Conway Village
Congregational Church
April 2025
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Stretch Your Legs and Celebrate!
“OK everybody! Take a load off … stretch your legs!” When developing hikers at the junction of the Kinsman Ridge and Lonesome Lake Trails, everyone takes off their packs and keeps their legs extended to prevent cramping. Snacks and water pass around. A sort of celebration begins. You review where you’ve been and consider the climb ahead. Trails through the White Mountains offer different challenges for developing skills. The Kinsman Ridge Trail is a special trail on which, “Are we there yet?” is the question you must endure. The hike creates a process of shared achievement as climbers seek their ultimate prize, the final summit, Cannon Mountain, a 4,000-footer.
We review, ‘where we’ve been’, we look at maps of South and North Peaks of Kinsman Mountain, both 4,000 ft. peaks, which brings you to a stay at the Kinsman Pond Shelter. The next day we proceed through “The Cannon Balls”, three sub-peaks from west to east, 3,693, 3,660, and 3,769 feet. As you hike each sub-peak, the sky begins to drop into the trees (a sign you are approaching the summit). Then the trail drops down to approach the next sub-peak, giving you the impression you are losing ground. The trail can be very wet, tangled with roots, with large, slippery rock faces slowing progress. It is physically and mentally challenging. Then the junction of the Lonesome Lake Trail, where we know the final push of Mt. Cannon lies ahead. Do you have the heart and stamina to continue (.8 miles for 330 ft. elevation)?
First, let’s celebrate!
The journey of the Brown Church of Conway Village is a lesson in persistence. In 2017, the church community was planning a capital campaign, a campaign delayed by the Covid-19 pandemic and then staggering losses due to flood damage. It has been an arduous journey. Along the way, there have been losses, gains, obstacles, and successes. It has been slow going, with accompanying ups and downs.
Now we are at our “Lonesome Lake Trail junction”, a time to ‘stretch our legs’, ‘catch our breath, and ‘look how far we’ve come!’, when we gather for Homecoming Dinner, April 11th.
The Brown Church continues to rewrite the story of food insecurity, promote recovery of sobriety through peer led support, gives away holiday dinners, offers personal counseling and spiritual develop- ment, supports local Boy Scout efforts and backs nonprofit community programming, all fueled by our worship experience. The Brown Church strives to enrich the health, spirit, and wellbeing of the greater Mount Washington Valley. The final summit is still before us, the raising of capital to reenter our beloved sanctuary.
We remain joyous and hopeful for we know “suffering produces perseverance, and perseverance develops character”. (Romans 5:4) It is character-building, (both for ourselves and for those we serve), that gives us our purpose, mission, and goal. Let’s get together and celebrate! We deserve it! We’ve come a long way.
Rev. John Hughes April 2025
It is April, the mud is deep out back, the grass is brown, but the sun is warm. The Christmas trees outside are coming down.
SAVE THE DATE: we will be having a Pot Roast sit down dinner on Friday April 11th 5 – 6:30 PM with a suggested donation of $15. We are calling it a Homecoming Dinner, letting folks know we are back in the building. HOWEVER, there is more work to needed. We will have the doors to the Sanctuary open so people can look in. We can give tours downstairs if anyone wants to see the work done.
We met with Bergeron Technical Services on March 14th. We went over the work needed in the Sanctuary and the shingles on the front and bell tour. We received a letter from our insurance company giving us a dead- line to get the shingles replaced to prevent more damage to the building, we will need to get that work done first. Shawn and Kate will contract contractors and obtain estimates.
There are several issues to address in the Sanctuary. The cracked walls need significant repair work. It may make sense to replace all the walls at this time. While this is being done, it will be a good time to re-configure the altar area, which would include extending the raised altar, the removal of the groom’s room, and adding a passageway from the sanctuary directly into Fellowship Hall, which will provide two exits from the sanctuary to two different areas of the church building. Heating and cooling systems are needed, and the flooring will also need to be repaired or replaced. FEMA covers part of these costs.
We expect the cost for the Sanctuary work and the building siding will exceed the funds that we will have available from the FEMA reimbursement and current recovery funds.
Nancy Divine will be stepping down as a Trustee as of April 1st. The Trustees wish to express thanks to Nancy for her commitment and dedication to the church, for the countless hours she generously gave working for the good of the church community as Trustee Co-chair and Council Member. We especially wish to thank her for her time during the difficult times of COVID and particularly the past fifteen months dealing with the flood recovery work. She will be missed greatly by the Trustees, the Council, and our church family.
