CrossWays The Newsletter of

The Congregational Church of Brookfield 160 Whisconier Road, Brookfield, CT 06804

203-775-1259

MARCH 2011

Join Us for the GREATEST Show at Church…

The All Church Talent Show!

Join us on Saturday, March 19th at 6:00pm in the Meetinghouse for this

opportunity to see the many talents of our church members & friends,

as well as to support the SYF Mission Team. If you would like to

perform please speak with Dan McKee or Pastor Jen.

Minutes of the Church Council Meeting—February 8, 2011 In an effort to keep the congregation better informed as to the actions taken or being considered by the Church Council, we include a summary of significant actions in the monthly CrossWays.

Treasurer’s Report: Pledge income is currently behind by $21,876.00. That is up from approximately $17,851 from the previous month. Committees are being very conscientious in their spending. Stewardship: The new brochure and mailings have been sent out. Church House: There will be an all-church work day on Saturday, April 2nd. Church Growth: New Member Sunday has been rescheduled for March 6, 2011. Yankee Fair and Barn Sale: The 2011 Yankee Fair will be held on Saturday, October 15th. There are currently two confirmed Fair Chairs. Worship Committee: Lenten Luncheons will begin on Tuesday, March 15th. The lunches will be held in Fellowship Hall from Noon to 1:00pm. There will be 6 this year. Fellowship Committee in collaboration with Christian Ed: will host a Shrove Sunday Pancake Dinner on March 6th from 5:30 to 7:00 in Fellowship Hall. New Business: A letter was submitted by James Allen and Carolyn Marron to Council to propose that a Labyrinth be constructed on church grounds. Additional information and plans will be submitted for further review.

You are always welcome to attend and observe the Council Meetings. To be added to the agenda of the monthly meeting, please contact Audrey Himebaugh or Les Slater.

Annual Meeting Reports from ALL Committee Chairmen and Leaders of ALL Church Groups are due in the church office no later than April 1st so they can be included in the printed Annual Report. Please e-mail reports to the church secretary at office@uccb.org.

Please note: the Annual Meeting will be held on Sunday, May 1, 2011 immediately following the SINGLE 10:00am worship service.

Changing the world one dinner at a time.

Welcome to Dining For Women. DFW is a national organization whose mission is “to empower women and girls living in extreme poverty by funding programs that foster good health, education and economic self-sufficiency and to cultivate educational giving circles that inspire individuals to make a positive difference through the power of collective giving”. This allows the poorest of poor women to feed their children, gives them access to health care and provides their children with the schooling that can lift them out of abject poverty. We have started a chapter of this organization through our Church In Society committee.

The concept is very simple. Every 3 months we meet for a simple potluck meal (that means that store-prepared food is just fine) . We watch a video and learn about that month’s designated organization. After this educational time, you drop a check or cash into a basket to be donated to that specific organization. So instead of going out to dinner, you drop what you would have spent on dinner in the basket and100% of the money collected goes to the organization for that month. This is not a “church meeting”, each dinner lasts no more than an hour (6 to 7:15 pm). It is about education and fellow-ship.

We have met twice and are now inviting any adult (male or female) to join us for a potluck and learning opportunity. Please let me know if you plan to come to our next dinner by either calling me, e-mailing me, or tearing off the RSVP below and putting it in the collection plate.

When: March 21st, 6:00 to 7:15 PM

Where: 40 Secor Rd., Brookfield

RSVP: Olivia Quinsland

I will attend the next Dining For Women on March 21st. Name Phone # E-mail

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

The Brookfield Substance Abuse Coalition invites you to join them at "Parent University," which they are co-sponsoring with the Newtown Parent Connection and the SAC (SMART) from Southbury/Middlebury.

"Parent University" Saturday, March 19th 8:30-1:30pm

Newtown Middle School

We strongly encourage you to attend and participate in this event. This is a visible and meaningful way to establish ourselves with the community and parents, as well as collaborate with neighboring towns. Questions, please call Robin Montgomery, BSAC Chair.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

“Forty Days of Giving” Join CIS for “Forty Days of Giving: don’t give up your chocolate… give it away!” Many folks choose to give up something for Lent. We challenge you to give it away instead. As you may know, two of our confirmands (Jessica Schwartz & Ellen Moran) have been running a winter collection for Brookfield Food Pantry & Danbury Women’s Shelter as their confirmation project. Starting on March 13th CIS will help continue this worthy project by providing brown bags with lists attached to take shopping with you. Choose the items you want to purchase, and return them in the bag. Or use the collection box in the stairwell near the courtyard entrance. Many charities are desperate for specific non-perishable items at this time of the year.

