The Reverend Jerry Goddard—second-career parish minister, fierce advocate for abortion rights, child protection, human dignity, religious freedom, and civil rights, and a scholar of Western religions—died on 15 October 2017, aged 87.

Well before his career transition to professional ministry, Jerry was already active in drug counseling, pro-choice advocacy, and litigation for religious freedom. Later he sat on national committees of both Americans United for Separation of Church and State and the American Civil Liberties Union.

Homer A. Goddard III was born on 29 October 1929 in Cincinnati, Ohio, to Jeannette and Homer A. Goddard Jr., and grew up in a suburb of Pittsburgh, PA. He was graduated in 1952 from Denison University (Granville, OH) with a B.A. in economics. After U.S. Army service, he worked for 17 years as a sales engineer for ALCOA. With active membership in the Main Line Unitarian Church (Devon, PA), he heard a call to ministry and earned an M.Div. in 1975 from Starr King School.

Mr. Goddard was ordained on 9 January 1976 by the First Parish of Sudbury, MA, where he served as minister until 1985, meanwhile discovering an ancestral connection to the Rev’d Israel Loring, who had served the same congregation in a near record length pastorate (1705–72). Jerry was subsequently settled at the UU Society of Greater Springfield, MA (1985–90) and then at the UU Fellowship of Poughkeepsie, NY (1990– 96), where he was honored as Minister Emeritus. Afterward, he served interim ministries in New Zealand, England, Australia, South Africa, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

At time of death, survivors included his spouse of 64 years Margaret Goddard, children Linda Goddard, Kirk Goddard, and Jan Goddard-Taylor, and five grandchildren.