New Member Stories: Emily Miller and Jim Burakiewicz

"We wanted to be part of what made the Church a place we were drawn to."

This week's post is an interview with Emily Miller and Jim Burakiewicz about their experiences as new members of the First Unitarian community.

Before you began attending First Unitarian, had you been attending another church or other faith community?
No, not since childhood. Emily had explored Unitarianism before, but had not found a place that fit. Jim had been brought up Catholic and had not attended church for years.

How did you hear about First Unitarian and what made you decide to visit?
Emily had initially found First Unitarian and was interested in its history. We were both looking for a deeper community here in Worcester and decided that First Unitarian was a place to look for it.

Why did you decide to become active participants in the church community?
We found that everyone was so welcoming and friendly that we wanted to become contributing members of the church. As a path of our spiritual growth, we wanted to be part of what made the church a place we were drawn to. While the two of us have differing levels of belief in a higher power, First Unitarian satisfies both of us. For us, "spirituality" is about connecting to something bigger than ourselves, guidance in becoming our best selves and a way to heal life's bumps and bruises. Sarah provides words that encourage both of us in our growth: for Emily that means reaching outside herself and for Jim that means looking inward. We also really like how multi-generational the congregation is. We enjoy talking to everyone,. It's great having so many different perspectives and life experiences to learn from. First Unitarian feels like a family united not by blood but by shared faith and goals.

Was there anything about First Unitarian that you didn't expect or surprised you?
Jim was surprised at how little First Unitarian felt like the Catholic Churches he grew up with. We enjoy the services and fellowship hour feel more like a friendly discussion on how to better ourselves in the world.

In making the decision about whether to become members of the church, are there any particular considerations that you're thinking about as you make your decision?
First Unitarian makes us feel more passionate about our spirituality, makes us feel challenged and gives us the motivation to improve ourselves.