Second Congregational Church: frontevents

Showing posts with label frontevents. Show all posts

Mardi Gras

[fsg_photobox rows="3" cols="3" autoplay="true" link="attachment"]
[fsg_link class="btn" ]Click here for slideshow[/fsg_link]
Mardi Gras (which falls on February 28, 2017) is French for "Fat Tuesday," reflecting the practice of the last night of eating richer, fatty foods before the ritual fasting of the Lenten season. It also refers to events of the Carnival celebrations, celebrated all over the world but especially famous in Rio de Janeiro and in New Orleans, during the weeks before Ash Wednesday. In countries such as England, Mardi Gras is also known as Shrove Tuesday, which is derived from the word shrive, meaning "confess."

At Second Congregational Church, we celebrated Mardi Gras Sunday during February 26 worship, a celebration full of music and color. Music Director Matt Edwards, who is originally from Louisiana, led the choir and congregation in exuberant music. Altar flowers, given by Deb Perkins, were in the Mardi Gras colors of purple (representing justice), gold (symbolizing power) and green (symbolizing faith), as was the icing on the "King cakes" baked by the choir for the Sunday social after worship.

Tom and Nancy 60th

On Sunday February 19 we celebrated the 60th wedding anniversary of Tom and NancyJean Steffen. After his retirement in 1994, Pastor Emeritus Tom Steffen has shoveled snow, made Sunday coffee for Sunday morning and other events, set up tables for the Sunday socials after worship, organized tables for events such as the Antiques Show and the Snowball Bazaar and taken on numerous other tasks. NancyJean is chair of the Board of Trustees, head of the huge Serendipity "recycled treasures" section of the Snowball bazaar, resource person for the church caretaker and office administrator, was one of the overseers of the sanctuary renovation, Director of the handbell choir for 20 years, and a person who notices what needs doing and gets things done in so many areas of our church endeavors. We can also celebrate this year being the 52nd anniversary of their "marriage" to Second Congregational Church.

180th Birthday

On Sunday September 25 Second Congo celebrated its 180th birthday. The special worship service featured four historical characters from the church's past, and four “Grasshopper Tales” (five-minute stories, in the style of Moth Radio stories, each told by a member of the congregation who participated in a “leap of faith” in the church's history). The adult choir sang and the handbell choir rang, both under the direction of Sue Green. Vintage photographs and newspaper clippings from events such as the explosion of the church organ, continue to be on display in the social hall.

Originally part of what we now know as “Old First Church,” the congregation divided into two in 1836 because many women were no longer willing to walk up the hill several times a Sunday for worship services at the Congregational church on Monument Avenue. Parishioners down in the valley built Second Congregational Church, a tall and traditional church in New England style, on the corner of School and Main where the TD Bank now stands.
In 1959, when that building became too expensive for the congregation to maintain, the congregation sold it and built an architecturally radical church building on Hillside Street. Only 18 months after its construction, the church was heavily damaged by an explosion caused by a gas leak. On August 6, 1961 the Bennington Banner carried front page news and photographs of the walls of the sanctuary blown out and lying on the ground, the interior of the church exposed to the outdoors. Another memorable explosion in Second Congo's history was of pressure cookers containing the ingredients for a chicken pot pie supper.

In 1965 Rev Thomas D Steffen was called to be the church's new pastor. He served for 29 years that included the church being the site of draft counseling during the Viet Nam War, and the church undergoing study and discussion that led to its officially declaring itself “Open and Affirming” to LGBTQ people (the first church in Vermont to do so).

After Tom Steffen retired in 1994, the church called its first woman pastor. With Rev Mary Lee-Clark as pastor, Second Congo has continued active involvement in the Bennington community both as a congregation and with individual members volunteering at many community endeavors including Sunday Suppers at the church, the Free Clinic, the Kitchen Cupboard, the Seedlings Program to nurture elementary school children in after school program, and many others. Long-running annual events such as the Snowball Bazaar, now in its 68th year, attract locals and others. The history of Second Congregational Church is indeed interwoven with the history of Bennington.
[fsg_photobox rows="3" cols="3" autoplay="true" link="attachment"]
[fsg_link class="btn" ]Click here for slideshow[/fsg_link]

Sun and Fun Day

The Sun and Fun! festival on Saturday August 20 at Second Congregational Church, was a day to celebrate the environment and local community. It featured live music, kids' activities, and over 25 different community and environmentally friendly groups, including an eclectic mix of groups who meet regularly at the church - from beekeepers to quilters. Live and lively music was provided by The Hale Mountain Pickers. Lunch was prepared by a local professional chef and her team, all from the congregation.

Kids' activities included face painting, giant-bubble making, and parachute games. Kids and adult together held the edges of the colorful parachute and walked in a circle to the beat of a drum, stopping when the drum stopped, to dive under the parachute for candies. The Battenkill Conservancy brought tubs of river water with live fish and crustaceans for kids to watch and even scoop up temporarily with small nets. Kids and their parents painted several large murals.

At 11 am the Adult Story Telling Hour- much like NPR's “The Moth Story Hour” - featured stories of a boy's awakening to the beauty of Nature, a child making friends with a large toad, a young man's arriving in Cambridge only to discover his girlfriend lived in Cambridge in another state, the rescue of a wild bird whose foot was trapped in ice, and a couple waiting for rescue on a remote river in northern Alaska.

