Summary of the Annual Meeting
October 15 - 17, 1999
Port N Starboard, Ocean Beach Park, New London
This page provides a summary of the events of the 1999 Annual Meeting of the Connecticut Conference. Some events will have links to additional description or information. You may also wish to experience the meeting via the Webcast, whose pages were prepared and posted at the end of each day's session.
What did the Conference do at its Annual Meeting?
The Conference Celebrated
25/50 Years of Ordained Service
On Friday afternoon, Conference Minister Davida Foy Crabtree and Minister to Retired Clergy Hugh Penney honored those ordained clergy who were celebrating their twenty-fifth or their fiftieth anniversary of ordination in 1999.
The Visit of John Thomas, General Minister and President of the United Church of Christ
The Rev. Dr. John Thomas, newly elected General Minister and President of the United Church of Christ, attended the Friday and Saturday sessions of the Annual Meeting, and took part in many of its activities.
The Ministry of Robbins and Margaret Barstow
Robbins and Margaret Barstow, members of the First Church of Christ of Wethersfield, received the Board of Director's second award for service by lay persons or organizations exemplifying United Church of Christ values in noteworthy service or leadership beyond the church.
The Ministry of Valerie Tutson
Valerie Tutson brought a unique light to this year's Annual Meeting. She told the Esther story -- but the reality defies description.
Photos of Every Church
On Friday evening, Hartford Seminary President the Rev. Dr. Barbara Brown Zikmund presented several volumes of photos and historic data on every UCC church in Connecticut to Conference Minister Davida Foy Crabtree and Conference Historian Evans Sealand.
Four New Congregations
During 1999, four Connecticut churches joined the United Church of Christ. On Saturday morning, Conference Minister Davida Foy Crabtree and UCC President John Thomas introduced their representatives to the assembly and personally greeted and thanked them. The churches are: Imani in Windsor, New Fairfield, Old Lyme, and the new Korean church start.
Tithing and Step-Up Congregations
The some years ago, the Conference voted to recommend that every congregation give a tithe (10%) of their current operating (non-mission) expenses to Our Church's Wider Mission Basic Support, which is the primary way in which congregations provide unrestricted funds to the ministries of the Conference and national Church. Each year since then, the Conference has recognized those churches which have achieved that goal at Annual Meeting (the Tithing Churches), and recognized those who have increased their giving by one percentage point of current expenses or more over the previous year (the Step-Up Churches). A number of congregations were so honored this year, and received the applause of all the delegates.
The Congregational Café
The Conference Worshipped
Opening Worship
This service introduced the delegates to the Esther story and Valerie Tutson.
Saturday Morning
Held outdoors, the delegates awakened to a new day to the strains of a different "Kum Ba Ya."
Blessing the Amistad
Gathered outside the shed at Mystic Seaport where the replica is under construction, the assembly prayed for God's blessing upon those who sail and those who learn upon this vessel.
Celebration Worship
Drums, clapping hands, the close of the Esther story, and Holy Communion. What a celebration!
The Conference Decided
- To recommend minimum salaries for clergy and Christian Educators;
- To reaffirm its fifteen-year-old witness for justice and peace;
- To raise and allocate over 5 million mission dollars;
- To elect officers and Directors for the coming years;
- To take moral positions on public education, poverty and wealth, and anti-Semitism
The Conference Learned
- Authorized Ministry Event
- Conference Minister's Address
- Displays
- Workshops and the Women's Fellowship Luncheon
- The Youth Report
- Silver Lake Report
- General Synod Report
The Webmaster: Eric S. Anderson, webmaster@ctucc.org
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