Meet Our Lay Chaplains
Our Lay Chaplains will work with you to create ceremonies for occasions of personal significance:
- weddings, commitment ceremonies and renewals of vows
- baby naming ceremonies, child dedications, and coming of age ceremonies
- memorials, grave side ceremonies, and celebrations of life
- other ceremonies such as coming out ceremonies, house blessings, retirements, and many others
The service you craft together will embrace and express your personal beliefs and values. We proudly offer services for interfaith clients and the LGBT community.
Lay Chaplains are registered with the Province of British Columbia to perform legal marriages. The services can take place here at the Unitarian Centre, at home or in public halls or gardens — any place that affords quiet and the privacy you desire.
The Unitarian Community supports every individual’s personal search for truth and meaning. We believe that all people with or without a faith community should have the opportunity to mark and celebrate important moments in their lives in a way that reflects their values and spiritual beliefs. You do not need to be a member of our church, and we welcome all people. Want to learn more? Listen to the Lay Chaplains tell stories about their work.
Karen Bartlett
Karen has been a member of VanU since 1989. She is interested in intercultural rituals and has served on interfaith committees. She treasures working with individuals to develop meaningful, personal services for weddings, memorials, child dedications, and celebrations of joining, celebrations of life, and other rituals such as house blessings.
Karen retired from her faculty position at the University of British Columbia in 2023, and now commits time to the VanU community and outreach to the larger Vancouver Community.
Laureen Stokes
Laureen has been a member of UCV since 2017. She was delighted to discover an organization that promotes an individual’s search for meaning, and she embraces the seven principles.
By day, Laureen works as a Senior Engineering Technologist, and teaches at BCIT part-time. She delights in the practical, everyday problems of building and construction, and thrives on the push and pull of construction projects. In addition, she has education and training in Fine Arts, including sculpture and theatre arts, as well as Communication Studies. Lay chaplaincy allows her to connect with people in a different way, knitting together her creativity, love of storytelling and theatre, and her delight at building relationships with people.
You can listen to her recount her story of the Camino de Santiago here.