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About Us
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HISTORY
Oak Ridge, born of war, brought together scientists and professional people from many different sections of the United States. From the earliest days, some felt the need for a liberal religious community here. In 1948, the Tennessee Valley Unitarian Church was formed to serve both Oak Ridge and Knoxville. Rev. Richard Henry directed services in Knoxville on Sunday mornings, and in Oak Ridge on Sunday afternoons at the Chapel-on-the-Hill, a church used by many different religious groups in the early days. We were a congregation of young people concerned about the religious education of our children as well as creating a good life in our community. In 1950, the Oak Ridge group officially became a separate church, and Paul Bliss was installed as the first full-time minister. We met in the City Recreation Hall and in nearby schools. The Religious Education Committee developed a curriculum for the 64 enrolled students, and a building/site committee was established. Early church activism in the community led to the establishment of the Oak Ridge Mental Health Association and Recording for the Blind. In 1954, Rev. Arthur Graham began a 21-year tenure as our minister. Under his guidance, "Mortar and Bricks in ‘Fifty-Six!" became the slogan for the drive to have a building of our own. Fundraisers included sponsoring a professional ballet performance, a production of The Mikado, and a crafts fair, which became an annual two-day event. Members worked actively for social justice in the community. A day care center in the black community was set up by the Council of Church Women, with our own Alliance members an integral part of that activity. Members taught high school courses for blacks, who could not attend the high school before its integration in 1955. Other members marched to protest segregated businesses. Our first church building, dedicated in 1956, soon proved to be inadequate for our bulging church school of 200 children. Some classes were held in the back of the sanctuary while Dr. Graham preached on the other side of a screen. In 1962, additional classrooms were added, and our first paid Director of Religious Education was hired. Community action continued to emphasize integration. Arthur Graham participated in the civil rights marches in Washington and Selma. The church organized an integrated day camp in the summers of 1963–68 as a means of easing the integration of our schools. In 1972 a fire severely damaged the church. During the remodeling, services and church school were held at the Civic Center with occasional journeys to the Arboretum to enjoy worship in the natural setting. In March 1974 we moved back into our remodeled and refurbished church building which was more handsome than ever. Arthur Graham’s poem, Phoenix, reflected our emotions on this occasion. Arthur Graham retired in 1975. The search committee’s survey of 234 members and 123 friends found that 50% were 40–60 years of age, with church school registration totaling 75. In 1976, Rev. Howard Box accepted the offer to become our minister. During his 15-year tenure, the changes in the city were reflected in our church. We grew older; more memorial services were held. Memorial gifts permitted the purchase of art for the church, much of it created by members and friends. In 1989, we celebrated our 40th birthday with many former members returning to honor our past and remember the good times. It was a time to look at ourselves as a church and our role in the Oak Ridge community. The organizations and causes members support are legion—the YWCA, Big Brothers/Big Sisters, Oak Ridge Peace Alliance, the Ulster Project, Amnesty International, Health Care Services, and Aid to Distressed Families of Anderson County, to name a few. About 25% of the members of the ACLU and the League of Women Voters are UUs. Tennesseans for Choice was organized by ORUUC members in 1989 and has grown to include 400 members in four counties. Both Dr. Graham and Rev. Box were active in the Oak Ridge Ministerial Association. Rev. Box served as its president and helped to establish an ecumenical Thanksgiving Service and an Ecumenical Storehouse for providing household items for needy families. With a kind of Renaissance rejuvenating the city in the mid-1980s, the church became, once more, a place of young people. More children were coming to the church school. We began including the children for the first 20 minutes of the service, culminating with a "Telling Time." Our building has been used extensively as a meeting place by other organizations, including some unpopular or unconventional ones. The church has had the Montessori School and the School of Music Arts as tenants during the week. With its fine rebuilt Steinway grand piano, our sanctuary is the preferred place for the Civic Music Association’s coffee concerts on Sunday evenings. In 1991, when Howard Box retired, there were 188 members and 50 children in the church school. Again, the demographics of the city were comparable in our congregation. At that time, the survey indicated our members wanted to find in their religion a foundation for ethical behavior. Rev. Gregg Carter was interim minister as the search committee embarked on its mission. The search brought Rev. Priscilla Richter to our church in 1992. Attendance at the church services increased to the point of needing to hold two services. Rev. Richter brought to the church the newer expressions of spirituality, with more ritual in the morning worship service. Priscilla was active with the Ministerial Association, and extended our denominational interest by membership on the board of the Thomas Jefferson District. Because of the larger attendance as well as the aging of our 40-year-old building, a Long-Range Planning Committee was formed to consider the building of a new sanctuary and entry space. Surveys were taken, and member Jon Coddington’s conceptual drawings were enthusiastically approved. About 80% of the costs were raised, mostly by pledges. Priscilla Richter departed in 1997, and the Rev. Don Beaudreault began a two-year interim ministry. Tandy Scheffler became the Director of Religious Education and the RE program began to thrive. As of May 1999, we had 89 children registered. In January 1998, we vacated the old building and met at the Senior Center across the street to make way for construction of the new sanctuary and remodeling of existing spaces. We moved into the new building in August and the formal Dedication of the church took place on October 25. The Ministerial Search Committee, elected by the congregation, began work in the spring of 1998 to find a new settled minister. This is a process which involves surveying the congregation about their preferences, preparing an information packet to exchange with applicants, receiving and studying packets from applicants, choosing pre-candidates for interview, arranging the interview weekends, and finally, selecting the candidate to come to Oak Ridge for Candidating Week. By April of 1999 they had found the candidate whom they believed could ably take over the leadership of the church. Candidate Rev. David Nash Williams, with his wife Joyce, arrived in Oak Ridge on April 16 and spent the next ten days getting to know the church and its congregation, and conducting two worship services. On Sunday, April 25, the congregation met after the church service to consider his candidacy. The vote was unanimous to call Rev. Williams to be the settled minister of our church. He accepted the call and arrived in Oak Ridge in early August 1999. Rev. Williams resigned in February 2001, and Rev. Diana Heath arrived in August 2001 to serve as Interim Minister while a search was conducted for a settled minister.
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