ASHFIELD — The First Congregational Church (UCC) of Ashfield will celebrate the Rev. Ann Hallstein and Nancy Sykes on Sunday at 10 a.m. The two women led Sunday worship for the last 15 months. Hallstein and Sykes will conduct the service and the congregation will host an extended coffee hour afterward to thank them. They have held, nurtured and loved the congregation during this interim period. All are welcome. The church is at 429 Main St.
HALIFAX, Vt. — The Halifax Union Society concludes its worship season this Sunday, Sept. 1, with a 6 p.m. service at the church at 44 Stowe Mountain Road in Halifax Center. The Rev. Dr. Marcia Dorey is pastor and organist Merrillyn Courser leads the singing of hymns requested by the congregation. A potluck supper starting at 4:30 will precede the service. Those attending the supper are asked to bring a dish to share. Donations of nonperishable food items will go to the Deerfield Valley Food Pantry. All are invited.
ASHFIELD — Please join us at St John’s Church at the Corner House, 469 Main St., on Friday, Sept 6, at 2 p.m. to help fill backpacks for women in transition from jail back to the community. We have everything to fill the packs — just need your hands to help fill them. This is a fun and meaningful way to help make a difference at a critical time. Contact Mary Link at 413-628-4695 if you have any questions.
CONWAY — “Establishing Inner Peace,” a public talk with authorized Santi Maha Sangha instructor Oliver Leich, is set for Friday, Sept. 6, 7 p.m., at Tsegyalgar East, 18 Schoolhouse Road.
ASHFIELD — Mary D’Allesandro, the Episcopal Chaplain at Western Massachusetts Regional Women’s Correctional Center, will be the guest preacher on Sunday, Sept. 8, at St. John’s Episcopal Church. Services start at 10 a.m., followed by a coffee hour.
We anticipate the service will include sharing about the impact our backpacks have for the women who receive them when they are transitioning from incarceration to community. Consider bringing personal care supplies, nonperishable snack foods, blank journals, small notebooks, pens or small flashlights to contribute to filling future backpacks for our Love in a Backpack ministry. If you can’t make the service, you may drop off such items at the church at any time. St John’s is on the corner of South and Main streets in the center of Ashfield.
TURNERS FALLS — On Sunday, Sept. 8, National Grandparents Day, Our Lady of Peace Church will join in honoring and giving thanks for grandparents.
It is through them that we are rooted in our tradition, and it is from them that we gain the wisdom of accumulated experience, and a very special love. And very often it is grandparents that introduce and model faith for the young. Pope Francis speaks quite often about the distinct role that grandparents play in the transmission of the faith.
He realizes that you don’t need a degree to be a successful grandparent; you need to be there with acceptance and love either in person or by frequent communication when grandchildren live at a distance. In many of his audiences, Pope Francis notes that some children do not even know how to make the sign of the cross. Sharing the faith begins with such simplicity. At all our Masses that weekend, we will honor grandparents in a special way. Our Lady of Peace is at 90 7th St.
CONWAY — “The Seven Body Types According to Tibetan Medicine,” a public talk with Manpa Phuntsog Wangmo (Ping Cuowangmu), director of Tibetan School of Medicine, is set for Saturday, Sept. 21, at 5 p.m. at Tsegyalgar East, 18 Schoolhouse Road.
GREENFIELD — On Sunday, Sept. 22, at 9 a.m., there will be one combined service at The Episcopal Church of Saints James and Andrew for Fall Festival Sunday. The worship will feature the return of our choir, a special welcome to newcomers, a prayer of thanks for the longtime ministry of the Episcopal Church Women as they conclude their ministry, and will celebrate the creation season. Immediately following will be a special coffee hour and a ministry fair in our parish hall. The church is at 8 Church St. To learn more, call 413-773-3925 or visit www.saintsjamesandandrew.org.
GREENFIELD — On Sunday, Oct. 6, during the 8 and 10 a.m. services at the Episcopal Church of Saints James and Andrew, we will bless our pets, backyard farm animals, stuffed animals and photos of our pets during our worship services. Every creature is beloved by God; bring yours to be blessed. 8 Church St. To learn more, call 413-773-3925 or visit www.saintsjamesandandrew.org.
CONWAY — The October monthly movie night educational series will present “Blessings: The Tsoknyi Nangchen Nuns of Tibet,” directed by Victress Hitchcock, narrated by Richard Gere. 7 p.m. at Tsegyalgar East, 18 Schoolhouse Road.