Lighted Tower Newsletter

The season of Advent coincides with the traditional shopping season between

Thanksgiving and Christmas, yet the two are as different as they can be.

The Christmas shopping season started over a century ago when big department

stores in New York City got together and promoted the month between

Thanksgiving and Christmas as the time to shop. It was kicked off with ....

drumroll.... the Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade!

Advent is a season prior to Christmas that starts four Sundays before Christmas

and ends on December 24. It focuses on the theme of waiting for the birth of

Christ. It developed in the early centuries of the church's history and became

standardized in the early Middle Ages.

So why are the Christmas shopping season and Advent so different? Because of

the emphasis. The Christmas shopping season, which now starts before

Halloween, when stores start putting Christmas displays up, emphasizes rushing.

Do it now. Don't wait or you may not be able to get what you want. Rush. Rush.

Be busy, busy, busy.

Advent goes in a very different direction. It is a time of reflection, not busyness. It

is a time to pause and reflect. It isn't about flashing lights and over stimulation.

For much of the last century we have seen the Christmas season as anticipating

Christmas Day itself. In the Church calendar it is the opposite. Christmas does

not end on December 25. It starts on December 25 and goes for twelve days,

ending on January 5, with Epiphany coming on January 6.

I'm not going to tell you not to shop during the month of December, but bear in

mind that being busy is a choice. It is not imperative. Take some time to reflect,

to pause, and to wait for Christmas in silence.

In Christ,

Pastor Craig

                                              News from the Diaconate

Thank you to Amy Stolting Greene for filling in and preaching while Reverend Cowing

was away at his organ restoration convention. We all enjoyed having a former youth

member from the congregation return to the pulpit again. Amy is living in New

Hampshire and studying for a career in youth ministry.

Concerning the upcoming pastoral search process, our Church Profile for seeking an

Interim Minister has been posted. The search committee is reviewing applicants, creating

questions and scheduling interviews. The process begins with an initial Zoom interview.

We will keep the congregation informed as the process develops.

Our appreciation goes out to Pastor Cowing for initiating the Homecoming Sunday on

October 20 th . It was nice seeing a few old faces, listening to the special music provided

by the music committee, enjoying the delicious lunch from Paul’s Deli, and viewing

some old photos on a slide show. Thank you to Nolan Rochette for putting the photo

collage together. The Christian Education committee will be adding to it and displaying

them at coffee hours they sponsor each first Sunday of the month. Please send any old or

new photos you have of our church or congregation to susantrella@aol.com, we are

trying to compile a single collection.

A special thanks to Frank Covey for preparing the communion every month.

Care Team/Pastoral Care – We continue to pray for good health, recovery and comfort

for Dan & Linda Hatch, Linda & Tom Cioffi, Nancy Uryase, Robin Cusachs, Donald

Cusachs, Trevor Covey, and Brian Comstock. Please let Joan know if there is someone

who needs our prayers, a card, meal or a visit.

The first Confirmation class was held in October. Caitlin DePalma from CE and Jo

Harnois from Diaconate will be teaching. June 1, 2025, is scheduled to be Confirmation

Sunday. The confirmands this year are Nolan & Avery Rochette.

​

The Deacons are looking for volunteer bakers or coffee hosts for the fellowship service

(i.e., coffee hour) after church. Please let Susan Trella know if you are able to assist.

The Deacons next meet this Sunday November 3 rd . Please see Susan Trella if there is an

item you would like to be discussed.

Advent and Christmas season services and programs are being finalized by the Deacons

at their meeting on November 3 rd , and a separate flyer will be forthcoming shortly after

that; so, watch your mail or email for more news.

Respectfully submitted,

Susan Trella Deacon Chair

Frank Covey, Jo Harnois, Maggie Sessa Schillberg, Diane Stolting, Mary Zysk

                                                   Accessibility News

The Accessibility Committee would like to make the Congregation aware of some of the

myriad items in our church to facilitate access for those in need of assistance.

 Our Church Secretary provides us with large print Sunday bulletins including all the

hymns of the day.

 We have grab bars in all restrooms and at the top of the stairs with the small stair

glide. The bathroom in the Fellowship Hall is fully accessible.

 Our pews in the front and back of the Sanctuary are configured so as to accommodate

wheelchairs.

 Two stair glides facilitate access from the Broad Street foyer of the Federal Room to

the Sanctuary and also between that foyer and the Fellowship Hall. The wheelchair

ramping to the East Main Street door of the Fellowship Hall completes the

accessibility from the parking lots to the Sanctuary.

 We have equipment available for use on the premises or to borrow and sign out with

the Church Secretary. These include:

o Two wheelchairs including one with a specialized seat cushion, the other is a light

chair that is easy to use in a car.

o A lightweight transfer wheelchair for use when appropriate.

o Various canes and rolling walkers are also available.

o An ice therapy machine especially designed for in-home use after joint surgery.

