The Cornish Maine United Church of Christ plays an active role in supporting our community whether it be the local, national or international community.
Our vestry (the lower floor of the Main Street church) is a hub for many community activities. Over the past year it has been used for the following purposes:
- Tai Chi instruction
- Children’s exercise and gymnastic activities
- Piano lessons
- AA meetings
- Cornish Association of Businesses (CAB) monthly meetings
- Sewing/quilting activities
- A place for area foster parents to meet and support one another
- Cornish School Alumni annual meeting
- A baby shower
- Used book sales to benefit the Bonney Memorial Library
- Business marketing classes
- Ladies Guild events (luncheons, receptions, and fundraisers)
- as well as post-worship coffee hours on Sundays and monthly public suppers.
Our “noisy collections” (taken every Sunday as coins hit the metal collection plates) and Food Pantry donations (1 st Sunday of every month) go to support:
- The Riverside UMC Food Pantry
- Individuals in the community whose names have brought forward at council meetings
- Pilgrim Lodge
- The AMIGOS (Maine Honduras Project)
Our Ladies Guild
- Packs “Friendship Baskets” for individuals in the community in the spring and fall
- Organizes gatherings for families who have experienced a bereavement
- Maintains the Bargain Shop from early spring to late fall
- Holds a Christmas Fair and Luncheon
- Supports the church in many ways (painting and repair to buildings)
- Provides encouragement to our pastor
Special Mission Offerings (SMOs)
At the state and national levels, we are a “5 for 5” church which means that we provide support to Our Church’s Wider Mission and the 4 Special Mission Offerings: One Great Hour of Sharing, Strengthen The Church, Neighbors In Need and The Christmas Fund.
United Church of Christ SMOs exist to allow congregations and individuals to meet people at points of critical need in their lives.
- One Great Hour of Sharing Supports partners in countries with ministries that fund health, education and agricultural development, emergency relief, refugee ministries and both international and domestic disaster response, administered by Wider Church Ministries, Global Sharing of Resources. This offering is received on the Fourth Sunday of Lent.
- Strengthen the Church Supports church growth, pastoral and lay leadership development, youth and young adult ministries within conferences and administered by Local Church Ministries. This offering is received on Pentecost Sunday.
- Neighbors in Need (NIN) Supports ministries of justice and compassion throughout the United States. Neighbors in Need grants are awarded to churches and organizations doing justice work in their communities. These grants fund projects whose work ranges from direct service to community organizing and advocacy to address systemic injustice. This offering is taken in October as part of World Communion Sunday.
- The Christmas Fund Provides direct financial assistance to retired and active United Church of Christ authorized ministers and lay employees and their surviving spouses, including pension and health premium supplementation, emergency assistance, and Christmas thank-you checks. A ministry of the Pension Boards, the offering is received annually on the Sunday before Christmas.
Cornish United Church of Christ 