South Britain Congregational Church, South Britain, CT 06487

203.264.5890 United Church of Christ · “God is Still Speaking”

APRIL 2020

OUR CHURCH’S MISSION STATEMENT

“To be a dynamic, welcoming, and caring community of Christian faith by weaving the thread of Christ into the tapestry of our lives.”

March 18, 2020

Dear Members and Friends of South Britain Congregational Church,

As members of the South Britain Congregational Church Search Committee, we

express our gratitude for the trust you have placed in us and in our process these

past years. This past week we have concluded our prayer-filled process of

reviewing profiles and interviewing candidates, ultimately reaching a unanimous

decision. We are pleased to recommend to you our final candidate to be considered

by the congregation at our annual meeting on May 17, 2020, following worship.

We extend our deepest gratitude to our Regional Minister Dr. Michael Ciba who

worked closely with us through this often challenging and incredibly rewarding

search and call process.

Below are the steps that led us to this point of confidence in the Spirit’s leading:

1. Preparation of the current church profile created after much prayer, discernment

and two (2) church-wide surveys.

2. Advertisement in the UCC Ministry Opportunities where our church profile

was available for review by hundreds of prospective pastors.

3. Search team discernment over all sixty-one (61) profiles received.

4. We held thirty-five plus (35+) Skype and in-person interviews and additionally

attended multiple neutral pulpits near and far of prospective candidates.

5. Confidentiality has been essential in our process. Now, we ask you to keep in

close confidence the candidate’s name until such time as the congregational

affirmative vote.

6. Our candidate is Pastor Malcolm Frederick Carr. His letter of self-introduction

is below.

7. Due to the current health concerns around CoVID-19, and the inability to

responsibly congregate in the near future, your Search team, in conjunction with

Council and Deacons have delayed any special congregational meeting that we

would have otherwise promoted to vote on Pastor Malcolm.

8. However, effective May 1, 2020, Pastor Malcolm will become our Acting

Pastor until such time that the congregation approves his call. This will afford

everyone an opportunity to meet (in-person, online and/or telephonically) Pastor

Malcolm prior to our annual congregational meeting and physical vote on May 17,

2020.

As we know, and surely all will agree, our Church family has tremendously

benefitted and enjoyed the excellent bridge interim leadership of Rev. Dave

Buchan over these past few years. Please join us in expressing profound gratitude

and appreciation for the blessing he has been to us all.

Any changes to the above timing of the annual meeting will be publicized

electronically and/or via USPS from Church leaders. Please make every effort to

attend worship services on Sunday, May 17, 2020, to support our candidate and

future Pastor.

We are thankful for your support through this process and for your invaluable love

and prayers.

In Christ’s name,

Carl Dunn, Dave Ferraro, Francesca Sergi, Krista Judson, Ian Lowell, and Jennifer

Naylor, Chair

Rev. Malcolm Carr has been ministering in different roles since 2004. He was

born in New Hampshire and raised in Bangor, Maine. He graduated from Messiah

College in 2002 with a degree in English Literature and minor in World

Religions. At Messiah he was captain of the tennis team and a writer for the

college newspaper. Rev. Malcolm attended Gordon Conwell Theological Seminary

where he received his Master of Divinity in 2007 with a concentration in

Theology. He was ordained into the United Church of Christ as pastor in

2010. The roles in ministry he has served have been pastor, teacher, missionary,

youth pastor, hospital chaplain/counselor and hospice chaplain. His two most

recent settings were overseas in China and serving as solo pastor on the island of

Kauai, Hawaii. He and his wife, Britney, have two daughters aged 5, and 8. As a

family they are often found outside walking the trails or seeking adventures at local

playgrounds. Rev. Malcolm likes to cook and read. He likes to play tennis and

ping pong. He also enjoys running. Though he is an avid New England sports fan

half of his family sadly supports the teams of the New York area.

BULLETIN BOARD

EFFECTIVE IMMEDIATELY, AND UNTIL FURTHER NOTICE,

THERE WILL BE NO SUNDAY SERVICES AT SBCC.

