We Let Our Light Shine! Looking Back at the March Pledge Drive – Quarterly Connection, April 2026
March is a special time in the life of our church—it’s when we come together to imagine what’s possible for the year ahead and commit…
Over this past year as Religious Education Coordinator, the #1 request people have for me has been: “We want OWL!” (Our Whole Lives). OWL is a lifelong, progressive sexuality education curriculum that is uniquely available through UU church communities.
OWL provides accurate, developmentally appropriate information about a range of topics including relationships, gender identity and expression, sexual orientation, sexual health, and cultural influences on sexuality.
I feel it is essential for Youth to have access to accurate, non-judgemental sources of information on sexuality. The decisions we make around this part of our lives carry deep meaning and lasting impact.
Hearing the call and understanding the value of good sexuality education, I pursued training in OWL this winter to get myself up to speed. Another member joined me, and we took the online OWL Facilitator Training course together. We are now both grateful to join the other Certified OWL Facilitators here at the church.
The training process was both intensive and transformative. With the rigor and workload of a graduate-level course, it was eye-opening and deepened my understanding of how to thoughtfully and effectively engage youth in this material. For my final project, I taught a portion of a lesson to our cohort, an experience that strengthened both my confidence and my practical skills.
We are ready to bring OWL back into our RE program here in Charleston and I look forward to making it a reality in the years ahead!
Sincerely,
Emily White
Lifespan Religious Ed. Coordinator