 The Committee thanks the Congregation for their continued support which enables us

to continue to maintain our stair glides in a safe manner.

 Please contact the Church Secretary or a member of the Accessibility Committee if

you need access through the East Main Street door from the ramp from the rear

parking lot.

 If there is any other accommodation which you would like to suggest please see a

committee member.

 The members of our church’s Accessibility Committee comprises the following: Pat

Kenney, retired nurse; Caitlin DePalma, a Physical Therapist; Pam Gorman, an

Occupational Therapy Practitioner; and Tom Schillberg who assists in installing grab

bars and making sure there is water to welcome people into the sanctuary.

Thank you from all of us. – Pat, Caitlin, Pam and Tom

                                                     PARISH NURSES

THANK YOU to everyone in the congregation who has been contributing cases and

bottles of Ensure and Boost and Glucerna and other brands of protein supplement that

Maggie has been able to take to the Soup Kitchen and distribute to needy persons in the

community. In addition, at the Soup Kitchen, Maggie was able to distribute 85 personal

health kits to clientele there. She and Tom assembled those kits here at the church.

These are ongoing needs of the homeless, underhoused and hungering population in this

part of Meriden, and we appreciate the support of the congregation is making it possible

for us to serve. Through our Parish Nurse and also through the Missions Committee we

are able to distribute grocery gift cards to some of the in-need people that we can help.

Also, as a reminder, Center Congregational Church is the only depot in New England for

Church World Service (CWS) and we are frequently receiving deliveries of relief

supplies being donated by churches throughout the New England and New York region.

                         MONTHLY DINNER OUT – Thursday, November 14 th

All members and friends of Center Church are invited to come together for an evening of

fun and fellowship on Thursday evening, November 14 th . Last month our dinner that we

held at East Side Restaurant in New Britain during their Oktoberfest was such a big hit

that we decided on the spot to go back there to hold our own Novemberfest dinner.

Why not? We can invent our own special occasion. After all, it’s a free country.

And, after all, it’s Jim Chapman’s birthday; and this gives

us all an excuse to get together and wish Jim a happy

birthday at a fun place with really good food. Wunderbar!

If you are planning to come, or if you would like to join us

for the first time, please contact Ardene Courchesne, as she

is making the reservations. This group meets once a month

on the second Thursday of each month.

Informally, this group is referred to as the “Tri-C” social

group. Diana Halla celebrating her Oktoberfest

birthday at TriC dinner, East Side Restaurant.

                           VETERANS DAY OBSERVANCE – Monday, November 11 th

All members of the congregation and our covenant community as a whole are invited to

attend the City of Meriden's Veterans Day Observance in the Veterans Plaza across

Broad Street from our Church on Monday, November 11th.  The ceremonies commence

at 10:00 AM. Reverend Craig Cowing will deliver the Invocation. 

The morning coffee-&-donuts station will be set up by the

Daughters of the American Revolution, assisted by the Girl

Scouts from Center Church. That setup will begin at 9:00.  All

members of our church are invited to come and help out that

morning in support of the event. The Observance peaks with

the wreath laying at the World War I monument, in the middle

of Broad Street in front of the church, and the memorial rifle

volley.

In the event of inclement weather, by long-standing tradition,

the city’s Veterans Council moves the Observance to inside the

Center Congregational Church sanctuary. Over the many years,

this has only needed to be done once.

Meriden’s World War I monument (right) pays homage to America’s soldiers, sailors, marines and medical

services personnel of that war.

                                                 MISSIONS COMMITTEE

Thank you to everyone who helped support the “Hurricane Relief” efforts which the

Missions Committee conducted in the wake of Hurricanes Helene and Milton. We were

able to send $1000.00 in support of the disaster relief missions of the UCC in Florida,

Georgia and the Carolinas. Thank you to one and all.

Please remember that we are continuing to collect non-perishable food for the little food

bank down the hill at Meriden Church of Christ (in the old synagogue).

Our Missions outreach supports several local as well as national and international

organizations as needs arise. We have been sending money monthly to the Meriden Soup

Kitchen (next door at First Baptist Church), Connecticut Food Share, and the Heifer 

project. If there is an organization you would like us to send money to, please let

someone on the Mission Committee know. – Carol Schlauch, Marie Halla, Joan Gordon.

Mary’s Mittens – The money raised from this effort goes toward giving the mittens to

various organizations: Master Manna, Salvation Army, and Chrysalis. Maggie will take

some of them to the Soup Kitchen to distribute to those in need.

Mary Zysk donates her time toward creating these mittens, and she makes about 100

pairs for this cause each year. So, if you don’t need a pair of mittens, you can always

buy a pair and then donate them.