Meredith Garmon, born and raised Unitarian Universalist, grew up in various towns around the Southeast. He studied philosophy (BA, 1979), English (BA, 1980), communication studies (MA, 1985), philosophy again (MA, 1991), and political science (PhD, 1992). He entered Fellowship and was ordained as a UU minister in 2004.
Meredith has been Senior Minister at the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Gainesville since 2010 July. He and his spouse, Rev. LoraKim Joyner, also a UU minister, lived in El Paso, TX, 2002-2006. LoraKim was the sole minister for the first two years, and the two were co-ministers for the final two years. They were then co-ministers in Gainesville, 2006-2010, before LoraKim moved out of parish ministry into community ministry.
Meredith's interest in peace and justice, inherited from his parents and the UU congregations of his childhood, brought him to the verge of joining a commune just after high school. Instead, he went into academia and eventually college teaching, motivated by the idea of justice through empowerment and empowerment through education - which lead him to four years (1992-96) teaching philosophy at HBCU ("Historically Black College or University") Fisk University. He moved into parish ministry interested in making beloved community real.
A Zen practitioner since 2001, Meredith is a senior student in the Sanbo Kyodan school of Zen, attends 3 or 4 week-long meditation retreats a year, and leads the Dancing Crane Zen Center in Gainesville. "Peace must begin in our own hearts," he says. "When we find it, compassion is the result."
Meredith is liaison to the following UU congregations:
Meredith has been Senior Minister at the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Gainesville since 2010 July. He and his spouse, Rev. LoraKim Joyner, also a UU minister, lived in El Paso, TX, 2002-2006. LoraKim was the sole minister for the first two years, and the two were co-ministers for the final two years. They were then co-ministers in Gainesville, 2006-2010, before LoraKim moved out of parish ministry into community ministry.
Meredith's interest in peace and justice, inherited from his parents and the UU congregations of his childhood, brought him to the verge of joining a commune just after high school. Instead, he went into academia and eventually college teaching, motivated by the idea of justice through empowerment and empowerment through education - which lead him to four years (1992-96) teaching philosophy at HBCU ("Historically Black College or University") Fisk University. He moved into parish ministry interested in making beloved community real.
A Zen practitioner since 2001, Meredith is a senior student in the Sanbo Kyodan school of Zen, attends 3 or 4 week-long meditation retreats a year, and leads the Dancing Crane Zen Center in Gainesville. "Peace must begin in our own hearts," he says. "When we find it, compassion is the result."
Meredith is liaison to the following UU congregations:
- Gainesville (UU Fellowship)
- Summerfield (UU Fellowship of Marion County)
- UU Fellowship of St. Augustine
- Palatka (All Souls UU)
- Citrus Springs (Nature Coast UUs)
Rev. Meredith Garmon
Steering Committee Member
Minister, Unitarian Universalist Fellowship
4225 NW 34th Street
Gainesville, FL 32605
Phone: 352-377-1669
E-mail:
meredith_garmon@uulmf.org
Web: www.uufg.org
Steering Committee Member
Minister, Unitarian Universalist Fellowship
4225 NW 34th Street
Gainesville, FL 32605
Phone: 352-377-1669
E-mail:
meredith_garmon@uulmf.org
Web: www.uufg.org
