NEWS AND EVENTS

On this page you will find information about upcoming events, as well as some items from our monthly newsletter. Newsletters are available in our church office. We are making every effort not to pubish individual phone numbers or email addresses on the website. If you would like to receive our newsletter or if you have other questions, call the church office at 781-275-7951 or email us at fchurchb2@verizon.net.

We will be having a party on Sunday, March 21, 2010 from 3:00-6:00 p.m. to bid farewell to our Pastor, Jamie Howard.  Please mark your calendar and spread the word.

Since we last chatted, here is what has been happening at First Church:

1. We are in the middle of planning Jamie’s party—you all know we can throw a great party, so please plan to attend and to wish Jamie happiness in her future endeavors.

2. Our secretary, Sue Seeley, has submitted her resignation effective June 30th and our Human Resources Committee members (Kathy Harris, Donna Costa, Ginni Spencer, and Dotty Blake) are working to determine what our office staffing needs are and will then fill this open position.

3. The Interim Pastor Selection Committee has been working on a Church Profile that will be given to candidates. They will begin interviewing by the beginning of March.

4. We now have a beautiful new church sign out front – please take the time to look at it.

5. We held a church meeting on January 24th that approved up to $24,000 to fix the front granite steps and brick walk way which will begin some time in the spring. We also approved $10,000 for further repairs to the Manse.

That is a very brief update on what is happening.

God Bless,

Peter Gerrish, Moderator

At the cabinet meeting on January 11, 2010 we voted to establish the following committee – The Interim Pastor Selection Committee.

The members of this committee will be – Mark Guetersloh, Terry Gerrish, Phyllis Cooke, John Crockett, Jane Taylor, and Rick Burke.

They will be meeting with our area minister Rev Wendy Vander Hart to put together a brief Church profile. This profile will include a brief history of our church, how we got to this point in time, what we are looking for in an interim and of course what the pay is. They will then interview candidates and will recommend one to Cabinet for final approval. Please keep them in your prayers.

I have been asked what is an Interim Pastor. He or she will be a “Full Time” Pastor just the same as any other pastor of a church. The only difference is that they are NOT here to replace Jamie but to help us bridge the gap between now and the time we “Call” our next pastor.

On an other note I am so proud to be a member of this wonderful and giving church – On Saturday January 16th an e-mail went out to the church members that there would be a special offering taken on January 17th to help the people of Haiti. We raised over $1,491.00 with only one day notice. We should all be proud. We do good work!!!!!!

Thanks for reading and if you have any comments, opinions or anything else, please just let me know.

Peter Gerrish, Moderator

 
 
 Mar 7 SHY Group meeting 4:30 p.m.
Mar 14 Shower of Stoles & Lunch
Mar 14 Deadline for Easter Plant Orders
Mar 17 Confirmation
Mar 19-20 Soul Sisters “Stepping Out in Faith” retreat
Mar 21 Farewell Event for Pastor Jamie Howard
Mar 24 Confirmation
Mar 28 SHY Group Meeting 1:00 p.m.
...and in April
Apr 1 Maundy Thursday
Apr 4 Easter Sunday
Apr 11 Annual Reports Due
 

Many thanks to the Masons who donated a defibrillator to us and six other Masonic lodges in the area. It is located in Upper Fellowship Hall.

We extend a big thank you to the Harris family for donating the hand sanitizers you see throughout the church building. Many people have asked how to use them. Put your hand under the dispenser. It dispenses foam on your hand. Rub your hands together to disinfect them. These are helpful in controlling the spread of colds and flu.

The Stewardship Board has been very busy this year. Kate Trigg has done an outstanding job seeing that our new sign got all the needed approvals. It was installed on February 5th. (see photo below)

At the special all-church meeting, members approved repairing the front steps of the church. Members also approved $10,000 for additional work on the Manse. Gordon Pedersen has the contractor coming this month for the Manse sills and the electrician has made numerous electrical repairs to the Church and the Manse. They replaced lights in the Vestry, replaced the outlets outside in the front of the Church, increased the outlet in UFH from two to four outlets, removed the knob and tube wiring in the Manse, removed the old oil pipes from the underground oil tank, and on and on. Roy Kring and Tom Crowther removed a portion of the Manse living room ceiling. It appears there is no structural damage but the ceiling has become unattached, causing it to sag. The ceiling definitely needs to be replaced. We are going to ask the contractor for a quote on the Manse stairs going to the basement, the attic knee wall, and the outside corner boards.

Peter Gerrish had the new telephone system installed throughout the offices. The staff has been trained to use them, but are in the process of getting some questions answered from the phone company.

Gordon Pedersen suggests we sell engraved bricks for the front walkway as a method to raise funds. Beth Israel Hospital recently did this. Kate works at the Beth Israel and will research this for us.

Thank you to Norm Sutherland for repairing the sign that goes on the front of the church building. Jim Maxon, Board Chair

...and a thank you letter

On behalf of the Stewardship Committee, I would like to extend my thanks and gratitude to the anonymous donor who contributed so generously to make our new wayside sign possible. We are delighted to finally have it up and hope that the church community is excited as we are. We feel it is an improvement to the church property and adds to the historic district in our town.

We have been working with Crosby Design in Concord since May. Many folks have helped with this process, by going to meetings with the HDC and the zoning board as well as countless meetings with the design group. I wish to personally thank Carol Jamison, Jim Maxon, and Ken Hall for their help.

