Skip to content Skip to sidebar Skip to footer

Dorothy Goresky: A long and well-live church life

Dorothy Goresky died August 12, 2023, at the age of 97.  For 65 of those years she was a member of the Unitarian Church of Vancouver. That’s a long time!  Until the last decade when she was in care, Dorothy was a stellar example of someone who knew how to “do church”. 

Starting in the late 1950s with assisting Margaret Murdoch in teaching Sunday School in the old church on West 10th she moved forward to take on a range of leadership roles at UCV as well as being involved in her work as a physician and mother of four children. 

Poking through the archives I found Dorothy’s name listed over and over again. She was twice a member of the Board and twice the Chair of Church Planning/Coordination council for multi-year periods. She was also a member of Finance Committee, co-chair of Canvas, co-chair of Personnel, head of Nuclear Disarmament Committee, and sat on Nomination, Sabbatical and Social Justice Committees. She was active in Daytimers, and taught Stress Management at the Unitarian Family Life Centre.

She was especially proud of being involved, with other church members, in animating (within the congregation and denomination) the findings of the 1986 UN report “Report of the World Commission on Environment and Development: Our Common Future,” chaired by Norwegian Prime Minister Dr. Gro Harlem Brundtland. 

For years she commandeered a crew of people for the monthly job of folding and stuffing the Bulletin into envelopes for mailing to hundreds of members. She also instigated the project to get the “Random Recollections and Reflections” book by and about Harold Douglas Brown done (2003) and played a role in obtaining the portrait of Harold that now hangs in the Fireside Room. 

At a personal level, Dorothy consistently explored her own journey of spirituality. After taking the Rev. Hewett-led CREDO course in the 1970s, she said “UCV has left me open to examine” a wide range of different beliefs. In an interview for the 2009 Centenary Oral History Project, she described engaging in daily spiritual exercises inspired by Deepak Chopra, and said “the strongest spiritual aspect of my life is a deep feeling of being connected to everyone and everything.” She was more comfortable with the word “divine” rather than “God” to express this sense of inter-connectedness and also said “there some things that one cannot put into words.” 

However, we who remember her can put some words together. Dorothy was a warm, firm, committed, principled and gracious person who took on church leadership roles as well as providing her “self” to the ongoing social and governance life of this beloved community. The archival record shows that for decades, along with a cohort of other strong same-aged women within UCV, Dorothy held up more than half the UCV sky. We are grateful for her long, consistent, and kind service to this congregation.

– Diana Ellis, with files from the UCV archives.
(For information on Dorothy’s family, life, and work outside of UCV, go to www.dorothygoresky.org)

Leave a comment

Board report for summer 2023

Thanks to all those who attended the EGM and the forums leading up to it.  It was great to get the support for the budget and the bylaw changes.  Thanks to the Finance committee, our Treasurer, Casey and Gordon Lowe for their work putting it together.  We are very excited about the new UCV website that the staff has developed. I hope that you will check it out.
 
The Board sends a huge note of thanks to the Ministerial Transition Team. They’ve been working hard for 3 years! The task forces they initiated have recommended changes to the organizational structure and staffing which the board has used as the foundation for our initiatives.Their work on the history wall has been exemplary. Please give it a final look before it disappears. Now they are done their work, we hope they will have a relaxing summer!
 
I hope that we all come back re-energized. Now that we are done with the long and complex transition activities, it is time to re-imagine what our community should prioritize and focus on, with guidance from Shawn. Shawn has a wealth of experience that we can draw on, and he is a kind person with lots of integrity as well as a good listener. In addition there is a wealth of experience and wisdom, and many skills in our congregation. Together we can make progress towards fulfilling our Vision “Because we envision a more compassionate world, we seek to deepen our spiritual and religious lives, grow and enrich our congregation, and advocate for love and justice. “
 
If you would like the experience of working with Shawn more closely, please consider joining the Board.  We are a fine group of people, who are dedicated to this community.  We are in need of a secretary for next year. Lynn Armstrong, our outgoing secretary, is willing to mentor. There also are openings for two members at large – who will be assigned a mentor, if they wish. Please talk with any Board member if you have questions, as well as the Nominating Committee (Frank Tester, David Valentine, Michael Clague).
 
I’m sure that everyone joins me in wishing Rev. Lara the very best in her new position. I’m sure she will be a gift to that congregation and the U*U community there.
 
Wishing everyone a safe, healthy, relaxing and fun summer!
 
Mairy

Leave a comment

It’s Springtime at UCV

The birds are chirping, the flowers are blooming, and the days are getting longer. Spring has officially arrived at UCV and it’s a beautiful sight to see.

Our garden is coming to life with vibrant colours and we’re especially grateful for all the volunteers on our buildings and grounds crew that are working hard to make the UCV campus look its best.

We’re eagerly anticipating a busy spring and summer ahead, with plenty of exciting events to look forward to.

Leave a comment