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Church of the Nativity The Episcopal Church in Northborough, Massachusetts

A Regional Faith Community

2016 Parish Profile February 16, 2016

The Rev. Eletha Buote-Greig, Interim Rector

Maureen Desilets, Family and Children’s Ministry

45 Howard Street. Northborough, MA 01532 (508) 393-3146 | (508) 393-0702 (fax) www.churchofthenativity.org

February 2016

Dear Friend in Christ,

We are delighted that you are viewing our Parish Profile. We prayerfully present ourselves, the Church of the Nativity in Northborough, Massachusetts, to you, with the hope that you might feel led to become our next rector.

To avoid the situation where, after the “honeymoon” period, both pastor and church wonder what they saw in one another, we’ve been as candid as possible in writing this document. We expect the same honesty from you.

As the profile details, we have been fortunate to have a history of long pastorates, each of which brought its own style, personality, and gifts to our church’s ministry. Our most recent pastor served for more than 14 years. We look forward to building on these past ministries with the style, personality, and gifts of ministry that Nativity’s next rector will bring.

As you read our parish brochure, our OTM narrative, and the details in this document, consider this: Are you led to be and make faithful followers of our Lord Jesus Christ? Are you on fire to reach new people and incorporate them into church life? God’s urging will give you the answer and, if you’re so led, Nativity will speak to your heart.

Although we, like all churches, are not without our challenges, we are committed to supporting YOU AND YOUR FAMILY spiritually, financially, and through community.

We are already praying for the person (perhaps you?) who is yet unknown to us, who we believe God is preparing to lead our church’s ministry.

So we welcome you to Nativity, the church we know and love, and through which we worship and serve God. Peace be with you.

Cathy Terwedow Mary Frances Rozak Bruce Reilly Profile Committee, Chair Person Search Committee, Chair Person Vestry, Senior Warden

Creating relationships for people to become Safe in the Love of the Father, Shaped in the Image of the Son,

Serving in the power of the Spirit

http://storage.cloversites.com/churchofthenativity/documents/Nativity_TriFold_Brochure_2015-09-29_FINAL.pdf

Church of the Nativity, Northborough, MA 3 February 16, 2016

CONTENTS Page

Cover Page 1

Welcome Letter 2

Our Life Together 4 Worship and Music ............................................................................................. 4 Family and Children’s Ministries .......................................................................... 5 Youth Ministry .................................................................................................... 5 Christian Education ............................................................................................. 6 Outreach Ministries ............................................................................................ 6 Parish Life ........................................................................................................... 8 Nativity Community Preschool (Parish-affiliated) .......................................................... 9 Want to Learn Even More about Our Life Together? .................................................. 9

Who We Are, Where We’re Going, and Who Will Help Us Get There 10 Our Strengths and Challenges .............................................................................. 11 Parish Priorities .................................................................................................. 12 Our Next Rector .................................................................................................. 13 Our Expectations and Commitments ................................................................... 14

Parish Demographics and Statistics 15 Parish Assessment Demographics ........................................................................ 15 Attendance and Membership Statistics................................................................ 16 Pledge Statistics .................................................................................................. 16 Financial Statistics ............................................................................................... 16

Parish History (in Brief) .................................................................................... 17

Parish Administration and Facilities 18 Parish Communications ....................................................................................... 18 Parish Staff ......................................................................................................... 19 Parish Buildings and Grounds .............................................................................. 20 Facility Use ......................................................................................................... 21 Parish Building Programs – Past and Future ......................................................... 21

Our Community and Region 23 Communities in which Our Church and Members Reside ...................................... 23 Our Region’s Cultural Opportunities .................................................................... 25

Diocesan Profile .............................................................................................. 26

Are You Our Next Rector? 26 Want to Learn More about Becoming a Partner in Our Ministry? ......................... 26

Tired of Reading? ............................................................................................ 27

Photo Collage .................................................................................................. 28


OUR LIFE TOGETHER Welcome to Nativity where so many aspects, described in the following pages, contribute to the richness of our shared experience!

Worship and Music We are blessed to have many talented singers and musicians at Nativity, where liturgy and music combine to provide a deep, meaningful experience for all worshippers. Musical selections are made by our music leaders with input from the clergy and are chosen to support and complement the lessons and message of the day. Services are held in either the Nave, which has a quieter, more contemplative feel, or in the multi-purpose Parish Hall, which we transform into a weekend worship space to accommodate larger numbers of worshippers.

We have three weekend worship services, each with its own flavor:

Saturday Evening 5:00-6:15pm is a quiet, contemplative Rite II Eucharist service held in the Nave with up to 25 attendees. Music is a blend of traditional and contemporary styles, accompanied by piano or guitar.

Sunday Morning 7:45-8:45am is a traditional Rite II Eucharist service held in the Nave. Typical attendance is 20 worshippers who prefer an earlier, quieter service. Attended primarily by older members, several families also attend regularly. Talented parishioners provide musical accompaniment on organ or piano. The music is typically traditional in style.

Sunday Morning 10:00-11:15am is a Renewal-Praise Rite II Eucharist attended by nearly 100 people of all ages. Held in our Parish Hall, this lively, less formal service features healing prayer led by trained prayer ministers and an adult choir and/or praise band that blesses us through a blend of traditional and contemporary musical elements:

• The Adult Choir provides traditional musical offerings once a month. • The Praise Band accompanies the service three weeks a month

and features members of all ages. Made up of several guitarists, a pianist, drums, and other percussion instruments, the group leader calls us to worship through opening prayer. Parish members sit, stand, or dance as they feel led.

