A Short History of the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Missoula (UUFM)

In February of 1962 a small group of professional and university families chartered our Fellowship. Three years later the UUFM bought the house at 102 Mcleod Avenue where we still meet. District Representative Robert Fulghum, author of All I Know I Learned in Kindergarten, conducted the welcoming service.

For most of our 46 year history, we have been lay-led. Ministers, including Rev. Tom Best, Rev. Mary Scriver and Rev. Jesse Cavalier, served our congregation on a part-time basis from 1973 to 1989, usually visiting once a month.  Many services are prepared and delivered by our members and an active program committee secures speakers from our community, from the University of Montana, and from visiting Unitarian personnel of the Mountain Desert District and beyond. Several of our members have attended Russell Lockwood Leadership School.

Individually, many UUFM members work for peace, justice, and human rights causes. Some volunteer at the Missoula Food Bank, others at the Peace Center. At times we have shared the use of our building with groups such as Community Action for Justice in the Americas (CAJA) and Alcoholics Anonymous (AA).

In 1999, Missoula joined all Montana UU Fellowships in welcoming Lesbian/Gay/Bisexual/Transgendered families and friends.

During 2004-5 we revised our Covenant as a first step toward revitalizing our congregation. We continue to pursue our commitment to our fellowship, to freedom of Unitarian ˆUniversalist thought and to the guiding spirit of the Seven Principles. We seek a path of openness and acceptance of one another‚s beliefs and we encourage social activism in our community.

“What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us.”

– Ralph Waldo Emerson