The Minister
Rev. Stacey Mitchell
Phone: (607) 432-3491
Rev. Stacey is available by appointment to meet one-on-one with flexibility on time. Beginning 11/22/23 she will have regular office hours in the afternoon from 1:00 to 6:00 p.m., Tuesday through Friday. Please request appointment by email to [email protected]. Please also email to confirm before arriving. Other meeting times may be possible by arrangement.
Rev. Stacey Mitchell has been engaged in matters of spirit, social justice, and ecology for many years. She has engaged in many environmental issues over the last 20 years. In addition to organizing work, she has served in finance roles for non-profits before ministry.
Her spiritual path has led her to living at meditation centers and an abbey, which helped a deepening of her appreciation of seeing the interconnectedness in everything. This search has led her to living near Yosemite National Park, on the shore of the Gulf of St. Lawrence in Canada, the Catskill Mountains of NY State, NYC, New Orleans, among other travels.
Rev. Stacey is from Seattle, where she grew up appreciating the beauty of orca whales, wild salmon, old-growth cedar trees, and bald eagles.
Stacey is an ordained minister within the Unitarian Universalist denomination, receiving her M.Div. at Union Theological Seminary in NYC. She served as a Chaplain Resident at University Medical Center in New Orleans and served a UU congregation in New Orleans, where she was ordained.
She also serves as a Board Member of Unitarian Universalist Animal Ministries (UUAM). You might see Rev. Stacey regularly walking the downtown streets in Oneonta with her best friend and perpetual side-kick, a rescue dog named Copper, who is a mix of hound dog and German-Shorthaired-Pointer.
Kaitlin Eldred
Office Administrator
The Office Administrator is responsible for communications; for maintaining the website, including scheduling and maintaining the online calendar; and for all the administrative needs of UUSO. You can reach the Office Administrator at [email protected] or by leaving a message at the church office at (607) 432-3491. Office hours are by appointment only. Phone messages are currently listened to and responded to on Wednesdays and Fridays.
Tim Horne
Music Director
Tim Horne has been Music Director at UUSO since the fall of 1988. He is responsible for providing music for approximately 38 Sunday services per year, as well as special services. He is also the Choir Director, and in that role he rehearses and leads the choir in singing for Sunday services about twice a month. He often collaborates with other musicians, and works with the children and youth when they present their intergenerational services several times a year. Tim can be reached by emailing the church office at [email protected] or leaving a message at the church office at (607) 432-3491.
Michael Frye-Hunt
Worship Musician
Michael has been a member of UUSO since 2010. When he provides music for a Sunday service, he often composes musical pieces specifically for the service topic. He is accompanied on Sunday services by his wife Dorothy, a vocalist and vocal music teacher at Franklin Central School. In addition to playing piano and composing music, Michael is a private piano teacher in the area and an aspiring astrophysicist. He lives in Unadilla, NY with Dorothy, their daughters Lyra and Maia, and their two cats, Astro and Tesla.
David Ray
Custodian
David Ray has served as UUSO custodian since 1995. He is responsible for routine cleaning of Chapin Memorial Church building, as well as some light maintenance tasks as directed by the UUSO Properties Committee, and caring for the grounds of both buildings (12 Ford Ave. and 10 Ford Ave.). Dave’s goal is to create and maintain a clean, orderly environment that enables spiritual experience to flourish. His work schedule varies according to the UUSO calendar of events.
THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES
There are between seven and nine democratically elected members on The Board of Trustees. If there is an elected Moderator, the Moderator is a non-voting BOT member. The Board meets eleven times per year to review reports from the Minister, the Director of Religious Education, and the Treasurer, and to receive updates on the committees and teams. The Board sets policy and addresses other administrative concerns of UUSO. The Board meets the third Sunday of every month about 30 minutes after the end of the worship service. The BOT members may meet in person or on Zoom. Members and friends are welcome to observe the meeting on Zoom. Zoom access is available on the UUSO calendar.
The Board Members for 2024-2025 are:
Ben Friedell, President; 2026 – (Second Term)
Rosalind Thomas, Vice-President; 2026 (First Term)
Elayne Mosher Campoli, 2025 (Second Term)
Zanna McKay, 2025 – (First Term)
Kate Seeley, 2026 (First Term)
Deb Bruce, 2027 (First Term)
Heidi Siegfried, 2027 (First Term)