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Job Opportunity:

Music Director, Second Congregational Church, UCC, Norway

About Second Congregational Church, UCC, of Norway, ME

The Second Congregational Church, UCC of Norway is a small, active, multigenerational congregation. We are an Open and Affirming church, welcoming all people no matter where they are on life’s journey. We celebrate music as part of our weekly worship service, sharing and enjoying the diversity of our participants, both in the choir and the pews. We also are known for our outreach to the Oxford Hills through our free suppers, varied support to the schools, and special musical programs.

The United Church of Christ is a national Protestant denomination with approximately 4800 member churches. The denomination’s emphasis is on social justice and love for all including those who may not be welcomed elsewhere.

Position Overview

We are seeking a talented and creative Music Director (and Accompanist if possible) who will be responsible for the overall direction of the music ministry. We are looking for someone who brings creativity to our music program while respecting our cherished traditional music. This individual should be able to work collaboratively with the Minister and others as we continue to create an inclusive and welcoming environment for all members and friends of our congregation.

Responsibilities:

Provides music for weekly services and special church services, including Christmas and Easter, consulting with the Minister to select music that complements the Christian liturgical calendar.

Guides our choir during weekly rehearsals in preparation for worship services (September – June).

Works with the Spiritual Life and Christian Ed teams to introduce music to and encourage participation of children and others.

Works with the Spiritual Life team to provide music with other musicians, soloists, and guest artists when needed.

Qualifications:

Strong skills in vocal music and piano playing, including music reading.

Experience in choral music, with choir direction a plus.

Ability to work with choir members of all abilities, balancing personalities and aptitudes, as well as the multigenerational church family.

Knowledge and skilled in a variety of diverse musical styles, such as traditional hymns, gospel, and contemporary worship music.

Strong interpersonal and communication skills to collaborate with the minister, accompanist (if necessary), choir members and others.

Benefits:

This is a part-time position. Salary, hours, and vacation are negotiable depending on the position taken and experience.

Other Information:

Tracker organ

Yamaha Upright studio piano

At this time, the choir sings every Sunday but we are considering changing that to singing 3 times/month with new musical options for their Sunday off.

How to Apply:

Interested candidates should submit a resume, cover letter, two references, salary expectation, and a recording or video reflective of your musical abilities to revsbartlett@gmail.com. Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis until the position is filled.

Kitchen Fundraising Underway

Honoring the Past, Building for the Future

Dear Friends and Members of the Second Congregational Church, UCC,

We are excited to share some wonderful news about an important project happening right here at the church – a major renovation of our kitchen! Thanks to generous donations given in loving memory of several of our former members, we have been able to begin a much-needed update to this well-used and well-oved space. Donations have been made in memory of Jim & Carolyn Baker, John & Karen Ellis, Dave Porter and many members of our former Women’s Fellowship.

Our kitchen has been one of the most-used space in the church. We have had many memorable events that have involved feeding and providing food for our church family and members of our community. Who can forget the Boiled Dinners and being a part of Claude & Dolly White’s crew with people gathering to cut up vegetables with coffee and rolls and special treats from Lilo?! Were your Mothers, Grandmothers or you involved in all the dinners prepared for our local Kiwanis members each month; fried clam dinners; lobster roll lunches; Mother’s Day teas and fashion shows; the church suppers and all those coffee hours?! We started our Free Community Suppers in April 2008 that continued through Covid with drive thru meals and now 16 years later is still going strong serving 100+ meals each month!

The kitchen is receiving a full makeover!

New cabinets to improve storage and functionality

A poured floor for durability and safety

Upgraded electrical work to bring everything up to code

Redone plumbing to support our growing needs

New lighting and ceiling to brighten the space and make it more welcoming

New Electric stoves to replace the old Garland gas stove

This kitchen has served us well for countless meals, fundraisers, coffee hours, and fellowship gathering – and with these updates, it will be ready to serve many more years to come. This project is not only about improving our facilities – it’s about honoring the memory of those who helped build our community and ensuring that future generations have a space to gather, serve and celebrate together.

Utilizing the donations, we have received we have been able to remove the steep stairs that led up to the back hallway outside the sanctuary. This has allowed us to install electrical work for new location of the refrigerator and created a closet upstairs for our bell choir equipment. We have removed the wall between the kitchen and dining room and installed a solid wall with more outlets and we plan on putting new cabinets, pantry cupboards and counter space. We have widened all doors leading into the kitchen to allow for handicapped access. We have installed a wall by the stoves to block off the blower for the organ and installed 2 new electric stoves. Electrical work has been completed for the wall around the sinks and dishwasher. We have enlarged the “pass out” window on the ell side of the dining room and have installed the poured floor in the kitchen. We have also installed a new breaker panel that ensures that we will no longer blow circuit breakers for the kitchen! Thanks to help from church member we have handled all the demolition of things in the kitchen and everything listed above has been paid for as we have been moving forward with this project.

Fundraising

Our donated funds are pretty much depleted. We are now at the fundraising stage so we can complete this project. To help with covering the cost of plumbing work, cabinets, counter tops and more electrical work we have some fundraising activities being planned:

A Ticket Auction –seeking new and like new items to include

Breakfasts, Dinners and Bake Sales

Our unique “Adopt-a-Cabinet” campaign

Bruce Davison will be making some items from the salvaged wood from the kitchen that will be for sale as well.

We would love for you to get involved in completing meaningful project! If you would like to help with one of our events, donate a prize, attend a meal, or “adopt” a cabinet, please reach out to us. Every contribution – big or small- from you or in memory of someone you love who was involved in any of the activities that was created in our kitchen, helps us bring this vision to life. We hope you will consider supporting this project. With your help we can complete this project and continue all the work we do in our community. Thank you for your continued love and support of the Second Congregational Church, UCC of Norway.

With Gratitude,

The Kitchen Renovation Committee:

Deb & Keith Ladner, Linda Porter, Keith & Annie Tilsley, Brian Partridge, Pam & Bruce Davison, Randy Butters