January:

We had a full house for the first meeting of 2001. The turnout could be credited to the topic of the meeting, "Who wants to be a Humanist?" or from people wanting to get out of the house after several weeks of freezing temperature. A sunny 40-degree day in January will make one want to get out house. For whatever reason we had a huge turn out.

The big winners in the game show were Kel Crum, Judy Bell, Lorie Weiner, and Sharon Moss. Each of them answered all the questions correctly and shared the prizes, which included a choice of a Kroger Cares certificate, coffee mug, or a free one-year membership.

February:

President Doug opened the Humanist Book Club by talking about "The Social Contract" by Jean-Jacques Rousseau and then passed the floor to others who brought in their favorite books. Thanks to Marth Knox, Stan Bradley, Beth Bradley, Kel Crum, Earl Wurdlow, Larry Reyka, David Ferriman, Chuck Pitstick, Sharon Moss, and Larry Buhrow for sharing their books with the group.

March:

Due to a glitch we had to gather for our March meeting at the MCL Cafeteria in Westerville. It was a good turn out as we were a bit cramped in the smaller of the two private rooms at the MCL.

The topic was a group discussion about diversity in the Humanist and Freethought movement. The question was "Do I have to be an old white guy to be a Humanist?"

The easy answer was no, but Doug Berger, President of HCCO also wanted to know if HCCO could provide more programs for all the variety of members HCCO attracts.

The discussion started by talking about the fact that Humanists are a minority within the religion category. Earl Wurdlow suggested we have problems attracting members into Humanism because we don't have a single deity-like object to unite us.

One concern was about outreach to other minority groups like women and African-Americans and the risk of looking like we are pandering to those groups. Lorie Weiner commented that Students for Freethought at OSU holds a ladies night activity and that such activities can help.

It was also mentioned that not all members want to talk about the non-theistic aspects of Humanism at every meeting. It is a part of our philosophy but not the only thing that makes us Humanists.

Discussion also focused on programs that seemed to only speak to a narrow groups of Humanists like older single males. Some said that such a group likes to talk about philosophical ideas and questions while many members want to hear and talk about practical applications of the Humanist philosophy.

It was clear one group we tend to ignore are those members with children. It was agreed that we need to program for families but that it takes people to take the ball and run with it. HCCO can provide information about Humanist activities focused on children and families, but we are limited in what we can do because we don't have a Humanist center of our own or other facilities for children like a day care.

April:

We had our lunchtime Humanist Coffeehouse and we all a great time, as members and friends shared readings, music etc. with us!

May:

Member Earl Wurdlow spoke at our May general meeting on the topic "Why be a Humanist anyway?". He argued that it didn't matter if someone who claimed to be a Humanist also was a theist. He distilled a core definition of Humanism to make his point. Earl said that a Humanist has confidence that human beings themselves are capable of improvement and confidence that the living experience itself is susceptible to improvement and that humans themselves can make this improvement. He said that the religious views and life stances of individuals are important to the individual who holds them, but not necessarily very important to others. His talk was followed by an interesting and lively question and answer session.

HCCO thanks Earl for his informative topic. A more detailed summary can be seen in the July/August Central Ohio Humanist.

June:

Edwin Kagin, vice president of the Free Inquiry Group of Cincinnati and founder/director of Camp Quest, was the speaker at our June general meeting. Edwin talked to us about the legal aspects of the Separation of Church and State in a scary and humorous way. He also told us about the Camp Quest Law passed in Kentucky allowing religious groups who offer their facilities for rent to discriminate against those who are opposed to their dogma. The Governor vetoed the law but on April 15th, the Kentucky legislature overrode the veto and the law comes into force on July 1st.

HCCO thanks Edwin and his wife, Helen, for the visit and informative talk.

Picnic...

On June 2nd, we had almost 30 people join us at Highbanks Metropark for the return of HCCO's summer picnic. The weather was a bit cool but the burgers and franks were hot and tasty. Thanks to everyone who showed up and special kudos to Vice President Larry Buhrow and board member Lindsey Park for heading up this event. Look for more social events in the coming months.

July:

Martha Knox, past president of the Students for Freethought, spoke about the two national student groups committed to Humanism and Freethought and how each was formed. Each group is small compared to Christian groups like Campus Crusade for Christ but she felt that if we worked hard enough the student movement would grow. She also talked about the special relationship HCCO has with SFF. She hoped it would continue.

One of the highlights of the meeting was during the introductions when President Doug Berger asked people to introduce themselves and tell the group one thing most people don't know about themselves. Except for Doug wanting to be a drum major in high school most are too weird to repeat in this newsletter.

August:

Because of the Student Secular Alliance conference occurring on the same day, our August meeting was sped up. We had a good crowd to hear Tim Avery, Ohio state director of American Atheists, told us about Evangelistic Atheism. He explained that Atheists need to spread the word about Atheism and to stop hiding. He also mentioned the challenges to doing that and making a positive statement.

September:

Member Chuck Pitstick spoke to us about his research on Jehovah Witnesses. He explained that there was more to the sect than simply going door to door. He mentioned restrictive rules that change on the whim of the leadership such as the prohibition on giving and receiving blood transfusions. There is also the secrecy surrounding many of their practices. He advised us to be aware of the group and talk to those we know who may be thinking of joining the Witnesses.

Following the meeting we held a members only meeting. There were two items on the agenda. The first was the confirmation of August Brunsman as the newest member of the 2001 HCCO Board. The motion passed 13 to 0.

The second item was consideration of affiliation with American Atheists. The motion was made and several members made comments. The motion passed 12 yes, 0 no, and 1 abstention.

October:

Member Peggy Shecket gave an interesting and light hearted look at raising a Humanist child. She spoke from experience as a mother and professionally as a child development expert. One point she made was explaining the difference between reality and fantasy to a child as soon as they understand. She said that instead of adding something special to a child's life, parents are harming them if they lie about myths like Santa Claus when their child asks questions about them. Peggy explained that the child needs to be told the truth if they ask.

The Q & A session after Peggy's talk was interesting and lively.

After the meeting we held our Annual Member's meeting. There was only one item on the agenda and that was to accept and vote on candidates for the 2002 HCCO Board. The members of the 2001 Board, with the exception of Lindsey Park, were nominated and elected to serve again in 2002. We also welcomed 3 new board members for 2002. Martha Knox, Peggy Shecket, and Roger Marcum were confirmed.

November:

Member Ray Olds discussed the ideas expressed in his essay " A New Democratic Vision". He believes that our current political and economic system needs to be changed to be more humanistic. After an opening note he threw the floor open to discussion from those attending the meeting. Most of the comments were positive to Ray's ideas.

December:

We had one of our wide ranging open discussions about how we Humanists should celebrate the Xmas season. Most do celebrate it while others don't. Family is the center of most of the celebrations. Gift exchanging was different among the members. Some go all out while others don't like the materialism and give more personal gifts or none at all.

Annual Winter Solstice Banquet...

Click here to see info and pictures from our Winter Solstice Banquet!

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