The Unity Urban Ministerial School Class of 2022
“Reaches Across the Ocean”
Each year, the graduating class of Unity Urban Ministerial School (UUMS) completes a project to leave as a legacy. The Class of 2022 decided on a pioneering project that will, hopefully, be a model upon which future classes can build and expand.
When our Class learned that ministerial students in Africa were having a hard time buying and receiving books in time to complete their classes, we wanted to help.
We reached out to Rev. Thandi Nhlengetwa, Senior Minister at Unity Center of Love and Light in Johannesburg, South Africa, and learned that her community has three ministerial candidates currently on the path toward ordination and four on the Licensed Unity Teacher path. This is an outstanding testament to Rev. Thandi and the Unity message!
After discussions with Rev. Thandi and Rev. Sandra Campbell, our classmates, and mentors, we chose to seed the growth of a library at Unity Center of Love and Light to be shared by all Unity ministerial and LUT candidates in the Johannesburg area.
That sounds simple, doesn’t it? Well, when we tried to send the first trial box of four books, we discovered why students were having difficulty obtaining books for class. They simply never arrived at the destination. After waiting several weeks, we were informed by the shipper that the books were lost.
A second shipment through Amazon International was initiated, but they required a physical address for delivery. Since Rev. Thandi said the post office box was the most reliable address, that order was cancelled before it was processed.
As they say, the third time is a charm! On January 15, we packaged and sent five textbooks to Johannesburg via the U.S. Postal Service. We were told they could only be tracked as far as Customs at the border. On February 4, we received notice from the USPS that the books had cleared customs. So, we waited. Finally, on February 18, we received an email from Rev. Thandi that the five books had been received, and all in good order!
A letter of introduction and encouragement from each member of our class will be included in the shipments going forward. We hope to create personal connections with our fellow future ministers and teachers, so that they will not feel isolated and that they will feel loved and supported as part of the global Unity movement.
If you and/or your congregation would like to contribute books or funds to our project, please contact Rick Horsey at ri**********@gm***.com. We are so excited to be the first class to create a project of this kind, and we welcome your participation.
On behalf of UUMS Class of 2022, we thank you in advance for your prayers and support!
Julian Baginski Linda Burdett Ann DeMichael Sue Frederick
Rick Horsey Paxton McCaghren Velma Spence Robert Turner
by Rick Horsey, Ministerial Student