The Fortnightly presents: “A Trip to Cuba” with Dr. Alis Headlam
When: Thursday, September 19, 2019 at 2:00 pm
Where: Grace Church Chapel
All are welcome! If transportation is needed, contact Bonnie Kelly.
A yearly due of $10.00 will be collected.
Category: Public Forum
April 22 – ‘Paris to Pittsburgh’ Documentary Screening on Climate Change
A screening of a National Geographic documentary titled, “Paris to Pittsburgh” will take place from 7 to 9 PM in Fellowship Hall at Grace Congregational Church. The film will be followed by a panel discussion.
Across the country, the consequences of climate change are increasingly evident. These impacts have created a new force for change as mayors, governors, businesses, and everyday citizens launch local climate solutions.
You can view a trailer for this film.
The event is sponsored by Vermont Climate and Health Alliance and Vermont Interfaith Power & Light. All are welcome and encouraged to attend.
Mar. 3 – Rutland: 350VT Meeting
Join our climate justice group to discuss climate action for the Rutland area and organize local solutions!
When: Sunday, March 3, 2019, 3:00-5:00pm
Where: Grace Church Youth Center
About: Rutland Area 350VT will be holding a meeting in the Youth Center to discuss our next steps in climate justice in the Rutland area. All are invited to attend and join with others in dealing with urgent issues around climate.
350VT organizes, educates, and supports people in Vermont to work together for climate justice – resisting fossil fuels, building momentum for alternatives, and transforming our communities toward justice and resilience.
Questions? E-mail: rutland@350vt.org.
Related subject:
Dr. Edward Cameron visits Grace
Listen to sermon given on February 17, 2019 by Dr. Edward Cameron regarding climate change and how we can make a difference.
Feb. 18 ~ Dreams Into Action
You are invited to join us for
Dreams Into Action: A Community Conversation about Race.
When: Monday, February 18, 2019, Noon-1:30 pm
Where: Grace Congregational Church, Fellowship Hall
We are located on the corner of Court and West. For parking, enter our lot from West Street. Street parking is also available on Court Street.
The handicap entrance may be accessed through the north side portico of Grace Church via the parking lot. The Fellowship Hall can be reached via the elevator, which is located in the central part of the building.
About: Join us on Monday, February 18th at Grace Church for Dreams into Action: A Community Conversation about Race. Featuring Etan Nasreddin-Longo, Co-chair of the Fair and Impartial Policing Committee of the Vermont State Police and the chair of the Attorney General’s Racial Disparities in the Criminal and Juvenile Justice System Advisory Panel; Mickie and Neil Richardson, citizen activists from Randolph; and Rutland NAACP President Tabitha Pohl-Moore.
This event is free and lunch will be served. Co-sponsored by the Rutland NAACP, the Rutland Interfaith Clergy group and the Champlain Valley Unitarian Universalist Society. Donations accepted.
Jan. 31 ~ Spiritual Growth Evening: Immigration
The Spiritual Growth Committee invites YOU to share in an evening of discovery and civil discourse about IMMIGRATION: Mexican Migrants in VT and Central American Asylum Seekers on our Southern Border.
When: January 31, 2019, 5:30 PM – 7:30 PM
Where: Grace Church Fellowship Hall
We are located on the corner of Court and West. For parking, enter our lot from
West Street. Street parking is also available on Court Street.
The handicap entrance may be accessed through the north side portico of Grace Church via the parking lot. The elevator is located in the central part of the building.
About: The Spiritual Growth Committee invites YOU to share in an evening of discovery and civil discourse about IMMIGRATION: Mexican Migrants in VT and Central American Asylum Seekers on our Southern Border. Please bring a potluck dish to share at this night of discussion. Child care is also provided to families who wish to attend.
Questions to think about:
Do Mexican Migrants in VT and Central American Asylum Seekers on our Southern Border have anything in common? What do they have to do with our faith and spiritual growth?
You will also have the opportunity to make a donation to the border ministry.
VT UCC minister, Marjorie MacNeill, will be traveling to border towns of in Arizona.
With the funds, she will be purchasing and donating needed supplies for several programs & churches doing amazing and difficult work with the people who have made their way across the Mexico-US border.
She hopes to also provide help to a network of churches and shelters in Tucson who have been offering welcome and assistance to those families with children released from detention. With no resources, these families were dropped off at the Tucson bus station. One of our UCC congregations there recently offered welcome, rest, food, encouragement, support, and needed supplies to over 500 mothers, fathers, and children as they made arrangements to get to families/sponsors across the country.
More assistance is still needed to offer such hospitality and friendship in the city. She’ll also be visiting and bringing needed supplies to a Presbyterian mission on the border in Douglas, AZ and to the border/food-shelf ministry at The Good Shepherd UCC in Sahuarita, AZ near Green Valley. If you have been wanting to offer direct help for such ministry at the border, they would be grateful for financial donations and would handle them faithfully and carefully.
ReVision in Action: Moving Forward!
On May 6th, the Music, Life Long Learning and Property ReVision Team offered their proposal to the congregation. The proposal’s objective was to create a more welcoming and useful multi-purpose worship, educational, and concert space in Grace Church Sanctuary. The proposal was met with a very positive response from the congregation that Sunday morning.
The Music, Life Long Learning and Property ReVision Team’s Proposal is in 3 Parts:
Part 1:
Relocate the bell choir from the upper north balcony to underneath the south balcony.
Part 2:
- Remove front pews (3 each side) from sanctuary floor to create a multi-purpose space.
- Move the organ console from the balcony to the sanctuary floor.
- Move the choir from the sides to the center of the balcony.
Part 3:
Add a tiered platform to the current elevated pulpit area.
Since May 6th, the ReVision team has worked hard to bring the proposal into fruition. We are pleased to announce that we are in a position to move ahead with Part 1 of the proposal.
Part 1 has been funded in full by an anonymous donor. The handbells have experimented ringing in the space and believe the sound will be as good, if not better, than the balcony. There will be room for more bell ringers, as well as, handicapped accessibility that would allow for full participation from anyone in a wheelchair that wants to play in the bell choir. There will be space for the handbells to play with other instruments, and there will be better lighting for the bell ringers. We have tested lighting with help from the House of Lights in Mendon. The bass bell table will be removable, and
only be there on days the handbells ring.
For more information on the proposed work involved, please contact
the church office.
The Property Committee passed Part 1 of the proposal on August 1st, and the Church Council passed Part 1 of the proposal on August 12th.
We invite the congregation to a meeting after the 10 am service on August 26th to ask questions about the proposal. Alternatively, please call Alastair Stout before August 26th.
After August 26th, our hope is to have the handbells relocated in time for their first fall ring on September 23rd, 2018.
Father John Dear Book Tour Talk & Potluck
Tuesday, March 20, 2018 at Grace Church in Rutland
Speaker: 7:00 pm
Potluck: 6:00 pm
Book Tour event info on PaceBene.org
Fr. John Dear, author of the book “The Beatitudes of Peace” that we are studying during Lent, will talk about his new book, “They Will Inherit the Earth” at 7 PM on March 20.
He is an internationally known voice for peace and nonviolence and was recently nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize by Archbishop Desmond Tutu. Please join us for a Potluck Dinner at 6 PM in Fellowship Hall.
For more information: