One of the joys of my week is seeing the Sunday school chldren sitting in front with the story reader during platform and then watching them smiling as they run off to Sunday school.  It takes me back 25 years to when my own daughter was a three-year-old Sunday school student.  She too would run off to class and return after an hour with stories of projects and adventures.  In watching these students, Andy and I reminisced about our history with the Northern Virginia Ethical Society.

     NoVES Leader Jone Johnson Lewis has often said, “Ethics begins with choice.”  The way we see ourselves, what we value, and how we live are reflected in our choices.  Our Ethical Society operates in exactly the same way.  As a Society, we make choices. 

by Mary Ellen Stanton

“Children are the world’s most valuable resource and its best hope for the future.”

John F. Kennedy  

When is the sum greater than its parts? 

A farmer had seven children.  One winter day he called his children together.  He handed the eldest son a stick to break in half.  The young man easily snapped the stick in two.  He repeated the exercise with each of his children.  Then he handed each child another stick.  However, this time he asked them to combine the sticks into a bundle and break the bundle in half.  First, the eldest son tried.  But, he could not break the bundle.  The farmer ga

Mary Ellen sat in her office one cold December evening. “Bah! Humbug! Too many meetings! Too many phone calls! Being the NoVES president is a humbug! I give up! I wish to be left alone.”

Her hard-working volunteer, Andy, poked his head into her office. “I, too, was a NoVES president and know how you feel. Tonight three Ethical Culture Leaders will visit you. Heed their words.”

     Nothing ever happens around here!  How often did I utter that statement as a teenager growing up in Florissant, Missouri?  Nothing new ever seemed to happen in that little town.  Often there was talk of something new – an ice cream store, a movie theater, or a new clothing store – but nothing ever seemed to happen.  AND, most importantly from my teenage perspective, nothing ever happened to me.  My school stayed the same.  My friends stayed the same. My parents stayed the same.  And I would never meet my teen idol Bobby Rydell.     

Halloween!  For me, the most wonderful time of year.  Thanksgiving has its moments of family gatherings, feasting, and reflecting on what is positive in our lives.  Christmas and Hanukah have their themes of light and good will toward men.  But, for pure unadulterated fun, nothing beats Halloween.

Life is full of risks and unknowns. We leap into things with only the information we have, hoping for the best; but nonetheless leaping into the unknown.

Over the years NoVES has taken many leaps into the unknown. In 1983 a little group of Washington Ethical Society members left the security of an established Society to begin the Northern Virginia Ethical Society. During the subsequent years, that Northern Virginia Ethical Society made many leaps into the unknown. Based on ethical principles, the Society left a secure meeting place to find a new home. We searched for a new leader, decided to share our weekly collections with charities, and abolished Sunday School tuition. So many leaps into the unknown and we have survived them all – together.

Just what makes that little old ant Think he'll move that rubber tree plant Anyone knows an ant, can'tMove a rubber tree plant

Much like the little old ant, NoVES members have answered, “Oh, yeah?!”

At the NoVES spring membership meeting over a year ago, our then treasurer, Sven Sinclair, let the Society know that we were in financial trouble. We were operating at a loss of some $4,000. While we could get by for another year using surplus funds, after that the Society would be in serious trouble. At the fall membership meeting our current treasurer, Marv Friedlander, also let us know that our money situation was not good, but we could change that.

Those lazy, hazy days of summer are here again.  Following the example of Felix Adler, we at NoVES also take the summer off from our regular Sunday morning platform. That does not mean, though, that nothing happens in summer.  In fact, summer is the perfect time to recoup, reflect, and refresh.