Oct 2010 Newsletter
Announcing Our Very First
Pick-Up Choir
For Sunday, November 7, 2010
Robert Shauris – Organist & Choir Director
If you love to sing but can’t make a commitment to becoming a full-time choir member, then our Pick-Up Choir is perfect for you!
All voices are welcome, both women and men.
And knowing how to read music is not necessary!
Here’s how it works:
1. Attend rehearsal Wednesday, Nov. 3, from 5:00-7:00* Bob will teach us an easier anthem as well as a simple introit and benediction.
2. Attend the Sunday morning “warm up” at 9:00 on Nov. 7. Choose a choir robe, and you’re ready to go!
It’s a small amount of time for a HUGE amount of fun!
Please join us!
Give your name to Bob, Cindy or Jackie by Sunday, Oct. 31, and we will see you at rehearsal!!
Thanks, Your Music Committee
(* these hours are negotiable)
A Note From the Pastor
Rev Doreen Oughton at her installation
Grace and Peace to you, my friends. As I write this note, there are people with signs standing on the corner outside of the church office. Today, primary elections are being held across the Commonwealth, and it is a privilege and a delight to see people walking the walk, getting involved, committing their time and energy. I did get out and vote this morning, but I have to confess that it was a relatively uninformed vote. I had not been listening to the debates and keeping up with the views and plans of the candidates. I scrambled this morning to find out some basic information, but was still uneasy when I cast my ballot. I considered not voting, but it is a right that too many people fought for, and too many people in other places are still denied, to treat it so casually. Hopefully my unease with casting a vote not thoroughly considered will spur me to stay awake and in tune to the issues leading up to the elections in November.
All this got me thinking about the issue of accountability, the importance of giving thought to what we want to happen in our lives, in our communities, in our world and in our churches. It is rare that we can make things happen in any of these areas as an individual, and we rely on working with people with similar goals, and finding leaders who want to and are able to lead us to those places. In a church, we consider not just the wants of individual members, or even of the congregation as a whole, but our call from God to be an empowered part of the Body of Christ.
As church-goers, it is difficult to avoid hearing skeptical comments, cynicism, and charges of hypocrisy against institutionalized religion. Unfortunately, there is cause for these reactions, as churches have been agents of destruction, oppression and self-interest throughout the ages. Though we may hope and pray to be inspired by God, fueled by love of Christ, and to move through the Holy Spirit, we must acknowledge that there is a human element of religious institutions that is vulnerable to all the sins of humankind – greed, sloth, envy, anger, pride, lust and gluttony. With such acknowledgement should come a commitment to on-going reflection and evaluation of what the Church is about. Is it on track? Is it serving God and the world in creative, life-enhancing ways? Is there a particular ministry we are called to? Are their ministries we continue that have outlived their purpose?
I encourage First Congregational Church to develop systems for ongoing evaluation of our mission, methods, and ministries. One way to do this is to evaluate me, your ordained minister (never undervalue the lay ministers we have here). I have been here for over a year, and it is a great time to think about what you were hoping for in the search, where you still hope the church will go, and whether I am demonstrating the skills, knowledge, ability and willingness to walk with you effectively on this path. It is also a chance to reflect on how the congregation has done in supporting the church’s mission and ministry. Are there different policies and practices that would enhance people’s abilities to share their gifts?
The Council is developing a process and instrument for evaluation. If you would like to be part if this development, please speak to Neil Mulrain. And please, if you are asked to give feedback for the evaluation, don’t be shy. Your input matters to the integrity of the church. If you feel you are not informed enough to give input, perhaps you will be spurred to learn more about the mission, ministries, and methods of the church. All are welcome to attend Council meetings, and you can get information about the church from Pastor Doreen or any Council member. And that would bless us all.
Blessings
Pastor Doreen
Sunday School Update
by Chris Cathcart
Children’s Sunday – June 2010
I’d like to begin by thanking Carol Mulrain, and Rick and Donna Spaulding for volunteering in our classrooms. Could they be an inspiration for you? Won’t you consider spending even one Sunday morning learning with our youngsters? See me if you’d like more information on how you can help.
Two age groups are joining together for the time being due to low enrollment. The Core Truth group and the High Pointers are finishing up their classroom “visit to Egypt” and their lessons on self-esteem. The next stop in this travel-themed curriculum is Antarctica, and lessons on good anger and bad anger next.
The youngest group, Boz Kids, will continue their lessons on Our Amazing God. They’re having lots of fun learning through stories, games and crafts.
