Andrew Kerr Appointed Speaker at the Free Congregation of Sauk County
At a special congregational meeting following the Easter Sunday program on March 23, the membership of the Free Congregation of Sauk County (FCSC) voted unanimously to affirm the Board of Director’s recommendation to hire Andrew Kerr as the congregation’s new part-time Speaker. This vote marked the successful conclusion of an intensive nine-month search process, which began after the departure of FCSC’s previous professional leader, the Rev. Jody Whelden. Andrew will serve the congregation approximately one-third time on a one-year (renewable) contract.
Andrew will be the first to hold the title of Speaker since Max Gaebler, who served the Free Congregation in that role from 1989 to 1992 following his retirement from First Unitarian Society (FUS) of Madison. “Speaker” is the title conferred upon the Free Congregation’s leader and teacher by its founders. Eduard Schroeder (1811-1887) served as the congregation’s first (and only full-time) Speaker from 1852 to 1886. After Schroeder’s death, the congregation was lay-led until Gaebler, who for many years had enjoyed a close association with the Free Congregation, assumed the position part time. Rev. Whelden served part-time for two years as the congregation’s first-ever Minister.
Andrew Kerr and his wife Jennifer own and operate Greenspirit Farm, a four-acre sustainable small fruit and vegetable CSA farm north of Dodgeville. They have three children, ages 5, 9, and 14. After graduating from Cornell University in New York, Andrew worked for a year in a New York City soup kitchen, then went on to graduate school at the University of Chicago to study philosophy and religion, earning his M.A. in Religious Studies in 1991. He wrote half his dissertation (on a theory of environmental ethics), but the call to the land got the better of him, and he and his family bought the four-acre farm north of Dodgeville in 2000. They have farmed there for the past eight years, expanding their CSA from 28 members to 110 members.
Andrew and his family joined First Unitarian Society of Madison several years ago, and both Andrew and Jennifer are actively involved in the religious education program there. Andrew's adult education teaching at FUS led him to make connections with the Free Congregation, where he presented a two-part series on Atheism for the 3rd Sunday Free Thought Forum in 2007 and is now doing a two-part series on Theism (for which he was engaged prior to applying for the Speaker position). He recently taught an eight-week Philosophy of Theology class at FCSC. Andrew's own religious proclivities include efforts to combine Hinduism, Buddhism, Christianity, and philosophical rationalism into something that makes sense.
Andrew will debut as Speaker on May 25th. Because of his farm responsibilities, he will speak one Sunday each month through September. From October through March, it is expected that he will speak two Sundays each month.