During the 2023 – 2024 church year, the Future Task Force was formed to explore possibilities and decide our path forward as a beloved community. The task force hired an outside consultant to help guide it and sought feedback from the congregation. This effort became known as Our Blue Sky Future. A report containing recommendations was presented to the congregation at the Annual Meeting in June 2024 in which a number of actions for the coming year were proposed. Since then an Implementation Committee and two sub committees have been formed: a Communications Committee and a Sanctuary Renovation Committee.
The Communications Committee has further organized itself into several subgroups, including those considering Screens for the sanctuary, those focusing on Local Media, on the Website, and on external Signage. There is a proposal to install two large video screens in the sanctuary, but until that project can be completed, the large screen now in Parish Hall may be moved to the sanctuary to gauge congregational reaction.
We have been posting regularly to several local media sites, including the Swellesley Report and other sites specific to communities in Newton and Needham, among others, and also on various social media sites. Here is an example of one of these posts:
As a side note, one of the posts about the Animal Blessing service brought a new visitor to the service that Sunday.
The website group is working to update content relating to the music program, social action, Blue Sky, and more, and is evaluating the need for a complete re-creation of the site itself.
The signage group, having installed the directional signs on our campus, is now developing ideas for other signage to publicize our values to the public at large. The three signs under consideration are the large banner on the church, the large fixed sign near the sidewalk, and a new banner. The subgroup will bring a group of 3-5 options to the full committee, with final approval in the hands of the Board and Minister.
One of the new directional signs
The Sanctuary Renovation Committee has similarly reorganized into smaller groups focusing on esthetics (short-term changes), and longer term proposals such as catering to the arts, possible removal of the pews, and the financial impact of any such modifications.
Keep your eye on this page over the coming year for further developments!
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Click the links below to review some of the data that was gathered by the Future Task Force:
In September 2023, the congregation met to hear a presentation from consultant Sarai Rice. Below are some links to information shared during that meeting, and a video to the meeting itself.
Reflection from Blue Sky Future Chair
During a Sunday service in December 2023, the chair of our Blue Sky Future Task Force, Kathy Kaufmann, offered some reflections on the work that the Task Force is doing and on what’s coming up. You can read her entire reflection HERE.