YOU MAY REACH PASTOR DAVE AT HIS HOME PHONE

203.775.6841 SHOULD THE NEED ARISE OR YOU CAN REACH OUT

TO THE CHURCH SECRETARY AT 203.264.5890

IN OUR PRAYERS

Bert DeForest Gordon Morehouse

Wayne and Charlene Gunther Jennifer Naylor’s father

Joan and Ralph Kubista’s daughter Lauren Dahm Margie and Ray Nichols

“Baby Smidge” Elliott great granddaughter Madison

Ginni Garis Andy Scoville

Bob Harrison Francesca Sergi

Joyce Hornbecker Don Sharpe’s sister Sue

Marge Humiston Meghan Smith

Abbi Locke Evelyn and Richard Vargoshe

Jonah Locke Lois Witham and the Witham and

Madeline Grace, Mimi Kuehn’s cousin’s Fleming family

13 year old daughter Eileen Yade, Eileen Major’s mother

Nancy Maher

Cynthia Mather

PLEASE LET THE CHURCH OFFICE KNOW IF YOU ARE IN OR

PLANNING TO BE IN THE HOSPITAL

IN MEMORIAM

Ruth Warner who died on March 12, 2020.

THANK YOU

Dear church family,

We wish to thank you for your generosity on behalf of our son, Christopher, who is currently

serving in the Middle East with the U.S. Army. He mentioned receiving a couple of packages

from church and was very thankful to receive them. A special shout out to Carol Cutrona for

supplying him and his buddies a big supply of Newman's Own k-cups. They truly enjoy

receiving notes and tastes of home.

With warm regards,

Christina, Brad, Nathan, and Christopher Lewis

CHURCH CLOSURE

On Sunday, March 15, the Deacons in conjunction with the church leadership made the decision

to cancel all services and activities of the South Britain Congregational Church for the

foreseeable future due to the Covid19 outbreak. The church will take guidance from both the

Southern New England Conference of the United Church of Christ and the local Pomperaug

District Department of Health for an appropriate time to resume activities. In the meantime, the

church is looking into possible alternate methods of worship.

The church office will be open this coming week but may be closed after that. Rest assured that

the church staff and volunteers will be monitoring the church telephone (203-264-5890) and the

church emails (sbcc_secretary@yahoo.com) when the office is closed.

Our church may be financially impacted during this closure. If you give regularly through one of

the electronic means; Thank You! If you give through your offering on Sunday, please consider

putting your offering in that cookie jar on the shelf each Sunday and bring it in when this is all

over or periodically sending it to the church by snail mail. Not only do we need to watch the

health of our congregation and the community but we need to be mindful of the health of our

church.

We will do our best to keep you informed of what’s going on and when our church will be ready

to re-open its doors. Please monitor our posts on Facebook, our Parishioner’s Post, The

Weathervane and with special emails.

Thank you for your understanding and cooperation

Ken Bolin

Council Chairman and Moderator

COUNCIL MEETINGS

Wednesday, March 25 (teleconference)

Wednesday, April 22

COURAGE

Be strong and of good courage;

be not frightened, neither be dismayed;

for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.

Joshua 1:9

Courage is something we all need in this time of coronavirus. The elderly

especially seem to be at risk. Families are “sheltering in place.” Routines are

disrupted. The economy is in danger. At the time of my writing, the full wave of

the virus hasn’t hit us yet, but we know it’s coming. Still this is not a time to be

dismayed. It’s time to be strong.

I don’t know who told this story, but it sums up for me what courage is about. A

mother and daughter were out walking through the woods, and the little girl was

talking about a book she’d been reading and a word she’d come across – courage.

“What is courage?” the little one asked her mom. “Is it like what Mini has when

she sees a dog and lays back her ears and spits at him even though he is ten times

bigger than she is?’ The mother considered that for a moment. “It’s partly that,”

she said, “but it is much more than that.” They walked on a little way and came to

a place where the woods had been burned and the forest floor was black and

barren, and there in the midst of the charred wood and burnt stubble was a yellow

butter cup thrusting itself up through the blackness. The mother, pointing to the

flower, said to her daughter, “That’s more like it –that’s courage.” Courage is a

yellow butter cup, you and me, reaching through the charred blackness of our fears

and worry – yet still growing, not giving up.

