Chair

Gail was born in Los Angeles and raised in the San Fernando Valley.  She attended schools within a 20 mile radius of each other: Toluca Lake Elementary, Walter Reed Jr. High, North Hollywood High, and received her BA in English Literature with a minor in Psychology at California State University, Northridge.  Her liberal arts education and diversity of interests led her to a job in construction management where she oversaw construction of a seven-story technical building in Burbank, CA; a 23-year stint operating and managing her film/video post production facility; and, most recently, working as a registered sales assistant to a stock broker.

In her mid-thirties, she met the love of her life, Marjorie, and they had a joining ceremony in Hana, Maui.  Gail and Marjorie started attending Emerson UUC in 1997 and immediately knew they found a home.  The first time they were publicly announced as a couple was from the chancel when they were welcomed as new members.  And, in 2008, they were married on that same chancel during a Sunday service.

Gail has served in many capacities at Emerson: Co-Chair of the Long Range Planning Committee, Congregational Affairs Trustee, Board Secretary, Board President, member of the Executive Team for 6 years, co-chair of more Stewardship drives than she cares to remember, and co-chair of many fundraising events.  She is honored to serve as the chair of the Ministerial Search Committee.

Survey Coordinator, Publishing Guru

Rhod was born in Hollywood during April of 1934.  He attended Beverly Hills High School, enlisted in the Army, and later graduated from the UCLA School of Engineering before pursuing fruitful careers in electronic design and technical sales/marketing.  He married in 1956 and had two beautiful daughters.  Though initially raised as a Christian Scientist, Rhod did not follow any religion from High School to the mid 1990’s, when he was urged to occasionally attend Emerson UU Church.  After the Northridge earthquake demolished Emerson’s church he joined a determined group of folks who wanted to build a new church.

Rhod has served at various times as the Worship Trustee, Board Secretary, Board Vice President, Board President, and President of the (former) Emerson preschool.  He has taken on projects such as designing and installing the monument sign, adding wings to the memorial board, and modifying the audio system as a member of the newly formed Technical (or AV) Group.  Rhod has developed and presented two sermons on “Greening the Church” (1999) and “Making a Difference” (2013).

Arranger, Negotiating Team Rep.

Linda was born in Phoenix, Arizona and raised in Santa Monica and Sherman Oaks, California.  She married before she completed her studies at Cal State Northridge and later went back to school at UCLA to complete her degree in Psychology.  She got a Masters from Antioch University and worked for 25 years in many hospital programs as a Chemical Dependency Specialist until she opened a private practice with a group of therapists in the Encino area where she worked until 2002.

She was baptized and confirmed Episcopal but never attended after high school.  Fifteen years ago, a friend brought her to Emerson one Sunday and she has attended ever since.  “I had no idea that religion could be so palatable”.

Linda has served on Emerson Board of Trustees as Treasurer and Vice President, the Worship Associates, the Membership Committee, the Committee on the Ministry for the Rev. Anne Hines and the Committee on the Internship Ministry for Sarah LaWall. She has been a member of many other committees as well as a member of the Emerson Choir.  Most of her life revolves around her children and grandchildren, her friends at Emerson and senior classes that she attends at Pierce College.

Narrative Guru, Packet Co-Editor

Spike has been attending Emerson for about twelve years, and has been a member for three.  She takes a lead role in managing Emerson’s publicity efforts, including producing theatrical and musical events throughout the year and maintaining the church’s social media profiles.  She is an active member of the Family SGM and leads the “Coming of a Different Age” group.  She is also a member of the usher team for Sunday services and helps prepare coffee hour once per month.

Spike believes that there are a lot of people in the West Valley who would love to know about Emerson, and is committed to making it easier for them to find us.  She is attracted to Unitarian Universalism’s liberal values and commitment to social justice.

Spike has lived in Los Angeles since 1987.  She is married and has two children, ages 21 and 13. She is an artist/cartoonist and runs a nonprofit that supports arts programs in Valley public schools, as well as advocates for the arts and artists in the Valley.

Treasurer

Karen is a native southern Californian with family roots going back several generations in the Santa Monica and Topanga Canyon communities.  She attended Canoga Park elementary and middle schools, graduated from Taft High School in Woodland Hills, and completed several college courses and programs at Pierce College, UCLA, and Pacifica University.

Wanting to provide for her young daughter a basic, broad-reaching religious education sans indoctrination (i.e. a cultural knowledge of world beliefs), Karen was pleased to find the Emerson Unitarian Universalist community.  Over the past seven years at Emerson she continues to find the core village in which to raise her daughter as both continue to value the deep friendships made there. She has taught Religious Education classes, served on the R.E. Committee, spent three years on the Committee on Ministry for Rev. Anne Hines, co-facilitated two Coming of Age programs, and is part of the Sunday usher rotation.

She works freelance in the field of accounting, however is drawn strongly to the arts and to science as an appreciator and life-long learner.  She especially enjoys stargazing with her loving partner of four-years, Joseph Gallo.

Secretary, Congregational Record Editor

Renée was born in Manhattan, raised in Montreal and New York, New York where she was graduated from the State University of New York at New Paltz.  She moved to California to teach Second Grade in the Santa Ana Schools, but, returned to New York to marry her fiancé.  She joined the Poughkeepsie Unitarian Church and then the Hollis Unitarian Church.  She left New York to come to Los Angeles for their excellent public school program for the deaf in which her older son Brian, who is deaf, thrived.  She joined Emerson Unitarian Universalist Church and has been a member ever since.

Renée later went back to school and earned two Masters Degrees from California State University at Northridge and taught in the Los Angeles Unified School District for 20 years.  She loves to travel around the world and goes to New York often to visit her sons, other family and friends.  Renée and her husband, Paul Markowitz have travelled together in Europe, Canada, Mexico and the United States, and Renée herself has travelled to more places than we have room on this page to list.

IT Guru, Webmaster, Packet Co-Editor

Eric is a Los Angeles native representing the young adult contingent of the Emerson congregation.  Born in 1986, he’s been a UU since his parents took him and his younger sister as small children to the Sepulveda Unitarian Universalist Society (aka The Onion).  He grew up in UU religious education programming, eventually become active as a teen in the district level YRUU programming.  Never terribly compatible with academia, he was “unschooled” for his later teen years and did not attend college.  Instead, he chose to open a small business with friends, launching an erratic but rewarding career odyssey on the tech side of the LA production scene, the waters of which he is still attempting to navigate.  He currently works for a small digital media company servicing the video side of the music industry.

Eric has remained active in district-level UU young adult programming, and currently serves as a youth advisor for the teen group at Emerson, where he has been a member for about a year and a half.  He is actively involved in planning camps up at deBenneville Pines, and has served as a dean of three Sr High Camps, one Young Adult Camp, and has held staff roles at many others.  A delightful outcome of his time spent in UU youth programming is his engagement to Emmalinda MacLean, Emerson’s current DRE.