A suggestion from UUVerdugo congregant Anne Moratto turned into a service that we hope will be an annual tradition: "Letters To My Past Self," in which members and friends share with us some advice they'd give, if they only could, to the person they once were. Here are the sage and candid words of Jesse Silver. *** Hi younger self. It’s not an easy thing to give advice to my younger self.  In the first place, it’s been 50 years since I was a younger self, and I find it daunting to remember what my younger self was like at a point in my life where I’m lucky if I can remember where I put ..read more

A suggestion from UUVerdugo congregant Anne Moratto turned into a service that we hope will be an annual tradition: "Letters To My Past Self," in which members and friends share with us some advice they'd give, if they only could, to the person they once were. Here's April Younglove's submission. *** On December 31, 2019 (New Year’s Eve), I made two wishes for the coming year. I wished that 1) Donald Trump would be voted out of office, and 2) That my daughter would learn to read. In my house, we don’t make resolutions on New Year’s Eve, we make wishes. And that is because a long time ago, I ..read more

To see Edith Young was to know you were in good hands. A sparkling wit, a patient educator, and a roving scholar, Edith was a long-time member of the UUVerdugo community and its predecessor. She left us, at age 97, on January 14. She remained beautiful, intrigued, and intriguing to the end and, whether one knew her for decades or just a short time, her passing is a great sorrow and her memory is a blessing. Below is her obituary from the Glendale Nerws-Press. UUVerdugo sends its warm wishes to Edith's family and many friends ..read more

Formidable, elegant, quick-witted, and kind, our wonderful Edith Young passed away in January after "a life well-lived" at age 97. At her memorial service at UUVerdugo this weekend her son, Jesse, read a poem by the Greek poet C.P. Cavafy that he said exemplified his mother's philosophy of being a lifelong student. It was a service full of joy and fondness for Edith, who was a pleasure to know.   Ithaka BY C. P. CAVAFY TRANSLATED BY EDMUND KEELEY As you set out for Ithaka hope your road is a long one, full of adventure, full of discovery. Laistrygonians, Cyclops, angry Poseidon—d ..read more

Dia de los Muertos is both a joyous and poignant celebration of those we have lost. Last year we put together a modest video ofrenda at UUVerdugo, featuring pictures of friends and family who'd passed on years ago, and this year we've added to it with pictures of newly departed congregants Zaven "Pat" Berberian and Edith Young. The music is from the excellent Disney movie "Coco" and the title image is the 1988 painting "La Pistola y el Corazon" by George Yepes ..read more

Our own Rev. KC participated in this informative, helpful, and hopeful panel discussion on the podcast "The VUU" (Get it? We try to wring as much pun power out of those two "U"s as we possibly can.) Yopu'll enjoy eavesdropping on this hour-long discussion ..read more

It was the first Sunday of March, 2020, that we had our most recent in-person service, a reflection on Eleanor Roosevelt and UU's Fourth Principle. During today's Zoom service, we read this lovely poem by Rev. Theresa Soto:   a year is something like one of those jacob's ladder toys, a single action sets a block to falling. is it falling up? falling down? and this year has flexed between periscope kaleidoscope and telescope. one day crashed into the next. klack. one challenge into the next. klack. and we have learned, that the harder it is, the more care we take, leaning into the strings ..read more

While it's true that we just can't wait to see you all again in our acoustically nifty sanctuary and then, at intermission, ply you with snacks, coffee, and trivia games, the Verdugo HUUT! online edition has been a fun way to stay connected and reach across the country for like-minded weirdos to play songs and tell stories. Enjoy our third anniversary show, complete with a song about the HUUT ..read more

A suggestion from UUVerdugo congregant Anne Moratto turned into a service that we hope will be an annual tradition: "Letters To My Past Self," in which members and friends share with us some advice they'd give, if they only could, to the person they once were. Here's the letter Deane Phinney sent to Dora Dean: *** Dear Dora Dean, Yes, Dora Dean is my name - even though I haven’t always liked it. As a child I thought I would much rather have a name like Betty Lou – a name much more popular at the time. As I was growing up there were a LOT of things about my family that I thought I wanted to c ..read more

Our first Verdugo HUUT! of 2021 (and our tenth in the COVIDeo series) features rockabilly, autoharp, and a dramatic(er) recitation of Quint's Indianapolis monologue from "Jaws ..read more