Other ministry teams contributing to Nativity’s worship experience at the 10am service are our Levites, who set up the seating, and our Sound and Light Team which manages the audio-visual equipment and ensures that the audio portion of the service is recorded and piped into the nursery to include parents who may be caring for younger children. The Sacred Dance team dances periodically at this service, creating another unique element of worship.

All services include open prayer time. Children and youth are encouraged to participate as readers, acolytes, and as active members of the Praise Band. Our Altar Guild, Acolytes, Lay Eucharistic Ministers, Readers, Flower Guild, Bread Bakers, and Coffee Teams provide background support to make our worship comfortable and meaningful at all services.


Family and Children’s MinistriesNativity’s Family and Children’s Ministries serves about forty children and youth, from birth through high school graduation, and their families. By providing guidance and mentoring for spiritual formation and Christian Education on Sunday mornings we hope and pray that God’s love will spread throughout the week.

It is easy to see God at work in the lives of our youngest members! We are so thankful for the adults who lead our children in Godly Play, introducing them to parables, silence, sacred stories, and sacred liturgy in order to discover God, ourselves, one another, and the world around us. Artwork and assignments are sent home to share. Youth also receive hands-on experience studying the Bible, praying, and talking about the Scripture and their reactions to it.

Students participate in the beginning and ending of the 10am worship service, as well as the Eucharist. Once a month, “Family Sundays” provide rest for our teachers and an opportunity for the entire congregation to worship together. Family Sundays also give young people a chance to participate in the service without missing important classroom fellowship.

Our philosophy of children’s ministry parallels Nativity's goals: to be safe in God's love (as seen in the love and safety they experience in their classroom setting), to be shaped in Christ's image (looking at God's Word to know that Truth), and to serve in His mission (giving them ways to live out God’s love to the world).

Youth Ministry We are in the process of rebuilding our youth program. After a drastic decline in youth participation over the last 20 years, there are now signs of growth. The youth, most of whom are from our church and others from the Northborough area, have created a sense of community as they meet together, even outside of church events.

Our youth Sunday School, “The Rock,” has grown steadily over the last two years. With nearly 20 students participating, we are now training more adults so that we can offer separate middle school and high school classes. Through intergenerational ministry, we hope to build a youth group that meets the spiritual and social needs of our teenagers while attracting younger families and youth from the community.

An important dimension that helps integrate our congregation across generations is prayer support. In this ministry, students fill out note cards with personal information and prayer requests. Adult volunteers receive the cards as reminders to pray for the students and their prayer requests.


Christian Education A depth of curiosity drives Nativity’s Adult Education offerings to our parish family. We see the need for more Biblical knowledge and we seek the exposure and experience of wrestling with the text in community. We enjoy learning alongside, and from, each other in group settings that also provide accountability, prayer support, and encouragement.

Holding classes on Monday and Wednesday evenings, during retreats, and between services on Sunday mornings helps accommodate busy schedules and personal preferences. It also helps us make meaningful connections between inspirational material and daily living. In the recent past we have offered seminars and classes on such wide-ranging topics as marriage, death and taxes, supernatural healing, the power of the Holy Spirit, heaven, church history, praying in color, Lectio Divina, Visio Divina, Old and New Testament surveys, the Parables of Jesus, Sermon on the Mount, and individual book-of-the-Bible studies. Approximately 50 adults participate each year.

New teachers and discussion leaders have emerged as we seek to offer variety in approaches and materials. Seasons of the church year, such as Advent and Lent, lend themselves perfectly to opportunities to gather for a special focus and time of reflection. Summer brings a new mix of attendees as other groups take a break from business as usual. Classes are promoted in numerous ways and are structured to allow people to participate in a single class or continue throughout the year as new topics are offered.

Several of Nativity’s small groups also include this same element of Christian Education.

Outreach Ministries Outreach is important to Nativity. Nativity’s cash contributions to local, national, and international organizations and individuals totaled about $16,000 in 2015. Many items of clothing and food were also donated by the members of our church.

Funds are set aside for outreach purposes in our annual operating budget and are allocated by our Outreach Committee. Examples of this outreach include money, food, time, talent, and/or clothing to:

Local charitable organizations.

• Community Meals, which provides weekly fellowship and a free, hearty meal at a local church. Nativity is a founding member of this outreach, now in its 20th year.

• Northborough Food Pantry, a local food bank

• The Worcester Fellowship project, an outdoor church and outreach to the homeless

• Worcester Convoy of Hope, a ministry to those in need, where we provided haircuts, food, clothing, and staff support


• Birthday Wishes, an organization that provides birthday parties for local homeless children

• “Second Saturday,” a ministry of nearby Grace Baptist Church, providing services to local residents and the homeless, such as minor home repair, painting, and meal preparation

• Friends of Families in Transition, an organization that provides financial support for families living in shelter at area hotels

• Northborough Helping Hands, as part of a joint effort by other churches and businesses to make Thanksgiving meal baskets for 90 families in our community

• Victory in Christ’s annual “Love Your Neighbor Block Party” that benefits families in the Worcester area

• The American Legion, whose annual Veteran’s Day luncheon served lunch to 100+ local veterans

• Youth Villages, a national organization’s northeast branch that provides support for young adults ages 17-22 years who are aging out of the foster care program

• Straight Ahead Ministries, which provides a holistic outreach to juvenile offenders. Several parishioners also participate in an outreach to addicts in a Worcester detox facility.

