A Foundation of Faith, Teamwork Highlighted during Building Dedication Ceremony
More than 100 people attended the dedication ceremony for the new church addition on Sunday, Oct. 24, including representatives of the Our Time to Build committees and ACS Group, the project’s contractor, District Superintendent Rev. Megan Stowe, architect Doug Sacra of Maple Hill Architects and Tom Kinney from the United Methodist Foundation of New England. The crowd formed a semi-circle around the new accessible entrance with many watching the speaking program from the new sloped sidewalk.
Nelson and Sylvia Ball, co-chairs of the Fundraising Subcommittee along with Steve and Peggy Dorval, spoke about how the church was able to raise $1 million more in commitments than a feasibility study showed was possible.
“We met here in this church and we had faith in our church family that you could make this happen,” Lay Leader Mike Sams said in his remarks. “We had faith in our church family that you could make this happen because you always come through because of the second definition of faith, your strong belief in God. You know that God is great. You believe in Christ, and we knew that we’d get there. And sure enough, our collective faith has been rewarded.”
During the 9 o’clock service, ACS President Mucio Aquino treated the congregation to a beautiful saxophone solo. He and his brother Dauro, who served as the site superintendent on the FUMC project, spoke during the ceremony on behalf of ACS.
“This could not have been done without God’s grace, so that is the first thing I am going to say, and the second thing is we couldn’t have done this without teamwork,” Mucio Aquino said. Dauro Aquino echoed his brother’s comments, as did Ad Council Chair Susan Reynolds and Kristine Owen, who served as project manager for the church and spoke on behalf of the Design/Build Subcommittee.
“As you look at the old bricks on the existing church and you look at the new bricks, it all blends together,” Owen said. “And I think when I look at this of so many hands that went into building what we had before, every church we’ve ever sat in as kids or gone to for weddings or funerals. If you picture a hand, just a hand laid on that brick, each of these bricks – we are all part of something bigger.”
Pastor John Taylor ended the ceremony with a dedication prayer, praying, “Thank you, God, for people we name in our hearts that cheer us on from heaven on this day, people that inspire us to continue to be servants, oh Lord, to be fishers of people. And so, Lord, we ask you to dedicate this physical structure to your glory, in this rock that reminds us of the foundation of our faith based on the grace of Jesus.”
Pastor John also thanked Sylvia Ball for her Batik artwork which is displayed in the lobby. After the 30-minute ceremony, the congregation enjoyed refreshments on the newly-sodded lawn and inside, next to the new elevator.
The Our Time to Build project began in 2012, when the Vital Congregation Task Force, led by former VCTF Chair David Beecher, identified the need to improve spaces within the church for growing programs and make all areas fully accessible to those with mobility impairments.