Just for your information, we have included a plaque for summer hours which reads “Summer Service - Music Chapel 9:30 a.m.” This will be kept in the church building and is made to be easily screwed in over the regular hours on the sign itself.

The last piece of this project includes our event signage, which are magnetically attached on the bottom portion of the sign and can be interchanged easily. These approximately 14 signs will also be stored in the church building.

In gratitude,
Kate Trigg

Are You On the Church  “Group” E-Mail?  Would you like to be in this group?  If so, please notify the church office.  We send out notices about upcoming events, deaths, UCC items of interest, etc.  It is the news we send out between newsletters.

Note:  We have email addresses for many who are not on the group list.  These addresses were given to staff members for other purposes.  If you gave your address to a staff member for a specific purpose, but were also thinking you would automatically be included in the group list, this did not happen.

Also, if you are already on the group e-mail list for First Church, but have changed your e-mail address, please notify the church office with the change.

Below is a link to a pdf document for you to download and print if you are one who requested the corn shuffle recipe or chicken casserole recipe that Julie Braschler prepared for the luncheon for Jim Antal.  Enjoy!

Our Communications Guidelines were developed in the fall of 2008 and approved by Cabinet in October 2008.

We will not be having a rummage sale this year.

On Sunday, January 17th, we collected $1,491 in a special offering for disaster relief in Haiti.

If you put money or a check in the offering plate for anything other than your offering, please put it in an envelope and identify what it is. Money for memorial gifts may be sent directly to the church office. Many thanks to our volunteer treasurers — (Kathy Harris, John Guetersloh, Peter Gerrish), to our head tellers — Peter Gerrish and Warren (Woody) Woodford — and to our many volunteer tellers who process our contributions on a regular basis.

Our list of those receiving their newsletters via email is growing.  Those receiving them are enjoying newsletters with color graphics and photos.  I send them from my e-mail address, computerspec@verizon.net.  If you signed up to be on the electronic newsletter prior to December 2nd, you should have received the December newsletter.  If you did not receive it, please check your junk folder.  If it is not there, please contact me.

One nice feature on the e-mailed version is that you can search the newsletter for something specific (go to Edit, Search, and type in the word you are searching for).  Another feature is that you can print just the calendar, or any page, separately without printing the entire document.  To view the online calendar in landscape mode, go to the calendar page, Select View, Rotate Clockwise.

If you have not yet signed up to receive your letter via e-mail, and would like to, please email your request to us at fchurchb2@verizon.net or computerspec@verizon.net.  The newsletter file is a compressed pdf file easily read by Adobe Reader.  Most people have that free application on their computers already.  The file may also be printed on 8.5 x 11" paper on your own printer.    Susan Wingfield

Thank you to those who have already signed up to fix coffee on Sunday mornings. To continue this tradition we need volunteers. The job entails putting a glass of water on the pulpit for our pastor before the service; making coffee, hot water for tea, and ice water for after the service and possibly providing a few cookies, donut holes, or crackers, etc. It also involves serving and cleaning up. The signup sheet is on the bulletin board—there are many spots to be filled! Talk a friend into helping you. We encourage boards, committees, and individuals to sign up to take a turn fixing coffee. Nobody has volunteered to coordinate this so we are doing this on faith! And if nobody signs up, then there will be no coffee hour.

Chart your course to the Isles of Shoals this summer:  The Mystique of Star Island with its charm and natural beauty, beckons you ten miles out on the Atlantic Ocean off Portsmouth, New Hampshire for a never-to-be-forgotten week of friendships, renewal, enjoyment.

One hundred years ago James Russell Lowell wrote of the Isles of Shoals, “Here you are so near the great warm heart of God you almost seem to feel it beat.”  More recently A. E. Lawrence of Surrey, England noted, “If we could have more spots like Star Island where we could sit together and talk, we would be better fit for the task this century has placed upon us.”  And from Rabbi Samuel Umen in 1969 came these words, “Anyone who has spent several days on Star Island realizes a kind of peace which defies description or definition.  I wish I could put into words the serenity my soul possess here.  This little piece of God’s real estate has the power to transform potential into actual man.”

United Church of Christ conferences sponsored by the Isles of Shoals Congregational Corporation will be held August 1st and August 20th.  For more information, contact Al and Torvy Hurd, who would also be most happy to speak to any groups in the church.

Please send your annual reports to the office no later than April 11th.  Early reports are always welcome.  Please remember if you are an officer or have chaired a board or committee, the fair, strawberry festival, or any other church event, you are responsible for submitting a report.  If you have any questions, please contact Susan Wingfield in the church office or email her:  computerspec@verizon.net.  

Our annual meeting will be held on Sunday, June 6th after church.

Declaring your membership at First Church can signify more to you than just fostering deeper friendships, offering your children a valuable church school experience, or helping out with church activities. All of these are important but there is more to it. Becoming a member is an agreement between yourself and the congregation that you are willing to help make the decisions which build its strength for the future. That as a full member of this church family (which decides its long-term objectives and governs its own affairs), you care for this tiny branch of that Body of Christ (about which we hear in Sunday School and worship). This Christian congregation of which you are a part has an historic past, a pro-active present and, most importantly, looks toward a future with shared goals which empower all of us as caring Christians. God IS still speaking! Will you be a helper in the listening and the learning?

Our pastor will be very glad to answer your questions and offer orientation to First Church’s life and organization as well as the meaning of church membership.