Give in Memory Of Rev. Alison Etter, Glace Bay

Rev. Alison Etter, Glace Bay

Rev. Alison Louise Etter (May 22, 1982, to February 14, 2024). We are beyond heartbroken after the passing of our beloved Alison (“Allie”). Alison died in the Intensive Care Unit of the Cape Breton Regional Hospital on the morning of Valentine’s Day, unleashing her powerful Love-force from her pained body into a hurting and broken world. Her final moments, surrounded by family and then held by her husband as she drew her last breath, were peaceful, spiritual, moving, and musical – just as she was in every fibre of her being. We feel Alison’s strong spiritual presence right now. Alison had been hospitalized since November 20, except for five days back at home, with serious complications from recently diagnosed ulcerative colitis, which ultimately led to unanticipated emergency surgery, and sepsis, from which she sadly did not recover. Among her final reflections on February 8, just before the surgery, was that she had been dreaming she was swimming with whales. Alison leaves her grieving, adoring husband, Prof. Tom Urbaniak, and their amazing son Oliver (“Oluszek”), who turned two on February 11. Oliver has thrived in an ocean of love after spending his first six weeks after birth in the NICU at Halifax’s IWK and the Cape Breton Regional Hospital, with his parents at his side. Alison is deeply mourned by her incredible, loving parents, Catherine Etter and David Etter, who adopted Alison when she was four weeks old. She was their only child. Alison is also missed by her cherished stepmom, Robin Stadnyk. We are grateful for the words of comfort and thanksgiving for Alison’s life that have poured in from Alison’s friends and relatives, and from people and organizations that have been touched, led, or helped by Alison locally, nationally, and around the world. Alison was a United Church minister, respected across the country. At the time of her passing, she was chair of The United Church of Canada’s national Committee on Theology, Inter-Church, and Inter-Faith Relations. She had a brilliant mind, thinking a lot about the world’s problems, the human condition and what it means to be a person of faith in these times. Her life’s work linked faith and spirituality with community development, human rights, the environment, languages, cultures, and social justice. Alison was a deeply ethical person in all aspects of her life. Her Christianity and her idea of “Church” had nothing to do with empires, power and control or throwing rules and dogmas at people. Hers was a beautiful and boundless Christianity – filled with wonder, curiosity, simplicity, generosity, forgiveness, hospitality, compassion, wisdom, and openness to everyone without exception. It was about cultivating that Love-force. It was about cultivating communities of profound kindness, focused on being more like Christ. Alison grew up primarily on Nova Scotia’s South Shore. Risser’s Beach was her favourite natural spot in the world. An extremely talented musician and singer (in several languages) with a heavenly voice --and a compelling writer and preacher in the English, French, and Gaelic languages -- Alison studied music, specializing in flute, at the University of Ottawa. She was also a very talented piano player. After graduation and work for Nova Scotia Tourism, and Scotland's Iona Community, Alison pursued a calling she had felt since childhood: She earned a Master of Divinity degree at the Atlantic School of Theology, where she was a top student. She did practice ministry in Winnipeg and Baddeck. In 2011, she was ordained as a minister. Alison was appointed minister for the United Church pastoral charge in Baddeck, Middle River, and Baddeck Forks. She served there from 2011 to 2017. These were wonderful years. She initiated many new programs and projects focused on deepening spirituality and deepening engagement with the world. Greenwood United became the first designated “Affirming” congregation in Cape Breton. Alison met the love of her life, Tom, in 2014. They were married at Greenwood United in 2016. They shared a beautiful relationship. They were intellectual soulmates. They supported each other through sometimes difficult, grinding work in their communities. Their marriage and close friendship – and their loyalty to each other – also represented a living, daily ecumenism (Tom is Polish Catholic). Alison was a tremendous source of support and advice during the challenging but successful rebuilding and reopening of St. Mary’s Polish Catholic Church in Whitney Pier after a devastating fire. Alison next