BFUU’s Nominating Committee presents the following slate of candidates for election to the Board:

Regular 2 year term

Margaret Hurlbert (she/her) Margaret Hurlbert has been coming to the Fellowship for many years, and has been active in the Choir, Chair of the Music Committee, and has taken part in many events and concerts. She has also been active in the Social Justice Ministry. Some projects she has worked on include going to ICE detention centers and protesting the internment of children, going to Climate Change marches with BFUU, helping with concerts and dances and the ukulele group at BFUU, and organizing making soup at BFUU for Consider the Homeless.

Mike Gardner (he/him) My adventures with BFUU began when my first wife and I were married in Fellowship Hall in 1967. We began attending and were inspired by the spiritual message of the minister, Clark Olsen, and his activism, and that of the Social Action Committee, now the SJC. We joined the Fellowship and became active members. In 1980 I stepped away from BFUU.

However, after years of trials and tribulations I realized that again I was seeking to grow and express a sense of spirituality for both my political and scientific interests. In 2014 I rejoined BFUU, along with my wife Jinky. Since then I’ve been a member of the Ministerial Relations Committee, a member of the Personnel Committee and a member of the Board of Trustees. I’ll work on the new Board to help keep things moving forward spiritually, socially and financially in these difficult times.

Phoebe Sorgen (she/her) Phoebe Sorgen became a BFUU friend 27 years ago when she enrolled her boys in the RE program. Though unavailable on Sunday mornings due to work, she became active via the Social Justice Committee, which she eventually chaired. After becoming a BFUU member, she was elected to the Board during the time that BFUU transitioned from lay led and hired Rev. Kurt Kuhwald in hopes of increasing membership. She served on the then newly reconstituted Personnel Committee, and has also been on the Aesthetics and Nominating Committees.
For effective peace, democracy, and human rights advocacy, Phoebe was a 2005 Outstanding Woman of Berkeley and 2015 Tom Paine Courageous Spirit awardee. As a Peace & Justice Commissioner, she wrote many Resolutions that were adopted by the City of Berkeley. Some were adopted by other cities.
Phoebe is a Green Party County Councilor and state delegate to the GP-US National Committee (the decision making body.) She serves on the GP-US Peace, International, and Conflict Resolution Committees, and is active in the Women’s Caucus. Despite those responsibilities, and being on the Steering Committees of Move to Amend and Berkeley Citizens Action, she also serves as a BFUU Board of Trustees Alternate because our beautiful BFUU community means the world to her.

Alternates – 1 year term
Betsy Nachmann (she/her) grew up in Chicago as a Unitarian Universalist. She got a bachelors degree in International Relations and a masters degree in Teacher Education/ Early Childhood. Betsy directed Griffin Nursery School in Berkeley for twenty-four years. She especially loved helping children separate comfortably from their parents and resolve their conflicts. Now that she’s retired, Betsy owes it to the memories of her civically active parents and to this frightening and opportune time in history to be a political activist. She recently joined the BFUU to have more of a community than she’s had in recent years and to join with other BFUU members to restore, maintain, and improve the common good. Betsy loves writing, wildflower hunting, rudimentary geology, singing, stuff like that.

Kirsten White (she/her) has lived in the East Bay for the last decade. She joined BFUU in 2025 and has enjoyed getting to know the community, and is honored to be nominated as an alternate.