CELEBRATING PAST MEMBERS

Our series celebrating members from UUCE's past
Brought to you by the Archives Committee

Anita Rowson
Bob Lionetti
Peter Wotton

Sunday, March 24, 1996, was a wonderful, joyous celebration as our congregation ordained one of its own, Anita Rowson, to the Unitarian Universalist ministry. Rev. Rowson was born in London, England in 1939. She received a BA from UC Santa Barbara in 1984; an MA from UC Santa Barbara in 1998, and both a Masters of Divinity and a Preliminary Fellowship from Starr King in 1995. (Our church also sponsored her Starr King years.)

The following report chronicles Anita’s ordination:

“In return, we received a gift of healing, for in our coming together in community to honor Anita, who has chosen the path of ministry as her life’s work, we began the rediscovery of our own commitment to professional ministry and to the ministry we share with one another as members of this church and this denomination.

“About 130 of us gathered for this auspicious occasion. The sanctuary sparkled, the flowers were incredible, the food at the reception was superb. Our special guest presenters, the Reverend Dr. Rebecca Parker of Starr King School of the Ministry and the Reverend Dr. Mark Belletini of the Hayward UU church, moved us to tears of joy.”

“The congregation seemed to glow and dance with a spirit of aliveness. We sang—more like Methodists or Baptists than like musically uncertain UUs—and our soloists, Sally Diehm, David Rogers, and George Struble were outstanding. Our joy was reflected in the generous gift of $260 for the UUA Living Tradition Fund collected in the offering. The affirmation of ordination, in which all present joined voices, closed with the phrase, ‘May you, Anita, carry the blessing of all of us with you wherever you serve.’”

Anita went from here to the UU church in Las Cruces, New Mexico, where she served as interim minister for one year. She also ministered at churches in Poway and San Diego, California, as well as El Paso, Texas. Sadly, in September 2002, she died as the result of a long illness. Besides Anita Rowson, five other UUCE members have become UU ministers: Robbie Cranch, Barbara Cheatham, Rebecca Brooks, Patti Pomeranz, and Peter Morales. Dennis Reynolds is currently working on his degree. Hence, in another few years we may once again have another ordination celebration as joyful as the one described above.

Remembering Bob Lionetti

This column is the first in a series celebrating past UUCE members)
Bob Leonetti was raised in California. Physical and mental fitness were part of his persona. He was a ranked tennis player in school and actually won a match from tennis legend Bobby Riggs. Even though his mother was a Universalist in her youth, Bob was raised with no religious training. When Margaret married Bob, they had an arrangement. She would attend any church she wanted as long as Bob did not have to participate. Their firstborn was baptized in the Methodist church and Bob begrudgingly attend the event. He had hoped his son Steve would “baptize the minister” in a uniquely fitting way! But it was not to be. When Steve came home from Sunday School and explained to his father that God turned on the sprinklers to make it rain, that was TOO much! Bob had
just read an article in Time magazine about Unitarianism and learned there was a church in Long Beach. He began to attend church there with his son.

When the Leonettis moved to San Gabriel, Bob located and joined the Unitarian Fellowship there. Margaret soon joined him at church. The Fellowship grew and Bob was elected president. He also served on a steering committee for Camp Radford, a family camp sponsored by the district in the San Gabriel Mountains and was dean of the camp for two years, while Margaret was camp nurse. At one evening campfire, a singer was brought in to entertain. It was Pete Seeger. Unitarians continued to recognize Bob. He was director of the Pacific Region and attended many meetings on the region’s behalf in Berkeley and Boston. Then, the merger of the Unitarian and Universalist faiths occurred.

As the San Gabriel Fellowship waned, the Leonettis joined Throop Memorial in Pasadena, followed by Neighborhood Church. There, Bob chaired the Search Committee. The big move to Eugene came about in the 1980s, when Bob and Margaret joined UUCE. Bob had a great interest in duplicate bridge. During a local game in the Garden Club building, he saw a notice about a “Dahlia School.” He had always wanted to grow dahlias, so he contacted them and went on to judge competitions. He loved sharing his flowers and asked for Margaret’s help in displaying them. This was the beginning of Margaret’s flower designing. Her beautiful and artful displays graced our sanctuary for many years, much to the delight of our members.

Bob Leonetti died three years ago. After 57 years of marriage, Margaret has made the hard adjustments in coping with living without the “very essence” of her life. Thank you, Margaret, for giving us the opportunity to look back on Bob’s life.

- Pam Love, Planned Giving Committee

Remembering Peter Wotton

For several years, he worked in marketing, advertising and public relations. In 1963, after receiving a Masters Degree in public health, he began working as an administrator and planner in hospitals. That led to psychiatric administration and counseling. In 1979, he moved from Connecticut to Eugene, where he worked as an administrator in community health and senior services. He also served as an in-home care provider.

Peter was active in our church community, attending weekly Men’s Group meetings for 16 years. He also sang with the Eugene Peace Choir and served with many groups and boards dealing with human rights, public health, senior citizens, the rights of aging, disabled services and grief counseling.

Peter was also a journalist, and from 1982 until his death in1996, he broadcast a weekly commentary on KLCC radio called “Elderberry Wine.” His commentaries focused on issues of interest to older people and the process of living and growing older. Peter also covered similar topics in the “Elderberry Wine” columns he wrote for local newspapers.

Above his desk, Peter posted the message “TTT” to remind himself that “Things Take Time.” Here is the transcript from his “Elderberry Wine” radio broadcast of August 10, 1992: