Our Minister
Our Consulting Minister, the Rev. Terre Balof, comes to us after serving as senior minister with the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Athens, Georgia, for 13 years. She has three children. Her older son, Andrew and his partner, Jenny, still live in Athens. Daughter, Elizabeth, and her partner, Caroline, live in Greensboro, NC. Her youngest son, Jack, is a student at Godwin High School and is active in the UUCC youth group.
Terre returns to the Richmond area after many interesting life and work experiences. Her previous ministry in Richmond was as a United Methodist campus/urban minister at VCU in 1972-74. In the intervening years, Terre worked as an interim minister in Panama, served as the director for Middle East Peace Education for the American Friends Service Committee and as director of an inner-city community ministry. Like many folks who arrive at UUCC, she realized after serving as a United Methodist minister that she did not “fit” theologically. After a number of years of searching for a faith that met her spiritual needs, she discovered Unitarian Universalism. Since that time she has proudly served congregations in Alabama and Georgia. Terre brings to UUCC a commitment to shared ministry. She believes that as we share our lives within a spiritual community and work together to create a better world, we become agents of transformation within our own lives, in our community and in the world.
When asked how she’d like to introduce herself Terre said, “I consider ministry to be a part of my core. Whether doing Middle East Peace work for the Quakers, inner city ministry, teaching, leading worship, justice work, interfaith bridge building, designing study trips, or ministering to a local congregation--my life's work is about ministry and service to others.”
Rev. Terre Balof's personal reflection
"My ministry tends to be one of steady, quiet work, and growth. I feel that each opportunity given to me has built on the last to enhance my life lessons. The foundation of my life path has been shaped by the place of my birth. Growing up during the civil rights movement and making the decision to live my beliefs based in the teachings of Jesus rather than claiming the traditional beliefs of the Mississippi Delta has impacted the decisions I have made and the actions I have taken in my life.
Living with integrity means that I must integrate my values, beliefs, and actions. My early commitment to living love in the world and to live as if the Beloved Community was already a reality has remained with me throughout my life journey. Looking back, it is easy for me to see that I have always been a Universalist at heart. As I have explored the world, I have learned from people in other cultures and nations. I have seen both the devastation of the lands and peoples and have seen the incredible strength of spirit in the midst of the most terrible circumstances. My work as an inner city minister and an interim minister in Central America, as well as my work as the Middle East Peace Education staff person for the American Friends Service Committee, provided me with ministries that introduced me to people who have suffered and had the strength to survive.
The struggles of transformation that I have seen in individuals, in communities and in the world inspire me to stand shoulder to shoulder with others."