Our Minister

Reverend Dawn Sangrey began her ministry with the Fourth Unitarian Society in September 2003. She is the first professional minister to serve the Society in over forty years. Her work is focused by the congregation’s transition from an entirely lay-led fellowship to a shared ministry, where laity and clergy collaborate to fulfill the congregation’s mission. She is grateful for the opportunity to participate in this transformative time in the congregation’s life.

Rev. Sangrey was educated for ministry at Harvard Divinity School and in a college chaplaincy internship at Tufts University in Medford, MA; a hospital chaplaincy in the psychiatric units of the Griffin Hospital in Derby, CT; and a ministerial internship with the First Religious Society, a UU congregation in Carlisle, MA.. She was ordained to the Unitarian Universalist ministry in June 2001 in Carlisle and served as Consulting Minister to the UU Congregation of the Palisades in Englewood, NJ from 2001 to 2003.

A specialist in liturgy and worship, Rev. Sangrey enjoys working with others to create beautiful, meaningful worship services. During her tenures in Carlisle and Englewood, she helped found Worship Advisors groups to foster more lay participation in the worship life of these congregations. Her ministry has also supported congregational growth and development, life-span religious education, spiritual direction, and social justice. She is committed to marriage equality and was one of the first clergy to be arrested for officiating at same-sex weddings. The charges, brought in New Paltz, NY, in March 2004 were subsequently dismissed on Constitutional grounds.

Rev. Sangrey came to UU ministry after careers in education and in writing. She began her professional life as a high-school English teacher in Westchester County, NY, and has taught writing at Westchester Community College. She also worked for more than twenty years as a freelance editor and writer. She is the author of Wifestyles: Women Talk About Marriage (Delacorte Press, 1983) and The Crime Victim's Book (Brunner/Mazel, 1986) with Morton Bard.

She has lived with her husband, Paul Fargis, in the same house in Bedford Hills, NY, for more than a quarter of a century. Mr. Fargis recently retired as president of The Stonesong Press, a book development company in Manhattan, and he has embarked on a new career as a home improvement contractor. They have one son, Chris Fargis, who lives in Brooklyn. Rev. Sangrey is also stepmother to John Fargis and Alison Fargis, the children of her husband's first marriage, and grandmother to Dan Dan, Tulia, and Siena.

She enjoys hiking in Westchester, in Vermont, and in the White Mountains of New Hampshire. She plants and tends flowers and vegetables in her yard in spite of the deer, goes to the movies almost every weekend, and reads voraciously.

Reverend Sangrey can be reached at minister@fourthuu.org.

Sermons

Sermons have moved to:
fourthuu.org/sermons.php

Reverend Sangrey's March Letter

Fred’s Pantry: Feeding the Hungry in Peekskill

Commander Fred London was an advocate for homeless veterans and a long-time supporter of the Jan Peek Homeless Shelter in Peekskill. Fred dreamed of opening a food pantry to serve hungry people who needed some help to put food on their table during tough times. He was working with Jeanne Blum, executive director of Caring for the Homeless in Peekskill (CHOP) which oversees Jan Peek, when unfortunately he became ill and died before his vision could be realized.

But Fred’s vision did not die. Jeanne and others at CHOP and at St. Peter’s Episcopal Church in Peekskill have come together to open the food pantry Fred dreamed about. They named it for him. On February 13, Fred’s Pantry opened its doors at St. Peter’s for the first time. I was lucky enough to be with them on this special day to witness the culmination of more than two years of planning. The pantry was stocked with a rich variety of nourishing nonperishable foods. Many volunteers were ready to welcome and assist those who came for help. The registration lines moved quickly, and the air was full of joy as the community came together with love, respect, and food
for the hungry.

Helen Mizer first brought us the good news about Fred’s Pantry—she found out about it as our representative on the Peekskill Pastors Association (PAPA). Members of the Fourth Unitarian Society have already been involved: some attended the volunteer orientation; others helped paint the walls in the basement rooms where the pantry is housed. We are working to organize donations of food and money. Our Social Action Committee is coordinating volunteer sign ups and the purchase and delivery of food.

For March and April, Fred’s Pantry will be open once a month. They hope to begin weekly operation as soon as possible and anticipate that over 200 families will come to the pantry for food. Right now, Fred’s Pantry needs our support so they can move from a monthly to weekly as soon as possible.

You can help in three ways: donate money to buy food, donate nonperishable foods from the list (posted on our Get Involved page), and/or volunteer either for set up on Friday or during the food distribution on Saturday when the pantry is open at St. Peter’s. Spanish-speaking volunteers are especially needed on Saturday. Look for email announcements as our plans for 4th UU participation develop. If you have questions or want to volunteer, contact Beth Woogen from our Social Action Committee or speak to me.

Blessings.

Dawn