Courage does not mean the absence of fear – rather it is fear that has said its

prayers. In the Old Testament Joshua was not sure he was up to the challenge as

he took over the leadership of the people of Israel from Moses. Yet he came to

know a strength not his own, and led his people into the promised land. So too we

may feel that we are not up to this world-wide health crisis. But God speaks his

bracing word, “Be strong and of good courage; be not frightened, neither be

dismayed.” Like Joshua we may know a strength not our own. God is with us

whatever may lie ahead in this health crisis. Butter cups do flourish. Let us take

that promise with us today.

In Christ,

Dave Buchan

Bridge Interim Minister

If anyone has ordered flowers to be delivered to the church this month, they should call the

florist they used and cancel them.

OPEN AND AFFIRMING SUB-COMMITTEE

The O & A team has kicked off the process and will meet monthly. We look forward to

collaborating together with the congregation to work through this exciting process.

From the DAILY WORD - My heart is compassionately connected with all life.

Compassion is found at the meeting point of my heart and the hurts of the world, moving me past

solving problems into the realm of oneness. As I ground myself in simply being, I become a

healing force for good. I then take any needed action that naturally arises from my inner stillness

and peace.

When I am reflecting on another soul, I can silently affirm I am … you with each inhalation and

exhalation. There is no separation in God. In my inner connectedness with all life, I recognize

that there is also no separation between me and any of my sisters and brothers in this world. As I

embrace my God presence, I find the oneness that expresses as my heartfelt compassion. I am a

vital instrument of the healing activity of God in the world.

Judy Grimes Joe Simpson Sue Torrey

Francesca Sergi Cathy Somers

SOFIA

Due to the current pandemic the House of Worship Tour is cancelled for April. We hope to

reschedule it to a later date. Stay safe and stay healthy.

HOMEFRONT DAY 2020. . .

HomeFront has been postponed. Pending the outcome of the Coronavirus they are considering

rescheduling it sometime in the summer.

FIRST WEDNESDAY WOMEN’S DINNERS

The First Wednesday Women’s Dinners are cancelled until further notice; watch for signups

once we are back together on Sundays!

APRIL BIRTHDAYS

1 Deb Morehouse 19 Dean Moll 28 Fran Thomas

3 Emily Ostar 20 Eileen Major 29 Taylor Hayden

12 Levi Chmielewski Christopher Potz Marti Swift

David Ericsson Kelly Richardson 30 Parker Chmielewski

Emily Hein 22 Christine Dreton Ann Lowell

13 Fay DeForest Dennis Jedlinsky Cathy Schade

14 Christopher Lewis Erin Swett

Patrick McGrath 23 Heather Henderson

Johnny McMahon 24 Andrew Beard

Emily Aldo Sal Graziano

15 Sharon Martovich Luke Naylor

16 Allison Mitchell Dorothy Vilches

17 Ralph Kubista 25 Adam Riefenhauser

18 Audrey Sharpe 26 Emmett Mitchell

RESTAURANT DEPOT

The Church has a membership to Restaurant Depot in Waterbury which means that any member

of the congregation can shop there . As the name implies, the warehouse is set up for the

restaurant trade but individuals can also shop there if they have a membership or are part of a

member organization . While you can get a 25 pound bag of flour or a 50 pound sack of onions,

you can also get a single loaf of bread, a pound of butter or a gallon of milk . Prices are on a par

with Costco and a gallon of milk was $2 . 48 last week .

If you plan of shopping there, identify yourself as a member of the South Britain Congregational

Church at the front desk and they will give you a one day pass . Payment is cash and carry and

they will accept cash and credit cards but no checks . You do not need to prove that you are a

member of the church .

