A few weeks ago, I attended the dedication ceremony in which a bronze bust of Charles Proteus Steinmetz was placed on the historic marker in the park adjacent to our church, once, the site of Steinmetz’s home. The ceremony was attended by dignitaries and city officials and a small assembly of local citizens including a handful of UUSS members. After all the speeches and the unveiling of the bust, cigars were passed out and photos were taken of all present beside the full-sized placard of Charles Proteus with his ever-present cigar.

Steinmetz was, of course, the electrical wizard of Schenectady,one of the most brilliant engineers of all time, credited with developing the mathematical underpinningsthat enabled the AC electrical power systems that we still use today. He also was a socialist, a humanitarian and an educator. His accomplishments as an advocate for progressive change in his adopted city of Schenectady were impressive. As President of the Schenectady School Board, he instituted many changes in our public schools that were revolutionary for his time. As President of the City Council, he created the city-wide park system that we enjoy today.

Though not a member of our church, he was a close friend who was invited on several occasions to speak from our pulpit. When he died on October 26, 1923, Unitarian Minister, Reverend A.W. Clark spoke of his extraordinary gifts that would benefit generations to come. He also spoke of the countless men (and women) who “will sit at the shrine of his leadership and achieve high attainments.” Reverend Clark’s pronouncement applies equally to the generations of engineers that followed Steinmetz and the generations of UUSS members who have sat “at Steinmetz’s shrine of leadership and have achieved high attainments” in their work for social justice in our city and beyond.

Steinmetz’s legacy has been on my mind, particularly in the past several days as Sandra and I attended the UU Service Committee’s Stewardship Circle AnnualnMeeting. I feel a real connection to Steinmetz. You see, I, too, am an electrical engineer although my electrical wizardry is far less impressive. And like him, I am a short guy with a mustache.

But mostly, I am inspired to sit at his shrine of leadership and strive to achieve just a few attainments that will make the world just a little better. The UUSC meeting gave us the opportunity to sit at the shrine of other great leaders. Like Reverend Bill Schulz, retiring UUSC Director, who also spoke from our pulpit a year and a half ago and former
Congressman Tom Andrews, who will take over the reins from Bill in July. Tom, like Bill, is a passionate and accomplished human rights advocate.

We also had the privilege to meet Sadhana Shrestha, the Executive Director of Tewa, and a grass roots organization based in Katmandu that UUSC partnered with after a Richter 7.9 earthquake devastated many rural villages in Nepal a year ago. Sadhana, explained how, unlike many larger international relief agencies, which delivered articles of aid to affected regions that were not really needed, her smaller organization selected particularly marginalized populations and first asked them what they most needed, making their relief efforts far more effective.

Most of us will never have the opportunity or capacity to lead major changes that make our world a better place. But we all have the capacity to take inspiration from these great achievers and resolve to do what we can.  And if we all do so, collectively we will achieve high attainments.

Peace,

John