Westminster’s Trustees for the July 1, 2024 – 2025 congregational year are:

President – Janet Searles
Janet has been a UU since 1976. She and her husband John live in East Greenwich within walking distance of church, a walk she makes several times a week. They have been members since moving to East Greenwich in 1983. Their three adult children all graduated from the RE program at Westminster and are all wonderfully engaging adults, who make positive and thoughtful contributions to their respective communities. Janet feels much of their joy for and approach to life was formed through their participation in this faith community. During the past 40 years, Janet has enjoyed teaching in the children and youth religious education program, working on various fundraising efforts, participating on many committees, and serving in numerous capacities.  She was the president of Westminster from 2006-2010 and loved participating on a settled minister search as well as an interim minister search committee. She is currently looking forward to becoming president again during this exciting time when we hope to welcome a new settled minister. Janet retired from Women & Infants Hospital’s Health Education program several years ago where she enjoyed working with the community and prospective parents in birthing, health, and wellness programming.

President-Elect

April Cambre has been a member of Westminster Unitarian Church for 12 years. She has mainly focused her energy working on the Youth Religious Education Committee, having chaired the committee for several years. She has also facilitated the youth in their religious education classes and has been a mentor for youth in the Coming of Age program. April is a child psychiatrist and primarily works with adolescents who are hospitalized. She is married to Carson and they have one adult daughter, Jordan, and another daughter, Alex, who is in high school. In her downtime, she enjoys traveling, hiking or biking with her family, and cuddling with her cats while streaming fluff television shows.

Past President – Kamilla Barzykowski

Kamila Barzykowski has been a member of the Westminster congregation since 2017, and she loves this community of caring. Since becoming a member, she joined several committees and teams, including the Sharing Locker, Social Economic, and Environmental Justice (SEEJ), Connections Groups, and Lay Pastoral Care. In her professional life, she worked for twenty-five years at the United Way of Rhode Island, where she was a grant manager and community planner. She is retired now, although she teaches English as a Second Language, as well as coordinates a site for a Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) program, as a part-time second career fun activity. She loves travel, music, reading, and crafts. Kamila lives in Warwick with her partner and has two adult children who live on the West Coast. She has served as Secretary of the Board of Trustees, as well as President-Elect. She is truly honored to serve as President for the 2022 – 2023 congregation year.

Treasurer – Jamie LaSalle

Board Secretary – Laura Giusti

Laura Giusti and her family have been members of Westminster for over 10 years. Laura has taught RE classes and served on the RE committee for several years. Her favorite part of working with the congregational youth is supporting them as they envision, plan, and execute social justice projects in the community. In her professional life, Laura is a clinical psychologist with a private practice in Providence. She lives with her daughters in East Greenwich.

Program Council – Laura Evans

Laura Evans joined the Westminster congregation in 1998. In the past, she served in the Caring Circle and the Religious Education program. She is currently coordinating facility rentals and serves as coordinator for the Program Council. She retired from data management at the RI Department of Labor and Training. She lives in North Kingstown and enjoys walking, ballroom dancing, and yoga. Her adult daughter Julia is also a member of Westminster. Laura enjoys her large blended family of adult children and grandchildren.

Member at Large – Carolyn Mark
Carolyn Mark has been a member of Westminster for about 20 years and has been active at various times in religious education, social justice, and membership. She currently serves on Team Welcome Connect and as an at-large member of the WUC Board of Trustees. A non-profit professional, Carolyn has worked for more than 30 years to advance economic and social justice at the national, state, and local levels. She is a trained mediator and experienced facilitator with a commitment to empowering individuals and groups to meaningfully participate in decision-making on matters that impact them. Carolyn served for eight years as an elected member and chair of the East Greenwich School Committee and lived in East Greenwich for 17 years before moving to Providence in 2020 with her husband Bill Stone, and their dog Maizey. They enjoy occasional visits from their two adult children Ben and Teah who grew up attending Westminster.