• Items needed for the Brookfield Food Pantry are personal care items such as tooth-paste, toothbrushes & dental floss, and food items such as beans, ravioli, canned items and pasta.

• Items needed for the Women’s Shelter are laundry detergent, cleaning supplies, pa-per products, feminine products and personal care items.

Don’t forget the chocolate! We will collect items until Easter. Thank you!

Silver Lake Golf Tournament You are invited to participate in the 5th Annual Silver Lake Golf Tournament on Tues-day, June 7th. Registration forms and brochures are available for downloading from www.silverlakect.org, or calling (860-364-5526). Entry forms are due by June 2nd. This is Silver Lake’s one fundraiser a year. It is open to the public, and we welcome your help. Folks can come to golf, or come to the luncheon and awards only (at 2pm) or both to cheer on your church’s foursome, support Silver Lake, and join in the festivi-ties at beautiful Lyman Orchards Golf Club in Middlefield. Those who have participated in past years recommend this event as a great way to fel-lowship with other church members from across the state, see old friends and meet Sil-ver Lake supporters, enjoy friendly competition and applaud the winners. Coming out for the June 7th Silver Lake Golf Tournament is a great way to support the ministry of the Silver Lake Conference Center, which each summer welcomes over 1,100 young people from churches across CT for a week of life-changing, spirit-filled, friend making in an inclusive Outdoor Ministry Christian community.

Time to start dreaming of summertime at the lake!

Silver Lake Church Camp applications are here… If someone in your family is interested in signing up for a week this summer at the Sil-ver Lake Conference Center — our wonderful United Church of Christ camp in beauti-ful northwestern (Sharon) Connecticut — just stop by the Church Office and pick up an application. Conferences are available for those entering grade 4 and older.

Or you can apply for all conferences on-line at www.ctucc.org. NOTE: All Fairfield East Association campership applications must be completed and returned by April 1 this year. Some additional financial aid is also available through our CCB Christian Growth and Enrichment Fund. Please talk to Pastor Bryn or Pastor Jen if you need to apply.

Church Growth Welcome Tip of the Month – Take a Hike!

If you are strong and able-bodied, do your healthy flesh a favor during this Lenten sea-

son and park a little farther from a church door than you might usually do. Get a little

extra hike in the brisk fresh air of our beautiful Connecticut winter! Your small sacri-

fice of time and effort – which you might be able to make if you are a church “regular”

who comes early to usher, set up Fellowship Hour, teach Church School, or sing or play

in a choir – may make a huge difference to someone who is visiting our church, or

someone who is not officially “disabled” but not as physically able as you are. Espe-

cially our Sunday visitors (guests we wish to welcome to God’s house) may arrive to

Sunday worship for the first time frazzled and confused, unable to find a parking place

or the right door to the meetinghouse! Let’s try our best to “prepare the way” for them to

get inside and share the good things our church has to offer.

Soul Stretching

Sometimes, when the winter is as rough as ours has been this year, our souls begin to shrivel a little behind our snow mounds. But now’s the time for some spring soul stretching. For reading the new seed catalogues. For dreaming about what our church can be. For pledging as much as we can. Stewardship asks us to share, to share abundantly, and see God’s Spirit spread. Stewardship asks us to stretch our souls. To date we have not reached our budget in pledges. We have much more to share. If you have not turned in your pledge, please do so – and go the “second mile,” giving as generously as you can.

Share, and See God’s Spirit Spread.

Do good and share what you have, for such sacrifices are pleasing to God.

Hebrews 13:16

Fellowship Of Concern

CONTINUING CONCERNS:

Dom Barillari

Gert Ewing

Judith Fisher

Donna Geck See printed CrossWays for addresses.

Harry & Evelyn Gerowe

Marge Nohe

Audrey Taylor & John Stryker

Bill Ward

IN MEMORIAM: Our sympathy is extended to Sharon Santi and family on the death of her mother Catherine Wilson on February 13, 2011.

Our prayers are with them and all in our church family who mourn the loss of loved ones.

Lenten Healing Service Facilitated by St. Marguerite’s Parish Nurse Program.

Fr. George Sankoorikal and Fr. Francis Luke will conduct a charismatic healing service on Wednesday, March 30th, at 7:30pm at St. Marguerite Bourgeoys Church in Brookfield. This Mass is open to all, followed by individual healing prayer or intercessory prayer for a loved one. Come and experience the gifts of healing and peace through the Holy Spirit. You can contact Darleen Senete at 203-775-6378, if you have any questions.

