On Monday, 1/24 we sent out the 2021 Year End Donation Statements. Where we had an email address, we emailed your statement. If we didn't have an email address, we USPS mailed your statement.

If you didn't get your statement, please contact the office and we will work on getting your copy to you.

As you may remember, the Fundraising and Missions Teams joined together to host a Clothing Drive Fundraiser last fall to support the Epilepsy Foundation New England (EFNE) and also raise funds for our church.

The totals are in, and we donated a total of 3,412 pounds of clothing! The church will be receiving a check for $511. The EFNE also will receive monies from this successful drive; clothing drives like ours account for half of EFNE's budget.

Barbara Wallack worked diligently each week weighing and storing all the donated items as well as working closely with the EFNE.

Thank you to everyone who helped make this such a success!

We are updating our database and are asking for special dates in your lives that we can honor and remember. We would appreciate knowing any of the following:

Also, if you have not done so, please let us know of an emergency contact in case there is a situation in which we cannot reach you.

Please contact the church office and we will update our system with your information. Thanks!

The Discipleship team will be delivering a Valentine's Day basket to Parkland hospital for the nursing staff caring for COVID-19 patients. They have done so much for so long--this is a wonderful way we can show our love and support!

We are in need of cards with a personal message for the staff as a whole (we are not giving cards to individuals as we have done for other drives) as well as individually wrapped Valentine's candy.

We are also accepting monetary donations that will go towards giving each of them a small gift card. Please earmark donations for "Valentine's basket for Parkland."

Please have all donations in by Thursday, February 10th. There is a basket setup in the entrance to Hadley Hall.

Thank you for your generosity!

Our administrator, Suzanne Finocchiaro regularly updates the foyer with season relevant art for all those entering to enjoy.

This past week she created this framed piece with 12 different layers of paper. When it is backlit, the light shines through the windows of the church and the steeple and the snow "glistens".

She created this piece as it reminded her so much of how our own HCC steeple looks at night.

Please join us in the sanctuary

or online at 10am for

the Fourth Sunday after the Epiphany

As we pledge in our covenant, we strongly advocate that everyone who attends in-person worship on Sunday mornings wear a mask during the entire service.

The service will be live-streamed through Facebook Live here or on 3CX here.

Have you ever lit the steeple in honor of someone? This gesture has become a wonderful ministry to our church and our wider community. It's becoming very popular!

We have updated the request form to align with some of the changes we have made with the lighting process. Please consider lighting the steeple for someone, and spread the word that the whole community is invited to honor folks this way.

You can access the updated form here.

“Good news. . . Great joy. . . All the people!” Luke 2:10

This offering cares for active and retired clergy and lay employees of the UCC by providing emergency grants and other help to those struggling.

Due to the pandemic, the emergency financial needs of many who serve the church have increased dramatically, and our support is welcome.

Watch the video above for more information.

HCC will be receiving donations for The Veterans of the Cross now through January 31st.

Please send or drop off donations and earmark them for "The Veterans of the Cross."

Thank you, as always, for your generosity for these important mission opportunities.

Our 269th Annual Meeting will be held online on February 20, 2022, following worship. Worship on February 20th will be online only.

Along with all of the other concerns during this pandemic time, we have seen a rise in overdose deaths across the country. The American Medical Association report concludes that the COVID pandemic has made the crisis worse and that every state has seen a spike in overdoses. With that in mind the UCC encourages churches to respond to this rise in US overdose deaths. Because local churches can play important roles in this effort the Harm Reduction and Overdose Prevention Ministries is inviting people to a webinar on February 2 at 6pm:

A “UCC Substance Use and Overdose Town Hall,” Wednesday, Feb. 2, at 6 p.m. ET. Interested people can email Poellot to receive updates or watch the “Events” page at ucc.org for a registration link to be posted.

Erica Poellot who coordinates the ministry said of the webinar that its core message is “People who use drugs are beloved by God.” She also points out that with the current sharp increase the time for action is urgent. The ministry cites this report: “A recent report from the National Center for Health Statistics showed that, for the first time, drug overdose deaths topped 100,000 in a year.”

She further mentions the issues surrounding this rise. The unregulated supply of cocaine, methamphetamine, and heroin that are now often cut with fentanyl is clearly a big problem. But also is the way drug use is talked about and punished. Focusing on crime makes it harder for folks to be safe and to get the support and care they need. This focus leads “to increased marginalization and isolation, and to violence, entrenched poverty, and trauma.”

Stigma, she said, “is the core driver of harm for people who use drugs and their loved ones and communities.” And that is where the church and other compassionate allies can help. Poellot then cited five examples of work being done by local churches, one of them in Orono, Maine. Churches can also push for good local laws, by advocating for “non-coercive, evidence-based treatment.” For other ideas:

In conclusion she said that local churches have spiritual tools for the work. “It is about working to examine and revision the language we use to talk about people who use drugs, understanding the power of naming to harm or to heal.”

The challenge is “to examine the many ways we have institutionalized the othering and dehumanizing of people who use drugs, and being willing to co-create new ones in partnership with people,” she said. “And most importantly it is about tearing down barriers to connection, and returning people to community, understanding that community is where the healing, the magic, the life-giving happens.”

Click here for the entire article from UCC News.

Your Peace & Justice Team

Our Conference is again offering some highly valuable workshops for us. These will be held online from February 8 - 17.

Here are the workshops offered:

Click here for the event brochure to learn more about the workshops.

Register now: https://cvent.me/YdeNld

Stay up-to-date on this event by visiting:

If you have further questions, please speak with Pastor Kathy

Please drop off any donations in the foyer of Hadley Hall

The HCC steeple is being lit for Douglas J. Torosian

Lit in loving memory by his sister Laurie Torosian

For those of you who have been busy sewing, quilting, knitting, or crocheting, we have an new opportunity to donate those handmade items!

We located a national organization that has local chapters called Project Linus (https://www.facebook.com/projectlinussouthwestnewhampshire/). This organization's mission is "to provide love, a sense of security, warmth and comfort to children who are seriously ill, traumatized, or otherwise in need through the gifts of new, handmade blankets and afghans". Blankets are given to children in need through NH.

*We welcome all styles of blankets made in child-friendly colors/prints.

*Crocheted, knitted, quilted (100% cotton or flannel), fleece….you don’t have to be an expert!

*Blankets must be NEW, HANDMADE and WASHABLE.

*Fabric blankets can be quilted by machine, hand or tied. If you are tying the blanket make sure the ends are trimmed to 1” and the knots are secure.

*Please do not add any embellishments to the blankets such as buttons that could be swallowed by a child.

*If you are using a no-sew fleece pattern, please be sure to trim off both selvages FIRST. Not sure what selvages are? Ask the clerk who is cutting your fleece to please show you, they’re those odd looking edges at the top and bottom of the piece you have, sort of raggy looking.

*We accept all sizes of blankets. We donate to children, infants through teen years, so any size is appropriate. Baby blankets are typically 36”X36” or 36”X42”, toddler-pre-teen are typically about 40”X60”, and teen blankets are at least 60"X72".

Blankets can be dropped off in the entry way of Hadley Hall.

Thank you for your support of this project!

If in doubt, please call the church or send an email to pastorkathyucc@gmail.com.