Sunday Mornings at Cedars

Chas Malatesta, Guest Speaker

Johanna Munson, Worship Associate

Together we will explore three pillars:

1. We protect the vote because it protects our people.

2. Community is our antidote to oppression.

3. Staying connected is a spiritual practice.

Chas Malatesta is an educator, equity advocate, and community leader dedicated to celebrating culture and fostering belonging. With over two decades of education experience, she works to dismantle barriers for marginalized communities through education, advocacy, and relationship-building.

A passionate mentor of the Bainbridge Island School District's Ethnic Multicultural Clubs, Chasity has served on the College Board’s Equity Strategies Committee, co-chaired the Bainbridge Island School District’s Multicultural Advisory Council, and currently serves on the Board at Bainbridge Island Museum of Art & Islandwood. Bainbridge Community Foundation honored her as the 2025 Spark Award winner, and she currently serves as the Secretary of the Bremerton NAACP.

Rev. Margo Rinehart, Cedars Minister

Gregory Cook, Worship Associate

We gather to celebrate the graduation of Gavin Barnes and to take joy in knowing that life's journeys and explorations never end.  May we all free our inner navigator and take command of the ship of our lives.  

Reverend Margo Rinehart serves Cedars by welcoming people from diverse theological and religious backgrounds and spiritual beliefs on their journeys to learn from one another, search for truth, and answer the call of love and justice.

Elizabeth Doll, Cedars Guest Speaker

Nancy Philip, Worship Associate

Braver Angels is the nation’s largest political depolarization non-profit, and we’re run mostly by volunteers all across the country. Transforming the political culture in the country for the better is a tall order, but one that’s achievable if we all do our part to love our neighbors and people we perceive as our enemies.

Elizabeth Doll joined Braver Angels in March 2022 as the Director of Braver Politics after four years of volunteering with the organization and many years working in politics in the Pacific Northwest. She began political work as a teen, when, while interning on a Congressional campaign, she became passionate about improving her community through civic engagement. Since then, Elizabeth has consulted for and worked on many state and local campaigns. She and her husband live on Bainbridge Island and when not engaged in politics, she enjoys photography, hiking, and horseback riding.

Rev.  Margo Rinehart, Cedars Minister

Johanna Munson, Worship Associate

Indigenous author and scientist, Robin Wall Kimmerer tells us that hoarding will never save us, rather all flourishing is mutual.  On this Sunday we will explore what flourishing looks like in our personal lives and societal structures.

Reverend Margo Rinehart serves Cedars by welcoming people from diverse theological and religious backgrounds and spiritual beliefs on their journeys to learn from one another, search for truth, and answer the call of love and justice.

Kathryn Lafond, Cedars Guest Speaker

Nancy Philip, Worship Associate

Why does it seem we are afraid to listen to our Higher-Self? What I am led to understand, through nearly thirty years as an intuitive, is that by learning to live from our heart-centered, heart-led perspective, we open to potentials far beyond the limitations we’ve currently set for ourselves. Why not make this journey more light-hearted and fun!

Kathryn Lafond, Intuitive Energy Healer/Health coach, Author, and Wise Woman Herbalist, trained in ancient wisdom traditions, is a life-long seeker who brings spiritual guidance from innumerable mentors. She is devoted to helping us remember the sacred in everyday life.

Rev.  Margo Rinehart, Cedars Minister

David Thomas, Worship Associate

Now that the fireworks and Presidential speeches are over, what stays with us after the July 4th celebrations?  The proposition that all men are created equal must be tested again and again with each new generation.  As America has not yet filled its promise, how can we, as individuals keep us moving toward that goal?

Reverend Margo Rinehart serves Cedars by welcoming people from diverse theological and religious backgrounds and spiritual beliefs on their journeys to learn from one another, search for truth, and answer the call of love and justice.

Angela Lujan, Cedars Guest Speaker

Liz Motter, Worship Associate

The development and importance of community and the role it plays in resilience. How it relates to Pride and its importance for all of us.

Angela Lujan is a board member of Poulsbo Pride, the Executive Director of NW Hopeful Horizons, and an employee of Kitsap Mental Health. As a mental health professional of 14 years, serving the Kitsap County community has always been important to her. She sees the challenges our community faces and the struggles individuals face when they feel a lack of belonging. Her passion for serving and stewarding others centers on her hope for a better future.

Rev. Barbara Cornell, Cedars Guest Minister

Nancy Philip, Worship Associate

In his book, The Wild Edge of Sorrow, grief therapist Francis Weller says, “In our grief we are broken apart and reassembled. It is hard, painful, and unbidden work. No one goes in search of loss; rather, it finds us and reminds us of the temporary gift we have been given, these few sweet breaths we call life.”

Join us this week for a reflection on meeting the pain of our losses, on the patient work of reassembly, and on honoring the brief, luminous gift of this life.

Rev. Barbara Cornell coordinates bereavement services in Edmonds, WA as the Lead Coordinator of the Bereavement Program and the Mental Health and Recovery Ministry Team at Swedish Edmonds Hospital. In addition to her work as a hospital chaplain, she is married to Dane Scott, and they have two adult children, Katie and Will.

Chuck Walbridge, Cedars Guest Speaker

Liz Motter, Worship Associate

Within parts of the liberal left, there are voices that speak of men through the lens of toxic masculinity, hoping to name real harm but sometimes painting with too broad a brush. On the illiberal right, the manosphere often responds by amplifying the very traits it is criticized for. And in the space between these loud extremes, the everyday experiences, struggles, and quiet goodness of most men rarely receive attention.

This Sunday, we'll explore these tensions with care and look for a more generous, human‑centered way forward. You're warmly invited to join us.

Rev. Barbara Gilday, Cedars Guest Minister

Johanna Munson, Worship Associate

Featuring music by Gretchen Yanover

As we try to make sense of what is happening in our country, it is useful to look back at some past recoveries, and importantly, look at what successful strategies are being employed in our day.  We must not lose faith. We must not give in. And true to our Unitarian Universalist values, we must think and act in love - the greatest power in the world.

Rev. Barbara Gilday came to professional ministry in mid-life, but her life has been full of inquiry, diversity, social justice, connecting and sharing with others:

Teaching in Ghana, hosting Japanese Exchange Programs, developing peer tutoring programs, hosting a Ukrainian refugee, to name a few. Currently, she is exploring in new and deeper ways, how we continue to find joy in, and give value to life as our capacities change. Barbara is the grateful member of a loving, blended family, and a new mom to a young rescue dog, Marley, who keeps her physically active.