National and international Christian organizations and individuals. Also funded through our annual budget and allocated by our Outreach Committee is support for organizations and missionaries who spread the Gospel. Examples of this outreach include:

• Continued sponsorship, through Compassion International, of three children living in Indonesia, Honduras, and Uganda

• Continued support of Narsapur Children’s Home, one of Manna Ministry’s 40 children’s homes in India that houses, feeds, and protects children while teaching them about Jesus. In addition to ongoing financial support, we donated this year’s Advent and Lenten coin collections to the home and funded, through our Advent/ Christmas Giving Tree, a Christmas celebration including a special meal and a set of clothes for each child.

• Continued financial support of a long-term missionary in her mission work in Israel

Parishioners who work directly for Christian organizations. We provide financial support to InterVarsity and Christian Association of Youth Mentoring in support of parishioners who are on staff in those ministries.

Parishioners’ individual mission trips. Financial support was also provided for:

• One member’s yearly mission with Project Stretch in Mexico, an organization that provides dental care to underprivileged children and special needs adults and children in this country and abroad

• One youth’s participation in “Youth with a Mission,” a mission adventure trip to Boston in which participants worked with a team of young adults to train youth in drama, hip hop, and sharing the gospel. The group then worked with neighborhood kids through a Bible club at the local parks, playing with them and sharing the love of Jesus using the skills that they had been taught.

Church-sponsored programs and activities for our local community. To extend fellowship and the Gospel to our local community, we host events such as our annual “Living Nativity,” community Easter egg hunt (followed by a family-friendly service), periodic movies and “God Rocks!” concert.

The Living Nativity, presented for over 20 years, is our preeminent outreach event, involving more than 70 parishioners of all ages and drawing nearly 200 people from the community.


Living Nativity

God Rocks! Concert

Parish Life Nativity’s holiday fair (November Fest) is a chance to show Christ's love to the community and bring the parish together for fellowship and fundraising. Members conduct a silent auction, donate myriad books and knick-

knacks, offer crafts, cook lunch for hungry shoppers, and generally work really hard for four days.

For parish picnics (usually twice a year, weather permitting), we set up picnic tables and outdoor games and fire up the grills for a good 'ole cookout.

Movie and game nights take place from time to time. We like to have fun!

On the second Sunday of every month, the parish puts on a "Simple Social" where we reset the parish hall after the 10am service and bring out all sorts of food for a parish pot-luck. This simple get-together allows 50-80 parishioners to share a meal together while enjoying unstructured time to socialize.

Pastoral Care offers emotional, spiritual, and practical support to parish members who are having difficulty dealing with a specific issue or life transition, such as an illness or loss, birth of a baby, or hospitalization. Help might be in the form of a visit at the church, home, hospital, or nursing home, a phone call or note, or church and community resources as needed. Not only are we responding to needs, we’re also reaching out to one another and keeping our church family connected.

Our Prayer Team lifts up to God the special prayer requests of our congregation. This group commits itself to being faithful in praying about these special requests and to keeping the prayers confidential.

Small groups bring closeness and Christian bonding through study and prayer in a confidential setting. The goal is that each group have an average of 10 to 12 members, with a leader and an apprentice. When a group gets too big, a new group is encouraged to form. Presently we have five small groups.


Nativity Community Preschool (Parish-affiliated) Our preschool is a shining light in Northborough and surrounding communities, offering local children a Christian environment within an atmosphere of caring and acceptance. The school exemplifies Christian values but does not specifically teach the Christian faith. Typically enrollment is about 65 children with a staff of ten part-time individuals, all of whom are fully trained, licensed, supervised, and background-checked. This accredited school is inspected and licensed by the Massachusetts Department of Early Education and Care.

The preschool often has a wait list for registration. In some instances, expectant parents have signed up their soon-to-be-born children because the wait list has been so extensive!

Children in our preschool are provided with a safe and nurturing, yet challenging, environment that encourages their physical, social, emotional, and cognitive development. The program is designed with a wide variety of materials and activities that allows for individual needs and interests. Preschool classes are available each morning on all school days.

Coordinated by a member of our parish, Preschool Director Marilyn McCarthy, the school operates under the authority of Nativity’s vestry and a Preschool Board that includes parish members and a parent of a current student.

For more information, visit our website at www.churchofthenativity.org/#/children-youth/nativity-preschool

Want to Learn Even More about Our Life Together? To gain additional insight into the life of our church, we encourage you to request a copy of Nativity’s latest Annual Report, published in February 2016. This report gives a detailed view of last year's ministry activity as opposed to the broad perspective of our ministries presented in this profile.

Our website www.churchofthenativity.org contains additional information about our church and its ministries. While you may find some information on our website that reflects the leadership of our former rector, our vestry is actively working to identify a plan for updating and revitalizing the entire website.

I was looking for a way to worship Christ and I found it here.

I love our church and the people.

I'm thrilled for this new period for our church.

– Comments from our parish assessment

(Other comments, similarly boxed throughout this profile, are from the same assessment)

http://www.churchofthenativity.org/#/children-youth/nativity-preschool

http://www.churchofthenativity.org/


WHO WE ARE, WHERE WE’RE GOING, AND

WHO WILL HELP US GET THERE Nativity enjoys an invigorating balance of three faith traditions:

• Catholic, celebrating the universal love of the Father and upholding the historic emphasis on the Sacraments.

• Evangelical, believing in the witness of the Holy Scriptures to contemporary life and the importance of individual commitment to His Son, Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior.

• Charismatic, recognizing the gifts and the power of the Holy Spirit in our lives and the life of the Church.

As such, the Church of the Nativity is an exciting place to worship and grow closer to our Lord. But we also face challenges that need to be addressed by our entire congregation under the leadership of a pastor who can prayerfully guide us.

We could be considered unique within the larger framework of the Episcopal Church due, in large part, to the ministries of our three previous rectors whose shared traditional and orthodox core values shaped our church into who and what and where we are today.

