No matter who you are, or where you are on life's journey, you are welcome here at University Congregational United Church of Christ. Young, old, sure of your path, or still searching --- we invite you to join us in imagining love and justice - as Jesus did - in acting to change the world.

Right now, during the pandemic, we are still united as church. You are welcome to attend our in-person service at 10 am each Sunday. A digital service is also offered on line on Sunday evening at 5 pm. Our service is streamed on YouTube and Facebook. You will find the links just below this section on our home page. Weekly services are are available on line after they are initially presented on Sundays..

We strive to walk in the path of Jesus, and to offer an authentic welcome to everyone who walks through our door or joins us online. If you are new to us, we would love to get to know you and answer your questions about our church, even though we cannot greet you in person. A member of our Welcome Committee, or a pastor, would be happy to correspond on email or talk with you on the phone. Click here to arrange for a meeting.

Our in-person worship service starts at 10 am and includes hymns, prayers, scripture reading and a sermon. It usually lasts about an hour. During the 10 am service we also offer live-streaming to a nearby room that offers those with compromised immune systems to be more isolated. We also offer a separate space for children, with supervised play and crafts during the 10 am service. Sections of the 10 am service are programed into the 5 pm digital service, which is offered as a "vespers."

Children are an important part of our community, and are welcome for all or part or the service.

UCUCC Parking Map

View for detailed Google Map.

Parking can be a challenge in the University District! Persistence, patience and an early start are keys to success.

UW has free parking on Sundays. Enter the main campus gate at NE 45th and 17th Ave NE and turn left past the toll booth. It's about a three-block walk to the church. The UW Meany Garage at 15th Ave. NE and NE 41st St. is a five-block walk.

The church also owns three parking lots - Lot A is across the street from the church on 16th Ave. E. Lot B is beneath Sortun Court, just north of the church on the east side of 16th Ave. E. (It closes at 2 p.m.) Lot C (for those with difficulty walking, young children and visitors) is at the corner of 15th NE and NE 45th St., next to the church.

If you need to be assured of a close parking spot, you can call the church office before noon on Friday to reserve one: 206-524-2322.

During this pandemic, we have discontinued our in-person lunches. We would love to meet with you via email or phone, however. Click here to arrange a meeting with a Welcome Committee Volunteer or pastor.

We can explore and explain a range of topics about our church, from history, to theology, to membership. Please contact us at the link above for more information.

We are an inter-generational church and strive to be family-friendly, with an active ministry for children and youth. All ages are welcome in worship. We also offer nursery and child-care, Younger children begin the 10 am service with us and usually leave after about 15 minutes. Older children have the option of leaving for a special sermon time. Junior high and high school youth meet at 9 am and then often sit together in worship. Give us a call at 206-524-2322 for more specifics.

Our programs for children and youth continue during this pandemic. Sign up at the bottom of the home page to receive our Children's Ministries and/or Youth Ministries newsletter.

Hearing Impaired: Our sanctuary has an induction loop system that uses the T-Coil mode of your hearing aids. You can get the necessary equipment just before entering the Sanctuary on the right or ask any usher.

Visually Impaired: We offer each Sunday's program in large print for easier readability.

Wheelchair Access: The front entry is wheelchair accessible as are the rest rooms. Please don't hesitate to ask for assistance.

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Leadership and governance at University UCC

Leadership at University UCC is shared by a leadership team consisting of the three clergy (shown below), the Director of Finance and Operations, an elected Church Council of volunteers, and by the congregation itself. There are some decisions, such as calling a pastor or approving the budget, that only the congregation as a whole may make.
Other decisions, including matters of finance and policy are made by the Church Council in consultation with the leadership team. In addition to the church officers, each of the five church ministries is represented on the Council. When the Council makes a decision, it is understood to be acting on behalf of the entire congregation.
Amy Roon

Amy Roon

Minister of Vision and Stewardship (MVS)

Days off: Monday and Saturday
Email Pastor Amy
Facebook | Twitter
Reverend Amy Roon Amy’s educational background includes a Master of Divinity from the Pacific School of Religion (2002), and a BA in Vocal Performance from Oberlin College (1996). She has served as Associate Pastor at the United Churches of Olympia and as Interim Pastor at Lummi Island Congregational Church. She was also Music and Arts Director at First Baptist Church of Alameda (CA) for three years.

Amy is trained as a Stephen Ministry leader and has participated in and helped lead the Stephen Ministry pastoral care process in other churches and at University UCC.

Amy has tremendous passion and creativity, and is a musician with experience in piano, choral music, solo voice, and theater. She occasionally sings in worship, but generally prefers helping others to fulfill this role. She is an enthusiastic practitioner of InterPlay, a discipline that combines theater, dance, and spirituality.

Amy has one son, Benjamin, and also serves as a foster parent.

Her responsibilities include liaison to the Education Ministry, Christian education staffing, communication and public relations.

Amy regularly posts on Facebook, and you can read her posts there by clicking on the Facebook link above. If you are not on Facebook you can also view Amy’s posts on Twitter by clicking the link above.

