STEEPLE SOUNDS

May 2025

We are a Christian community of people who are reaching out to our neighbors, 
at home and abroad, sharing our faith and our resources.

Central Square Congregational Church, UCC, of Bridgewater, Massachusetts is an open and affirming
church. No matter who you are, or where you are on life’s journey, you are welcome here.

From the Desk of Rev. Beth

There’s a quote I love from Frederick Buechner: “The grace of God means something like: Here is your life. You might never have been, but you are. Because the party wouldn’t have been complete without you.” It’s a beautiful reminder that the life we’re given is not only sacred, but also surprising.

As we enter May—a month of blooms and shifting seasons and hopeful sunrises—I find myself reflecting on the power of surprise. Not the kind that jumps out from behind the door, but the quiet kind. The kind that shows up in a child’s question, a stranger’s kindness, an unexpected answer to prayer, or a moment of deep peace right in the middle of a chaotic day.

In our faith tradition, we’re no strangers to surprise. The whole Easter story, which still rings in our hearts during this season, is built on it. The tomb was empty. The stone was rolled away. Life triumphed over death. Again and again, Jesus showed up in places and among people no one expected—the margins, the ordinary roads, the locked rooms. Surprise was part of the gospel from the beginning.

So what does it mean for us, today, to live open to holy surprise?

It might mean letting go of our tight schedules for just a moment to sit with someone who needs to talk. It might mean being willing to be wrong, to change, to grow in ways we hadn’t planned. It might mean saying yes to a small, quiet nudge from the Spirit to reach out, to risk, to try again.

When we welcome surprise, we welcome the Spirit’s movement. We admit that we don’t have all the answers—that maybe the mystery is where God most often speaks.

This month, I invite you to join me in paying attention to surprise. Where is it showing up in your life? What might God be saying through it?

Let’s be people who live with our eyes open and our hearts soft. Let’s welcome each other—and the world—with the kind of wonder that says, “I didn’t expect this, but maybe it’s just what I needed.”

May the God of unexpected joy meet you in the smallest, most ordinary places.

In Christ,
Rev. Beth

Tue, Wed, Thu, Fri, 9am-1pm

and by appointment

Remote worship on Facebook and YouTube

Sunday Worship will continue to be livestreamed from the Sanctuary at 10 a.m. 
Use the link on the homepage of www.csccucc.org to access Sunday worship, or visit our Facebook page. Past worship services are also available in both places.

NEXT CABINET MEETING is Wednesday, May 21, 7pm

Monthly meetings of the church leadership are held in the Fellowship Hall. All church members are also welcome to attend.

SAVE THE DATE!

CARING FOR OUR COMMUNITY

Do you need a meal, a call, spiritual care, or even just a prayer or a chat?

Contact the Pastor, a Deacon, or a member of our Care Team.

To contact Rev. Beth, call the church office at 508-697-6016 or email her at csccpastor at hotmail.com. 

CSCC Deacons
Deb Sorgman – debsorgman at gmail . com

Anne Malmquist - amalmquist at comcast . net

Cristi Ciaramitaro

Savannah Wells, Jr. Deacon

Liam O'Connell, Jr. Deacon
 

CSCC Care Team
Carol Chaffee  *  Bev Mitchell  *  Rev. Beth Stotts  *  Nina Gabel-Jorgensen

Contact the church office if you need us!

The Bridgewater Food Pantry, hosted and supported by CSCC, is open Thursdays, 10am-1pm, and the first Mondays of the month, 6-7:30pm (except holidays). All Bridgewater residents who are in need of food are welcome.

If you are a Bridgewater resident unable to come to the food pantry, but are in need of food, please contact the church office by email (office@csccucc.com) or phone (508-697-6016) and arrangements will be made for you.

Next up on our repair/replace/maintain agenda is the boiler replacement, which so many people made possible with their generous donations. This was scheduled for April school vacation week, but was delayed a bit. We expect completion soon.

Also, with the weather cooperating, we will soon be repairing the bad sections of the two front lawn sidewalks.  That’s all we can afford right now, but this work must be done, for pedestrian safety reasons. David Hanson gets all the credit for coordinating not only the roof repair contractors, but also working with others in town to assist with the sidewalk repairs. Our collective prayer is that we can put together a fundraising team specifically to gather the funds needed to do two new brick walkways with the money coming from the sale of engraved bricks. 
The vinyl tile flooring on the first floor corridors and in the kitchen are in deplorable condition. We have one quote for replacement with vinyl plank floating flooring but it is too high for our budget right now. We are also going to get a quote for in-like-kind replacement with new vinyl tile squares.  

