Home | StaffLaw\'nence Miller -- Director of Administration
Donna Pang -- Administrative Assistant
Billy Dechand -- ESWoW Administrator
Aimee Neumann -- Director of Religious Education
Trish Cowan -- YES Conference Coordinator
Emily Newman -- Dialogue Editor
Richard Reichart -- Copy Editor
Susan Rose -- Leadership Dean/Curriculum Coord.
Hugh Taft-Morales -- Leadership Training Curriculum Developer
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2012-2013 Board of Directors

Richard Koral (Westchester) -- President

Scott Walton (Chicago) -- Vice President

Tom Weishaar (New York) -- Treasurer

Jan Broughton (N.C. The Triangle) --  Secretary

Karen Elliott (Baltimore)
Carol Bartell (St. Louis)
Laura Stark Steele (Washington, D.C.)
Hank Gassner (Northern Virginia)
Ken Karp (Bergen)
Jone Johnson Lewis (Northern Virginia) -- NLC President
Anne Klaeysen (New York) -- NLC Vice President
Lisel Burns (NLC) -- NLC Liaison Alternate

Tyler Lurie-Spicer -- FES Representative
Emily Newman -- FES Representative Alternate
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After a frightful and dangerous storm, the Washington Ethical Society (WES) was thrilled to have power restored by July 8th for the first ever joint Platform with the Baltimore Ethical Society (BES) and Northern Virginia Ethical Society (NoVES). The four Leaders; Mary Herman (WES), Jone Johnson Lewis (NoVES), Amanda Poppei (WES), and Hugh Taft-Morales (BES), collaborated on the Platform entitled "Put on Your Sunday Best." (An mp3 version is available on the WES website.)

As people arrived, the meeting hall filled with chatter and the tables in the social hall quickly sported delicious salads, fruits, breads and desserts. Following opening words, American Ethical Union board members Karen Elliott (BES), Hank Gassner (NoVES), and Laura Steele (WES) helped launch the eventful day by each lighting a candle for their respective Society. This was followed by recognition of the President of each Society. Continuing the NoVES and WES tradition of reading a children's story, Lynn Munsinger's "The Tacky Penguin," a tale of a little penguin doing his own thing and thereby saving the day delighted both young and not as young. After the story, as is the custom at WES, the children and their teachers were "sung" out of the hall and down to the classrooms by a song called "May You Learn and Grow."

Each Leader spoke on a related but different theme of the idea of "putting on your Sunday best." Sprinkled throughout the Platform was wonderful music performed by individuals from each Society and songs led by the choruses from both NoVES and WES. "While there were differences in what each Society brought, it was also obvious that there's a common thread among us," said Leader Jone Johnson Lewis.

As we all know, our middle name is often "eating" instead of "ethical," and eat we did at a bountiful potluck lunch. Members of the Societies, including the children, had a chance to mingle, share common experiences and stories, make new friends, reconnect with old friends, and begin what we hope will become a new tradition among the Chesapeake Region Societies. Indeed, the buzz was a definite "let's do this again!" So if you are in the area next July, come and join us!

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