Marilyn Sewell's Sermons to Air on Public Access TV
Document Actions
Our Ministers
Rev. Dr. Marilyn Sewell has been the Senior Minister at First Church from 1992-present. She is an accomplished Unitarian minister, writer, social justice activist, and spiritual leader. Raised Catholic and Southern Baptist, Marilyn was ordained as a Unitarian 
Universalist minister in 1986 and has since become a figure known for speaking, writing and teaching in our movement.
Dr. Sewell received her Ph.D. in Theology and the Arts from the Theological Union at Berkeley, California, in 1991. She received her Masters of Divinity from Starr King School, Berkeley, California, in 1986. Dr. Sewell has an M.A. in English Literature, a master's degree in social work, and a B.A. in English Education.
Marilyn Sewell has received numerous awards and honors. She has been recognized as a Unitarian Universalist Scholar and a John Haynes Holmes Fellow, and she was the recipient of the Feminist Theology Award in 1989. She was named an A. Powell Davies Preaching Fellow for excellence in preaching. In June of 2000, Dr. Sewell addressed 4,000 Unitarians at the UUA General Assembly's Service of the Living Tradition. Throughout the evolution of her career, which has granted her experience as an English teacher, a therapist, a television personality, and now as a minister and spokeswoman, Dr. Sewell has earned the reputation as a dynamic leader - not only in the Unitarian Universalist church, but in the spiritual and political community at large.
____________________________________________
Rev. Thomas Disrud has been the Associate Minister at First Unitarian since 1995. He earned a Masters of Divinity degree from Starr King School for the Ministry in Berkeley, California, in 1994. He is also a graduate of Marquette University in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, where he majored in journalism and philosophy. He currently serves as a trustee of the Starr King School for the Ministry. He has also served on the board of the Equity Foundation in Oregon.
Rev. Disrud was raised as a Lutheran in Wisconsin. His first career was as an editor at the Duluth, Minnesota News Tribune. He was also active in the Newspaper Guild, a union which represented employees at the newspaper. He currently serves as chair of the board of Starr King School for the Ministry and is past president of the Graduates Association of the school.
_______________________________________________
Rev. Kate Lore has been directing the Social Justice program at First Unitarian Church for the past 9 years. She received her Masters of Divinity from Meadville/Lombard School of Theology at the University of Chicago in June of 2007 and was ordained on October 28, 2007 at First Unitarian. Kate brings 15 years of church leadership into her ministry and specializes in community organizing, leadership development, conflict resolution and creative networking.
Kate operates on the premise that as members of a spiritual community, we have a moral obligation to act for change. She seeks to inspire, educate and mobilize our members to confront systems of discrimination and oppression that foster hatred, division and injustice. In addition, she feels adamantly that each of us must bring our very best selves into this sacred work, for in so doing, we build community, deepen our spiritual lives and generate more goodness in the world.
Kate’s areas of expertise are varied but include economic justice, legislative advocacy, peace issues, anti-racism training, environmental activism, human rights, grant-writing, spiritual development and organizational planning. She has two grown sons, two cats, a Honda Civic Hybrid and a new Trek hybrid bicycle. She loves nature, books, lectures and working with people.
Stephen Lewis Event