December 16
UULALA
Monthly Theme:  PEACE
 

The Greatest Gift of All

Please join us Sunday morning as Fellowship Membership Chairperson, Arlene VanSant, shares the greatest gift of all during this Holiday Season.

The ability to be accepted just as you are and to give freely of your gifts and talents are central principles of Unitarian Universalism. 

And being able to reflect the uniqueness and value of each person - just as they are - is one of the greatest gifts we can offer each other.  And that gift, multiplied over and over across the world, will lead us to a peaceful world community.



 
Our UU Faith asks us to affirm and promote the principles of acceptance of each other and to value the inherent dignity and worth of every individual.

And, as Jean Anouilh, French dramatist, said, "Love is, above all, the gift of oneself."
Arlene Vansant, originally from Florida, was an AAU National Champion swimmer as a teenager while attending Masey College earning a degree in Interior Design. Her varied professional career included positions as the Acting President of the Peanut Council where she worked directly with President Jimmy Carter and First Lady Rosalynn Carter (in their pre-presidential days).in Washington, DC.  She also served as the Assistant to the President of Granger Corporation in Palo Alto, CA and guided the 3000 member Employees Association as President.  In addition she served as the Granger Corporation Safety Officer.

Not surprisingly, Arlene became an accomplished entrepreneur creating several businesses.  Her current endeavor is a real estate development company that has flourished for more than 15 years. She is one of the only female real estate developers in California. Sacramento Magazine (California) featured Arlene, along with other women breaking into male dominated business roles, as the first woman real estate developer in El Dorado County. She continued to break stereotypical roles when she became a Charter Member and Vice President of the El Dorado County Optimist Club. At the same time Arlene raised four children, much of the time as a single mother. 

Today, Arlene spends part of the year in California managing her development business. She serves as the Membership Chairperson for the Fellowship and currently lives in Lafayette with husband, Jeff Case, and their cute dog, Lilly.