By Matt Gilsenan and Google Gemini

The EUU Coordinating Council (CC) held a productive meeting on the 21st of October to prepare for the upcoming Annual General Meeting (AGM) and plan for the year ahead. The meeting, chaired by Bonnie Friedmann, began with a chalice lighting and a reminder of the group’s focus on building community around shared spiritual values.

The main order of business was the 2026 budget. Treasurer Shulamit Levine-Helleman presented a detailed report on 2025 finances and the proposed budget for 2026. The plan continues the strategy of “investing in ourselves” by using € 5000 from reserves to fund EUU’s values and projects, alongside a pledge goal of around € 7000.

A significant discussion arose around the Social Action budget. A motion was introduced to increase the Social Action fund by transferring € 500 from the Professional Development line item. After a thoughtful debate, with members expressing concern about creating a potential conflict of interest and mixing internal- vs. external-facing funds, the motion did not pass.

The CC then voted to approve the 2026 budget as presented by the treasurer. This budget will now be sent to the entire EUU membership for final approval at the AGM on November 16th.

Dave Burkhardt reported that the fall retreat in Cologne was a great success. With 75 participants, the event received very positive feedback and successfully broke even financially.

Bonnie Friedmann announced the slate of upcoming retreats:

• Spring 2026 (Saarbrücken): Registration is closed, with 83 people signed up.
• Fall 2026: Booked again in Cologne (Oct 23-25).
• 2027: Provisional bookings are in place for Cologne (Spring) and Oberwesel (Fall), pending a site visit to Oberwesel.

The retreat committee encourages all members to suggest potential new venues. A budget is available for site visits. Please send any ideas to Beate Monreal or Bonnie Friedmann.

New Projects and Key Decisions

• Website Revamp: The CC unanimously approved a proposal for Karen Kyker and Karin Cudd to lead a much-needed overhaul of the EUU website.
• Virtual Hymnal: A $50 subscription to the UUA’s new virtual hymnal was approved. This resource, to be managed by Jill Khaleghi, provides legal access to sheet music, projection-ready lyrics, and accompaniment tracks for use at retreats.
• Affiliated Ministers Policy: Susan Loy is leading a review of the “Affiliated Ministers” section of the EUU policy manual. Given the topic’s complexity, the CC agreed that Susan will email her specific questions to the CC mailing list for detailed feedback.

Community Updates

• Joys and Concerns: Members shared news from their fellowships, including joys over new faces in Brussels and Jill Khaleghi’s first sermon, and holding in the light members who are sick or grieving.
• The Unifier’s Future: Gevene Hertz confirmed she will retire as Unifier editor after the December 2025 issue. The CC is actively seeking a way forward to coordinate the newsletter’s future. The plan to break the job into smaller, manageable volunteer roles was explored at a subsequent Unifier-dedicated meeting with 9 volunteers in attendance.
• Future Meetings: Bonnie Friedmann announced she will send out a questionnaire to gather feedback on the CC meeting structure, seeking ways to make the meetings more engaging and effective.

The meeting concluded with a reminder that the Annual General Meeting (AGM) will be held on Sunday, November 16th. All members are encouraged to attend and vote.