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HOH is a proudly
associated with:
Membership Chapter
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HOH
Main Monthly Gathering
Third Saturday of each
Month, 1:00pm
Bayland Community Center
6400 Bissonnet Street, Houston 77074
[Map]
The
Humanists of Houston is a membership chapter of the American
Humanist Association. It hosts a monthly meeting of friendly humanists,
atheists, agnostics, skeptics, or other freethinkers in the Houston area.
These meetings usually include socializing, followed by a thought-provoking
presentation and/or discussions on ethics, culture, religious issues,
science, the future, living a meaningful secular life, or other
interesting topics.
In addition
to our monthly meeting, HOH hosts several other regular events such as the
HOH Young Adults Club (fun outings, movies, parties, and
other activities), the HOH Ideas Club (a book club of sorts), the Humanist
Contemplatives Club (exploring naturalistic spirituality), and the HOH
Women's
Club. In addition to these regular events, HOH plays a part in annual
events such as Darwin Day, World Humanist Day, and a Winter Solstice
Celebration. We can also put you in touch with certified secular
celebrants who can conduct non-religious weddings, funerals, baby
namings, and other ceremonies.
HOH is also
a member-organization of the Houston Freethought Alliance, and shares in
additional events and activities of other Alliance Freethought groups.
Please feel
free to attend any of our events or activities. For a listing of these
events including their dates and locations, please see the Calendar
on this website or Contact us with any
questions.
Click
HERE to learn about
Becoming an HOH Patron!
How large is
HOH?
Different groups define membership in
different ways. HOH is present in a number of online venues and maintains
a mailing list. If you add these together, the number of people currently 'signed
up' to get announcements and messages from HOH, or communicate with HOH,
is nearly 500 people.
This has very recently been expanded from what was
less than half that amount. Of these 500, we currently have around 60 dues-paying members, with a growing number of Patrons. We are planning a membership
drive sometime in the near future, addressing our newly expanded contact
list, hopefully increasing membership substantially.
HOH has recently just begun new efforts to make itself more known to the
Houston public. This started with increasing our presence on various
internet sites, and has recently included radio advertisements. We are
also placing ads in University of Houston and Rice University newspapers. We will
be considering direct mail options, possibly
requesting a grant from the AHA to help with funding. Many of these
efforts have already resulted in new faces at our meetings and over the
coming next few years, it seems likely these efforts will aid in further
growth.
Meanwhile, we have increased the number and scope of our hosted activities
and events to handle more people and appeal to a wider array of
interest. Because we have so many different events happening each month, attendance at
each individual event presently tends to be a
very manageable and personable 10-20 people, despite the overall
participation from a large mailing list. Which people attend an event varies depending on their interests and schedules.
Essays in the Philosophy of Humanism
The Editor of this philosophic journal is our very own Dr. Marian Hillar.
The journal started as an HOH project, but has since been picked up by the
American Humanist Association as their journal and is available
nationwide. Click HERE
for the official website.
Statement of Purpose
The following statement has been adopted by HOH to define some of its
aims:
We want
to be members of a community where:
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Reason and pragmatism predominate.
•
There is concern for the improvement of society.
•
People are encouraged to think for themselves and take control of their
own lives.
•
The scientific outlook and use of the scientific method are promoted.
•
People are learning and encouraged to learn.
•
There is compassion and kindness to others.
•
Listening, tolerance, and open-mindedness are promoted.
•
Enjoyment of life and the seeking of cultural experiences are
encouraged.
•
There is an interest in world affairs.
The History of HOH
The following is paraphrased
from sections of "History of Humanism in Houston" by Robert D.
Finch. Click HERE to read the full history.
An informal
group of humanists began to meet in the early 1970s in Houston. During
this time a leading light of the group was Dr. Ray Karchmer Daily, an eye
surgeon who was also a member of the Houston School Board for many years
and its President twice. A school in West Houston was recently named
in her honor.
Dr. Daily
convened a large humanist meeting with 130 people present. She later died
at the age of 83 in 1975. Her son, Dr. Louis Daily, is a member of HOH to
this day. In 1978, the "Humanists of Houston" (HOH) was
chartered as a chapter of the American Humanist Association (AHA).
An inaugural meeting was addressed by Beth Fennell who later married Dr. Corliss
Lamont. Regular meetings were attended by as many as 60 participants.
