Our church was built in 1889, and for the 1989 centennial a history of the church was written. Click on the link to read about the early Methodist and Presbyterian congregations and what life on Denman was like in the old days for the church goers.
Since 1989 there has been a steady congregation attending lively, weekly Sunday services. But our congregation is aging and now dwindling in number. Today, we are a small group of people who enjoy time together but who are mostly senior in age. We may be known best for our choir and the fabulous potlucks that we share after the services. We see these lunches as a form of communion.
Everyone is always welcome to join us. Our small choir sings diverse songs- both traditional hymns and pop, gospel and other contemporary music. Our current choir leader is Carol Ralston. Many times when the choir stands to sing, there are only one or two of us left in the seats to applaud! Here is a YouTube link to a choir rehearsal:
Choir Director, Carol Ralston, and Choir
We are so happy that we have opened up the Gathering Place, and to see Moms and Tots share in our space, as well as after school care. We have not had Sunday school at the church or much participation at all from children for many years. We hope our Gathering Place and recent more relevant programming will begin to attract young families to the church.
We have other facilities on our island, such as a community hall and arts center, but these centers do not have the celebration of Spirit as the focus of their mission, nor do they necessarily have spiritual values at the core of their work.
People enjoy celebrating Spirit in community and our church wants to fulfill this desire.
We know from the UCC manual that our mission includes exploration of interfaith and also “ living in covenant with Mother Earth and All My Relations in the Earth community.” We are uniquely positioned to explore this interfaith relationship and this earth community focus, as people on Denman live so close to nature and have such respect for our natural environment.
