Lay leaders and community builders.

Lorena Murray, MS in Ed has retired as an Academic Advisor at Fayetteville Technical Community College. With education in Counseling, Teaching, and Religion, Lorena has worked as a Success Coach, Mental Health Therapist, Minister, Elementary and Pre-K Teacher. Currently she is loving her new role as Grandma! Her passion is connecting with others to make a difference. She chairs the Sunday Services Committee and is President of the Board of Directors of our congregation.

Allison Murray-Nikkel (she/they) aims to call forth the light of love in every being they encounter through lay ministry, inclusive facilitation, social justice collaboration, and singing & songwriting. With training in music & theatre and experience as an early childhood educator specializing in Universal Design for Learning, she brings an eye for keen observation, an ear for deep listening, a heart for honest connection, and a mind open to transformation everywhere she goes.

As the chair of the Welcome Committee of their Unitarian Universalist congregation, they find joy coordinating initiatives in outreach, belonging, diversity & equity, volunteerism, and community activism, as well as adult religious exploration. She and her beloved partner recently celebrated a miracle in the birth of their first child, and are delighting in newborn parenting.

https://allisonmn.com/

Dan Sommer is an active member of the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Fayetteville (UUCF), where he contributes to communications, technology, worship, music, committee work, and community-building. His work has focused on strengthening connections, improving communication, and helping UUCF navigate change thoughtfully.

Outside the congregation, his work centers on accessibility, language, communication access, and technology, including captioning, audio description, ASL-related projects, and emerging AI tools. He brings that same interest in thoughtful communication, accessibility, and the human side of change to his work within UUCF.