Acknowledgments

Molleen Matsumura

Next to parenthood, writing the “Sweet Reason” advice column was the best preparation for contributing to this book. So, deepest thanks to Matt Cherry for inviting me to launch it; sometimes our friends know us better than we know ourselves. Elaine Friedman and Ruth Geller have been friendly and thoughtful editors. So has Duncan Crary, who goes the extra ten miles in giving support.

Jone Johnson-Lewis, Don Montagna, and Lois Kellerman gave permission to include “Steps to Seeking Forgiveness”; Jone and Lois offered additional advice and support. Kate Lovelady obtained permission to use the St. Louis Ethical Society Sunday School’s “Core Values.” Arthur Dobrin generously gave permission to quote extensively from his book. Chris Lindstrom, Susan Rose, Bobbie Kirkhart, Cleo Kocol, John “The” King and many more people have also been helpful. Tim Madigan introduced me to the research on flow and has been a source of constant encouragement through the years.

Thanks to Elly Matsumura, Maja Marjanovic, Janelle Ishida, Adi Wise, Robyn Gregg, and Caitlin Nye—I can say from experience that our children are our best teachers.

Even a writer has no words for how supportive and inspirational Ken Matsumura has been.

Jan Devor

I would like to acknowledge the Unitarian Universalist religion for being a place where people search for answers to religious questions and are not given the answers to swallow whole. It is a place where acceptance and respect are taught as the guide words for living in this diverse world of ours. It has been a haven for me as an agnostic, a place to raise my family in community and to find friends who have supported me in this journey we call life.

Thanks to Rev. Dr. Kendyl Gibbons for her inspiration and friendship, to my kids who make me stretch, and to my husband who has made this life meaningful, loving, and fun.

Amanda Metskas

Thank you to Dale McGowan, for inviting me to be a part of this amazing project. Your humor and wisdom made working on this book a joy.

Thank you to all the parents, campers, and volunteers of Camp Quest. Much of my contribution here I owe to working with and learning from all of you.

Thank you to my husband, August E. Brunsman IV. I’d been a humanist for a long time, but I didn’t know the word or find the community until I met you. Thanks for leading me down the rabbit hole and for your support, insights, and encouragement along the way.

And last and most of all, thank you to my parents, who raised a freethinker despite the consequences. Your willingness to discuss and debate rather than simply demand required a patience that I’m sure I’m only beginning to understand.

Dale McGowan

Thanks first and foremost to the hundreds of nonreligious parents around the world for asking the questions and suggesting the answers from which this book was spun. A special wave to everyone at the Parenting Beyond Belief Discussion Forum, the readers and commenters on the Meming of Life blog, and participants in the PBB Seminar Tour. This one’s for you.

Thanks to my agent Uwe Stender and to Christina Parisi and Kama Timbrell at AMACOM for patiently enduring all of my ongoing nonsense.

Heartfelt thanks to Molleen, Jan, and Amanda for their easygoing brilliance and levelheadedness. You’ve ruined me for all future collaborations. Thanks also to Louise Mead at the National Center for Science Education; Matt Cherry at the Institute for Humanist Studies; and Nica Lalli, Susan Wurzer, and Chris Lindstrom of Camp Quest West.

Deepest gratitude to my parents, Carol and David, for raising freethinkers, which made it all the easier for me to do the same. Finally, a huge squeeze to Becca, Erin, Delaney, and Connor. What an incredible privilege it is to be your husband and dad. Respectively.

The choices of pull quotes and statistics scattered throughout the book were almost entirely mine, as is the book’s Preface. Any lapse of judgment or errors in those materials should be charged to my account. It also goes without saying that none of those who have helped the four of us in the creation of this book shall be held responsible for any errors without the express written consent of Major League Baseball.