ESWoW member Leonard Weis died on May 3, 2011.  I've already written a bit about him and his wonderful life.  He was an active ESWoW member, and we needed to collectively remember him and honor him.  So we did what was most fitting for someone who participated in almost everyone of our ESWoW calls.  We held a memorial service for Len in our latest Community Call.

The notion of having a memorial service by teleconference sounds bizarre.  Yet it was what was most appropriate for ESWoW to do as a community.

We had several members on the call, and were also joined by Len's adult children, Becky Weis Nord and Stephen Weis. They were able to give us a fuller picture of Len's life.  I smiled so much to hear about Len as a loving and adventurous grandfather, and how he influenced his children to live very ethical lives.

The strangest thing was to have a Community Call without Len.  He has participated in so many calls, that I have always missed his presence when he hasn't been able to be on.  It was good for people who had connected with Len, who considered him to be a vital part of their lives, even though they had never met him in person.  People shared just how deeply Len had affected them, how he had been a wonderful exemplar of living an ethical life. 

Ceremonies are an area in which Ethical Culture excels.  Our ceremonies are about the individuals affected by that which is being celebrated.  We celebrated Len's life, and we gave support to each other, knowing that there are people who will feel the great loss of a dear friend, and family members who have such a great change in their lives. 

The ceremony included readings from Algernon Black, and John Lovejoy Elliott (who had been Len's teacher at the Ethical Culture School), as well as much sharing about Len.  The readings are included in the attached program.

Our Community Call, of course, was not the only memorial service for Len.  One was held at the Fox Valley Unitarian Universalist Fellowship in Appleton, WI, a congregation Len helped start, after moving from NY where he was raised at the NY Society.  The minister of that congregation was kind enough to share his eulogy and a letter Len had written many years ago after visiting the Grand Canyon that was read at his memorial service.

That ESWoW members on this call were able to share a deep and meaningful experience shows me that indeed we can connect with people, even people at a distance, even someone we haven't me in person.  I've heard from members telling me that the service provided some comfort and an invitation to continue to be inspired by Len's life.  That's what Ethical Culture memorial services aim to do.  We will hold Len in our thoughts and miss him on future calls.