home - Sanbornton Congregational Church, UCC

Welcome!

The Sanbornton Congregational Church, UCC in Sanbornton, New Hampshire welcomes you! Worship services are offered every Sunday. Ministries are served all throughout the week. Weddings and baptisms are held in our historic sanctuary throughout the year. Join us for worship and fellowship!

A Dynamic and Strong Ministry Team

Our Pastor, Rev. Patrice Borst Ficken was called to our church on January 11, 2004. She has a Master of Divinity from Andover Newton Theological School and a Master of Business Administration from Boston University. She brings a breadth of interests and experience and comes to us from the spiritual community of The Old South Church in Boston. Her provocative sermons make us think. We have a strong and committed lay leadership team who are actively engaged in the life of the church. In our denomination, all members are considered ministers of the church, each serving God and the church with unique talents and gifts. There are many exciting opportunities to learn, serve and grow within our church community.

Open and Affirming

We affirm that all people are embraced within the family of God and the community of this congregation. We welcome people of every race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender, age, economic class, physical or mental ability, and any other of the diverse attributes that are woven into the fabric of humankind. As participants in the life of this church, everyone is encouraged to share worship, membership, ministry, and leadership in our congregation. more...

A Peace with Justice Church

We endeavor to speak out against words and deeds of injustice and violence in ourselves, our families, our community, our state, and our world, and to provide a safe place for all people of good will to converse with God and each other.

A Small But Lively Sunday School

Our Church School Program - Nursery (birth through age 2), Preschool (ages 3 through age 5), Grades 1 & 2, Grades 3 & 4, and Grades 5 through 8 - is enhanced by dedicated and enthusiastic teachers. Our children have fun while learning and their voices ring out each Sunday in our lively Junior Choir. A significant increase in enrollment has occurred over the past few years.

We currently are using Cokesbury curriculum, Rock Solid for the younger children and One Room Sunday School for the older children.

Our program follows the school year and during the summer there is the opportunity for the children to participate in our UCC Camping Programs at Geneva Point on Lake Winnipesaukee or the Horton Center in the White Mountains.

Our children have enthusiastically participated in the UNICEF Trick or Treat collection, collected food for the Food Pantry, taken a trip to Heifer International’s Overlook Farm in Rutland, MA., and collected a sizeable amount for Pennies for Peace.

Our church is in the process of ‘going green’. Ideas were developed and then incorporated into the life of our children. This connects our children to the adults in the church and keeps them active in the growing life of our church. A skit about the Garbage Monster was performed by the children on Children’s Sunday. To send our message out to the community, the children and adults built a float for Sanbornton Old Home Day, carried sandwich boards encouraging recycling, and passed out bookmarks giving green tips and advertising our Open House that we have each September.

Music-Loving

We are blessed to have one of the finest small church choirs in New Hampshire. Our choir director, Dennis Akerman, was the first commissioned Minister of Music in the New Hampshire Conference of the UCC. We also have the services of a distinguished organist, Douglas Embree.

Mission-Oriented

We help to support many local, national, and international agencies that provide hunger relief, disaster relief, shelter, funds for resettlement, and tools for building a better life. We provide transportation and other services to elderly and disabled people in our own and surrounding communities.