Installation Invitation

All members of the Cumberland Association are cordially invited to gather on Sunday, April 7, 2024, at 2:00 PM, for the Installation of

Reverend Rebecca Walker
as Pastor and Teacher of Stevens Avenue Congregational Church and Prides Corner Community Church

Service will be held at Stevens Avenue Congregational Church UCC
790 Stevens Ave., Portland ME 04103
A reception will follow the service.

Clergy are invited to process and wear red or multicolored stoles. Please arrive by 1:45 to line up. The service will include an offering to benefit the Cumberland Association Scholarship Fund.

 

Remembering Rev. Glenn Swope

Reverend Glenn Edward Swope, 90, of Alliance, OH, passed away on February 11th, 2024. Born in 1933 in Newport, KY, he was the youngest child of Henry and Rose Swope. Growing up on the banks of the Ohio River, Glenn and his family enjoyed the tight-knit community of Kentucky Drive.

He majored in engineering at UC, but felt called in another direction and transferred to Oberlin College as a history major leaning toward ministry. At Oberlin, he met Carole Tempest, a clarinet performance major, they eventually decided to leave Oberlin for Maine’s Bangor Theological Seminary, the New England Conservatory of Music and to get married. Glenn juggled his studies with preaching at various small Maine congregational churches, working part-time, and growing a family.

As a United Church of Christ minister, Glenn served churches in Fairport Harbor, Ohio; Covington, Ohio; Buxton, Maine; Steubenville, Ohio; Trotwood, Ohio; and Auburn, Maine. Glenn also served as interim minister for North Port Community UCC, North Port, FL, St John’s UCC in Massillon, OH, and Bethel UCC in Beloit, OH. Glenn served in various capacities in the Ohio Conference for the UCC. He was especially fond of outdoor ministries. He participated in and directed many outdoor camps.

After retirement, he and Carole worked in various arts capacities in and around the Sarasota area in Florida, including serving as directors of the Arts Council of Manatee County.

Remembering Rev. Linda Kimball

The Rev. Linda Ann Kimball, 80, passed peacefully February 2, 2024, at Marshwood Center after a short stay. She was born October 19, 1943, in Old Town, ME, daughter of Ethel (LeBreton) and Albert Morancy. She graduated from Thornton Academy in 1961, from the University of Maine Orono in 1965, and from Bangor Theological Seminary in 1999.

Linda married George L. Kimball of North Waterford, ME, in 1966 at the Congregational Church in Saco, ME. Throughout their 57 years of marriage, they lovingly supported each other through all phases of life; creating a home and community to raise three children, Jean, Steven, and Susan in Rumford, ME, putting them through college for nearly a decade, and retiring to Gray in 2012.

Once her children were grown, Linda received her Master of Divinity from Bangor
Theological Seminary and embarked on the most rewarding chapter of her life. She was
ordained as a United Church of Christ (UCC) minister and was called to service at East
Sumner Congregational Church in East Sumner, ME, and Mission Congregational
Church in West Paris, ME, where she served these congregations for several years.
She also served for a time at Mexico Congregational Church, and as a chaplain for
Androscoggin Home Healthcare + Hospice. She continued to perform marriage and
funeral services in many Maine communities after retirement.

Maine School of Ministry(MESOM) Updates

…from the Dean of the Maine School of Ministry— 
Rev. Dr. Malcolm Himschoot

The Maine School of Ministry runs five classes a year for anyone who wants to learn more about theology, including the heritage, practices, and possibilities of Christian faith. Our classes are taught by passionate practitioners and scholars of ministry, with experience across the globe and around the state. We match advanced certificate students in our program with mentored practice internships, and contribute to leadership development across the United Church of Christ.

ALSO— FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION AND CALENDAR 

June Intensive – Jun 5-7 at Pilgrim Lodge:
Christian Spirituality at Retirement

Description: Retire and Become A Saint! Practicing Christian Spirituality at a Major Life Transition, taught by Rev. Dr. Carol Kerr and Rev. Dr. Deb Jenks.  Coming Soon… For those whose lives are opening up in unknown ways at the end of a career, for those who might be following a call into ministry, and for those who are retiring from a parish pastor lifestyle. This course will focus on spiritual practices that ground human beings throughout times of transition, faithful practices that source fertile development of purpose no matter what.   Course credit (Leadership). Also satisfies ongoing clergy Boundaries Education requirement.

2024 Fellowship Dues Rates and IRS Mileage Rates

2024 Fellowship Dues for the Maine Conference will be $19.39/member.   Conference Dues fluctuate year to year by the federally-established COLA rate, unless changed by special vote of the Conference at Annual Meeting.  

2024 Fellowship Dues for the Cumberland Association are  $1.95/member.  

2024 Fellowship Dues for each church are calculated on the number of members reported as of December 31, 2023.  Membership MUST be reported to the UCC via the UCC Data Hub by each church.  If you do not file your statistics with the UCC data hub, your church’s dues will be calculated on the most recent statistics filed.  Data hub reporting is done in January or February each year. The Maine Conference Midweek News, which comes out on Wednesdays, will feature directions during January and February–or go to the Conference website: maineucc.org.

2024 dues statements will be sent to Cumberland Association congregations in the Spring. Both Conference and Association Dues are paid to the Cumberland Association via the Treasurer.  (Do not send Conference Dues directly to the Conference!  Why?  Oh, the history lesson you’ll get if you ask that question!   Note, however, that church treasurers should send Our Church’s Wider Mission–OCWM contributions directly to the Maine Conference, as well as UCC Special Offerings like One Great Hour of Sharing, Neighbors In Need, etc.)

Beginning on Jan. 1, 2024, the standard mileage rate for the use of a car (also vans, pickups or panel trucks) is 67 cents per mile for business miles driven. The tax-deductible mileage rate for volunteers (not employees) driving in service of charitable organizations:  $.14/mile (set by federal statute, not the IRS, and does not change annually).