While our congregation is vibrant, we face the challenge that our membership is declining as fewer young singles and families join our fold. This also means we are an aging congregation. While this is an obvious liability, it is also an asset that can be leveraged through wise and caring Christians who have more time to invest in ministry than younger families.

We also face the challenge of addressing issues of sexuality. Our leaders have taken a stand on Biblical principles to not support same-sex relationships while maintaining a spirit of love and acceptance to all, but there is some disagreement in the church on this issue. Our challenge will be in how we move forward in unity while holding to traditional Christian values to communicate the transforming love and power of our Savior to the world.

We are looking for a bold leader who will inspire and mobilize our congregation to make Nativity a shining light in Northborough and beyond. We have many gifted and dedicated members who come to church each Sunday but who have not found their path to become involved. We know we respond positively when we feel called by God to serve. Our problem is that, too often, we do not ask, train, and empower each other for ministry. We seek a leader who will help us regain our vision of making Nativity a beacon of hope and love so that we can proclaim Christ faithfully in our church and throughout our region.

Our next pastor needs to set out a vision and work consistently towards that vision.


Our Strengths and Challenges The vitality of any church is a unique combination of that church’s strengths and challenges. At the Church of the Nativity we have many strengths that make us a wonderful and healthy church. But we also have many challenges that need to be addressed. The task ahead is to utilize our strengths to effectively address our challenges. As part of our self-assessment, we have attempted to identify our strengths and our challenges, as shown in the table below.

Our Strengths • Our people. We are a congregation with diverse

talents and gifts coming from a variety of faith backgrounds, both Protestant and Catholic.

• Our worship services. We are a spirit-filled church with joyful, music-filled worship services.

• Bible based. We value Bible-based preaching and strive to discern God’s will for our church and ourselves.

• A strong sense of community and family. We strive to be a welcoming church.

• Our warm and caring spirit. We are a community filled with love, hope, faith, and joy.

• Our unity. There is far more that unites us than divides us. We are not a church in conflict or chaos.

• Dedicated membership. Most parishioners strongly identify with our church’s mission. Annual pledges are up despite our transitional status.

• Strong and committed lay leadership. We have a committed core of leaders and members who want Nativity to flourish and grow.

• A commitment to stewardship. We have a renewed focus on what it means to use our time, talent and treasure to be good stewards. Our per-capita giving is greater than most Episcopal congregations.

• A highly recognized and thriving weekday preschool program. A wonderful outreach to our surrounding community.

• Excellent, well-maintained buildings and grounds. A debt-free parish.

Our Challenges • Attendance and membership. Our membership

continues to age without enough new, younger members and families coming into the church to sustain our ministry in future years.

• Too few children and youth. A result of an insufficient number of new, younger families. Our youth program suffers as a result. Could Nativity’s preschool be an opportunity for us?

• Number and age of leaders. Another result of having too few young parishioners is a lack of younger leaders to develop.

• Outreach and evangelism on a church-wide basis. Current funding and support for outside organizations and ministries is strong. Our goal is a coordinated plan to engage the entire church in direct ministry.

• Potential burnout. Due to the amount of work involved in doing ministry, parish leaders, and the parish at large, need a Martha/Mary balance between “doing God’s work” and “being with God.”

• Same-sex blessings and marriage. The Vestry, after much reflection, decided that our clergy would not perform same-sex marriages since they do not meet our understanding of God’s plan for marriage. Although we hold to traditional values in this matter, we also want to welcome all individuals recognizing that everyone is a child of God created in God’s image. We have members on both sides of this issue.

I want Nativity to continue being a place where people have the opportunity to encounter and be transformed by Jesus' love.


Parish Priorities To prepare ourselves for the calling of a new rector, and to give us the organizational intelligence needed to understand who we are, where we are going, and who will help us get there, we relied on Holy Cow! Consulting’s “Congregation Assessment Tool.“ All able members and active non-members, ages 16 and above, were invited to participate in this parish assessment during August 2015.

For Nativity, the parish assessment meant surveying 190 people, 68% of whom responded. Most individuals also wrote comments about their hopes and concerns for the future of our church and for the next person who will be called to be our spiritual leader. You will see some of their comments sprinkled throughout this profile. The complete results and analysis of this parish assessment are available upon request.

With statistical data from 130 individuals (our average weekend worship), we have a high sense of confidence that the results are representative of Nativity as a whole.

Nativity’s top four priorities, as revealed by the parish assessment, are as follows:

Shown below is how the parish assessment “weighted” each of Nativity’s priorities relative to each other.

https://holycowconsulting.com/cat/


Our Next Rector The parish assessment also identified and prioritized the critical abilities we hope for in our next rector. The weighted score provides insight into the criticality of a rector’s abilities as identified by our members.

[We need] a faith-filled rector with a pastor's heart.

I hope our next rector is a strong preacher, with a soft heart for people.

I pray for a rector who will help us rebuild our youth and family focus.

Our next rector should be able to connect with and inspire multiple generations of people.

My hope is that our next rector will be able to continue the wonderful mix of Episcopalian/Anglican with a traditional/ evangelical vision that is so unique to Nativity.

Our next rector should be able to perform miracles as needed.


Our Expectations and Commitments Our goal is to develop a successful, long-term relationship between ourselves and our next rector. To build such a relationship it’s important to share expectations and commitments. In this spirit, we’ve outlined our expectations of, and our commitments to, our next rector in the table below.