Anne Getchell
Trustee Board ~ Anne Getchell, John Edgerton, Duddie Andrews, Nancy Irving, Nancy Divine, and Tom Workman, ex officio member, Treasurer
Winter has ended and April’s blessings of sun and warmth will welcome a busy schedule for our Community of Faith at the Brown Church. The month begins with the celebration of the Sacrament of Communion on Sunday April 7th, and a Homecoming Dinner, Friday the 11th. Holy Week begins with Palm Sunday on the 13th, Maundy Thursday on the 17th, Good Friday on the 18th, and culminating with the celebration of Jesus as the Risen Christ on Easter Sunday! Sunrise service will be held behind the church at 5:45 am, to be followed by a potluck breakfast in Fellowship Hall, attendees please bring a food of your choice to share. There will be a Sign-up sheet at coffee fellowships.
Holy Week services will be held in our Fellowship Hall except the Good Friday Service. We will be celebrating Good Friday service, with the Clergy of the Mt. Washington Valley at the First Church of Christ, Congregational, 2521 White Mountain Highway, North Conway, NH at 6:00 p.m.
We as a Community of Faith now occupy a time of unprecedented “busyness”. We are not divorced from living in a rush, run, hurry, 24 hour news cycle, fully filled calendar world.
Yet, while we as our Community of Faith both live in a “light speed time” and look forward to a robust schedule for the month of April, we should still use the gifts of the remaining days of Lent to find a time and place to be still to allow for quiet reflection. Perhaps then, we might hear and, to listen to “The Voice That Runs and Whispers”, or simply the “Voice of the Divine”, that always calls us home to be one with it .
Your Deacons, Judy, Beth, Jill, Louise, Charles M. and Charles B
The pantry has now been open for over 2 months. Every week more and more of our previous clients return. It’s so nice to see their familiar faces again!
It was very challenging completing all tasks necessary to re-enroll in the NH Food Bank! Finally we were able to pick up the Walmart donations, which is one of the services through the NH Food Bank’s Fresh Rescue program. These donations are extremely important as Walmart provides the majority of fresh produce and meats to the pantry this time of year. I’m sure our clients are looking forward to the summer months when we receive fresh produce donations from local farms. The pantry will begin purchasing meats and produce from Shaws and Sherman Farm again soon.
We are happy to say we have three new volunteers! If you would like to join us in serving our community, please contact Melody in the office.
A HUGE THANK YOU TO ALL WHO HELP US SERVE THE COMMUNITY!
We could not do it without you!
Melody Bergman
Worship Services 10:00 AM
We are open for Worship Services in Fellowship Hall!
Please join us for Coffee Fellowship following worship services!
Sunday, April 6th – 5th Sunday of Lent – Communion Sunday
Scriptures: Psalm 126, Isaiah 43:16-21, John 8:1-8
Meditation: “Casting the First Stone”
Sunday, April 13th – Palm Sunday
Scriptures: Psalm 118:1-2, 19-29, Isaiah 50:4-9a, Luke 23:1-25
Sermon: “Navigating Harrowing Experiences”
Thursday, April 17th – Maundy Thursday- 6:00 p.m.
Scriptures: Psalm 116:1-2, 12-19, Exodus 12:1-14, 1 Corinthians 11:23-36, John 13:1-17, 31b-35
Friday, April 18th – Good Friday – 6:00p.m. (at North Conway First Church Congregational)
Scriptures: Psalm 22, Hebrews 4:14-16; 5:7-9, John 18:1-19:42
Easter Sunrise Service, April 20th 5:45 a.m.
Scriptures: Psalm 118:1-2, 14-24, John 20:1-10, John 20:11-18
Reflection: “In the Early Hours”
Easter Celebration, April 20th 10:00 a.m.
Scriptures: Psalm 118:1-2, 14-24, Isaiah 65:17-25, Luke 24:1-12
Sermon: “Looking for the Living Among the Dead”
Sunday, April 27th – 2nd Sunday of Easter
Scriptures: Psalm 150, Revelation 1:4-8, John 20:19-31
Sermon: “When Jesus Appears to Us”
Holy Week
Palm Sunday: a liturgy will be performed which will require the participation of everyone who attends (you get a part!).
Maundy Thursday: a liturgy of betrayal and desertion will be used to commemorate the beginning of the passion suffering of Jesus at 6:00 p.m.
Good Friday: the Mt. Washington Clergy Association will lead our ecumenical fellowship through the Passion of the Cross at 6:00 p.m. at First Church of Christ, Congregational.
Sunrise Easter Morning: will begin at 5:45 a.m. behind the Brown Church in the lower parking lot. A potluck breakfast will follow to reward those who rose with the Easter Dawn.
Easter Celebration: at 10 a.m. in Fellowship Hall for our regular Easter worship.