From the River Landing to 31 Main Street
St. Stephen's Episcopal Church stands on Main Street in the village of East Haddam, Connecticut, not far from the Connecticut River and the famed swing bridge. Its roots reach to 1750, when the Rev. Ebenezer Punderson, a traveling minister of the Church of England, first held services in town. After the disruptions of the Revolutionary War scattered most Anglican worshippers, the local society was disbanded. The congregation that became St. Stephen's took shape in 1791, when roughly thirty-two members of East Haddam's First Church of Christ left in a dispute over the planned location of a new meeting house. Most of them lived near the river landings, and the long walk to Town Street made another option a practical necessity.
Within months, these founders were recognized and confirmed as members of the Episcopal Church, elected their first officers, and began raising funds to build. Their first sanctuary was completed in 1795 on a hill overlooking the river landings along what is now Porges Road. St. Stephen's is believed to be the last church consecrated by Bishop Samuel Seabury in America. Twelve pieces of hardware from that original building - hand-wrought iron work made by the local Warner family of blacksmiths - are now part of the collection of the Wadsworth Atheneum in Hartford.
A Fieldstone Sanctuary Consecrated in 1890
That first building served the parish for about a century. In the early 1890s, Judge Julius Attwood, a member of St. Stephen's Vestry for over forty-seven years, gave the church the land where it still stands. By 1890 a new sanctuary had been built from fieldstone and mortar in a striking combination of Victorian styles, most notably Shingle and Gothic Revival - a marked departure from the colonial meeting house that preceded it.
The interior carries many Gothic touches: lancets, friezes, quatre-foils, and decorated hammer beams, with three elaborately carved panels on the main altar table. Seven stained glass windows line the nave, and three more stand behind and above the altar. The central panel depicts the parish's patron, Saint Stephen, with the inscription of his words before his martyrdom: "Behold, I see the heavens opened" (Acts 7:56). The building was consecrated on May 1, 1890, and afterward the congregation processed to the Gelston House for the celebration dinner. Over the years, additions have included the bell tower, the Rectory (now used for offices and classrooms), and the Fellowship Hall that connects them.
Sunday Mornings at 8 and 10
Worship on Sunday is offered twice, in two distinct settings. At 8 a.m. the congregation gathers in St. Stephen's Chapel for a contemplative service that includes Morning Prayer and communion. This early hour is intentionally intimate and is offered in person only; it is not livestreamed.
At 10 a.m., the full Eucharistic service with music gathers the larger community in the sanctuary. Voices are lifted in song, and the service is both livestreamed and recorded to YouTube for those who cannot be present. Several Sundays each month carry a particular emphasis. The second Sunday is Integrated Family Ministry Sunday, designed with families and young children in mind, with a story sermon, activities and crafts after church, and many opportunities for kids and teens (ages four and up) to take on worship roles such as carrying the cross, reading scripture, helping at the altar, or ringing the bell.
On the third Sunday, Morning Prayer is led by licensed lay preachers; the 8 a.m. service remains a quiet hour in the chapel, and the 10 a.m. service is led by the choir. There is no Eucharist on these lay-led Sundays. When a month contains a fifth Sunday, the day is set aside as a Healing Sunday: combined with the Communion service, a special litany for healing is offered, and partway through the service worshippers are invited to come forward for healing prayers and the laying on of hands at the altar rail. Everything is optional.
Mid-Week on Zoom and Around Town
Beyond Sundays, the rhythm of prayer continues on Tuesday and Thursday mornings at 8 a.m., when St. Stephen's gathers online via Zoom for a less-formal session of Morning Prayer. Aimed at starting the day centered and spiritually energized, the gathering is open to anyone with the link.
On the first and third Tuesdays of each month, members of St. Stephen's join residents of Commonwealth Senior Living in Haddam for Bible study from 6 to 7 p.m. No preparation or homework is expected. Guest parking is available in front of and behind the building, and visitors sign in at the front desk before heading to the recreation room.
On the first Wednesday of each month, the Rev. Erin Flinn and lay minister Cherry Czuba visit Commonwealth Senior Living for community worship. Services are held at Senior Living at 10 a.m. and at the Sweet Memories memory unit at 10:30 a.m., with singing, prayer, and shared conversation. On the second Wednesday, the Rev. Erin leads an additional worship hour during the week for residents who cannot easily come to Sunday services. The Sweet Memories service is offered jointly with St. James Episcopal Church in Higganum, and the two parishes have been sharing in this ministry since 2013.