Our Expectations of You • Be a person of prayer and integrity, constantly

seeking God's vision for our church and its ministry

• Be a risk taker led by the Holy Spirit, willing to take on challenges and face failures

• Preach Bible-based sermons

• Administer the church with a pastor’s heart

• Lead and inspire us with Spirit-filled, joyful worship, humor, and open communication

• Have a commitment to the traditional values of faith that have shaped our church

• Have good people skills and God-given gifts for effective leadership and communications

• Be patient with us as we learn to understand and accept change

• Help us reach the unchurched and grow by equipping us to evangelize and disciple those around us

• Listen to and observe our church in action for a period of time before launching changes in ministries and programs

• Equip and empower lay ministry

• Be open to a long-term ministry, faithfully working through the inevitable issues and points of view that arise when working with others

• Most importantly, choose Nativity because you believe it is God’s will for you to be here.

Our Commitments to You • Support for you and your family: spiritually,

financially, and in community

• Time to fulfill your family commitments, recognizing that you cannot be available 24/7 and need not attend all church meetings

• Encouragement for maintaining a healthy life balance: emotionally, mentally, physically, and spiritually

• The freedom to innovate

• Patience

• Accept that there will be occasional failures

• Work with you in mutual ministry to identify and distinguish your responsibilities from our lay-led responsibilities

• Work with you to implement a process of managing and resolving conflict in advance of any conflict

• Do our best to make you aware of the unwritten assumptions, expectations, traditions, values, and “sacred cows” that are part of any church

• To listen, provide constructive feedback in a timely manner, and talk to you directly about issues before talking to others

• Work with you to carefully identify and implement necessary change over time

• Most importantly, to pray continually for you and your ministry with us.

I want a rector who will be focused on how to engage people in an active (not passive) relationship with Jesus.

I pray for a rector who can handle conflict constructively, not avoid it, a person who creates an open loving dialogue for resolution.


PARISH DEMOGRAPHICS AND STATISTICS

Parish Assessment Demographics The parish assessment revealed the following demographics of those individuals who completed the assessment. This summary gives a fairly good feel for the characteristics of our entire parish.


The charts below, based on parochial report statistics, reflect the status of our parish in 2015 and the prior decade.

Attendance and Membership Statistics

Pledge Statistics

Financial Statistics


PARISH HISTORY (IN BRIEF)

While we are very focused on the future, it’s also important to remember our past and the accomplishments to which God had led us. Looking back reminds us that God is always faithful and has allowed us to accomplish much in His name. Remembering this history gives us confidence in God’s leading us to our future.

Presented below, in timeline format, is a condensed parish history that highlights key events in the life of our church. Learn more at www.churchofthenativity.org/#/about-us/heritage-history. An even more-detailed history of our parish is available upon request.

1955 1960 1965 1970 1975 1980 1985

Late 1950’s Discussion

occurs regarding starting a

mission church

April 1963 Ground

breaking for new church

building

January 1960 First worship service held

Mission church established

August 1965 The Rev

John Schieffelin assigned as

Vicar

September 1973 The Rev

William Eakins arrives as

Vicar

June 1980 The Rev

Hendy Webb called as Vicar

and then 1st Rector

November 1986 The Rev

Fred Goodwin called as

2nd Rector

May 1960 The Rev Leonard

LePoidevin assigned as

Vicar

November 1963 Dedication of new church

building

January 1971 The Rev

Edward Putnam arrives as

Vicar

April 1989 Ground

breaking for new parish hall and classrooms


Hendy Webb resigns

April 1981 The church

attains Full Parish

status

A top priority for our church must be reaching out to youth, young adults, and young families in the communities around us while we still have resources to creatively do so.

1990 1995 2000 2005 2010 2015 2020

June 2013 Mini capital

improvement program starts for replacing roof

on parish hall and office/Refuge area


Bob Brandt called as

3rd Rector

February 2001 The Rev

Len Cowan called as

4th Rector

June 2015 The Rev

Len Cowan retires

February 1994 The Rev

Fred Goodwin resigns to take

a national leadership

position

September 1991 New parish hall and classrooms

completed

May 1999 The Rev

Bob Brandt dies of cancer

July 2015 Search for our

5th Rector starts

June 2007 Four-year capital

improvement program for updating

of existing facilities starts

2007 - 2014 Outdoor features added,

including a labyrinth, memorial garden,

Stations of the Cross, planters, and outdoor stage

http://www.churchofthenativity.org/#/about-us/heritage-history


PARISH ADMINISTRATION AND FACILITIES

Parish Communications Nativity communications include:

News and Notes. Emailed each Friday, this publication lists upcoming activities and news. Events are also included in our weekly worship bulletin and on bulletin boards throughout the church.

Worship Bulletin. Available at all three weekend services, this publication provides the order and details of our worship services, including the Gospel, music, Old and New Testament readings, weekly prayer list, and news of upcoming events.

Announcements. Announcements are made at each of the three services regarding information posted in the worship bulletin and other news.

Email. Emails regarding important upcoming events or key updates are sent out as needed.

Nativity Scene. This publication is created and mailed every other month to all families and individuals in our parish. It typically has a lead article written by the rector as well as articles (and sometime poems and prose) written by parish members. This publication focuses on current topics and past events, and often includes pictures from the events.

Phone Calls. Not everyone is online and email isn’t always appropriate, so phone calls, whether to check on people’s health, their personal needs, or their attendance and ability to help at an upcoming event, are also used frequently.

Vestry Minutes. The minutes of all vestry meetings are posted on a bulletin board near the church office.

Prayer Requests. We offer three ways to submit prayer requests:

• Contact the church office to have a prayer request published in the worship bulletin.

• Post a private prayer request in the Prayer Wall in the nave. Prayers are tucked into the prayer wall and left there.