At noon a demonstration on how to build your own backyard compost system was taught by a Master Composter, using kitchen food scraps (no meat or dairy) brought by people attending. At 1 pm, at the Solar Forum, panel members discussed solar feasibility, set-up, financing and more.

The first Sun and Fun festival in August 2015 started as a celebration of solar panels installed on the church roof, but planning quickly expanded to include environmental groups and the various groups that meet at Second Congo. Kids played under the solar shower, made S'mores with a solar oven, made huge bubbles and got to dance to native American drumming.

Sun and Fun was not a fundraiser but to have a good time connecting with others in the local community. Admission was free and the great-value lunches priced just to cover the cost of ingredients. The first 100 visitors received a Sun and Fun red and black re-usable shopping bag, and there were drawings every half hour for prizes, culminating with two grand prizes at the end of the day.

The festival was one of many ways that folks of Second Congo reach out to the local community, in a range of activities, all year round. They hold that everyone is welcome to activities at the church, wherever that person is on life's journey and whether or not that person is religious.

[fsg_photobox rows="4" cols="4" autoplay="true" link="attachment"]
[fsg_link class="btn" ]Click here for slideshow[/fsg_link]

REFRESH PAGE TO SEE DIFFERENT MOSAIC OF PHOTOS

Vigil for Orlando

[fsg_photobox rows="3" cols="3" autoplay="true" link="attachment"]
[fsg_link class="btn" ]Click here for slideshow[/fsg_link]

The LGBTQ community and the Greater Bennington Interfaith Council held a vigil Wednesday at 7 p.m. at the Four Corners in Bennington to honor victims of the Pulse Nightclub shootings in Orlando FL. The Bennington Banner reported that over 100 people attended. Leaders of faith communities of Bennington and Arlington participated, several wearing rainbow-colored vestments. Rainbow signs were held by members of the Unitarian Fellowship. On the corner under the clock, a young woman with rainbow-colored hair and a man with rainbow-colored socks shared the sidewalk with a sign "We Weep for Orlando and all LGBT communities."

Sunday Suppers at Second Congo

[fsg_photobox rows="3" cols="3" autoplay="true" link="attachment"]
[fsg_link class="btn" ]Click here for slideshow[/fsg_link]

Each week Sunday supper welcomes folks eager for a hot meal and companionship. Started by members of Second Congregational Church, which has two supper making teams, the Robins (also known as the Roaring Chickens) and the Bluebirds, Sunday Supper now has teams from various other local faith communities who also take turns providing the supper, either cooking in the Second Congo kitchen or bringing an already prepared meal. On Sunday May 22, some half dozen baked hams, two large casseroles of sweet potatoes, 4 ½ pounds of fresh beans, and a big bowl of cole slaw were prepared by eight Second Congo members and enjoyed by 45 people, including nine Second Congo folks. Chocolate layer cake made by Dara was a delicious dessert, accompanied by tea and coffee. Guests helped clear tables and put away tables and chairs.

SPRING CLEAN-UP MORNING

[fsg_photobox rows="4" cols="4" autoplay="true" link="attachment"]
[fsg_link class="btn" ]Click here for slideshow[/fsg_link]

Knitting

[fsg_photobox rows="2" cols="3" autoplay="true" link="attachment"]
[fsg_link class="btn" ]Click here for slideshow[/fsg_link]

A hand-knit sweater and hand-knit baby blanket are pictured above. As in past years, knitters of our congregation made a large number of each. With Church World Service no longer "doing" baby kits," 25 baby blankets and 25 baby sweaters (many with intricate patterns) were donated to the US Committee for Refugees. The women also donated "one-zies," and receiving blankets they had sewn. Staff at the reception center in Albany were effusively grateful.

Earlier this year, jackets, hats, mittens and boots as well as large pots and pans were donated by 2CC members for refugees being settled in Albany. Large pots and pans for stove-top cooking are especially needed for families with many children. Palm Sunday we will again gratefully receive donations of kitchen and eating utensils to be delivered to the reception center in Albany. There, kitchen utensils, along with pots and pans, plates, bowls and "silverware," are sorted and stored along with outerwear. Before refugees move in, apartments are rented and outfitted appropriately for a specific family.

Snowball Bazaar 2015

"An intense week of preparation by congregational members (plus friends and family) working together culminated in Friday evening and Saturday's 67th annual bazaar on December 4 and 5. Fresh greens were made into wreaths and centerpieces. Jewelry, books, Christmas items, toys, tools and sporting goods were sold in Serendipity. The Treasure Chest had special quality items. Pet Pourri had toys and treats for dogs, cats, and seed wreaths for wild birds. Crafters' Corner had a wealth of fabric and notions for sewing and other crafting. The baked goods table featured candies, cakes, pies, jams, and cookies, including Ugly Sweater Christmas cookies. The dinner for two raffle offered the chance to win a dinner at a local restaurant of one' choice. The dining room offered homemade soups, salads, sandwiches, desserts and drinks."

From Snowball Bazaar 2015. Posted by Second Congregational, Bennington on 12/14/2015 (25 items)