A newsletter has been published continuously since 1985, and HOH was the
subject of two articles in the Religion Section of the Houston
Chronicle (1978, 1981).
Also in
1985, a second chapter called "Humanists Involved in Greater
Houston" (HIGH) was formed, and existed at the same time as HOH from
1985 to 1992. In 1992 the two groups were united under the HIGH
name.
In 1992 a
development fund was established with $300. In that same year, first
Volume of Essays in the Philosophy of Humanism was published with
Dr. Marian Hillar as editor, which has since become a national publication
of the AHA. In 1994 the chapter voted to return to the "Humanists of
Houston" name.
In 1996,
HOH hosted a conference called ETHICS-96. In 1999 HOH became a
member-organization of the newly established Houston Freethought
Alliance and jointly hosted another conference in 2000. It was called Religion,
Humanism, and Science in the 21st Century and was attended by notable
humanists and freethinkers from all over the country, including Council
for Secular Humanism Chair, Paul
Kurtz, and AHA President Edd Doerr.
Throughout
the years, HOH has hosted and co-hosted numerous public events, given to
many charitable causes, and conducted interesting activities for its
members. Today we are in the midst of renewing our programs and outreach
efforts, and all Houston Humanists and freethinkers are welcome to join us
in building an exciting local community in the future!
OFFICERS
President: Daniel Strain
Vice President: Roxie Deaton
Treasurer: Ron Jones
Secretary: Mark Wise
DEVELOPMENT COMMITTEE
Tom Brucia
Marian Hillar
Bob Finch
Al Robison
Sheila Finch
PROGRAM COMMITTEE
Brian Ballard
Roxie Deaton
Bob Finch
Sheila Finch
Marian Hillar
OTHER ONGOING VOLUNTEERS
Membership Director: Rianne Stringer
Child Care Sitter: Clara Lee
Women's Club organizer: Sheila Finch
Ideas Club organizer: Bob Finch
Religion Club organizer: Marian Hillar
Contemplatives Club organizer: Daniel Strain
Technical Support: Marian Hillar, Ariel Thomann, Ed Uthman
Alliance Newsletter Editor: Jim Knierien
Jim technically serves the
Houston Freethought Alliance, rather than HOH specifically, but deserves
mention here for his important service. Special thanks too to Ron
Titus for his regular contributions to the Newsletter!
Many other individuals offer their input, time, and assistance on other
projects on a case-by-case basis, as well as our members who offer their
financial support, for which we are very grateful. We are always in need
of more volunteerism! If you are interested
in helping out with any of these clubs, events or more, please contact us!
Past Presidents of HOH
Kyle Nagel (1978)
Andrew W. Seacord II (1979)
Mike Pore (1980)
Ben Levy (1981)
Frank Prahl (1982)
Kyle Nagel (1983-1984)
Barbara Nagel (1985-1987)
Frank Prahl (HIGH, 1985)
Douglas Hook (HIGH, 1986)
Frank Prahl (HIGH, 1987)
Ariel Thomann (1987-1988)
Marian Hillar (HIGH, 1988-1989)
Jan Dura (1989-1991)
Barbara Bullock (HIGH, 1990)
Alice Leuchtag (HIGH, 1991)
Robert D. Finch (1992-1997)
Ron Titus (1998)
Jimmy Dunne (1999-2003)
Tom Brucia (2004-2006)
Daniel T. Strain (2007-2008)
Other HOH Documents
For HOH Bylaws, full history, and other official documents, please click
here.
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NEW VOLUNTEERS ANNOUNCED
HOH has recently been benefited with a new Secretary and Membership Director.
[Click Here For More Info]
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WELCOME GATHERING SUCCESS!
See pictures and learn about the great turnout at our recent Welcome Gathering!
[Click Here For More Info]
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HOH CHILDREN'S PROGRAM
Learn about our plans for an HOH Children's Program and help us make it a
reality! Find out what one Humanist group did.
[Click Here For More Info]
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WHAT HOH REALLY NEEDS
More than funds, more than events, it's our rarest commodity.
[Click Here For More Info]
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CANNED GOODS PROGRAM
Remember to get one extra can when shopping, then bring those collected
to the monthly Gathering!
[Click Here For More Info]
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