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Steve Jerbi

Steve Jerbi

Minister of Worship and Christian Formation (MWCF)

Days off: Friday and Saturday
Preferred Communication: Text or Call
Email Pastor Steve
Facebook | Twitter | Instagram

Rev. Steve Jerbi leads in communities by connecting faith, justice, and action. Before coming to UCUCC he served Lana’i Union Church, a congregation blending Micronesian, Hawaiian, Japanese and Anglo cultures in Lana’i City, Hawai’i. He also served as lead pastor of Bethel-Encino in Los Angeles where he helped establish and lead the Interfaith Solidarity Network in the San Fernando Valley.

Before LA, he was the senior pastor at All Peoples Church in Milwaukee, WI.
Steve earned his Bachelors of Arts from the University of Montana – Missoula in English Literature with an Environmental Studies minor. He graduated from the Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago with a Masters of Divinity and an environmental ministry emphasis. He is ordained as a minister of Word and Sacrament in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America and serves under the full communion agreements of the ELCA and UCC.
Steve is passionate about the intersection of racial, economic, and environmental justice. He offers training in racial justice work and faith-based community organizing. Youth ministry has been at the center of his congregational work and he loves cultivating experiences where faith comes to life – through worship, study, and play. Steve is also in formation with the Order of Ecumenical Franciscans.
Steve and his partner Jennifer raise their teenage daughters and try to get their Jack Russel-mix to drop the ball when playing fetch. You can find the family exploring the city, watching superhero movies, or camping out under the stars.

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Loren McGrail

Loren McGrail

Bridge Minister of Care and Outreach (MCO)

Days off: Friday and Saturday
Email Pastor Loren

Rev. Loren McGrail is a Bridge Pastor serving for one year. She graduated from Andover Newton Theological School (ANTS) with honors as a Johnathan Edwards Scholar. In addition, she received two certificates: World Mission and Ecumenism from Boston Theological School, and Faith, Health and Spirituality from ANTS for her work coordinating the Reiki Ministry at ANTS from 2002-2004.

She was ordained into ministry as a hospital chaplain in 2007 and worked as a chaplain and clinical pastoral education (CPE) supervisor in training from 2007-2010. In 2011 she volunteered for the World Council of Churches Ecumenical Accompaniment Program in Palestine and Israel on the Bethlehem Team. In 2013 she went back as a mission co-worker for the Disciples of Christ and United Church of Christ Global Ministries. She served the YWCA of Palestine and the Church of Scotland as an ecumenical partner. She worked as an interim pastor for Irondequoit United Church of Christ from 2019-2022.

Rev. McGrail is on the steering committee of the UCC Palestine Israel Network and continues to participate in webinars on issues related to Palestinian liberation and human rights. She is also very committed to racial justice issues including

immigrant rights. Ecojustice and climate crisis are also dear to her heart. She writes poetry and creates collages and assemblages when she has time. She facilitated a workshop in December 2018 on the theme Unexpected Joy at UCUCC in the chapel.

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Email Rev. Norton
Rev. Norton welcome video

Visiting Theologian, Reverend Yolanda Norton

University Congregational United Church of Christ is excited to welcome Rev. Yolanda Norton as our Visiting Theologian for the next year. Rev. Norton is a Ph.D. candidate in Hebrew Bible and Ancient Israel and Theology and Practice Fellow at Vanderbilt University. Her current research interests include womanist interpretation, narrative and literary criticism, and the Persian period. Rev. Norton was a guest of the UCUCC Lecture Series for the All this Joy, All this Sorrow in Fall 2020 and was a guest preacher as part of the Black History Month series last February. The scope of this year-long program is aimed at utilizing Rev. Norton’s commitments, expertise, and training in theological education, spiritual formation, and social justice to enhance UCUCC’s stated commitments as a racial justice congregation and inclusive community. The project will take serious commitments to intersectional justice with an aim to educate the congregation about issues related to race, class, and gender in all aspects of congregational life.

The Church Council and our five ministries

Our goal is to live out our call in the world as Christians. In order to accomplish this we have organized ourselves into five ministries: Worship and Music, Love and Justice, Christian Education, Calling and Engagement, and Stewardship and Finance.

The Church Council provides oversight for the work of these five ministries. Current membership of the Council is listed below. All church council members and alternates welcome communication from the congregation. However, to protect their privacy, their contact information can be most easily be obtained through the online resource MyUCUCC or by using the printed church directory. Or you can send an email to  info@universityucc.org  with the message and person you wish to reach.  Church staff will forward your message to the appropriate person.

  • Moderator, Terry Moore
  • Assistant Moderator,  Ed Coleman
  • Treasurer, Don Guthrie
  • Secretary, Mary Sue Galvin
  • Racial Justice Representative, Ginger Warfield
  • At-Large Representative, Virginia Felton
  • At-Large Representative, Lynn Schafer
  • Director of Finance and Operations, Kyna Shilling  Email Kyna
  • Pastor Amy Roon Email Amy
  • Pastor Steve Jerbi Email Steve

Worship & Music Ministry

  • Priscilla Grundy, Worship and Music Representative

Christian Education & Spiritual Growth Ministry

  • Dave Colescott, Christian Education Representative

Calling, Engagement & Community Ministry

  • George Vestal, Calling, Community & Engagement Representative
  • Jan Von Lehe, Calling, Community & Engagement Alternate

Love & Justice Ministry

  • Carol Nelson, Love and Justice Representative

Stewardship & Administration Ministry

  • Beth Bartholomew, Stewardship Administration Representative

Further information about church governance and each ministry is available in the Resources Section.