Worship & Spiritual Life Team

• Worship Schedule:  Sundays @ 10:00 a.m.
• Summer Worship With A TWIST: Sundays @ 9:00 a.m. (3rd Week June - Labor Day)
• Communion: Celebrated the 1st Sunday of each month alternating between distribution of elements in pew to intinction at front of the sanctuary.  We have an “open” Communion table meaning that all who seek Christ are welcome to receive. Children are also welcome at the Lord’s Table.
• Baptisms: Scheduled by appointment with the Pastor.  Baptisms take place in the midst of worship whereby the wider community of faith welcomes the family and pledges to support and guide the ongoing growth and development in the Christian Way. We also offer adult baptism for those who have never been baptized or who would like to renew their baptismal vows. Baptism is generally celebrated at the “font” (the bowls at the front of the sanctuary) where water is poured by hand over the child’s or adults head.
• Worship Style: Traditional with mixture of blended elements designed to speak to the broad range of participants in our worship life. We make periodic use of multimedia and look to deepen our involvement through this technology as the year progresses.
• Music Ministry: Currently we have a Youth Choir, Instrumental Ensemble, Chancel Choir, and the Copper Steeple Ringers Handbell Choir. Other individuals periodically share their own musical talent.  During 2009 we plan to initiate one non-traditional service every 6 weeks so our congregation can experience first hand varied worship forms that can speak to the heart.
• Summer “Worship With A TWIST!”:  For the past four summers we have explored summertime services that have taken us into the musical genres of: Jazz, Taize, Contemporary, and Folk. We kind of let our hair down during the summer with the intention of testing out worship and music forms that we may wish to introduce to the full congregation. That’s the “twist” to our summer program. Beginning the 3rd week of June we move worship to 9am which remains at that time schedule through Labor Day.
• Staffed Nursery:  We offer a staffed nursery with a trained adult and youth to watch over the very young during our worship time. Parents take turns rotating through the nursery from week to week in order to provide coverage. 
• Visitation Ministry: The pastor is engaged in training a team of parish visitors who will call upon individuals who are hospitalized, infirm, home bound and in residential care facilities. This lay ministry visitation program makes use of skills with which our parishioners are gifted.  Watch for an upcoming “Called To Care” series to become involved in this vital program.
• Prayer Shawl Ministry & Prayer Circle: Prayer Shawls are made for distribution for those who celebrate certain moments in life and others who are afforded our prayerful support.
• Weddings & Funerals:  The pastor conducts weddings and funerals for members and non-members alike. We seek to address the needs of the wider community and assist them on the journey of life while demonstrating the hospitality we so cherish. Please call the church office if we can be of assistance.  Also, look to our resources page where you can download the wedding brochure that outlines service planning.  Several church members also work cooperatively to host “collations” (receptions) for families following a funeral.  If you would like to learn more about this service, please contact Betty O’Connor who coordinates this aspect of our ministry.

Discipleship Team

Team Leader: Eric Greenberg
Discipleship is the life-long process where we build a relationship with Jesus Christ and seek to follow his way. We offer a program from Pre-School through Adulthood as we assist people in this important process. All are welcome to share in our faith exploration program.

