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Conway Village
Congregational Church
June 2021
The Good News!
Pastor’s Message
Building Our Beloved Community Anew
“I cannot go in these …
He [David] took his staff in hand,
chose five smooth stones …
and with his sling in hand,
approached the Philistine.”
1 Samuel 17:39-40
The story of David and Goliath tells the story of a shepherd boy who prepares to meet a giant Philistine in battle. In hopes of pleasing King Saul, David first dresses in a tunic, a coat of iron, and a bronze helmet. David, a young lad, cannot move freely in standard battle gear; it is not a good fit. David ditches all the armor and takes up his shepherd staff, a slingshot, and 5-round, smooth stones, which he knows will project the furthest. He prepares to meet his formidable foe with what works best for him, not in the traditional way which Saul offers.
People are thrilled to see the infection rate for Covid-19 infection drop in Conway and cannot wait to return “to normal”. Covid-19 was a giant problem, more formidable than most people anticipated. The recovery will take many months, perhaps years! Our church leadership is realizing that what we are facing is not so much “returning to worship” which we have known as much as “building our beloved community anew ”. Saul, representing the old way, traditional ways and David, representing youthful energy, is a good metaphor for us going forward.
We have suffered some losses because our sanctuary space has been idle for 15 months. Our organ has suffered, our pews are cracked, the heat-humidity-air conditioning has proven inadequate. We are not talking so much about rebuilding or restoring as deciding “who and what do we need to be to bring God’s Good News to our community in new, innovative ways ”. Our “goliath problems” will take much prayer, preparation, and imagination. It will ask us to be inventive as well as open-minded.
Our membership has been accommodating this past year as we attempted to bring the best worship experience possible under trying circumstances. We will need again to call upon your patience as we move to create new forms of worship going forward. The Greek word for community/fellowship is “koinonia”, a concept of joint participation, sharing, and intimacy, which brings people together with God and each other in profound ways. Koinonia is the sharing of praise, music, sacrament, sermon, and scripture in thoughtful, meaningful ways. We pray the Holy Spirit will allow us to experience our community in ways yet to be imagined! We ask your understanding in allowing us to move forward.
Rev. John Hughes
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From the Trustees
Even though the church is not officially open, there is a lot of activity going on that most don’t see. Board meetings are now back live at the church, the Food Pantry and Dinner Bell are receiving food deliveries and getting it out to the community. The lawn is being mowed and the flowers are planted out front. The Sanctuary is being put in order and will have a thorough cleaning.
We will be testing combined zoom and in house services for the next few weeks starting May 30th. Readers will be at the church. We hope to open it up to all on July 4th, for those who wish to attend.
In May, the Steering Committee met with the architect and Bergeron Technical Services to continue the redesign of the Sanctuary.
Please save the date, we will be having a Special Meeting on July 18th at approximately 11 am, following the worship service, to give an update on the 2021 budget and a draft of the 2022 budget. You will be able to attend in person or by zoom.
Trustees:
Chair: Anne Getchell
Duddie Andrews, John Edgerton, Nancy Irving, Kim Murdoch, Paul Weld, Tom Workman
Ex-officio member Carl Vitters – Church Treasurer
NOTICE OF SPEICAL MEETING
TO: All Members and Friends of the Conway Village Congregational Church
A Special Meeting of the Membership of the Conway Village Congregational Church will be held on Sunday, July 18, 2021, at approximately 11:00 am following the church service and via Zoom. As in the past the vote will be for members only and will be conducted by a show of hands and by roll call on Zoom. Please use the weekly link for the church service to partici- pate in this vote if you are attending by Zoom.
The purpose of this Special Meeting will be: To review the updated 2021 Budget
To review the proposed 2022 Budget.
To conduct any other business that may come to the floor of the meeting.
Dated at: Conway, New Hampshire, on the 24th of May 2021 Dawn Vitters, Clerk
Diaconate Message
Father’s Day is fast approaching. Some of us have or had a great relationship with our fathers, some do or did not. The wonderful thing is, we can all have a close and wonderful relationship with our Heavenly Father. He is always there for us.