When asked if you are a Christian, the best response is always “YES!”, but there is always room for improvement.  As Gracie Allen once said, “God is still speaking; never place a period where God has placed a comma.”

Respectfully, 
David Hanson, for the Team

Throughout the season of Lent we worked on a number of projects and we read different verses that told the story of Jesus, leading up his final days on Earth. For example, in learning about Mary anointing Jesus' feet with oil, we talked about death rituals, and remembered and drew depictions of our favorite memory of Jesus' life. During the Palm Sunday lesson, we made signs of what we would say to Jesus if we saw him entering Jerusalem on a donkey. 

This all culminated with us presenting what we had been working on throughout Lent to the congregation on Palm Sunday! We set up stations for each week of Lent throughout the Kids Church room and we invited everyone in the congregation to explore all the work the kids had done. We still have several of our displays up in the hall between the elevator and the Kids Church Room, so if you weren't there on Palm Sunday, please come back and take a look! 

May is the last month of our programming year (can you believe it?). We have a lesson based around honoring our family and specifically mothers, and one based around Psalm 23. We also have our Kids Church party coming up on June 1, which will be last Sunday of Kids Church for the year. 

One quick programming note: there will be no Kids Church on May 11th. As always, if you have any questions about what we do Sunday morning with the kids, please don’t hesitate to reach out, but I'm really excited to share another awesome month of fellowship and fun learning with the kids before our church year ends!

Eric Stotts
Director of Kids Church
PS - our end of year Kids Church party is on Sunday June 1, during Kids Church time. Hope to see all our kids there!

Going Solo
by Sheri Turner

My adversary is furry, yellow and formidable. As I put down my overnight bags, my CPAP and my laptop on the cool tiled floor, Solo ducks behind a dark wood table and upholstered chairs in the open space that serves as a dining area. We have only met once before, but when we met, his people were there, serving as liasons. They were friendly, smiling and welcoming. He was able to weave in and out of the spaces between us wagging his yellow tail like a banner as we conversed, occasionally barking in agreement. 

They were not there today. Solo’s family had gone on vacation and entrusted me with caring for their youngest member. They left detailed instructions, phone numbers, food, poop bags and leashes. Solo’s owner assured me help from neighbors, relatives and their nanny. Solo made no such promises to me.

I received lots of help as promised but Solo had his own agenda. He refused to eat the food his owner had left him. He hid when I tried to gently approach him. He wouldn’t play with me. He backed up when I tried to pat him.  When I tried to walk him or take him out for potty he became Houdini and escaped any means of detaining him that was derived. I bought new snacks to entice him to cooperate, I borrowed equipment from my personal arsenal of doggie equipment. I encouraged Solo’s owner to purchase equipment to protect Solo which she readily did. The good thing was that he was curious about me. When I sat still and dropped little bits of cheese and meat, as long as I didn’t acknowledge his presence he would creep out from behind whichever table, couch, or chair he was behind and steal little bites.

Solo likes to be outside. The first time I took Solo for a walk he decided that collars and leashes were for chumps. He ducked his head and was out of his collar lickety split. He shot me a triumphant look and trotted to the neighbor’s yard. When he got there he turned and bowed, looking to play with me. Since I wasn’t familiar with Solo’s behaviors, I wasn’t going to let him run around unleashed. Unfortunately what I was going to “let” Solo do was immaterial. He was a rebel who challenged me to elicit the behavior I wanted without crushing his spirit.

This 100 lb bundle of canine joy has taught me so much. Solo refuses to be contained. He’s happy, unselfconscious and uninhibited. This free spirit has challenged me to develop my creativity, my patience and my knowledge. Solo has shown me that when you attempt to control a situation, life reminds you that you are not in control. Approaching that lack of control with humility, grace and a sense of humor goes a long way to understanding why God has given us free will. Much like Solo, we are free to “slip the leash” and run if we choose. God’s way is to calmly approach us and ask us to come home. God waits patiently for us while we decide if we’re willing to return to Him. He sits quietly, allowing us to approach Him in our own time. He wants to preserve our spark so we can add it to His light.

