Our Minister

Biography

The Reverend Leslie Kee earned her Bachelor’s degree from Colorado State University with a major in English, minor in journalism, and secondary teaching credentials. She graduated from Meadville Lombard Theological School with a Master of Divinity and was ordained by the members of the Third Unitarian Church of Chicago.

After her adventures in Chicago, Rev. Kee returned to Lusk, Wyoming, where she and her family had lived for 20 years, and began serving as the Staff Chaplain for the Wyoming Women’s Center, the state’s prison for women. In 2018, the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Laramie hired Rev. Kee as their part-time minister.

Rev. Kee is available to provide pastoral care to all members of UU Laramie and to perform services for special occasions, including weddings and memorial services.  She can be reached at lkee@wyoming.com or (307) 340-0697.

Message

One of the best things about being a Unitarian Universalist in Wyoming is the pleasure I experience when meeting someone who is surprised to learn there is a doctrine-free, inclusive, and welcoming church nearby.

Because Wyoming is filled with wide open spaces 24-7, there is an understated awareness of how the land and sky feed our individual and collective spirit. But for all the satisfaction I get from being a Wyoming UU, there is still a lot of work to do. By work I mean our brand of evangelism – a sharing of what our faith community has to offer those who seek a spiritual home. And this is one of the passions I bring to my Wyoming UU ministry.

Through the years, I have learned it is possible to be theologically liberal in a politically conservative state because so many of us have two very important things in common. First, thanks to the cowboy mythology, we live in a culture built around a heritage of rugged individualism, which is very compatible with our first principle: valuing the inherent worth (and capability) of every person.

Second, I believe all of Wyoming is sacred ground and as such, we belong to it. Before the cowboys and homesteaders arrived, the relatives of our Native American friends and neighbors lived and flourished within the wide-open spaces precisely because their world view was not constructed around the belief the earth belonged to the humans. This understanding is very compatible with our seventh principle, respect for the interconnected web of all creation.

Today, Wyoming’s Unitarian Universalists, and many of our neighbors and friends, are at a very important crossroads in our history. Wyoming’s dependence on the fossil fuel industry is changing and those of us who are brave enough to share a broader, more inclusive, and more diverse vision of Wyoming must do so. To keep the light of our spiritual presence and our reasonable faith all for ourselves, is not who we are. We are called to do more, to put our faith into action.

What an exciting and wonderful time in history it is for Wyoming’s free-faith community because the opportunity to make a difference is all around us. A truly shared ministry informed by reason, hope, compassion, and love with the goal of right relationships between our neighbors, friends, and this beautiful land on which we live is not only our inspiration, it is our obligation! This is an evangelism I can live with!

Caring Committee

In addition to the formal ministry that Rev. Kee provides to our congregation, the Caring Committee provides recognition or solace or perhaps just a kind word for some of life’s major events.  Please contact Jim Erdelyi (erdelyi@wyomail.com) or Ralph Garrett (randmgarrett@centurylink.net) if you need to connect with people and want help when it is most needed.