• Safe Church Policy: In November of 2007 our church adopted a Safe Church Policy that outlines the measures we take to assure the safety of students under our care.  We have a mandatory CORI policy for all who work with children or youth.  Further, we abide by the American Camping Association standard when offering “retreats” that require a minimum of 1 adult per 7 students and always with a minimum of 1 male and 1 female advisory team member. We view the children and youth entrusted to as sacred treasures and we commit ourselves to assuring their safety.  Please download our Safe Church Policy in our Resource section.
• Church School: Regular Sunday classes are held on Sunday mornings during worship.  The children in Pre-School through Grade 8 begin in worship and then are adjourned to their classes following the Children’s Time. 
• Confirmation: A Journey In Faith has mile markers along the way as our youth make an important passage into adult faith development.  Confirmation in our setting takes place every other year and involves 9th and 10th grade students who are making important decisions about their Christian faith.  The program is highly experiential, generally involves about 12-14 students, affords multiple retreats that are highly formative and culminates with a 4 day trip to Washington, D.C. for the “Faith Matters!” Retreat which centers on the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum.  Youth are welcome to participate regardless of affiliation.
• Youth Groups: Junior & Senior youth are guided by lay leaders to share events that are fun, exciting and just plain interesting throughout the year.  Then during late summer, the pastor coordinates a Youth Cycling Retreat that has taken our crew to Cape Cod and the Islands for leadership development, outdoor recreation and conversation that links faith and everyday life.  Contact Lynne McDonnell for more information on the youth program.
• Adult Faith Formation: Each year the pastor and other lay leaders cooperate to run several adult education series that range from Bible Study to Spiritual Life Workbooks to Reading Groups to Focused Studies on Various Issues & the Christian Life. 
• Boy Scout Troop 17 & Cub Scout Pack 13:  While we don’t “run” Scouting, we are indeed the sponsors and take great pride in the activity and leadership associated with the Cub Scout and Boy Scout program. Please visit Cub Scout Pack 13  or Boy Scout Troop 17 by following their respective links.
• History Team: Rick Haines guides this crew who not only maintain the records of our heritage, but find innovative ways to present pieces of history. They are also recording impessions of our current "history making" events in our day to day ministry as a record to future generations.

Outreach Team

Team Leader: Dave Oldow

The purpose of the church is to give itself away in the name of Christ. That may seem antithetical, but we believe that when we choose to generously share all that we have in the name of Christ, God's blessing in our lives will be magnified and there will be an abundance to meet the needs of all. So we seek to serve the common good both locally and globally. From the local food pantry which had its origin through our church to the soup kitchen, Habitat for Humanity and New Orleans Hurricane Recovery through Rebuilding, we strive to reach out and demonstrate God's love with hands and heart.

• Our Daily Bread Community Food Pantry
• Our Father’s House Soup Kitchen (2nd Tu, Odd Numbered Months)
• Red Cross Blood Drive (5x per year)
• Habitat for Humanity
• New Hope Shelter for Women & Children
• Christmas Giving Tree "Adopt A Child"
• Relay for Life (2nd Weekend in June)
• Winter Clothing Drive
• New Orleans Re-Construction
• Boston Walk for Hunger (1st Sunday in May)
• Interfaith Dialogue

Operations Team: Property & Finance

Team Leader: Rob Franklin
The Operations Team (also known as Trustees) has two divisions: one oversees the physical property of the church, while another deals with finance & stewardship. They look after the building and grounds, propose work to be accomplished, oversee the work of the Custodian and Handyman, review rental agreements, review the investment portfolio, prepare the annual budget for presentation to the church, and develop a faithful stewardship plan to meet the mission and ministry goals of the church.

Fellowship & Adventure Team

Team Leader: Varies by Event
We grow relationally when we choose to participate in activities or events where people share common interests.  Our intent is to sponsor events that draw people together from diverse walks of life (not necessarily just from our church) so as to build community while appreciating God’s great world. If you have an idea, we can make it happen!

• Outing Club (Kayak, Hike, Theater, Ski, Beach, Progressive Dinners)
• Men's Fellowship (Friday Morning Devotions & Breakfast plus Men's programs)
• Growing Edge Series: The Icy Moons of Saturn with Prof. Geoff Collins; History of Cape Cod Canal; Father/Daughter Experience In Iraq (Army Corps of Engineers & Air Force Navigator); Thin Places Project; Mesa Verde Lost Cultures; and more!
• Veterans Luncheon
• May Day Tea
• Seasonal Open Houses (Christmas, Mardi Gras, Halloween & More)
• Snowflake Christmas Fair
• Strawberry Social @ Mansfield Street Fair

Parish Relations Team

Team Leader: Peter Ham
Parish Relations is an elected six member team in the congregation who oversee communication in the church.  They provide training and counsel regarding good communication procedures while seeking to maintain a “healthy system” where all directly share their thoughts and feelings.  They have crafted the “Covenantal Dialogue Model" which is employed by groups when strong feelings or divergent viewpoints present themselves.  The Covenantal Dialogue Model is available on our Resource page where it may be downloaded.

• Monitoring Communication Channels
• Personnel Manual Drafting & Maintenance
• Annual Staff & Ministry Review
• Communication Workshops to Resource Staff/Teams/Congregation
• Convening Monthly Round Table Conversations

office@occmansfield.org