Q. We lose a lot of members within several years of joining. Should we be talking to these people to find out why they left? Is there an established way to do this? A. Unfortunately, many congregations lose a significant number of members within three years, says Rev. William Zelazny, District...

When a wedding guest at a Unitarian Universalist church in the Southwest had too much to drink and fell down the basement stairs, he sued the church for many thousands of dollars. The church's insurance company settled the case for $2,000. Said the church administrator, "Had we been actually...

The archives of First Universalist Church, Denver (609 members), used to be one of its best-kept secrets. Tucked away in boxes in a basement room, few knew the historical documents were there. ...

A church in New Hampshire learned a hard lesson last year when an electrical fire heavily damaged its 120-year-old building. The Nottingham Community Universalist Church's insurance coverage fell far short of costs of restoring the building. The renovations are expected to cost around $275,000.

When congregations set out to renovate their buildings, they're thinking primarily about the work to be done, how to pay for it, and how much better the building will be. They're generally not thinking about catastrophes that can happen while the work is taking place....

When the congregation of the First Unitarian Universalist (UU) Church of Duluth, MN (190 members), made the decision this past winter to begin raising money for a new church building, it seemed like the time might also be right to consider changing the name that would go up on the new building.

When a congregation adds to its space by building or remodeling, it has cause for celebration. But there are right and wrong ways to perform these ceremonies. Rev. John A. Buehrens, Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA) President, has participated in more than one hundred building dedication...

The First Unitarian Church, Oakland, CA (284 members), used to have a cash flow problem in the summer. As Church Administrator, Jay Roller, explains it: "People would go away in the summer and forget to pay their pledges."Seasonal sag is a perennial church problem....

Q. Our small fellowship has moved from employing a minister half time to two-thirds time for next year. a) Does a minister, whether part-time or full-time, get the same amount of money for professional expenses like books, etc.? Does the expense allowance go up as his salary goes up? b) Also, how...

Q.My church has about 175 members. We have always had a fulltime minister and part-time secretary and custodian, but we began paying our half-time director of religious education about ten years ago and recently began paying a quarter-time music director....

At First Unitarian Universalist (UU) Church, Columbus, OH (485 members), the revelation came when a member who uses a wheelchair couldn't get up on the platform for a birthday recognition....

Could your bathrooms pass the sniff test? How you answer that and related questions can make all the difference when visitors decide whether your church is worth a second look. When Unitarian Universalist (UU) congregations think about attracting visitors the very next thought is often of...

Q. We just had our annual meeting and we were barely able to declare a quorum at the start of the meeting. The same was true at a special meeting we held earlier this year. By the time we got around to voting I'm sure we had lost our quorum. I find it a little disappointing. How do other...

Opportunity is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work. —Thomas Edison Monthly work parties are an institution for most Unitarian Universalists (UU) congregations, necessary to keep the grass cut, the buildings painted, and the bathrooms shined up . But getting...

Q. We had a disturbing incident at our church in Ohio this weekend. A member got an early morning call from a man who claimed to be connected with the church, but was in fact an impostor. In most convincing terms he said he'd been beaten and robbed in San Francisco and needed someone to send him...

How many of these vignettes sound like your congregation? At your last annual meeting, twenty-seven of your 181 adult members showed up. The budget and a proposal to hire a part-time bookkeeper couldn't be considered for lack of a quorum....

Q. We are preparing position descriptions for many staff and committee positions at our church and wonder if anyone has anything on a church archivist or historian? A....

It's 11:30 p.m. on the second Wednesday of the month. If you're on the board of trustees of your congregation, where are you? A. Home in bed, where you belong. B. Yawning your way through a tedious discussion about folding chairs and wishing you'd had Caller ID when the nominating committee...