• Submit a prayer request in the Prayer Box on top of the Prayer Wall. The staff prays about the prayer requests during staff meetings and at other times.

[I’m] hopeful we will have a new rector who communicates well and listens even better.


Parish Staff The parish’s paid and unpaid staff consists of the following positions:

Position

Individual Holding Position

Paid Staff

Part Time

Comments

Rector The Rev. Eletha Buote-Greig Yes No Interim rector Family and Children’s Ministry Director

Ms. Maureen Desilets Yes Yes Holds an advanced degree in Religious Studies; also Superintendent of the Sunday School

Youth Coordinator (currently vacant) Yes Yes Position has been vacant in recent years Parish Administrator Ms. Cindy Loverin No Yes Roles include publicity, website

maintenance, church bulletin preparation, Pledge Treasurer, and income bookkeeping; time and talents are donated

Church Secretary (currently vacant) Yes Yes Individual recently retired; duties temporarily assumed by the Parish Administrator with compensation

Bookkeeper Ms. Joan Gilchrist Yes Yes Handles accounts payable tasks and reporting; tracks and reconciles most bank accounts

Organist Mr. Glen Campbell No Yes Plays for the 7:45am Sunday service; time and talents are donated

Keyboard Accompanist Ms. Judy Yauckoes Yes Yes Accompanies worship services and the adult choir; also accompanies a major regional chorus that practices at our church

Adult Choir Director Ms. Emily DeAngelis Yes Yes A Boston Conservatory master’s degree student with training in directing; a talented vocalist

Praise Band Director Ms. Nicole Garcia Yes Yes A talented vocalist and guitarist; leads music in the 10am Sunday and 5pm Saturday services

Preschool Director Ms. Marilyn McCarthy Yes Yes Long-standing director of the preschool Sexton Mr. Jonathan Esslinger Yes Yes Works 15 hours per week; non-member

I hope that [the next rector] comes excited to meet the awesome

people who help this congregation run smoothly.

I hope that [the next rector] comes excited to meet the awesome people who help this congregation run smoothly.

[The next rector] should have strong leadership abilities and be able to attract strong leaders that want to take the church into the future.

[The next rector should] challenge us to step out of our comfort zone through the power of the Holy Spirit…to share the gospel.


Parish Buildings and Grounds It’s a rare day when some portion of the church facilities isn’t in use. Our church complex is situated on seven acres of former farm land, located very close to the center of Northborough, with ample space for future expansion. The main areas of our church facilities are described below.

Nave The church's A-frame design, built in 1963, is a fine example of a simple and effective contemporary worship space. A large, lighted cross dominates the external front of the church. There is seating for about

60 individuals in pews, with additional seating in movable chairs. The sanctuary’s focal point is an altar made in France more than 250 years ago, carefully restored by a local Northborough artist. Over the years we’ve improved the nave with ceiling fans, fresh paint, dossal curtains, carpeting, and impressive stained glass windows hand-crafted

by Nativity parishioners. A bell, donated by a former vicar, peals the Angelus three times a day.

More recently, as part of an overall capital campaign, extensive upgrades were made to reinforce the A-frame structure, replace the roof, and add a projection system. Several pews were removed from the nave to open up space for Adult Education and The Refuge.

The Refuge In 2010 we created an area dedicated to spiritual formation. This area, consisting of space at the rear of the nave and rooms adjacent to the narthex, was named “The Refuge,” for use as a spiritual life center.

Church Offices, Conference Room, and Family Prayer Room Adjoining the nave is the narthex and several offices. There is also a conference room, a Family Prayer Room with an altar, and space for The Refuge. The conference room serves multiple duties, providing space for meetings, early-service coffee hours, Sunday School/Godly Play, and part of The Refuge.

Parish Hall, Classrooms, and Office Space Nativity’s members built our parish hall, beginning in 1989 and completing it in 1991. It is a modern, open, air-conditioned area that can seat 250 parishioners on folding chairs. This area serves as our 10am Sunday worship space. It has state-of-the-art sound, lighting, and projection systems.

A commercial-size kitchen is located off the parish hall. The lower level houses offices for the rector and Christian Education, classrooms for Christian education, and a Sunday nursery for infants and toddlers. Additionally, there are several rooms used by our preschool, a music room, and a workshop with a variety of tools and equipment. The building is handicapped-accessible and has three sets of restrooms.

Rectory Adjacent to the main church grounds is the rectory. Built in 1960, the rectory is a two-story colonial-style home with a full cellar. It has a front-to-back living room with a fireplace, dining room, and remodeled kitchen. A half-bath and study complete the first floor. On the second floor are four bedrooms and a full bathroom. There is an attached garage, a porch on

the rear of the house, and a shed for storing tools, as well as a large yard with ample room for a garden. A vernal brook runs along the wooded edge of the property. The rectory has been updated several times, with new appliances and an overall update completed in 2015.

A separate document and video detail the features and layout of the rectory. For more information, please visit www.churchofthenativity.org

http://www.churchofthenativity.org/


Preschool Facilities Beneath the narthex is a medium-sized area used exclusively by the Nativity Community Preschool, providing two to five day programs for 65 students. The preschool also uses two rooms below the parish hall for science lessons and a special pre-kindergarten program for children entering kindergarten in the next year.

Grounds Nativity's buildings are sited on a seven-acre parcel of land with extensive lawns, a large, level and newly paved parking area, an enclosed playground, storage barn, and a small wooded area. In recent years, we added a Christian Labyrinth, outdoor Stations of the Cross, dedication planters, and a Memory Garden of the Resurrection reserved for the disposition of cremated remains.

