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Hello Fellow Greater Boston Humanists!

Our new name says it all. Humanist Association of Massachusetts (HAM) held the fort for the last 30 years without much support or company. Our hardy band of about 130 Humanists attended lectures, Solstice luncheons, Summer picnics and supported Humanist educational organizations throughout the third world and the world's most intensive SMART Recovery secular, science-based volunteer program (14,000 meetings and counting here in Massachusetts!) without seeming to evince much support or interest from what we assumed to be thousands of Humanists in Massachusetts.

About 5 years ago everything changed, perhaps thanks indirectly to George W. Bush and the Religious Right, but more directly to Tom Ferrick and his sidekicks Frank Weaver and Bob Price along with some CT Humanists. Tom obtained a small grant for HAM and used it to mobilize a Humanist movement via a conference in Worcester. Honestly, I thought he would be lucky to get 25 people to show, but almost 100 fronted up for a full and flavorful program which brewed up significant enthusiasm.

From this humble start has grown a large and vigorous Central Massachusetts Humanist organization. Its major ringleader and organizer has been David Niose, whose energy and innovative ideas propelled him rapidly to the Presidency of the AHA. HAM's initiative and modest investment certainly has borne some luscious fruit.

HAM Board members were instrumental in incorporating the Humanist Chaplaincy at Harvard in 1991. Tom Ferrick had persevered in maintaining this Chaplaincy with VERY modest support for many years. As a corporation, HCH was able to magnify its income and expand its programs, finally allowing Tom to retire and hire a competent replacement. With Tom's mentorship, Greg Epstein has proven to be a worthy successor and has built a multifaceted, multigenerational and thriving organization of national stature with an expansive local program. HCH has duly inspired Humanist organizations at many Greater Boston universities.

Boston Atheists, Concord Humanists, Newton Humanists, Atheists of Greater Lowell and Cape Cod Humanists have also recently emerged. Thus the name Humanist Association of Massachusetts had become geographically inaccurate and perhaps a bit arrogant, so it has been retired.

So we have come a long way and served as inspiration and pathfinder to many Humanist organizations. [I was recently honored to represent GBH at a White House briefing session]. We still have a long way to go in serving our own members, supporting Humanists in the Third World , continuing the spread of SMART Recovery (500 world-wide meetings, Handbook translated into 10 languages, SR Foundations in Australia and the UK, $1,000,000 correctional SR program funded by NIH, extensive SR prison program led by GBH member Tom Larkin...never would have happened without HAM's SMART Recovery project, now 21 years old) and instigating yet more Humanist organizations here in the Bay State...and New England.

So, please print and return the below form to generously support our very modest budget and keep us firing on all cylinders.

Download 2010 Fundraising Card

Gratefully,

Joe Gerstein
President, for the Board