A Brief History of First Unitarian
In 1949 . . .
Louise Pembroke, an Albuquerque resident who taught at Grants High School, and the principal of that school, Felix Arnold, held an exploratory public meeting to see whether there was interest in forming a liberal church in Albuquerque. The resulting group met several times to hear presentations from various denominations and decided to affiliate with the American Unitarian Association as a fellowship—a small, lay-led group. Mr. Arnold lost his job because Grants school members did not approve of his unorthodox religious beliefs, and he soon moved away. Louise and her husband, Ollie, led the small group through its first phase.
The Fellowship Years
Those were very exciting years, meeting in a variety of buildings around Albuquerque, including Temple Albert (in its old downtown synagogue) and a dance school. It was obvious that there was a lot of potential for a Unitarian church in Albuquerque. The small group dreamed of being a “real” church, with a minister and a building, and with the help of a grant from the UUA, they called their first minister, the Rev. Franklin Smith, late in 1952. The group changed its name to First Unitarian Church and began to grow rapidly.
The Early Church
In 1955, the young church purchased property on Carlisle Boulevard. A year later, the congregation moved into what is now the Memorial Hall, the Arnold Room, and the Wesson Room. The late 1950s were a time of rapid growth in the church, especially in the church school. An addition was made to the RE building, but still more children came, soon outstripping the building’s resources.
A Second Ministry and a New Building
The Rev. Smith departed in 1961, and the Rev. Jim Wilkes arrived in 1962. The Rev. Wilkes was a social activist and a fiery preacher who attracted crowds much too large for that first sanctuary. In 1963-64 the church undertook building what is now the Social Hall, which they used as a multi-purpose room and sanctuary. When the Rev. Wilkes was called to serve First Unitarian Church in Dallas after only three years in Albuquerque, it was a great disappointment to the 500-member congregation.
While he was a popular minister here, he has also been accused of sexual misconduct both before and after his tenure here. First Unitarian Church is committed to telling its history honestly and to not hiding from painful truths. Anyone who has had any negative experiences with Mr. Wilkes is encouraged to speak with a minister or to seek professional counseling.
The 1960s and 1970s
The Rev. Leon Fay was called to First Unitarian Church and began his ministry in 1966. Although membership declined, several programs were begun that are still a part of our life together: the extended family program began in the early 1970s; the congregation added the building now used for teens (it was added as an office and used as such until 1999); and church women began a child care center, La Puerta de los Ninos, during this period. The Rev. Fay’s ministry ended in dissension and difficulty in 1977. The church’s fourth minister, the Rev. Daniel Panger, served as an interim minister for three years while his wife was in medical school, and the church recovered itself during those years.
The 1980s
The Rev. Todd Taylor became minister of First Unitarian Church in 1982. During his tenure, the church’s main ministry was directed toward singles—there were often more people in church for the Friday Night Singles Group than for worship service. “Time Out for Singles” served the city’s singles population faithfully through the mid-80s, but the church itself was on a plateau for both membership and energy. Rev. Taylor resigned in 1987.
The Rev. Christine Robinson was recruited to be a change agent for the somewhat demoralized church, and the church began to grow soon after her arrival late in 1988. She was 36 years old, a proponent of UU spirituality, and the first female minister that many in the congregation had ever met. Change was, indeed, in the air! Not all the changes were welcome to all members, and the first few years of her ministry were conflicted. A number of First Unitarian Church members left the church and formed the Albuquerque Fellowship during this time.
The 1990s
By the early 1990s, the congregation had increased in size to more than 500 members. In 1992, the congregation received an unrestricted bequest of $36,000, which the congregation decided to use as seed money to start a new UU church in the Rio Rancho area (the West Side Congregation held its first public meeting in 1997) and to renovate the buildings on the Carlisle property. New youth education and office buildings were constructed in 1999, and numerous other renovation projects were completed.
Growth in the 21st Century
By the early 2000s, the congregation had grown to over 600 members and had decided that they needed additional professional leadership. The Rev. Jim Zacharias served as interim Associate Minister for two years beginning in 2003, after which the Rev. David Grimm was called as Associate Minister in 2004.