served briefly at United Heritage Church in Sydney before being appointed as minister for Knox and Warden United Churches in Glace Bay. Filled with positive energy, she worked hard under challenging circumstances in communities where economies and public services had been badly depleted. She worked on food security and housing. She helped to set up a Community Help Table and the Neighbourhood Handyperson Project. She often took the concerns and plights of community members to political leaders. She was a tireless advocate. A beautiful soul, Alison was a humble and highly creative leader in many organizations. She was also an unfailingly loyal friend to many people near and far. Alison was very active with Amnesty International and was committed to human rights. She was Cape Breton convenor for KAIROS (ecumenical organization dedicated to justice and peace) and was very dedicated to reconciliation between Indigenous and non-Indigenous communities. She served on the executive of both the Gaelic Council of Nova Scotia and the St. Michael’s Polish Benefit Society, as well as the New Aberdeen Revitalization Society. She was an active board member for Seaview Manor in Glace Bay. Alison previously chaired the Hospice Society of Victoria County. She had worked with L’Arche and advocated for people who are living with disabilities. Alison was concerned about ecology and actively supported environmental organizations engaged in tangible work. Alison was founding co-chair of the Father Greg MacLeod House in Sydney, putting in countless hours to successfully set up a home where students from around the world could reside and support each other to put faith into practice. She helped to organize the annual “Gaels Jams”. She was a positive and respected champion of Gaelic language and culture in Nova Scotia. And she was certainly one of the region’s most effective animators of activities and programs for children. Alison was part of the Gaelic Ecumenical Choir, and she also often sang with the Pogoria Polish Folk Ensemble. She was very proficient at picking up languages. She became a Gaelic speaker as an adult, learned to read and sing in Polish, and often worked in French. She worked with Tom on a lot of animation in Cape Breton’s Polish community. Alison was unfailingly generous. She donated or shared much of what she had. She tried deliberately and hard to avoid over-consumption of resources. Visitation for Rev. Alison Etter will take place on Friday, February 23, from 1 to 3:30 p.m. and from 6:00 to 8:30 p.m. at V.J. McGillivray Funeral Home, 16 Reserve Street, Glace Bay. The funeral service for Alison will take place on Saturday, February 24, at 1 p.m. at Greenwood United Church in Baddeck and will include a parallel memorial gathering for children. Alison’s very close and cherished friend (“soul sister”) Rev. Dr. Alydia Smith will officiate, with the participation of other clergy and friends. A reception will follow the service. Burial will be at a later date on the South Shore. In lieu of flowers, the family would like to invite you to consider, if you wish, a donation to the Atlantic School of Theology, designated to the “Rev. Alison Etter Memorial Fund.” This fund will be established to support AST alumni (with projects or continuing education) who are focused on actively linking faith, spirituality, and ministry to community development, human rights, the environment, social justice, and the affirmation of languages and cultures. Alternatively, friends might consider a donation to the David Suzuki Foundation. Through the course of a day, Alison and Tom would often exchange texts of encouragement or concern about things they were experiencing out in the community and the world. The day after Alison’s passing, Tom decided to send Alison a final text. This is what it said: “I love you more than I can express, Allie. I will always love you. Thank you for the immense joy, laughter, wisdom and for being the world’s most amazing spouse. I will tell Oluszek every single day how fiercely you love him. I miss you so, so much. The world misses you. But I still feel your presence and spirit. Please keep guiding me and us. Enjoy swimming with the whales!” May the Love-force – the blessing -- that Alison Etter has unleashed – and continues to unleash – grow stronger every day. This world needs more Alison. On line condolences to the family can be expressed at: www.vjmcgillivray.ca Viewers will be able to watch a livestream of Alison's funeral service on The United Church of Canada's national Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/UnitedChurchCda/

