UUSIC Board of Directors
2009-2010

President Arnold Lindaman came to UUSIC in 2003. He joined the choir, became a worship associate, chaired the Pastoral Care Committee, and served as vice president and now as president of the board. Additionally, Arnold has chaired the Community Outreach Task Force for the board. Born and raised on a farm near Waterloo, he is Iowa educated, holding a PhD from Iowa State. In Maryville, Missouri, he directed the laboratory school at Northwest Missouri State University and later taught future principals and superintendents in Department of Educational Leadership. He and wife Lois have four sons and eight grandchildren. Arnold’s hobbies are gardening, writing, and his volunteer work at UUSIC. Arnold says, “I am so excited to be a member of UUSIC because members stay informed, and we nurture each other on our life journeys. I also value our inclusiveness and respect for diversity.”

Vice President Russ Lenth, a 34-year resident of Iowa City, first came to UUSIC on Easter Sunday, 1989. Prior to that, he had no religious affiliation. He and wife Jane DeWitt became members 15 years ago, not long after being married at UUSIC. Russ has been involved in RE classes, choir, and committee work. He served on the board in 1994-97 as program trustee, chaired the Stewardship Committee in 2003, and served as a worship associate and on the "EvolUUtion" task force. His family includes Jane and two adult sons. Russ plays the horn for fun, and teaches statistics for a living. Russ says, “I think this is an exciting time for our congregation, and I look forward to welcoming our new minister and playing a role in shaping the future that we build for our church.”

Treasurer Dick Siefers has been a member of UUSIC since 1982. During his years in our congregation, he has served in various leadership roles including those of president, treasurer, and finance trustee, and has taught the OWL program to our junior high youth on three separate occasions. Dick enjoys bicycling, playing racquetball, gardening, and woodworking in his spare time. He is the Risk Management and Insurance Director for Rockwell property, casualty and executive risk insurance programs.

Secretary Jeanette Carter has been a member of UUSIC since 1967, previously having been a member of the Des Moines UU society. She has served on and chaired a variety of committees, doing everything from making Sunday morning coffee to serving as president of the UUSIC Board in the 1990s. Jeanette worked for 35 years as a librarian at the Iowa City Public Library, retiring from that post in 2006. Her family includes husband Wayne Patton, two children, and two grandchildren.

Trustee Mark Penno came here from Indiana, joining UUSIC in 2004. He was raised and educated in Wisconsin, where he met his wife, Bonnie, while both were summer camp counselors. Mark has served as a worship associate, and as member of the Audit Committee and Endowment Committee, and board of directors. He also enjoys the Secular Humanists group. A professor in the Tippie College of Business, Mark teaches mostly in the MBA program. Son Alex attends the University of Northern Iowa. Mark enjoys reading and traveling, and says, “With the constant fragmentation among people that has occurred and continues in the world today, I am deeply impressed by the idea of persons with great differences in their ages, aspirations, and values somehow managing to think, learn, and work together -- while sharing their senses of humor. This is why I enjoy the UUSIC.”

Trustee Mary Kathryn Wallace joined UUSIC in 1967. Married 48 years, she and Doug have three children and six grandchildren. Since "discovering" Unitarian Universalism, Mary Kathryn has identified herself as a UU wherever she and Doug have lived, including several states and foreign locations. Since returning to Iowa City, she has been a co-teacher in the OWL Program, served as a worship associate, and chaired the 2004 stewardship campaign. In 2005 she lived for six months in Puerto Natales, Patagonia, Chile, as a volunteer with English Opens Doors/Ingles Abre Puertas. She is organizing a trip to Romania in 2010 to foster deeper connections with our Partner Church in Janosfalva. A social gerontologist, Mary Kathryn says, “I am grateful there are UUs in the world and I want to contribute my support, leadership, and inspiration to continuing and strengthening the UU mission and message.”

Trustee Steve Locher and wife Jan married in 1991 at UUSIC. They attended UUSIC intermittently until 2001, when Steve became a worship associate, helping to coordinate services during the minister’s sabbatical, and later serving on the Committee on Ministry. He has facilitated several programs for Welcome Home Wednesdays, including humanism, poetry, and UU-Buddhism. An active member of the UUSIC Buddhist Sangha, Steve’s personal practice includes mindfulness meditation and insight dialogue. Steve is a retired registered nurse, and with his wife enjoys occasional visits from their four adult children, two daughter-in-laws, and two sets of grandchildren. Steve says, “I am deeply interested in policy governance as a model for a growing congregation. I deeply value the UUSIC as a liberal community celebrating religious pluralism and serving social justice.”

Trustee Susan Kasal Young has been a member of UUSIC since their first child was born thirteen years ago. Susan and her husband Rich were “looking for a spiritual home for our family that encouraged independent thinking and social justice.” Among her activities at UUSIC, she has chaired the Children and Youth Committee, has taught RE for many years, and currently serves on the UUSIC Board of Directors. Susan says, “I strongly value the religious education that the UUSIC offers and appreciate the liberal and open-minded community we have here in Iowa City. I currently homeschool three of my four children and enjoy finding the opportunities for learning wherever we are! I am honored to be a part of our board at such an exciting time in the life of our society.”