First Unitarian became a teaching congregation and welcomed its first ministerial intern in 2003, after which a generous church family donated funds to support future interns – we’re now on number 13! A number of strong UU ministers today had their first experience preaching from the First Unitarian pulpit as a ministerial intern.
The congregation’s next challenge was to adapt to the new technology of the 2000’s to further the mission. In 2005, the “iMinistry” program began the audio and video recording of all sermons, and with help from the UUA began to explore the idea of isolated UU groups becoming branches of First Unitarian. Members of branches – some over one hour away by car – are full members of First Unitarian. By 2006, First Unitarian had well over 700 members and had established two branch congregations, in Socorro and Edgewood. (A third branch started in 2009 in Carlsbad, five hours away by car, but struggled with a stagnant membership and closed in 2017.) The successful creation of branch congregations led in part to First Unitarian being named a Breakthrough Congregation by the UUA in 2009. During these years the church grew to almost 800 members and 200 children.
In 2010, First Unitarian hired The Rev. Angela Herrera (now Herrera Koren) as the second minister and her work quickly expanded the larger ministry of the church. Rev. Herrera promptly took the lead in defining, fund-raising, and building a much-needed new sanctuary. By 2013, First Unitarian completed its beautiful LEED Platinum sanctuary which greatly expanded seating capacity while maintaining the beloved sanctuary mural as a focal point.
Our programs also continued to expand. In 2016, the church took another financial leap of faith to hire a ¾-time Director of Music, Susan Peck. Since then, the choir has grown hugely in size and repertoire, and the congregation sings with more confidence; a Pastoral Care choir is now available to sing at bedsides, and music groups like the String Band and Spare Parts continue to provide contemporary music for our services and meetings.
After nearly three decades of hard work, focused leadership, saintly patience, and a smooth and well-planned mentorship of Rev. Angela Herrera Koren, Rev. Christine Robinson retired in 2017. Rev. Robinson remains in the church and is our Minister Emerita. She and her husband William are both still active congregants, with Christine graciously offering a few sermons a year.
Challenges, New Purpose, and Transition
After a full search, in which Rev. Angela Herrera Koren was an applicant, the congregation called her (by a “yes” vote of 99.7%!) in May 2017 to serve as the Senior Minister. Our membership soon grew to 850. The congregation initiated a $1.3 million capital campaign and program in 2019 to renovate our social hall. In 2019, she hired the Rev. Bob LaValle as our associate minister. We completed the social hall project in March 2020, and had a concert featuring Peter Mayer to celebrate. Two weeks later we shut down for the pandemic.
The pandemic years were stressful. In a typical church life, changing any element of the church service, like start times or the number of services offered, is trying. Our campus closed completely, and we provided services solely on Zoom for 18 months, until we returned to limited in-person services in September 2021. Rev. Bob LaValle’s leadership through Covid cannot be understated – not just pastorally but logistically as well. He had interned with the Church of the Larger Fellowship (CLF) and had developed best practice skills in doing church services remotely.
Our pandemic recovery experience is one of hope, hard work, and optimism. In January 2022, we adopted a Strategic Plan emphasizing a five year focus on Social Justice, Welcoming Campus, Engagement & Connection, Anti-Racism & Anti-Oppression, and Church for All Ages. In January 2023, we adopted the 8th Principle and a commitment to do the hard work of anti-racism and dismantling white supremacy culture together. And in 2024 we discerned together about what kind of covenantal relationship we want to have with each other. This led to the adoption of a new Congregational Covenant in January 2025.
In 2025, with a current membership of around 710 people, we find that attendance continues to grow on Sundays, and new members are joining us each week. We are ready to welcome new people looking for a progressive sanctuary from difficult socio-political times. Our Religious Education program is transitioning into a Family Ministry program, meeting families where they are right now and finding new ways to include children in everything we do. And we are embarking on a ministerial transition, as the Rev. Angela Herrera-Koren has announced she is leaving her position as Senior Minister on June 1.
The future is yet to be written, but we look forward to seeing what new directions we will go in together in our 76th year.
