Two Centuries at the Corner of Center and Main
For more than two hundred years, Center Congregational Church has stood at the intersection of Center and Main streets in downtown Manchester, Connecticut, a spiritual and historic landmark at the heart of the village center. The congregation traces its roots to the early nineteenth century, when Manchester was a young manufacturing town, and it has gathered at the same corner through every chapter of the village's life since. Today the members describe their common work with three short phrases that frame everything they do: Nourished by Faith. United in Diversity. Called to Mission.
Center Church is a 5 for 5 congregation of the United Church of Christ, meaning it leads and supports every one of the UCC's Wider Mission and Special Mission offerings: One Great Hour of Sharing, Strengthen The Church, Neighbors in Need, and The Christmas Fund. The church is also an open and affirming congregation, a practice that Pastor Joyce O. Crutchfield sums up in plain language: "No matter who you are or where you are on life's journey - you are welcome here. Jesus didn't turn people away; neither do we."
Sunday Worship at 10 a.m.
Sunday morning worship is the rhythm around which life at Center Church turns. Services are held at 10:00 a.m. in the sanctuary, with Holy Communion celebrated on the first Sunday of every month. Visitors who cannot make it in person can join Pastor Joyce on Facebook Live or YouTube at the same hour; recordings are posted the following day for anyone who wants to revisit the service or catch up later.
The order of worship includes prayers, scripture, a sermon, congregational singing, and a Children's Chat, after which the children are dismissed to their Sunday School classes. Communion Sundays adjust this pattern slightly: on those mornings the children leave during the hymn after the sacrament. Scripture readings use the Common English Bible, and the worship life of the church reflects the United Church of Christ's long commitment to spiritual discernment, community, and the celebration of the diversity of all God's children. Weekly bulletins, monthly newsletters, and special announcements are all posted online for those who want to follow the life of the congregation from week to week.
The Pastor: Joyce O. Crutchfield
Pastor Joyce O. Crutchfield has been the minister of Center Congregational Church for sixteen years. She and her wife, Cathy, moved to Manchester from Cheshire, Connecticut, more than eighteen years ago and quickly grew to love what Pastor Joyce calls "The City of Village Charm." Together they enjoy hiking, gardening, and time by the shore.
A 1984 graduate of Southern Connecticut State University and a 2004 graduate of Andover Newton Theological School, Pastor Joyce came to ordained ministry after a career in social work, primarily in the area of public health. Although she was raised in the Episcopal Church, she found her spiritual home in the United Church of Christ. "The UCC's commitment to spiritual discernment, community, and the celebration of the diversity of all God's children underlie the work of this denomination," she writes.
She often returns to two passages in her preaching and teaching. From Isaiah 40:26-31 she draws the reminder of God's abiding presence. From Mark 12:28-31 she lifts up Jesus' answer to the question of the greatest commandment: "The most important one is Israel, listen! Our God is the one Lord, and you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your being, with all your mind, and with all your strength. The second is this, You will love your neighbor as yourself. No other commandment is greater than these." Her own summary of the congregation is simple: "We are far from perfect but willing to learn and grow."
Faith Formation for Children and Youth
Faith Formation at Center Church is led by Denise Knox, who has served as the Faith Formation Director since 2017 and holds a degree in Early Childhood Education. She is in the church office on Wednesdays from 9:00 a.m. to noon, and parents can reach her at 860-647-9941, extension 2.
Sunday School runs from September through June, with two classes meeting during the 10:00 a.m. service. Children in the Toddler through 2nd Grade class and the 3rd Grade through 6th Grade class are dismissed from the sanctuary after the Children's Chat and head to their rooms for Bible stories, arts and crafts, music, and prayer. Classes wrap up around 11:15 a.m. On Communion Sundays, children leave during the hymn after the sacrament. Children must be registered to attend on a weekly basis. Two highlights of the year invite the children into the wider worship life of the congregation: the Christmas Pageant and the Faith Formation Recognition Service. A Children's Choir also performs several times throughout the year.
For older youth, a Youth Group for 6th through 8th graders meets one Sunday a month, September through June, from 11:00 a.m. to 12:00 noon. Activities include games, crafts, cooking, and life lesson discussions.
Confirmation is offered to baptized youth aged fifteen and older. Classes meet twice monthly from October through June of the following year, on Sunday mornings from 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at the church, and conclude with a special worship service at which the Confirmands are confirmed and welcomed as full members. A class requires at least four registered students to run.
Music in a Rebuilding Season
Music is central to worship at Center Church, and the music ministry is openly in a rebuilding phase. The director, Danielle Hoehn, came to the role with deep roots in both church music and sacred music studies. She is a graduate of The Hartt School of Music, where she earned a Bachelor of Music in vocal performance, and of Yale Divinity School, where she earned a Master of Arts in Religion with cooperative study through the Institute of Sacred Music. While at Yale she served as the organist of Marquand Chapel, which hosts daily ecumenical worship services. She spent twenty-five years as one of the mezzo-soprano section leaders for the concert series at the First Church of Christ in Wethersfield, and her career has included church music posts across Connecticut. A native of upstate New York who has lived in Connecticut for thirty-six years, she shares her life with her husband Michael, a Manchester firefighter of twenty-two years. Before returning to church music full-time, she also served as a Manchester police officer for eleven years, working in patrol, domestic violence response, and crisis intervention, an experience that deepened her connection to the community she now serves in a different way.
