Email Sam

or call him at 802-223-7861 ext. 4

Sam began attending services here in the mid 1980’s and soon found a spiritual home in the religiously liberal community of the Unitarian Church of Montpelier. The offer of a part time position as administrator in late 1994 came at the ideal moment as Sam’s daughter had just been born and he was ready to switch from full to part time work in order to spend more time at home. Since then, the demands of the job and the hours required to complete it have grown steadily along with the church’s membership.

Recalling his early days as administrator, Sam says, “The first week I was on the job I called the phone company to have tone dialing turned on, brought a computer from home, put the church typewriter up for sale, and signed us up for an Internet account. I do like what technology can do for us, but I’m still in favor of people talking to each other when possible instead of e-mailing or texting.”

Clearly a believer in the uses of technology, as evidenced by his ownership of a company in the early 1990’s devoted to teaching basic computer skills, Sam also relies heavily on his background in business management and his liberal arts education to carry out the duties of his job. The skill set required to be a church administrator is wide-ranging, and this is both the challenge and the appeal for him.

A native of Vermont’s Northeast Kingdom, Sam grew up experiencing both the idyllic and harsher sides of its pastoral quality and economy, a grounding which he says has engendered in him an awesome respect for the indomitable spirit of life even in the face of, or perhaps because of, the power of nature and its cycles. This is the foundation of his personal spirituality and the basis for his work ethic.

Sam’s formal education includes undergraduate work at Syracuse University in human ecology. He also concentrated on religion and psychology at Nasson College in Maine, and completed his undergraduate work in counseling psychology at Goddard College in Plainfield, VT in 1979. A work history that includes business management, teaching, counseling, community organizing, and computer consulting rounds out Sam’s qualifications as church administrator, a position which is becoming ever more vital in a growing church.

When asked why he continues in his position, Sam says, “The most valuable and irresistible perquisite for the administrator at this church is undoubtedly the people, the people with whom I am privileged to work, other staff and the church leaders, the many members who are all so kind and so naturally themselves with me, and the people in the larger community with whom I have contact every day. It is hard to imagine a better work situation.”

When not working, Sam enjoys, among many other interests, reading, walking, working with wood, studying computer technology, writing, cooking, and family time.