To engage the community, we erected an outdoor stage in front of the parish hall, facing the street. The stage is used for outdoor programs such as the Living Nativity, music concerts, special services, and films.

The grounds are always well maintained and have many well-tended flower beds that beautify the area surrounding the church.

Parking Our facilities have a large, fully paved, well-lit parking area that can park 65 cars. Six additional parking slots are available for those with disabilities. Nearest the church are parking areas designated for visitors and senior citizens. Since our property is located directly adjacent to a public elementary school, we have an agreement with the school that they can use our church parking areas for their special events and we, in turn, can use their parking areas for night-time and weekend events when the school is not open. We even constructed a path and gateway between the two parking areas for easy access to the church and school.

Facility Use The nave, The Refuge, our church offices, conference room, classrooms, and parish hall are used throughout the week for many ministries, including Bible studies, men's and women's breakfast fellowships, weekday worship, choir rehearsals, counseling, spiritual formation, youth events, committee meetings, and adult education. Space is provided for outside community groups, such as the Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, Alanon, and a regional choral group, to use the church. We also rent the facility for private events (e.g., wedding receptions, anniversary parties, dinners) when the parish hall is not otherwise in use.

Parish Building Programs – Past and Future

Facility Updates Nativity maintains, updates, and upgrades its facilities very well, beyond normal maintenance. Depending on the project, funding comes from our annual operating budget or from small-to-medium-sized capital campaigns.


In 2007 we started Phase 1 of a major capital campaign, with a goal of raising $675,000 for needed improvements to our entire facility. We raised $533,000 for Phase 1 projects and the upgrades were completed, fully financed by pledges, over a period of four years. In this campaign, major improvements were made throughout our facility, including a fully repaved parking lot and driveway, structural reinforcement of the nave, a new roof on the nave, new surface drainage infrastructure, office and hallway upgrades, and the creation of the office/Refuge area.

In 2013, we raised $20,000 in a mini-capital campaign to replace the roof on the parish hall and office/Refuge area.

Future Building Programs? The capital campaign envisioned in 2005 and begun in 2007 consisted of three phases. The Phase 2 goal was to create a new building that would house our preschool and provide youth facilities. Phase 3 would build an entirely new worship space, or upgrade the nave to create a larger and more flexible worship space. We successfully completed Phase 1. The remaining two phases are still on the drawing board due, in large part, to the financial restraints of the Great Recession of 2008.

Future facility needs include the remodeling of the two front offices, new paneling for the front entry (narthex), bathroom repairs and upgrades, replacement of windows in The Refuge, new blue-entry doors, and new appliances for the kitchen.

Good Stewardship In summary, we have invested consistently in our church facility, both to be good stewards of the resources God has given us and to make the facilities appealing to newcomers and parish members alike.


OUR COMMUNITY AND REGION

Communities in which Our Church and Members Reside The Church of the Nativity is a regional faith community drawing members from more than 19 towns in central Massachusetts. Although the largest group of parishioners live in Northborough, our core membership lives within a band, which might be called the “Route 20 Corridor,” that stretches from Marlborough in the east, westward through Northborough and Shrewsbury, to the city of Worcester. Additional members are from towns north and south of that band and from towns north, south, and west of Worcester.

The following paragraphs briefly describe the varied character of four of the communities our members call home.

Northborough (commonly spelled Northboro) Northboro lies at the eastern edge of the Episcopal Diocese of Western Massachusetts, thirty-five miles west of Boston. Though primarily residential (pop. 14,500), the town enjoys considerable variety with a historic

district, apple orchards, a retail mall, and an industrial park serving major corporations like National Grid and Iron Mountain. According to the 2010 census, median household income was $107,111. The population is 88% White and 8% Asian.

Noted for its excellent grade schools, regional high school, and technical high school, Northboro has ready access to a network of major highways, including the nearby Mass Turnpike (Interstate 90). Benefitting from easy highway access and a

reputation of uniqueness within the Episcopal Church, Nativity serves the faithful in Northboro and communities throughout central Massachusetts.

Shrewsbury Located immediately to the west of Northboro is the town of Shrewsbury (pop. 36,850), the largest of the

Worcester suburbs. Founded in 1727, the town is proud of its colonial heritage and enjoys a significant historic district, including the General Artemas Ward House, a few surviving “Franklin milestones” ordered by Benjamin Franklin, the first postmaster general, and a classic town common. In contrast to its colonial past, Shrewsbury became one of

the nation’s first “street car” suburbs in the late 1800s. Today it continues as a bedroom community for many professionals working in the high-tech and biotech industries and at UMass Medical Center and other Worcester hospitals.

A “golden mile” of commercial development along Route 9 is a significant shopping area. The town’s western border is 4-mile-long Lake Quinsigamond, ideal for Olympic regatta trials and a major recreation area. Shrewsbury’s 2010 median household income was $97,617. The population is 79% White and 15% Asian.


Marlborough (commonly spelled Marlboro) Located in the neighboring Episcopal Diocese of Massachusetts, Marlboro was the mother of three “boro”

towns spun off during the colonial period: Northboro, Westboro, and Southboro. As a city, Marlboro has a different demographic and economic character from Northboro and Shrewsbury. Ethnically more diverse, the city’s 2010 population was 39,612 of whom 81% are White, 11% Hispanic, 5% Asian, and 3% African-American. Median household income stood at $38,499 in 2010.

Originally a farming community like most New England towns, Marlboro began a transformation in the 1830s which has shaped its character to the present day. By adapting the new technology of the sewing machine to the

manufacture of leather goods, Marlboro became the virtual shoe-manufacturing capital of the nation and a magnet for immigrants. In the 1860s the city’s factories helped win the Civil War by providing boots for the Union Army. Appropriately, a shoe box and a pair of boots appear on the city seal.