A wise man once told me that everything is a gift from God. I thought he was crazy. Once I was able to process this statement, I realized what he meant. The gift is a chance to look deeply into what was happening. It is an opportunity to reevaluate my life. Do I need to make changes to my thoughts, actions, relationships, or anything else? I try to look for the positive and to live the life that God wants. He is the one being who loves and forgives me unconditionally when I ask. I am so thankful for my Heavenly Father.
Some fathers are men who care deeply for us and some are our birth fathers. Whe
ther by birth or by choice, they love and support us emotionally. I hope everyone has a wonderful Father’s Day.
God Bless,
Suzanne Rancourt
The Diaconate
Diaconate: Louise Saxby, Mitzi Fitch, Judy Workman, Dawn Vitters, Suzanne Rancourt, Beth Campbell
Outreach Committee
I want to give a HUGE Thank you to all the Volunteers for hanging in there during Covid-19. The Pantry still remains closed to Clients coming inside, the Volunteers are there every Tuesday putting up food, putting the food into the carts and taking out to the Clients who are waiting in their cars, even in the winter months! THANKS and God Bless every one of you.
On a personal note, we miss seeing our Clients and saying hi to them and asking how things are go- ing, how’s the family doing. Over the years they have become like a family. Now we can only wave from the ramp, it’s just not the same.
We continue to partner with Walmart and shop at Dollar Tree. Over the years we were the recipients of the “Spirit of Giving” from Shaw’s. This year the Shaw’s corporate office decided to give Gift Cards, totaling over $5,000, each in the amount of $25. The Gift Cards have been passed on to the Clients, as well as our Pantry using them to shop at Shaw’s. A big thank you to Shaw’s!!
On May 19th we received 84 cases of breakfast boxes from NH Food Bank. They contained items such as cereal bowls, energy bars, juice boxes and shelf stable milk boxes. This was a program we partnered with NHFB and Albertsons. We gave some to 68 Hours of Hunger and will also give out to pantry Clients.
Additionally, we were contacted by a new business in the Valley called The Granite Group. The owner, Alan Fecteau, wanted to get involved with the Village. He saw the Food Pantry banner in the Annex building window and contacted us. On June 10th they will be holding a food drive. All items collected will be donated to our Pantry, all we need to do is drop off the Pantry banner to them and they will do the rest.
Outreach Committee:
Silvia Weld, Anne Getchell, Dawn Vitters, Laura Sorensen, Charlyne Gray and Charles Monaghan
Historical Corner
We found this World War II church bulletin inside the Bible of Mrs. A. Crosby Kennett. We thought it might be of interest to our parishioners. Brian Wiggin ~ Historian
~ Food Pantry Needs List ~
Food Pantry Wish List 1
Ramen Noodles-Chicken and or Beef Rice-A-Roni-Chicken or Beef
Ketchup – 20 oz.
Mustard – 20 oz
Mayo – small jar
Stable Milk 32 oz.
Juice – orange or apple 64 oz.
Chicken Broth
Soup (small) – Chicken Noodle or Tomato
Canned Fruit -15 oz – any kind
Jelly – 16 oz. grape or strawberry
Canned Chicken and Tuna 5 oz.
Food Pantry Wish List 2
Canned Chicken and Tuna 5 oz.
Baked Beans – 15 oz. – any kind
Canned Pasta – 15 oz., any kind
Diced Tomatoes – 15 oz.
Tomato Sauce – 15 oz.
Pasta Sauce – (can) 15 oz.
Pasta Sauce – (jar) 32 oz.
Beef Stew – Can or Pouch
Boxed Spaghetti – 1lb.
Boxed macaroni – elbow 1lb.
Crackers – 1lb.
Food Pantry Wish List 3
Canned-Peas, Carrots, Green Beans, and corn – 15 oz.
Cold Cereal – 10.8 oz any kind
Instant Oatmeal – 1lb.
Paper Towels
Toilet paper – individually wrapped
Shampoo – White Rain or Suave – 24 oz.
Dawn Dish Detergent- small size
Laundry Detergent – Tide-small size
Lg. Laundry Detergent – Dollar Tree brand in green container
Hand Soap – Dial 2 or 3 pk bars