THURSDAY MORNING PRAYERS & BIBLE STUDY

9:00 to 10:30am in the Church Library

Begin your day with a time of quiet contemplation in a simple ministry of prayer, as we lift up

the names of those who are sick or grieving, who are in discernment, or have thanksgiving or

celebration to share. We will have a brief Bible study of our weekly lectionary scripture texts,

led by Senior Pastor Bryn Smallwood-Garcia. Join us every Thursday, or drop in as you have a

need for prayer or a morning free for study.

Pastor’s Page Rev. Bryn Smallwood-Garcia As a week unfolds at our church, anyone can see how vital and alive our ordinary, eve-

ryday faith is – and how active are our ministries, among all of us – not just our busy

ordained ministers, your pastors. This became all the more evident this February as we

welcomed and oriented the staff of our new church cleaning service.

The first day for these hard-working guys actually was on the Martin Luther King Mon-

day holiday, as the church was bustling with preparations for the funeral of our beloved

long-term member Barbara Harris. They were absolutely blown away by the amount of

loving care and dedication that went into both the service and reception. Between set

up, preparation, and the clean up, not just the pastors, but many members were here

nearly the whole day. And what the cleaning staff witnessed was clearly not done out of

grudging duty or obligation – it was a true labor of love.

And they quickly discovered that day was not so much the exception as the rule for our

church – in fact, as the MLK weekend was the beginning of the office ice-melt water

leaks, they have witnessed probably much more Church House volunteer activity on-site

than in a normal winter. In fact, they have struggled with me and with our office staff to

find times during the week when the church was truly vacant and calm enough to “sit

still” for a good and thorough cleaning!

That’s one reason we felt “Share the Journey” was such a perfect theme for our Lenten

season this year. We do so much together, and in so doing, we bear witness to our faith.

Like Jesus and his first disciples, walking on the way seems to be a comfortable mode of

doing theological reflection and experiencing God’s love for us.

Just look around – just on an average Sunday after 10:30 worship, you can see Confir-

mands and mentors pulling aside with their red binders and Bibles to sit together and

reflect on their faith. During Fellowship Hour, conversation over the dishwasher in the

kitchen often centers around follow-ups on the health of elders in the family, or the lat-

est worries and stresses shared among parents of teens. Visitors who might have come

downstairs for coffee with some trepidation meet new friends and sometimes, I’m sure,

surprise themselves by being among the last to leave.

And this pattern might continue all week – from the Monday morning Women’s Study

to a busy Saturday with Men’s Fellowship, Career Networking Group, Stephen Ministry

Training, and Single Women’s Group. We are a church that really lives into the call of

Jesus to “love one another,” where our members truly welcome any chance to connect

and share the ups and downs of our life journeys.

Pastor’s Page (continued)

We invite you to think of someone in your life who might appreciate being asked this

Lent to “Share the Journey” with us. We have enclosed these green Lenten brochures

in this CrossWays not just for you – perhaps it would look nice on your refrigerator and

help remind you of what’s going on each week at church this season!

More than that, please take a moment to think of someone – perhaps a friend or

neighbor, or maybe a family member – with whom you might SHARE the brochure and

a personal invitation to join us at one of our Lent-Easter events. Often, when we stop to

think prayerfully about the people in our lives who don’t go to church with us, names or

faces will come to mind of those who might be able to benefit from having some

friendly and caring spiritual companions to share their life’s journey.

Someone with kids might especially enjoy our “Shrove Sunday” Pancake Supper on

March 6, as a way of learning more about our fun and fellowship. Someone alone and

available during the day might get hearty spiritual nurture from our simple Lenten

Lunches. People you know with generous and kind hearts might be inspired to help

with our “Forty Days of Giving” – even if they don’t yet think of themselves as

“churchgoing types.” Look ahead to the Lenten Sundays and see if there’s a worship

theme that might appeal to someone you know who’s searching for meaning or strug-

gling a bit on their journey, and invite them to come to a worship service with you.

In his final words to his disciples in Matthew 28:19, Jesus continues to invite us to

share our faith with others, “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations ….”

What we experience of our active, living God during each busy week in our church is

Good News – news too good NOT to share with the world. So if you can share more

than one Lenten brochure, please take additional copies home with you. There should

be extras at the church doors, in brochure racks, and in the office.

Thank you!

The Church Office has moved! Because of water damage, the church offices have relocated to the Church School build-ing. The secretaries, treasurer and church school coordinator are now in the Youth Room and our office phones have been reconnected – 203-775-1259.

