming of the Civil War (2006). His scholarly articles have appeared in the Law and History Review, Common-Place, and the Journal of Supreme Court History. He holds a Ph.D. in History from UCLA, where he studied with Joyce Appleby. He has received a Fulbright Fellowship and been a fellow at the Institute for Constitutional Studies. He also writes about wine, law, and contemporary culture for the blog Tropics of Meta.

“A Question of Fear: The Rule of Law and Human Rights in the United States.“

Anthony Knight is the Founder, President & CEO of The Baton Foundation — a Georgia nonprofit organization that serves the emotional, intellectual and cultural needs of Black boys ages 10-17. Before founding the Foundation, Mr. Knight worked for twenty-two years as a museum educator and consultant. Mr. Knight has extensive experience with and interest in African American history and culture, public and living history, informal education and Black youth. Mr. Knight’s work with The Baton Foundation reflects his ongoing interest in the issues and practices related to the collecting, preservation and interpretation of information about and material culture from the African Diaspora.  Mr. Knight’s undergraduate work was in Spanish and English (Ohio Wesleyan University), and his graduate work was in museum education (The George Washington University).  Mr. Knight also holds a degree in Spanish-to-English translation from the Núcleo de Estudios Lingüísticos y Sociales, Caracas, Venezuela.  Mr. Knight is a New York City native.

“Calling Out, Calling In- An Election Perspective”

Loretta Ross is a Visiting Associate Professor at Smith College teaching “White Supremacy in the Age of Trump.” She started her career in the women’s movement in the 1970s, working at the D.C. Rape Crisis Center, the National Organization for Women, the National Black Women’s Health Project, the Center for Democratic Renewal (National Anti-Klan Network), the National Center for Human Rights Education, and SisterSong Women of Color Reproductive Justice Collective. Her forthcoming book is Calling In the Calling Out Culture. Her most recent publications are Reproductive Justice: An Introduction and Radical Reproductive Justice.

“KARMONY – Finding Harmony in Our Collective Karma.” 

The message is: true unity is in relationships.

Paula Larke is a storyteller, motivational speaker, spoken word/vocal innovator, bassist and percussionist.

She has used her music, passion, and humor nationally,  for over 38 years,  to unite, chide, inspire, and restore faith in the human potential for harmony.  Her primary work is in community – schools, churches, state fairs, businessmen’s luncheons, workplace employee training – every kind of community gathering allowing her access.

Most recently, Paula has been teaching artist in Eastern Kentucky and Clarkston, GA, adapting her delivery for Appalachian and international refugee audiences.  “It has been an enriching experience,  seeing through eyes so different from my own” she affirms.

Her CD, “ UNITY IN THE COMMUNITY”,  produced with activist/percussionist  Kim Nimoy,  is a performance  libretto, designed for use in schools and colleges.

• Musician: Aviva and the Flying Penguins

“Individual Experience and Personal Meanings:  Dread and Curiosity”

Dr. Jean Heinrich is a licensed clinical psychologist, musician, longstanding member of the First Existentialist Congregation of Atlanta. 

Grateful for this opportunity, she notes, “I’ve been struck by the many ways we individuals are facing traumas and tragedies in our country, the variety of individual experiences, and meanings we create.  I marvel at the impact of attitude and how attitudes fluctuate.  Please join me as I present a consideration of this via our Facebook page, and please leave comments and tell me what you think and how you fare.  Or text me.  Thanks.”

“Starting Over”

Musical Presentation

Susan Ottzen – harp, Ron Freeman – synthesizer, playing 4 pieces
from Le Petit Pas (the little steps) by Bernard Andres, a contemporary
French composer. They are very sweet meditative pieces.

Susan Ottzen, harpist, is a graduate of Case Western Reserve University/Cleveland Institute of Music. She moved to Atlanta to play with the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra under Robert Shaw and has performed with the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra.

She has a large teaching studio. Her students perform at group lessons during the year and attend piano camp and harp camp in the summer. They also perform each year at Fall Fest held at Agnes Scott College, sponsored by the Decatur Music Teachers Association.

In addition to playing harp and piano, she is an accomplished composer with grants from the Fulton County Arts Council and Georgia Council for the Arts, among others. Susan’s arrangement of Stormy Weather played on NPR’s Marketplace Radio for twenty years (whenever the stocks were down).

Most recently, she played harp as an extra for Tyler Perry Studios for a TV episode called “Reunited.” She recently collaborated with Francine Reed recording Stevie Wonder songs with the Jez Graham Trio. She also has a Jazz Harp and Clarinet Duo with Don Erdman playing jazz concerts at the Tucker Library and the Decatur Library in 2018. She is also teaching History of the Harp workshops annually for the Tucker and Decatur libraries.

Ronald Freeman Jr. has been performing professionally as a musician for 15 years. As an Atlanta native, he was heavily influenced by the traditional southern marching band culture. His high school alma mater is the Academy of Richmond County in Augusta, GA. He is currently studying Ethnomusicology at Kennesaw State University with aspirations of becoming a licensed music therapist.