The Rev. Louise Ulrich--A Short Personal Story

I was born into a very musical family, my brother and I both being active choral singers as well as amateur composers and arrangers. Dad, whose profession was music – performing, composing, arranging and teaching – provided for us as a pit musician on Broadway. Mom did her share of singing and dancing, too, and worked as an executive secretary and fund-raiser in a university setting.

When I was quite young, my parents had become dissatisfied with their respective protestant affiliations, found Unitarianism and later became founding members of two congregations. Thus my own religious search was free (and responsible) and led me into Unitarianism while I was still in high school.

I benefited from an excellent education in progressive public schools, attended Vassar on scholarships and by working part-time, thence to graduate work in several fields. This lead to an MDiv. through studies at both Meadville/Lombard Theological School and the University of Chicago Div. School in 1996.

Married while I was still an undergraduate, my spouse and I dissolved our marriage 24 years later and I shouldered total responsibility for raising and educating three teenagers – my greatest success, as each one developed into a responsible, caring and very likable adult.

The work I have done included case work in adult and child protective units of the Broome County Social Services Dept., clerical and supervisory work with the US Postal Service, the office management of a small engineering company, secretarial services for my home church, and founding choir director and music chairmanship in various places.

Fortunately I was able to travel, too. I sang in Western and Eastern Europe. Later I visited our community’s sister city in Russia, and spent five weeks on a study tour of the religious and artistic heritage of Northern China. My father and I went on an "art quest" in Czechoslovakia and Poland. I also went with other church members to their partner church in Transylvania in Sept. of 2000. My mother and I traveled together in Ireland and England in 2003, and later in Central America. Lastly, I had the extraordinary opportunity to live in Edinburgh, Scotland, and to serve its Unitarian Church 2007-8.