Restaurant Depot is the large building right in front of Costco in Waterbury . Their address

is 3580 East Main Street in Waterbury and their phone number is 203-596-0040 . Their website

is https://www . restaurantdepot . com/ and their monthly sale flyer can be found at the top of

their page.

Update ==== While there is a run on most grocery stores, Costco and BJs, Restaurant Depot

with it’s limited membership may have just what your looking for in ample supplies.

2020 SCHOLARSHIP APPLICATIONS

Scholarship applications will be available beginning Sunday, March 22, 2020 and will be

accessible in the Church Office, in the mail box outside the front door of the Parish House, the

Church narthex, on the piano in the Gathering Room, and on the Church website. The fillable

form will allow applicants to type their responses, save and print the application. All applications

must be dropped off at the Church Office no later than 12:00PM Sunday, April 19, 2019 and

must include a photo.

The SBCC Scholarship Fund was established in 1979 by members of the south Britain

Congregational Church in celebration of the 50th

wedding anniversaries and service to the

Church and community of Mr. and Mrs. Robert Mitchell and Mr. and Mrs. Gordon Schielke.

Since 2003, the Scholarship Committee has also administered the Francis J. Diesl Scholarship

award, the Sean Schielke Scholarship Award, and the Josephine V. Blersch Memorial Award.

Scholarship awards are made annually. Eligible recipients are actively affiliated with the church

who will be attending college, technical school, or are pursuing educational programs for career

enhancement, or for career change. The committee considers each applicant’s involvement in the

church and the community, along with his or her specific educational needs when awarding

grants. Personal or family financial statements are not required.

Awards will be presented on May 17th

, 2020 during the church service and the committee

would appreciate the recipients being present to receive their award.

The members of the Scholarship Committee are:

Deborah Hull-Chair, Judith Bookis, John Erickson, Margie Nichols, and Beverly Stoddard

BOARD OF OUTREACH

Thanks to all of you, we made two large deliveries to our neighbors in Waterbury. Dean Moll

stuffed his SUV to the max and delivered suitcases and totes to our social worker in Waterbury.

She was very thankful but has no more room for storage so Ken Bolin brought the next carload

of 10 bags of collected clothing and some totes to the Waterbury Hospitality Center(recently

destroyed by a fire).The CHD Hospitality Center is a true haven for the homeless population.

Here, homeless persons have the opportunity to take a shower, do laundry, use a computer or

telephone, collect mail, take shelter from snow, cold and rain, and enjoy a brief respite from the

harshness of living on the street. In addition to meeting these basic needs, the

Hospitality Center also provides information about programs designed to move people out of

homelessness. They too were grateful, and they too have storage limits but they request

donations of toiletries. Their temporary location is 965 South Main St, Waterbury if you would

like to donate. We will be making one last delivery to Safe Haven of Waterbury with the rest of

our suitcases and totes. We will be suspending collections for the duration of the church closure

but we’ll pick back up as soon as we are able.

We sent $150 to the Southbury Food Bank from our budget to cover our shelf obligation.

We hope to still have a Fashion Swap on May 3rd(tentatively) or later if necessary. We plan to

reschedule our UCONN Chordials concert to next spring.

Blessings to all of you and prayers that we all remain healthy during this uncertain time.

Notice is hereby given of the Annual Meeting of South Britain Congregational Church, set for

11:30 am Sunday, May 17, 2020, in the Gathering Room of the Parish House. The order of

business will include the re-election of officers, board and committee members from the 2019

Annual Meeting, with elections to fill any vacancies. The proposed budget will be presented for

approval by members. Annual reports of boards and committees will be presented. Members and

friends are welcome to attend; only members may vote. A potluck luncheon will precede the

meeting. Please bring a dish to share. The Board of Christian Education will provide dessert and

coffee.

Respectfully submitted,

Pam Hein, Clerk

PLEASE NOTE: 2019 ANNUAL REPORTS DUE

All reports must be submitted to the church office by Sunday, April 5, 2020.

We plan to have the reports available one week before the Annual meeting.