Surprisingly, not a week goes by without at least one new building usage request crossing my desk.
If it isn’t a non-member wedding or a concert, it may be a small congregation seeking worship space, or a community group needing space. What we once thought to be a burden is now a blessing for many in the community. This past month, we have agreed to allow a Kenyon Seventh Day Adventist congregation to use our sanctuary on Saturdays, starting in September. They will also be using Fellowship Hall for meals for part of the afternoon on that day. We will have the opportunity to negotiate with them about special events, and they have been made aware that there may be Saturdays when we will need use the space ourselves. They are very willing and flexible.
More exciting is the theater production presented by the New Brunswick Collaborative Arts. Starting the second week of August, our sanctuary will begin to look like a stage. They will be building one! Later on in the month, they will be performing Romeo and Juliet – but this time with an ethnic twist. Furthermore, the Collaborative Arts group has been working with the high school, some of whom are hoping to be a part of the cast. Keep your calendars open the second half of August for this special production. Oh, and by the way, I didn’t mention the best part of it: It’s for FREE!
Tagged as:
arts,
performance,
seventh day adventist
Since the congregational meeting on May 2nd, the much discussed sanctuary re-design project has taken on more shape.
First of all, the Building Vision Group has filed an application with the state to become a 501(c)3 with the name the Town Clock Community Development Corporation. We chose to be a community development corporation because we do not want to exclusively be a building/housing development corporation. Rather, our vision is to include programming as other forms of ministry to the community. These visions will require time to develop, but we are looking into new things. Also, we added two persons to the board of the 501(c)3 who live with the need for supportive housing.
Second, we have met with two architectural firms, representatives from the NJ Housing Mortgage Financing Agency (HMFA), two development companies, two supportive services agencies, and the New Brunswick Housing Authority, as well as with Mayor Jim Cahill, who also took the time to do a site visit. Needless to say, there is a lot of support and excitement about the proposed project.
Third, along with all of this, we have worked on a budget for the upcoming year. With this budget, we begin to realize the need for funding a “building director”, or, better, an “executive director” for the project. This will have to be worked on and a job description developed. We are still in the preliminary stages of this.
Finally, our next steps will be: to agree upon an architectural firm, to look at design plans for the living units and the sanctuary, to bring those plans to a small group of the congregation for further discussion, to get commitments on funding, to visit several locations which have developed such housing and see how the program partners are working together.
If you have any questions or concerns, please contact me or anyone else on the team. We would really enjoy speaking to you about this project.
In June, the Core Committee of the Community Campaign met to discuss a brochure and discuss strategy. A new member of the Core Committee, and one with a ton of experience and knowhow is Ezra Helfand (Public Information Specialist, NCADD of Middlesex County, Inc.). Ezra helped the committee organize better and has unofficially “taken over” the chair duties; much to the gratitude/relief of the present chair, Sherri Novack. The chair remarked, “I am not a dummy, and know when to let the professionals with greater experience steer the ship.”
Another new member of the Core Committee is Janet Waanders, who chairs the “Mother Committee” but who has also agreed to be involved with the Core Committee. Other members of the committee are, former member Sean Kath, Gary Bernhofer, Liz Hance, Greg Ritter (owner of George Street Camera) and Pastor Hartmut.
One very well received email that Ezra sent to the committee challenged them to start thinking about the following:
An “official” plan of attack, that includes
1. Time table
a. When to make phone calls
i. Businesses during week and daytime. Personal calls in evenings
ii. Any issues with summer fund-raising due to vacations, etc.?
b. Over what period of time
2. Finalization of lists
a. By category
b. By target(s)
c. By caller(s)
3. Proposed script
4. Identification of individuals available to make calls
5. Agreed-upon follow-up procedure(s)
Thanks to Brittany Aran and Core Committee members, the first list, NJ Fortune 500 top companies, has been researched with 10 companies (of the 42) showing some willingness to support funding projects like the preservation project. More follow up is needed.
The Core Committee is still looking for volunteers to compile list of possible supporters. These lists will include local banks, lawyers, accountants etc. If you think you can help, please contact Sherri Novack at kvak@optonline.net.