This congregation has always been so generous and quick to respond to a need. The Sunday school program is currently in need of the following supplies:
– Magazines
– 1 _ inch foam letters
– Glue sticks
– Clear contact paper
– Shape stickers in different colors
– 1 or 2 beanbags
– Paper plates: 10 yellow and some regular white
– Play dough
– Zip lock bags
– Tape
– Candy or small treasures for prizes
– Rice Krispie Squares (brick-shaped) for Oct 17
– Lined paper
Thanks so much for your donations of supplies and time. They are much appreciated, and the fuel for this program
Praise the Lord with Organ and Song
The organ pit in FCC is now the new home of a Rodger’s Allegiant 688 organ purchased from and installed by Marshall Ogletree Associates of Needham, MA. The organ is a three manual (three keyboards) with pedal. It has 184 organ voices and 50 orchestral voices (enough to keep any organist busy!!!).
The organ sang its debut on Sunday, September 12th. This was the culmination of a great journey that began with a committee comprised of Cindy and Ron LaPointe, Jackie Henderson and Neil Mulrain visiting the studio of Marshall Ogletree. Dave Ogletree did his utmost to accommodate the needs of our Church with respect to a new organ.
After a vote of approval by the Congregation the real work began. The organ had to be physically installed. First this involved the work of designing the audio system for the organ, the number of speaker and amplifies necessary to make the organ do what it does best; sound as gentle as the beating of angel wings and as majestic as the thunderous roar of the Falls at Niagara! The end goal of this audio work it to make our organ sound as much like a true pipe organ as is possible. It is often thought that more speakers on Digital organs are use simply for volume. This is not totally true. The real concern is that the soft sounds of the organ sound lifelike and true. In short, the organ has to move air both when it is roaring and when it is whispering! To this end we have six of the eight speakers and two of the three amplifiers needed to complete the audio design of our organ.
With the audio evaluation of the Church accomplished the next task was to wait for the organ to arrive, which it did on Wednesday 8 September. The folks at Rodgers were amazed at the work done by Ron LaPointe, Neil Mulrain and Bob Kelly in preparation for the organ. There are two speakers installed on the arch at the end of the choir space. Our “crew” had them installed without a hitch. There are five speakers behind the pipe case. A shelf was needed to place four of them properly. Again, the “crew” went to work and voila the shelf came to be! Because of this local work what would have been a two-day installation was done in one!
The next part of the installation was the musical balance of the instrument. This was accomplished by Dave Ogletree and me. At this point the organ was 85% ready to be put to work on Sunday.
There are two big jobs left to accomplish. 1) The organ needs to be voiced. Voicing fits the organ to the Church space. It requires that each of the 184 voices of the organ be adjusted so that they blend perfectly, and 2) fundraising.
As most of you know, the grant that we applied for, we lost by one vote. Instead of abandoning the organ project the Trustees stepped up to the plate and loaned monies necessary to meet the balance of the cost of the organ. We need to make good on this loan and pay back the Trustees. So, we have two goals for fundraising: 1) to get the remainder of the audio system and 2) to pay back the Trustees. In addition to fundraising, any donations to this cause are gratefully accepted at any time.
Our Rodgers Organ will serve the worship services of FCC for many years to come. The beauty of its tone can inspire and the majesty of its roar can bring joy in the congregation in the praise of the God who created all things!
Robert A. Shauris
Music Minister
Behind the Scenes
I keep catching people quietly contributing to the upkeep of this church and the nurture of its members. I invite you to offer a prayer of thanks for these wonderful people: Neil Mulrain spent his vacation fixing the back door roof/awning, mowing the lawn, and helping with the organ installation. Marie Frascolla led the Women’s Association in a major kitchen clean up. Quentin Lewis puzzled and planned and built with the Cathcarts an airplane for the Sunday school class to fly in. Keep me posted if you see any quiet contributions that you want more people to know about.
Prayer Concerns
Our hope with this section is that many people will do more than take a cursory look for information on the health and well-being of others. Prayer can be a powerful tool for healing, gathering the focused energy of love. As you read a name on the prayer concern list, you are invited to close your eyes, take a few deep breaths, and imagine the person, or even just the name if you don’t know the person, surrounded by light, infused by love. Let your own care and concern flow out of you toward that person or place or situation. It needn’t take more than a minute, though more time is fine also. And it will infuse you with Divine love as well. Please hold in your care this month Ellie Skagerlind as she recovers from surgery, the Orsi family in the loss of Gary, and this church in its efforts to grow and strengthen in its ability to carry the Good News out into the world. Please let Pastor Doreen know if there is someone who might benefit from our prayers.
CROP Walk 2010
As the nights get shorter and summer fades into fall, families begin settling back into the routine of school and sports. The thoughts of the upcoming holidays are in the back of our minds and on every store shelf. While holidays are meant for happy times with friends and families, the reality of many people still laid off, and indicators that 1 in 8 people are going hungry, show that holidays aren’t necessarily good times. So please step up and join me for the Leicester Crop Walk on Oct.17th. This four- mile walk provides funds to send food to those in need, and 40% of monies raised stays right in town for the Leicester Food Bank. If walking isn’t your thing and you would still like to help, you can donate by seeing me, one of the other walkers or by going to Cropwalk.org. The Leicester Team is an ecumenical effort with people from several churches. Details about time and location will be coming soon. Thanks for your support.