Pastors Bryn Smallwood-Garcia and Jennifer Whipple are currently in Room 3, the “Tent Tales” classroom. Confidential voicemail messages can be left for them once again at their extensions: Bryn (x304) & Jennifer (x308).

Thank you for your understanding as all of our office functions (computers, email, phones, etc.) have been slowly restored to service. Work is beginning on repairs to the old offices, but until we are clear of “snow season” we cannot complete all the necessary exterior work to the gutters and roof.

Church Council Reps and Committee Chairs Please call these elected representatives with any questions or comments regarding

any matter of interest or concern to you:

Moderator: Audrey Himebaugh

Vice Moderator: Les Slater

Clerk: Lyn Lyon

Treasurer: Laurie Matson

Investment Treasurer: Greg Labas

Church Council Reps:

Christian Ed Dan McKee

Church Growth Jan Labas

Church House Sandy Boughton

Church In Society Marianne Gaffey

Deacons Walt Fisher

Fellowship Patty Moran

Nominating Jean Dorrell

Stewardship Patty Buchan

Worship Joanna Sanderson

Historian Gordon Markiewicz

Anniversary Campaign Nancy Vodra

Committee Chairs:

Christian Ed Monica Pondiccio

Church Growth Mike Anastas

Church House Kathy Wandelmaier

Church-In-Society Sally Markiewicz

Deacons Sharon Santi

Fellowship Maurice Downey

Nominating Dave Honeyford

Personnel Audrey Himebaugh

Stewardship Greg Dorrell

Worship Jean Dorrell

Pastoral Relations (PRC) Mark Lyon

(PRC members: Jean Dorrell, Leslie Sands, Richard Stewart & Nancy Vodra)

Senior Pastor Rev. Bryn Smallwood-Garcia

Associate Pastor Rev. Jennifer Whipple

Organist/Choir Toni Sullivan

Membership Care Harry Gerowe, Lay Minister

Church School Heather Berner

Church Office Barbara Menendez and/or Jeannine McCullough

Office: 203-775-1259

office@uccb.org

CrossWays – the newsletter of The Congregational Church of Brookfield 160 Whisconier Road, Brookfield, CT 06804 203-775-1259 Email: office@uccb.org Sunday Worship at 8:30am and 10:30am The Rev. Bryn Smallwood-Garcia, Senior Pastor The Rev. Jennifer Whipple, Associate Pastor The Rev. M. S. Desmond, Pastor Emeritus

ADDRESS CORRECTION REQUESTED

Non-Profit Org. U.S. POSTAGE

PAID Brookfield, CT Permit # 56

“Shrove Sunday” Pancake Supper

March 6th 5:30—7 pm

Fellowship Hall Come join the Fellowship and Christian Education Committees as we kick-off the Lenten Season! We’ll start with pancakes, sausages, and King’s cake and then we’ll enjoy some games and activities thanks to our friends on the CE committee. This promises to be a fun & different event, so please come join us as we begin Lent with a little bit of a Mardi Gras influence. We hope to see all of you there. Bring a friend!

Refugee Resettlement Ministry

When IRIS (Integrated

Refugee and Immigration Services) asked

our church for emergency help last

month, our congregation responded im-

mediately. Our Cottage is now a tempo-

rary home for a mother and her three chil-

dren from Africa. Within hours of our

request, many donated enough staples and

canned goods to see the family

through the worst January in Connecticut

history - and way beyond. Even more

important for the family is the support

and sanctuary given by our church. If

you would like to help with childcare and

transportation, or get to know this lively,

delightful family in any other way, please

let us know.

Thank you -

Jen Wurst

Patty Buchan

2010 Fair Funds – Proceeds for Church Projects We had a wonderful and profitable fair this past October (as we do every year!) that has provided $5,669.44 in funds for the Church Needs/Projects portion of the proceeds. This represents 25% of the overall proceeds of $22,677.77! Soon we will present a check for $10,838.89 to Dorothy Day House in Danbury, our local mission donation for the year. We also have $500 set aside for Refugee Resettlement Ministry & $5,669.44 for our Christian Growth & Enrichment Fund. If you or your committee knows of a specific need or project for the church, we invite you to submit a request to Church Council – either to our Moderator Audrey Himebaugh or Les Slater (Vice Moderator) for presenta-tion at the March 8th Council meeting. Please explain the need or project, provide the dollar amount requested and name of person or committee making the request. Requests will be voted on by the congrega-tion at the May 1st Annual Meeting.

CrossWays Deadline

The deadline for the next issue of CrossWays is March 15, 2011.

You can either email articles to me or leave them in the CrossWays mail-

box outside the church office. Please email or call me if you have any

questions.

Thanks, Val Jackson