Beth Curtis presents
“The Pilgrim Problem”
Claudia Marshall, Worship Leader
Dr. Gary Smart, Accompanist
Tyler Kidd, Special Music, Piano
“My great great great great great great great great great great great grandfather actually fell off the Mayflower into the Atlantic Ocean while they were voyaging to the ‘New World.’ No kidding. He held on to a rope and was saved. For having lived 400 years ago, I know quite a bit about him, but maybe not about the most important things.”
The ability to trace one’s ancestry are easier than ever these days. As the story of your ancestry comes to light, so do the stories of your ancestors. The factual evidence of who they were, where they lived, who they married, when they died, begins to create a rough framework of the people from whom you descended. The larger questions of how they lived, who they were as people and how they fit in with the world around them, might not be so clear.
Beth would like to share her journey as she works through her thoughts about her Pilgrim and Puritan Ancestors. As the world, at long last, becomes more conscious about the devastating effects of colonization upon the Indigenous peoples, how do we reframe our thinking and our actions, both as individuals and as a nation?
About our Speaker
Born in the Boston area, Beth Curtis lived most of her life in and around New York City where she worked as an Interior Designer. She had her own design firm as well as working with Jacques Grange, a renowned designer from Paris. In 2021, within a few weeks of having relocated to Jacksonville, Beth attended services at BBUUC and found it to be a warm and inviting community, knowing right away that she had found her new “UU Home.”
About Our Musician:
Tyler Kidd has been studying and playing classical piano for the last decade, and it has always been a big passion for him. Two years ago, he began playing jazz (one of his favorite music forms), and at this point in his life, almost all his free time out of the day is spent sitting at a piano.
He practices every day about 4-5 hours in school + as much time as he has at home after talking with friends, eating, doing homework, and other teenager activities.
He has been going to BBUUC for a few years and hopes to share his music with us in a meaningful way.