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My Tribute Gift Foundation
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Privacy Policy as of May 2023.

The My Tribute Gift Foundation (MTGF) is committed to preserving your privacy and maintaining the accuracy, confidentiality and security of your credit card and other personal information. This privacy policy describes the personal information MTGF collects by any means, including but not limited to our My Tribute Gift Memorial donor's portal pages and our website at https://mytributegift.org/privacy.html (each a “Site” and collectively the "Sites"), how we collect, use and safeguard that information, and the circumstances under which we may disclose it. By using one of our sites or otherwise providing your personal information to us, you agree to the terms of this Privacy Policy.

What is personal information?

What personal information does My Tribute Gift Foundation collect?

When you make a donation to a charity through one of MTGF's Memorial Pages, MTGF collects personal information directly from you in order to properly process your donation and be able to issue an official receipt for it, consistent with requirements of the IRS in the U.S.. MTGF also collects personal information from you in this manner to enable MTGF to contact you to confirm your donation and, in the case of a lost or missing receipt, to reissue you a receipt for your donation. This personal information consists of your name, address, phone number, email address, your credit card information, "acknowledgement" or "in memory of" information, recipient charity, your directions and notes to the recipient charity, and donation amount.

IP address to measure our website traffic and to help provide a more personalized experience;
Information regarding your browser and other technical specifications required to use our Sites;
Your transaction history relating to the use of our services;
Computer data or files, often called “cookies,” which may be sent by your web browser and stored on an individual computer to allow our server to “recognize” you through the navigation of our Sites; and
Computer data files, often called “web beacons” that are collected from emails or links on third-party sites that allow our server to evaluate the popularity of those links or the information contained in emails or on third-party sites.

We use this information to improve our service offerings and to customize your experience using our Sites. For more information, see the “Cookies and Similar Technologies” section below.

How does MTGF Use Your Personal Information?

MTGF does not retain, share, store or use personally identifiable information for any secondary purposes without your express consent.

Cookies and Similar Technologies

We may use cookies, pixel tags, and similar technologies to gather information about your use of our Sites to improve our service offerings and to customize your experience using our Sites.

Cookies

Session cookies
Session cookies are stored on the user’s hard drive temporarily and are deleted when the user ends the browsing session. Session cookies are useful for things like keeping items in a shopping cart while the user continues to browse.
Persistent cookies
Persistent cookies stay on the user’s hard drive until they expire, even after the browser is closed. Persistent cookies are useful for remembering things like login information, so users do not have to enter their password every time they visit the Site.

Clear GIFs

Protecting personal information.

Does MTGF Disclose Personal Information?

MTGF may disclose personal information when required by law, the IRS or other governmental authority, or if requested by a credit card issuer in case of a dispute.

Accuracy of Personal Information

Retention of Personal Information

Children

For EU Residents

The vast majority of our donors are Americans. However, while we do not target our services to individuals outside of the United States, some of our individual donors may be residents of the European Economic Area (“EEA”). For the benefit of such users, we handle their personal data in accordance with applicable EU data protection laws and regulations, including the EU GDPR. Subject to certain exemptions set out in the GDPR, you have the following rights in relation to the Personal information we hold about you:

The right to access and inspect your personal information or to be provided with a permanent copy of the information being held about you;
The right to request the correction of any inaccuracies in your personal information or where the accuracy of information is disputed, to add additional information to give notice that you dispute the accuracy of the information content;
The right to request the erasure of your personal information, particularly where the continued processing of the information is no longer necessary;
The right to object to the processing of your personal information, particularly where there are no longer sufficient legitimate grounds for us to continue processing the information;
The right to restrict processing, data portability and the right to appeal any automated decision making or profiling; and
The right to complain to a Data Protection Regulator about our processing of your personal information.

It is important to note that the rights set out above are not unconditional and the specific circumstances of the processing being undertaken by us will determine if these rights may be exercised. Further information concerning these rights and their application can be obtained by residents of the EEA by contacting us at the address provided below.
If you are a resident of the EEA, our legal basis for collecting and using the personal information described in this privacy policy will depend on the personal information concerned and the specific context in which we collect it.

If you have any questions about or need further information concerning the legal basis on which we collect and use your personal information, please contact us at the address provided below.

Withdrawing Your Consent

You may withdraw your consent to our collection, use or disclosure of your personal information at any time. Simply contact us as set out below with your request.

For California Residents: Your California Privacy Rights

Access and Correction Rights

California Civil Code § 1798.83 permits users that are California residents to request certain information regarding our disclosure of personal information to third parties for their direct marketing purposes. To make such a request, please contact us via the contact information provided below.

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Changes to our Privacy Policy:

Contacting MTGF:

MyTributeGift Foundation
info@mytributegift.org
Telephone: 1-855-355-8141
Privacy Policy as of May 2023.

In Memory of Rev. Alison Etter, Glace Bay

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