-Chase Orsi
Family Sunday with Pot-Luck Lunch and Games
Family Sunday
October 3rd starts a new year of regular family-friendly fellowship. Join us the first Sunday of each month for a delicious lunch spread, and a fun afternoon of games. We’ll have a signup sheet out the week before so we can try to spread out contributions of entrees, salads and desserts, but even if you don’t sign up, you can bring something to share or just come and eat. There is always plenty of food and plenty of fun. Bring a game you love, or try a new one. Hope to see you there.
Worcester Fellowship Lunch Ministry
Preparing lunches for Worcester Fellowship
FCC is scheduled as lunch providers for the Worcester Fellowship on Sunday, October 31. We are so grateful for the eagerness with which the food donations come in and the helping hands gather. Please indicate what you would like to contribute on the signup sheet that will be out on October 17 and 24. People are most welcome to join Pastor Doreen and Quentin in attending the worship service at 1:00 p.m. behind Worcester City Hall. It is a joyous and inspiring experience.
ANNUAL MEETING (Pt. 2) NOTICE
To all members and officers of the First Congregational Church of Leicester:
On Sunday, October 17, 2010, the second part of the annual meeting of the church will take place at 11:00 a.m. in the Sanctuary.
Purpose: To hear the annual report (2009/2010) of the treasurer, and any other business that may come before the church.
FCC Space Mission
No, I’m not talking about an outer space mission, but the use of our space congruent to our mission as a church. The church building is a wonderful resource for ministry, along with its people, their gifts, and the Spirit of a faith community. How a church uses its building resources is an important question. Churches must give thought to who uses the space, for what purpose and at what cost. The building may be used to support groups that offer healing and nurture, such as 12-Step Groups. It may be used by groups that teach important values and offer different kinds of fellowship, such as Scouting. It may be a resource for various community gatherings such as Newcomer Groups, space for performance art, or art exhibitions. It can provide a sacred space for members and non-members to engage in various rituals of life – baptisms, weddings, and funerals. The money from rentals for parties and other functions can aid our ministry, but we operate differently from a business whose main focus is earning money. We want to ensure that use of our space is consistent with our mission, or at least doesn’t conflict with it. And so the Council, the governing board of First Congregational Church is charged with approving all uses of the church building and property. At our August meeting, I asked the Council to consider granting me the authority to make decisions about ceremonies of marriage in our Sanctuary. I am the contact person for couples wishing to marry here, and am the one who will meet with them a few times and get to know them, their values, and their view of what it means to be married in the church. If their plans and vision are consistent with our mission, I will be the one officiating at the ceremony. I believe it is more pastoral, faithful, and expedient to leave the decision to the Pastor, rather than summoning the Council to make these decisions when a request is made. The Council discussed the matter, and voted to grant me discretionary authority over all weddings in the church. I am grateful for this trust, and am committed to mindfulness of our mission in all my decisions. Our Mission Statement: Learn to worship God with joy and gratitude and help others grow in their faith by sharing God’s Word; Offer Christian love and support through compassion and understanding, and inspire our youth by teaching and example; Value God’s grace by reaching out to the greater community; and Extend our Christian faith through our gifts and talents in service to others. If you have any questions or concerns about this, please, please call me.
Blessings, Pastor Doreen
UCC Connections 
On October 2nd a team from FCC will be attending a day of workshops sponsored by the Massachusetts Conference of the United Church of Christ. Alice Kelly, Christine Cathcart, Quentin Lewis and Pastor Doreen have chosen from a wide array of offerings – from the UCC Still Speaking initiative, to faith-based activism; tools and processes for evaluation, ideas for building transformative relationships between pastor and congregation, for how churches grow together, on covenantal dialogue, and discipleship. Can’t wait to share and implement new ideas. Stay tuned!
We are blessed to be part of a Conference and an Association that offers so much to its member churches. Part of our covenant with these bodies is to participate in such workshops, attend Annual Meetings, and send delegates whenever possible to Ecclesiastical Councils, Ordinations and Installations. Pastor Doreen tries to attend these important functions regularly, but at times is unable to go. If anyone is interested in attending with her or in her place, please let her know. Ecclesiastical Councils are held on Wednesday evenings, Ordinations and Installations are held Sunday afternoons. There are a few coming up in the next few months. You can check the schedule on the Conference website: www.macucc.org and click on “Central Association” in the lower left side.
WOMENS ASSOCIATION DATES
October 6th – Lunch – Place to be announced
November 3rd – Fair Work
November 10th – Fair Work
November 13th – Fair Day!
Come to the Fair 
