Speakers for April

  Our Sunday services at 11:00 a.m. feature a different guest speaker each week, either a member of our congregation or someone from the surrounding community. We address a variety of topics, from literature and history to politics, religious thought and social issues. We welcome suggestions for speakers, please contact Donna Orchard donnaforchard@gmail.com

 April 1

Speakers: MICHAEL PATRICK AND PHIL STRNISTE
Title: An Explication of Amerian Pie
Summary: Phil Strniste and the Back Porch Singers will perform Don Mcleans’s “Bye, Bye Miss American Pie.” Michael Patrick will explicate the symbolism of the song. The duo, along with the Back Porch Singers, have been doing programs together since the 20th Century at FUF and at the University of South Alabama where Michael taught Southern Folklore and Alabama Folklore.
Introduction: Michael Patrick



April 15

Speaker:  JOSH FOSTER
Title: The Greatest Talk on Narcissism Ever Told
Summary: Josh Foster will introduce listeners to the science of the narcissistic personality, a complex personality trait that is commonly misrepresented in the popular media. Dr. Foster will focus on what narcissism is and is not, it’s causes, demographic distribution, and pros and cons. Foster is member of the Behavior and Brain Sciences faculty (Psychology Department) at the University of South Alabama where his principal areas of research are personality and individual differences (most notably, narcissism), psychometrics and statistical modeling. His work has been featured in The New York Times, The Boston Globe, The Wall Street Journal and The Huffington Post.
Introduction: Harvey Joanning


April 29

Speaker:  RAY MALLISHAM
Title: God in Your School Life
Summary: School life and its many influences cause some youth to reject God and faith. Ray Mallisham will describe how a young person of strong faith handles and balances school life. A four-year International Baccalaureate student at Daphne High School, he is a member of the National Honor Society, the DHS the band, and the varsity football, track and wrestling teams, and also is a church usher and secretary of his Sunday school.
Introduction: Sulayman Akbar

April 8

Speaker:  MICHELE HARMON
Title: Speak Your Truth Even if Your Voice Shakes
Summary: Judge Roy Moore’s continual denial and discredit of his accusers reminded Michele Harmon of her own #MeToo stories. A stay-at-home mom, Harmon became an activist shortly after the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill, walking the local beaches for five years taking photographs of continued oiling in the form of tar balls and filing countless reports with the US Coast Guard. When the #MeToo movement began in 2017, Michelle found out that Roy Moore was coming to Fairhope. She and other local women said, “We have to do something!” Within an hour, The
Handmaid’s Protest against Roy Moore was set into motion.
Introduction: Serena Low


April 22

Speaker: HEATHER NUTTING
Title: String Quartet 101
Summary: This program answers the question “What is a string quartet?” Along with some music history and music appreciation, Heather Nutting will give examples from the Mozart String Quartet, K.465. The Marks String Quartet,with which Nutting is the 2nd violinist, will then play the quartet nicknamed “The Dissonant,” The members of the Marks Quartet are: Barbara Flechsenhar, violin; Heather Nutting, violin; Julie Marks, viola; and John Marks, cello. A member of FUF and its choir director, Nutting earned a Bachelor of Music in Piano Performance from Oberlin Conservatory of Music and has played in orchestras and chamber music groups her whole adult life. She is best known to the Fellowship as the warm, wonderful, and often humorous choir director who has perfect pitch and
who is kind to us who don’t.
Introduction: Helen Garrett