Ladies, please share with your partners that all adults are invited to the first movie night on July 16th. Liz and Jim Hance will open their house and turn on their big screen for us so we all can watch the movie Food Inc. at 7:00 p.m. Please bring a dessert to share.
On August 6th, we will watch the movie Home at Last – a movie about homelessness in the United States. Gary and Lauren Bernhofer will be hosting us. Again we will start at 7:00 p.m.and bring a dessert to share.
Please save the dates of September 24th and 25th for our annual retreat. We are looking to go away overnight this time. Activities and studies will all relate to the theme Fire. We will start with dinner on Friday and have some activities around a real fire. On Saturday we will have more on the agenda. Please let Erie know if you are planning on coming. We have two locations for the retreat and are still working out the details.
We announce the actual location in the coming weeks.
Our first regular fall meeting will be on October 10th. That is the second Sunday of the month. We decided to change to this Sunday so more people may be able to attend our meetings. As always all women of the congregation are welcome!
Can you believe it we are almost finishing our second year of playing! We have come such a long way with our progress. We can be proud of what we have accomplished in our short rehearsals. Yes, they are short, I know most bell choir rehearsal are at least one hour long and usually not on a Sunday before service, but with our schedules that would not be an option. So we did what we could and see how far we have come!
Next year, we will have at least one new face in the group as Lily is leaving for college. She will be missed as she been a long member of the bell choir, she even played before with Mei Li. If all goes according to our plans we hope to play once during the summer. On August 8th a special worship service is planned to honor Marie Washington for her devotion to her faith and the many ways she expressed it over the years in a variety of ways. Since we know that she enjoys bell music, we are working on a musical piece for that worship service. After that we will take a break and start rehearsing again in September.
If you would like to be a part of the bell choir let me know! I try to accommodate as many people as I can as long as the players are committed to come to rehearsals fairly often.
Have a great summer and enjoy all the sounds of it!
Sunday, Aug 8th – at 10:00 a.m. in the sanctuary with a testimonial to Marie Washington for her many years of Christian service.
Sunday, Aug 29th – at 10:00 a.m. Collegiate Churches Outdoor Worship at the Van Wickle House including a potluck picnic. Bring your own folding chair.
Dear Friends,
This morning was a different morning than usual. Children’s voices echoed throughout the education building of FRC. Pine Grove Nursery School hosted a performance of Peacemaker, a short play produced by actors from the George Street Playhouse. It was humorous. Moreover, the children’s enthusiasm was noticeable. And, we staff persons stood in the back with smiles on our faces.
What a joy to have so many children here, their parents and caretakers! So many people using our large buildings on a Monday morning; one can’t call this church a “stained glass aquarium” as the cartoon denotes. We’ve broken the bowl!
And that causes us to pause and say maybe “Ooops!” or “Yeah” In any case, it is a bit scary!
I think all of those feelings come along with that acknowledgment. We have become a different church: one which supports a diverse set of groups coming and going in our buildings. Also, our ministries are changing and refocusing as well, because our outreach and openness to the community keeps shaping our vision of what we want to offer, and how we wish to express that offering.
To give you just another example: at the May consistory meeting, the request for usage by a local group known as Collaborative Arts (a non-for-profit organization) was accepted. They will use our sanctuary for several weeks in August to perform Romeo and Juliet. It reminded me so much of the times when our congregation put on Godspell, which was many years ago. This production, though, will be somewhat intriguing because the arts group plans to spice up the production in a multicultural way: Romeo’s family will be Afro-Caribbean, and Juliet’s will be Latino. Certainly it will be a new way to look at this classic play!
This re-use of the sanctuary and the close bond that the Building Usage Ad-hoc Committee has developed with some of our groups, which use our buildings, is rather remarkable. We don’t see folks as just “renters” but rather as “partners”. Their usage helps us gain new contacts within the fabric of the community, and our facilities provide an affordable venue for many. We all win through the usage and the developing relationships. Who knows where this “relationship” may creatively grow? What opportunities may develop out of working together? Interfacing is a new way to provide new ministries to our community, and it seems that the more we break open the “stained glass aquarium” the greater the possibilities will become.
Did you ever think that our buildings would be a way to evangelize and do outreach? Quite a turn around indeed!
Fondly,
Pastor Susan