CSCC Cabinet Meeting – Minutes
April 23, 2025 at 7pm

Location: Fellowship Hall, Church

The meeting was called to order at 7:05 by Anne Malmquist, Moderator.

Cabinet members in attendance:
Anne Malmquist, Moderator David Sheibley, Treasurer
Carol Chaffee, Spiritual and Congregational Engagement Team Diane Glass, Community Engagement Team
Nina Gabel-Jorgensen, Clerk
John Sharland, Property and Finance

March minutes
The meeting minutes from the March meeting were presented and reviewed.
Anne Malmquist motioned to accept the minutes as written, John Sharland seconded. The minutes were approved as written.

Update on Pastor’s report
Reverend Beth was unable to make the meeting. Anne Malmquist provided some brief updates:
1.    Working on ¾ time plans.
2.    Out next week at a conference and a training.

Treasurer’s Report - Dave
1.    Pretty good month
2.    Not as much as March
3.    Doing better this YTD than last 2 years
4.    Thrift shop making a bunch of money ($$$$!!)
5.    Minor upswing in giving - new families are trickling into the congregation and giving is reflecting with an increase in funds.
6.    Question from Carol - what to do with the pledge forms? Dave will put them in the office.
7.    One training so far with Judy and replacement. Judy was ill. Training with Karissa Marquis will resume.
8.    Teams to submit their budgets ASAP please.

Congregational and Spiritual Engagement Team – Carol Chaffee
1.    Connie Chandler was responsible for the Maundy Thursday dinner idea. A fun time was had by all. There were approximately 25 people. Some people stayed to help clean up afterward. High school volunteers were not available that night to assist with the clean up.
2.    Still need some volunteers for Potato Bingo. The logistics are still being sorted out. Bingo supplies are being collected as are the potatoes.
3.    The Easter plants were disappointing. Carol would like to keep it just to lilies next year. The tulips and daffodils were not in great condition. The prices were different from the quote given. We may have collected extra which will be set aside for a flower fund.
4.    $110 collected at the Soup Supper. The volunteer soup makers kindly refused any reimbursement.
5.    Sundae for Kids church and a potluck/picnic after the annual meeting to be organized.
6.    The new sign needs a place to live. Preferably in an easy to access location.
7.    New lock box with the old code in addition to a new programmable lock has been installed for the office. The kids figured out the code! Trying to get at Jenne’s candy is the theory.

Community Engagement Report - Diane Glass
1.    Terry is the official point person for emails.
2.    Thinking about a yard sale. Jenne said she would be the point person for it. Maybe August or September for the yard sale. Date not chosen yet. Discussion about table rental price. Perhaps $20 a space.

Property and Finance
1.    Still waiting for the bill for the roof repair. Some ceiling tiles need to be replaced and some paint needs repainting where the leaks were.
2.    See note about office locks above.
3.    Installed security cameras inside.
4.    Forni says they have to reprice the boiler. David Hanson is doing the work on this. The new price is $21,700. David needed to get into one of the classrooms to check for a thermostat but didn’t have access. Forni looked at the furnace again, NOW they are going to order it. 4 to 5 days to get it in-house. Forni wants us to shut off the boiler for the Summer. End of the heating season is May 10th. Inspection will be on June 1.
5.    And finally the SIDEWALK - David Ferrari, fixing pieces for now instead of replacing the entire sidewalk. David Hanson is having a friend show him how to use a concrete cutter to cut the pieces for the sidewalk.

Congregational vote meeting re:¾ time - May 18th.
Diane Sheibley shared a script from the O&A meeting with Anne. Will use that as a guide.

Stewardship
1.    Gala at Old Scotland links on 6/21/2025.
2.    Fundraising focus group - once a month 1. Adult activity 2. Child activity. Come up with a $$ goal for each event. Meeting after church 4/27/2025.
3.    Capital campaign. Anne met with a consultant on Zoom. Consultant approved by UCC.

High School Volunteer Chores
Still need an official list of chores/tasks that can be done around the church when the parents call to volunteer their teens for Community service hours.

Team Point Person
-    Terry Community Engagement
-    John Property and Finance
-    Dave Treasurer

Next Cabinet meeting is May 21st. Meeting adjourned at 8:08 pm