The case for giving

Building for all

Follen Community Church is an exceptional place. In recent years, while other churches have lost membership and resources, we have thrived, growing both in size and activity. We know the reasons: our creative and committed minister, Reverend Claire Feingold Thoryn, our talented and dedicated staff, our strong lay leadership, and a lively, multigenerational culture with enduring traditions and open hearts. We have fostered an active community, centered on spiritual nourishment for ourselves and care for the world.

At Follen, we embrace life’s biggest questions: Why does my life matter? How do I raise my children to be wise, moral and kind? How do I get through periods of suffering? How can I love better? How can I help? Where can I rest and renew, take in beauty and experience the sacred? 

Follen does that, and so much more.

With such a thriving and active community, however, our physical spaces have come under severe stress. Our beautiful and historic sanctuary, center of our worship life, is ill-served by inadequate and inconvenient accessibility. Our gathering spaces for social time, religious education, covenant groups, administration and more are outdated and need renovation. Space planned for a much smaller church 30 years ago has left us bursting at the seams. These spaces need expansion and re-imagining to fulfill our promise to ourselves, to all those we welcome through our doors, and to future generations.

Campaign goals

Our goals combine practical needs and our commitments as Unitarian Universalists:
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• Achieve full accessibility: reconfigure the church’s elevator and levels for universal access. In accordance with the first UU principle, every parishioner or guest should have dignified, easy access to our spaces, regardless of physical ability. 
• Create beautiful gathering spaces conducive to our mission. Our public spaces should be as beautiful, functional, and memorable as our octagon sanctuary. 
• Reduce our energy use and climate impact. Replace our outdated heating system with an efficient, modern system, more effective insulation, and – perhaps – air conditioning throughout our facilities for the warmer months (we need to prepare for a hotter New England).
• More room, usable space, and storage through reconfiguration and modest expansion. We envision more dedicated classroom and meeting space with an array of rooms better attuned to the needs of the many groups that gather at Follen. .
• Improve the Community Center to make it more beautiful and functional. Make it a welcoming place to host our ceremonies and celebrations. Create the capacity within Follen for more outreach and activity with our neighbors, with those we help outside the church, and with the broader community. 
• A number of Follenites plan to add a social justice component to their gift by adding 10 percent to their contribution to assist the UU Urban Ministry in its drive to restore the historic First Church in Roxbury.

This campaign envisions the next chapter in Follen’s history. The challenges we face – universal accessibility, minimal climate impact, welcoming community and educational spaces – can be met if we work together to realize a Follen home as beautiful as our community itself. 

Follen Church has always depended on the dedication of its members. Just as our abolitionist founders built a strong foundation for us, it’s time for us to strengthen and renew that foundation – for ourselves and for all those who will follow us in the future.  

We believe in these goals. We invite you to join us. ​

Read more and share these links to others:

• The Case for Giving
• The common questions & answers
• The pyramid of giving