Two ensembles anchor the music program. The Handbell Choir rehearses Wednesday evenings from 6:00 to 7:00 p.m. in the music room, and welcomes anyone interested in ringing, with the understanding that ringers who cannot commit weekly can join for the rehearsals leading up to Thanksgiving, Christmas, Lent, and Easter. The Chancel Choir rehearses Wednesdays from 7:00 to 8:30 p.m. and presents anthems at weekly worship and at special services throughout the liturgical year. The Chancel Choir is open to anyone high school age and older who loves to sing. Instrumentalists are also encouraged to share their gifts: the church's choral and handbell libraries already include anthems scored for trumpets, flute, cello, percussion, recorder, guitar, electric bass, and harp.
The Director of Music/Organist position, posted as a part-time opening of approximately fourteen hours per week, is an active recruitment as the music ministry continues to rebuild. The role directs both choirs, accompanies services on organ, piano, or keyboard, supervises paid section leaders, and serves as a non-voting member of the Music Committee.
Troop 25 and a Century of Scouting
For more than a century, the church building has been the home of Boy Scout Troop 25. The troop was founded in 1916 and has been based at Center Congregational Church since the beginning, making it one of the longest continuously chartered troops in the area. Troop 25 currently has 66 Boy Scouts and 50 active adult leaders, supported by a wide alumni base. Over 450 of its Scouts have earned the rank of Eagle Scout, a remarkable record for any single troop.
The troop's structured seven-year program keeps Scouts engaged in age-appropriate activities and emphasizes the values of citizenship, cooperation, courage, health and fitness, honesty, perseverance, resourcefulness, respect, and personal responsibility. In addition to weekly meetings at Center Church during the school year, the troop goes on seven weekend camping trips. It owns its own camp, Camp Kirkham, in southern New Hampshire, where Scouts spend two weeks each August. Membership is open to boys who are at least eleven years old, will turn eleven during the year, or are in the fifth grade, with older boys and those new to Scouting also welcome. The troop does not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, sexuality, color, or national origin. New recruits typically begin in March and are inducted at a Court of Honor in May.
A Cub Scout pack also meets at the church on Thursday evenings from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m., and Girl Scouts of Connecticut uses the building on a seasonal basis.
CCC Now: A Community for Younger Adults and Families
CCC Now is a community group at Center Congregational Church designed for younger adults, families, and children to connect, build friendships, and grow together in faith and fellowship. The group meets weekly on Tuesdays from 6:00 to 7:00 p.m. in the Robbins Room for casual gatherings that may include potluck dinners, conversations, family activities, outings, and opportunities to support one another and become more involved in church life. Friends and newcomers are always welcome.
Neighbors Who Use the Building
Center Church has long been more than a Sunday-only building. In addition to the Scouts, the church hosts several non-profit organizations on a weekly or seasonal basis. The National Alliance on Mental Illness, known as NAMI, is the nation's largest grassroots mental health organization, dedicated since 1979 to building better lives for the millions of Americans affected by mental illness. NAMI affiliates meet at the church up to three times a week, with regular Tuesday and Wednesday gatherings at 4:00 p.m.
Greater Hartford Legal Aid provides free legal advice to clients at the church every Monday from 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. in the Robbins Room. The organization's mission is to achieve equal justice for poor people, to work with clients to promote social justice, and to address the effects and root causes of poverty. A weekly prayer group gathers on Thursday mornings, and a Faith Formation planning meeting is held Sunday mornings at 9:00 a.m. before the worship service.
Baptism, Membership, and the Wider Church
Baptism at Center Church is understood as a covenant between God, the Church, and the person being baptized, or for an infant, his or her parents. Baptisms are scheduled with the worship calendar in mind and take place during regular Sunday services.
Anyone considering membership is encouraged to attend Sunday services for at least three months, then participate in a short series of New Members Classes (usually no more than two sessions), and finally join in a new members rite during a Sunday service. Members have opportunities to serve on committees, mission outreach activities, fundraising events, field trips, and fellowship programs. The church also belongs to the wider UCC family, supporting Our Church's Wider Mission and the four special mission offerings that make it a 5 for 5 church.
A Building Open to All
Center Church is fully accessible to people of all abilities, with a ramp from the parking lot to the entry and an elevator serving all floors inside the building. The building includes the Robbins Room, Woodruff Hall, the music room, the sanctuary, and additional meeting spaces that are available for community use, including for weddings, funerals, and memorial services. Online giving is available through a secure portal that accepts one-time and recurring gifts. Winter storm closings are listed on the church's Facebook page and on WFSB (Channel 3) and WVIT (Channel 4) under the listings for Center Church or Center Cong. Church, Manchester.
At 11 Center Street, the same brick building that anchored the corner of Center and Main two centuries ago continues to gather the village for worship, music, scouting, prayer, and the work of being neighbors to one another.