Winter 2025 | The Life of the Church
The Session of our church (the ruling board of elected elders) hopes that by providing this newsletter every few months our members and friends can stay abreast of all that is happening behind the scenes here at First Church! Throughout the year, our committees are working hard to provide opportunities for ministry, to meet our congregation’s needs, and to move the church forward in outreach and service to our larger community as well. Here’s what has been happening these past few months:
†††
Pastor’s Report
When the Rev. Trevon Ferguson of Calvary Baptist Church took to our pulpit in November, it was the first act of Christian unity between our two churches in nearly 40 years of Sunday worship. His presence in our sanctuary indicated an important shift in perspective for the faithful within our community. There is much that separates Christians – theology, worship style, location, and demographics. There is just one thing that unites us: the Gospel. Rev. Ferguson’s presence indicated a shift toward unity and away from division.
As a church, we have made the decision to be more for something than we are against something. We are for the Gospel, and therefore we will be for each other. We are for unity, and so we are against division. This is an easy shift to perceive in our relationship with a congregation like Calvary Baptist, but my hope is that we begin to see this shift within our own congregation.
In this newsletter you will read about the many programmatic and administrative updates that have transpired in the past 6 months. It is crucial that you do not lose sight of the guiding vision that ties them all together. At our best, every decision we make – whether it is about church facilities or Sunday School – takes us one step closer to our ultimate goal. But this is only possible when everyone understands and believes in the goal.
Our goal in sharing worship with Rev. Ferguson, replacing the handicapped ramp, hosting a Christmas Pageant, and making a 2026 budget is to love God and our neighbor as ourselves. It is to live out the Greatest Commandment. God partners with us in sometimes ordinary decisions to build toward extraordinary embodiments of this goal. As you will read, being for something (namely God and our neighbor) is quite practical most days. But when we commit ourselves to a lifestyle of discipleship and faithfulness, we get to enjoy something 40 years in the making. God provides us the rare opportunity to experience something that is both old and new, forgotten and remembered, obvious and rediscovered.
†††
The Mission Committee is among the busiest of the group and they have work hard to assure our outreach is meaningful. They help fund the Ladies’ Cancer Support Group that meets in the manse monthly and continue to support the Food Pantry financially as well as collecting food with a bin in the narthex. On Christmas Eve all loose offerings will go to the local food pantries.
A sizeable donation was sent to Heifer Project in honor of Karen Schulz, our former minister’s wife who died this past year.
Christmas projects in the works now are Christmas Families, which provides $25 and $50 gift cards to local families to purchase toys and other gifts for their loved ones. White Gift Sunday is December 21st when congregants wrap simple gifts of warm gloves, hats, socks, scarves, and hats in white tissue paper to be given to Maureen’s Haven for distribution to our homeless brothers and sisters on the East End.
Other outreach by this committee includes a trip to Cuba to visit our sister church there and take much needed provisions for them such as OTC medical supplies.
Also, boxes of goodies were sent to fourteen college students during finals week this fall.
If anyone is interested in helping with any of these projects, or becoming a member of this important committee, just see Barbara D’Andrea who is the chair.
The Worship & Music Committee, along with the Fellowship Committee, planned and executed a wonderful evening of fellowship and fun at our Cabaret Night this fall. Attendees were provided with a delicious dinner in the Session House followed by entertainment by members of our congregation as well as invited performers. Many thanks to Jane Hastay for her work on this fun-filled evening!
The Worship & Music Committee continues to fine tune the way we conduct our worship services and oversees the music ministry of the church.
This committee was once again faced with the task of filling a staff position when our much-loved sexton Steve Bock retired. The position has been filled by Artie DeLalla, who is still settling in to the job here at the church. Please take a moment to say hello to Artie if you see him working around the grounds!
The First Church Bell Choir
Another of our very busy committees is the Buildings & Grounds Committee. With three very old buildings to oversee (1830, 1858, and 1860!) this committee is tasked with assuring that not only are our grounds looking well-kept and manicured, but our buildings continue to serve us safely for many years to come. Fire inspections, fumigations, and other regular maintenance is always an issue, as is the beautification of our grounds. But at this point in time our manse is the focus of most of their efforts as leaky pipes, an old furnace, and structural challenges continue to keep them busy. Since the Session House and the sanctuary were both recently renovated, this beautiful old house, built in 1830 (originally a shop as well as a home for the Isaac family), is showing its age. To that end a Manse Task Force has been created, to be led by Elder Karel
The Buildings and Grounds Committee gratefully accepts the donation of an AED from Suffolk Legislator Ann Wlker
DeBoer, to do a deep dive into the necessary work on this structure to make sure it is a safe and comfortable place for our ministers and their families to live for the next 200 years. We know that we are stewards of these properties which were left to us by our previous generations and we want to make sure we leave them in good shape for future generations. Stay tuned for more information about this as our task force begins their important work.
Here is a list of projects planned and completed as well as some unplanned surprises:
· NARDY pest control treatments completed
· Gutters were cleaned
· Bush removal and re-sodding done in front of church
· Heating system in sanctuary failed on a Sunday morning, manse a/c went out during the summer heat wave, and the manse washer & dryer both needed replacing
· Windows in both the church and the manse which had been painted shut are now operable
· Rotting window sills in the sanctuary were replaced
· A front door of the church fell off when being opened for Wednesday prayer the day before Thanksgiving. Apparently some hinges don’t last more than 160 years!
· The steeple work was done - and as soon as it was completed AT&T wanted to upgrade their system. The committee will be carefully watching everything our tenants do in the future to assure our steeple is not compromised.
· The ramp in front of the church needs repairs and those will be done very soon.
· The outdated heating and cooling system in the Session House was removed.