Although the shoe industry has long since faded, Marlboro has benefitted enormously from the construction of the Massachusetts Turnpike and Interstate 495 which helped the city reinvent itself as a mecca for many Fortune 500 high-tech facilities.

Worcester Worcester is the second largest city in New England and a commercial, industrial, and cultural center. After a rocky start, the settlement was named the county seat in 1731, a fact that helped ensure the town’s stability.

Real growth and a rapid doubling of the population came with the arrival of the Boston and Albany Railroad in 1835 and the subsequent application of steam power to the manufacture of a wide variety of products.

Burgeoning industry meant a steady demand for labor that brought immigration to Worcester, a trend which continues. Worcester is a diverse city with a split personality, on the one hand

having a reputation as a blue-collar factory town while also being home to many colleges and universities, cultural institutions like the American Antiquarian Society and Worcester Art Museum, top-notch hospitals, and a growing biotechnology industry. As of 2010 the population was 183,016 with a median household income of $46,105. The population makeup is complex, reflecting ongoing immigration with 60% non-Hispanic Whites, 21% Hispanic, 12% African-American, and 6% Asian. Worcester enjoys significant positives while also struggling with many of the social problems facing other large American cities.


Our Region’s Cultural Opportunities We live in a vibrant region with many cultural organizations and institutions. The MetroWest area of Boston where we reside provides multiple world-class opportunities, no matter your preferences or cultural interests.

Museums and Attractions Where do we start to describe the many museums and attractions in our region? There are so many that we can only give you a small glimpse of the diversity and number of interesting places within an hour’s drive:

Worcester – Worcester Art Museum Boston – New England Aquarium Worcester – EcoTarium Boston – Museum of Science Framingham – Danforth Art Museum Boston – Museum of Fine Arts Clinton – Museum of Russian Icons Boston – Franklin Park Zoo New Bedford – Whaling Museum Boston – John F. Kennedy Presidential Library Lowell – Textile History Museum Boston – USS Constitution Museum Boston – Children’s Museum Cambridge – Harvard Museum of Natural History

Performing Arts Our region is rich in performing arts groups, whether your taste is for music, dance, live theater, opera, or another performing art. Some of the major performing arts groups and locations include:

Worcester – The Hanover Theatre Cambridge – American Repertory Theatre Worcester – Mechanics Hall Boston – Boston Ballet Worcester – DCU Center Boston – Boston Symphony / Boston Pops Boston – Huntington Theatre Boston – Handel and Haydn Society Boston – Lyric Stage Theatre Boston – Boston Opera House

The area also has a large number of regional and community performing arts groups of all types, including the Assabet Valley Mastersingers who rehearse in our parish hall.

Sports Our region has a major league team in nearly every sport as well as minor league, semi-professional, and college teams, and even some outstanding high school and community teams. Some of the major sports teams in our area include:

Baseball – Boston Red Sox Lacrosse – Boston Cannons Basketball – Boston Celtics Men’s Soccer – New England Revolution Football – New England Patriots Women’s Soccer – Boston Breakers Ice Hockey – Boston Bruins Tennis – Boston Lobsters Rugby – Boston Rugby Football Club

Recreation and Parks Whether your preference is for the ocean, lakes, mountains, or anything in between, we have it. From the summer recreational areas of Cape Cod, Cape Ann and greater New England, to the local winter sports areas of Mount Wachusett and Ward Hill, to the major ski areas in nearby Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont – our region has it all! Community beaches, parks, trails, and recreational areas also abound, giving you lots of options for walking your dog or getting outdoors with your kids.

Higher Education Our region’s cultural opportunities wouldn’t be the same without the scores of great colleges and universities that span from Worcester to Boston, including College of the Holy Cross, Worcester Polytechnic Institute, Clark University, Harvard University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Boston University, and many others.


DIOCESAN PROFILE

From the Berkshires in western Massachusetts to Worcester County in central Massachusetts, the Episcopal Diocese of Western Massachusetts consists of a dynamic collection of vibrant congregations including the Church of the Nativity.

Our diocese is a unique local expression of the Episcopal Church – a faith as old as Christianity but particularly American in its origins. The diocese is focused on Jesus’ mission of mercy, compassion, and hope here and around the world. Our Diocesan bishop, the Right Rev. Dr. Douglas Fisher, was installed as our ninth bishop in December 2012, and is committed to congregational development,

inclusivity, “greening” churches, and economic justice. The diocese consists of 55 parishes with a total of approximately 15,500 active baptized members and an average weekend attendance of about 4,500 individuals. The Church of the Nativity is the ninth largest parish in the diocese based on average weekend attendance.

The diocese recently reorganized into three "corridors." The Church of the Nativity is in the very eastern part of the diocese in the so-called "Worcester Corridor."

For more information about the diocese, please visit www.diocesewma.org

Bishop Douglas Fisher

ARE YOU OUR NEXT RECTOR?

Want to Learn More about Becoming Our Next Rector? If you are interested in exploring further the opportunity to become our next rector, please contact:

Canon Rich Simpson Episcopal Diocese of Western Massachusetts 37 Chestnut Street Springfield, MA 01103 Office 413.737.4786, X 117 [email protected]

Canon Rich Simpson

http://www.diocesewma.org/

mailto:[email protected]


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The word cloud below will help you visualize what Nativity’s profile says about our hopes, strengths, challenges, expectations and commitments. Word clouds give prominence to words that appear frequently in a source document. As they say, a picture is worth a thousand words.

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