Meet the Lay Ministers
These are brief sketches of some (not all) of the lay ministers. Lay ministers who wish to be included on this page, please send your biography to Hal Potts.
Lynetta Alexander
There is a fable about a woman whose beloved child has died. The wise man in the tale sends her to get a mustard seed from someone in the area who has not had difficulties. The woman returns empty handed.
We all have great ups and downs as we go through our lives. I am thankful for the support of our beloved community during my own ups and downs and do what I can to help others when their own flame has gone out.
Jack Bliek
Planned Parenthood 1970-1990. counselor and senior counselor. Also I ran the vasectomy clinic when I was at Planed Parenthood in Rochester, NY.
2000-2004 interviewer with the MST program in the Department for Psychotherapy Research and Policy at Vanderbilt. Then 2005-present interviewer with the RECAP program.
FUUN 1994-present
Social Justice Committee 1994-present
Choir 1997-present
Lay Minister 2000-present.
Cathy Chang
My husband, Chas Sisk, and I first began attending First UU in 2006. I was exploring the possibility of becoming an ordained community minister, having worked as a trained chaplain in hospital settings. While I since have become happy to remain a lay person, I still enjoy chaplaincy and feel that it is a calling for me. I am thrilled and honored that FUUN has chosen me to name as your chaplain. Lay ministry is special to me, because I think it is a way for people to be together and care for one another; it's as if when we are most vulnerable, our hearts are also the most open to being loved. I look forward to deepening the relationships with those of you that I already know -- and getting to know those of you whom I don't! Don't hesitate to stop me and introduce yourself, because I love meeting new people.
Douglas J. Pasto-Crosby
I have been a member of FUUN for nearly 20 years and served the church in numerous ways including the Board of Directors, Board of Trustees, various committees, the Safe Congregation Panel and even sung in the choir. I have been helping people all my adult life as a physician and felt that it was time for me to extend my care for others as a lay minister.
Hal Potts
I first came to First UU 20 years ago. I am married to Trish and we have two teenage daughters, Bridgette and Kellye. I enjoy hiking, biking, and backpacking.
I knew First UU was the place for me right away because there was no prescribed set of beliefs, which just makes sense to me. I have served on many church committees as well as being a board member, Treasurer, and President. The challenges and relationships that I have formed over the years through this church have been very rewarding. I have found that the older I get, the less advice I have for anyone. We all find our own way in our own time. My hope as a lay minister is to be a good and compassionate listener.
Nancy Ransom
My husband, Harry, and I joined the church in 1963. We had been members of the First Unitarian Church of Cambridge, MA before moving to Nashville. I taught Sunday School when Bob Palmer was the minister. After a long period of limited involvement with FUUN, we became active members at my retirement from Vanderbilt in 1997. Since then I have folded newsletters and helped in the church office, was a lay leader, and served on the Endowment Trust for six years. At present I chair the Strategic Planning Team. I was a member of the first group of lay ministers to receive training.
In my professional life I taught sociology and women’s studies and established a women’s center at Vanderbilt in 1978, where I served as director until my retirement in 1997. I have been a volunteer in many non-profit organizations.
My non-professional interests include yoga, walking, bird-watching, wild flowers, gardening, and music (as audience/listener), especially classical music and opera. I belong to a book club and participate in Osher Life-long Learning at Vanderbilt, where I am president-elect of the board.
Tom Winnett
Being a part of the Lay Ministry team is a big part of my commitment to my Unitarian Universalist faith. I am enriched by every person I meet. Over the last twenty two years as a UU, both here in Nashville and in my previous church, I have participated in many committees, groups and classes. None has brought me as much joy and purpose as being a Lay Minister.