· Fire inspection was done, elevator inspected, kitchen hood inspected, security system inspected, and HVAC systems inspected in all three buildings.
· SCWA authority tested water quality
Another very important committee is our Christian Education Committee. They are charged with overseeing education for all ages, from cradle to grave! The Sunday School has been meeting regularly on Sunday mornings following Children’s Time. Youth Group has been created for grades 6-12 and has been meeting regularly to do projects like baking pies for the Thanksgiving Dinner, and enjoying the corn maze and apple orchard at the Halsey Farm in Water Mill (thanks to John Halsey for his personal tour!). They are a lively group and we all enjoy seeing our youth in worship on Sunday mornings, reading scripture, ushering, and helping with the children’s Sunday School program.
Our Nursery will soon be open every Sunday morning for moms and dads to drop off their little ones so they can enjoy worship downstairs. With a tv monitor upstairs it is now possible for nursery attendants to enjoy worship as well as take loving care of our smallest Presbyterians!
Our Board of Deacons works hard to assist with funerals, recognize newly baptized babies with a basket of gifts from the church, distribute prayer shawls, and continue their ongoing quiet work helping our members and friends in ways too plentiful to count. Their ministry to the body is so important and we hope you will all take the time to attend their fund-raising Christmas Tea coming up by purchasing tickets and bringing friends! Please see Fran Chapman or contact the church office at 324-0711 about getting your tickets before they sell out!
We hope you will reach out to any of these committees if you feel moved to help with the various ministries of this church. Any of our committee chairs, Session members, or Deacon members are more than happy to discuss their work in greater detail so please ask! And Pastor Jon is also happy to answer questions about our church or help you understand what it is we do to reach out to our larger community.
Questions and Answers!
What is per capita?
Each member of the Presbyterian Church is asked to contribute an annual per capita amount, which is determined by the local Presbytery. Here is a breakdown of what makes up this amount for 2025:
General Assembly: $10.84
Synod: $ 4.25
Presbytery: $27.00
Total: $42.09
If you have not submitted your per capita you can do so at any time – simply use an envelope in the pew and mark it “per capita” along with your name. Or mail a check to the church office at 120 Main Street marked for per capita.
What is the job of a ruling elder?
The ruling elders are elected by the congregation and serve three-year terms on the board. Elders share in the government and spiritual oversight of the church, working with the pastor to assist in leading worship and ensuring the church’s spiritual health.
What do the deacons of the church do?
Deacons are charged with acts of care and compassion, often undertaking ministries of feeding, visitation, prayer, and hospitality as well as other acts of service.
Who is in charge of the care and upkeep of our buildings?
The Buildings & Grounds Committee oversees the properties of the church. In addition to our grounds we own three buildings: the session house, the sanctuary, and the manse where our pastor’s family lives. These buildings were built in 1858, 1860, and 1830 respectfully and upkeep is essential for such historic buildings. They need to be safe and comfortable. In addition, this committee deals with snow removal, plowing, mowing, landscaping, and local utilities as well as the cell tower companies who lease space in our steeple.
Who makes decisions about our worship services, like the hymns we sing and the type of bulletin we use?
The Worship & Music Committee oversees all aspects of our worship services. Our pastor and our director of music both sit on this committee and have input into the details of our services, both on Sunday morning and during special church events such as Holy Week and Advent.
What does the Mission Committee do?
The Mission Committee is concerned with the various missions of the church. In addition to their Cuba mission and their work with Maureen’s Haven, they continue to be busy on numerous projects like the annual Heifer Project which provides animals to impoverished areas of the world in order to make the communities more self-sufficient. They also oversee the One Great Hour of Sharing and Christmas Joy special offerings collected every year, as well as adopting families for Christmas who are in need of help with buying gifts for their children.
The Mission Committee also oversees special offerings for disaster relief. The Presbyterian Disaster Assistance, whose motto is “Out of chaos, HOPE”, assists churches to care for communities affected by crisis and catastrophic events. It is the emergency and refugee program of the Presbyterian Church (USA). It is funded through the One Great Hour of Sharing program, which our mission committee coordinates every year.
All the committees of the church operate under the oversight of the Session and each provides important work in the life of the church. In addition to the committees already mentioned, there is a Christian Education Committee that is in charge of the education for all ages of the church and makes plans for our children’s Sunday School, Vacation Bible School, Bible studies, and any other opportunities to assist in growth for our members. The Fellowship Committee plans opportunities for the congregation to gather outside the walls of the sanctuary. These may include dinners, movie nights, game nights, and other fun activities designed to provide social events where members can get to know the folks sitting in the pews near them on Sunday mornings. A Nominating Committee meets to select nominees to run for positions on the session and deacon boards, and a Pastoral Care Committee is charged with making sure that the needs of our pastor and family are met.
If you have a special interest in serving on one of the committees of the church please speak to the pastor.
What is the Long Island Presbytery?
The Long Island Presbytery is made up of all the churches on Long Island who are part of the Presbyterian Church (USA). There are 52 member churches and each one sends representatives to meetings of the Presbytery. The Presbytery office is located in West Islip. Our Long Island Presbytery (the oldest presbytery in the country) provides resources for churches covering such things as personnel, worship, church development, Christian Education, and Policies, among many others. Our per capita money goes to support the offices and personnel expenses of the Long Island Presbytery.
Where can I find additional information on the church?
First Presbyterian Church has a website which can be found with a simple google search, as well as a Facebook page and (hopefully soon!) an Instagram page where important announcements may be found. The church office is open Monday through Friday from 9am to 1pm and the phone number is 631-324-0711. (Wednesdays are “administration days and no appointments or drop-ins are appreciated except in the case of an emergency).
