July 17, 2008
Dear Friends,
It is with a strange mixture of sadness and excitement that I write this letter. My three years here at Outlaw's Bridge Universalist Church have been good. I have never been associated with a finer group of people and truly believe that I could never serve a better congregation. I love you all.
However, through an extraordinary set of circumstances, I have an excellent opportunity before me. This week I was offered and accepted a position as the interim minister at the Unitarian Universalist Church of Birmingham, Alabama. This is a chance at exceptional professional advancement that I cannot ignore. Yet it will be with a heavy heart that I leave Outlaw's Bridge.
In conversation with church leaders on the Committee on Ministry we agreed that I would serve for one more month - conducting services on the 10th and 17th of August - before leaving for the Deep South. I hope to be able to speak with each of you individually to express my appreciation for the time I have spent with you. I will retain my membership here and hope to visit when I can in the coming years. I wish you all and the Church the very best in the future.
Yours in Faith,
Rev Barry T. Whittemore