Page 5 - First Churches 2019-20Annual Report.docx

Common Ground
Common Ground was going strong until the pandemic hit. We held 2 services a month on the first and third Thursday evening right through the first week of March. Our attendance continued to average around 30. At the end of last summer, we relinquished our garden plots, thinking we would put our energy into Grow Food Northampton’s giving garden. They in turn would supply Common Ground and our farm cart with fresh produce. But as of mid-March, all of that activity has been suspended. Common Ground isn’t just a dinner or a worship service, it’s a community gathering that draws people from all walks of life around a table where they can make church together. That is simply not something you can do on Zoom. Until we can resume safely, we will allow this ministry to lie fallow, trusting in a future only God can bring.
Respectfully submitted by the Rev. Sarah Buteux
Children & Youth Ministry Sunday School
We were on track for another full year of children’s ministry before the pandemic began. After the shut down, I didn’t want to inundate families with one additional on-line learning opportunity, so I simply sent out a few e-mailings assuring them that I’m here if they need me.
Pre-Covid, our attendance was steady, averaging in the mid-teens. We have continued to pay our teachers with gratitude for their faithfulness and dedication over these past few years.
Before things shut down in March, we did manage to enjoy gleaning, movie nights at the church, a sleep over, and an ice-skating party at the Mullins Center. These events were all well attended and much appreciated by the kids and their families. With the help of Harriett Wilson, the kids also took over hosting coffee hour once a month to live more deeply into the
vision of our church as a place that welcomes all into joyful Christian community.
The biggest disappointment this year for me was missing our youth retreat, but I am hopeful we may be able to organize one for next Spring. Till then, I remain grateful to all the families who call First Churches home and to our teachers: Rachel Chapman, Niamh Sweetnam, Cole Farrell, Sarah Goldberg, and AJ Beatty.
Respectfully submitted by the Rev. Sarah Buteux Co- Pastor and director of the Children and Youth Ministries
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