Children, Godly Play, and the Whole Family
Children are welcomed as full members of the worshipping community. Crayons and books are available for those who like to color, and toys and a changing table are set out in the parish house. Worshippers may hear children making noise or see parents stepping in and out to tend little ones; that presence is, in the parish's own words, a blessing.
The Sunday School program, led by Director of Children's Ministry Ms. Jenn Dugan ("Ms. Jenn"), draws upon the Godly Play curriculum, a Montessori-based approach that uses sacred stories, reflection, and hands-on creative response. Sessions are geared toward children ages three to nine and begin each Sunday between 9:50 and 10:00 a.m.; children rejoin the congregation in time for Eucharist, except on lay-led Sundays, when they remain in the classroom for the full service.
Ms. Jenn brings twenty-five years of experience in early childhood education, including sixteen as Head Teacher at Young Horizons, where she develops curriculum aligned with Connecticut Early Learning and Development Standards. Youth ages ten and up are encouraged to take on meaningful roles in worship as acolytes and worship leaders, and older children may serve as teaching assistants during the Godly Play reflection time. Nursery care is offered on the fourth Sunday of each month during the 10 a.m. service, with a lead attendant who is Safe Church trained and two adults always present in the room.
A Choir Led by Steven Fasano
Music is central to the 10 a.m. Eucharistic service. The Director of Music, Steven Fasano, brings more than twenty years of church music leadership in Connecticut. A section leader and soloist at Asylum Hill Congregational Church in Hartford, he has also served as music director at Asbury United Methodist Church in Bristol and the United Methodist Church of Middletown, and he performs with the Schola Cantorum at the Cathedral of Saint Joseph in Hartford.
Fasano's training includes degrees from Westminster Choir College, the University of Connecticut, and Central Connecticut State University, where he is currently pursuing a Doctor of Education focused on belonging, equity, and inclusion. He also teaches in the public schools and serves on the faculty of the Yale Music and Schools Initiative in New Haven. Choir rehearsal takes place on Wednesdays from 7 to 8 p.m. in St. Stephen's Chapel.
Communitas and the Younger Generations
St. Stephen's is one of a cohort of congregations taking part in a two-year innovation process with the Communitas Innovation Hub at Yale Divinity School. The program, which targets young adults roughly ages twenty-two to thirty, trains congregations in design thinking and ministry innovation, pairs them with a young adult coach, and provides grant funding for initiatives led by young people themselves. The goal is to listen to the hopes, dreams, and wisdom of a generation often absent from church life and to cultivate connections between lived experience, spirituality, and community.
Locally, Communitas gatherings take place in East Haddam and beyond. All are welcome - Gen Z, friends, singles, families as defined by the individual, churchgoers and non-churchgoers alike. The young adult ministry also hosts seasonal and topical Bible studies, book groups, and special workshops for adults looking to keep growing in faith.
Reaching Out: Harvest House
Sunday afternoons at 5 p.m., the parish hall opens its doors for Harvest House, a free community meal hosted by St. Stephen's and served by volunteers. As the parish puts it, whether guests hunger for food or for community, all are fed here. The meal runs weekly, and volunteers are always welcome.
Life's Big Moments
Baptism, confirmation, marriage, and funerals are at the heart of parish life. Baptism is described as the start of a lifelong journey - the means of joining Christ's Body, the local congregation, and the wider church, and the link to the great cloud of witnesses stretching back through history. Confirmation preparation is offered for both young people and adults who wish to deepen their relationship with God, affirm their identity as Episcopalians, and recommit to God's mission. Those confirmed in another Christian tradition may be received into The Episcopal Church.
Couples considering marriage or the blessing of a civil union begin with an initial meeting with the priest-in-charge, the Rev. Erin Flinn; wedding dates are not booked before that first conversation. The couple is asked to contact the clergy at least sixty days in advance, though six months or more is recommended, allowing time for four to six premarital sessions and the planning of the ceremony itself. Funerals at St. Stephen's are understood as Easter liturgies, shaped by the certainty of resurrection. Joy and grief walk together, the parish notes, because "neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities... will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord."
A Place for the Whole Community
St. Stephen's is a resource beyond its sanctuary walls. The Parish Hall and a commercial kitchen are available for community meetings, parties, and events, and the kitchen has been a launching pad for new food-based businesses. A rental agreement, alcohol policy, and inquiry form are available, with all rental questions directed to the parish office.
Local groups make regular use of the facilities: the East Haddam Garden Club meets in the parish hall, and renters like Well Baked Co. and Mindi Murphy's Underground Grocery fill the commercial kitchen with activity. The parish hall also hosts the St. Stephen's Book Club on the third Friday of most months at 1:30 p.m., diving into books of all genres; newcomers are welcome even if they only finished part of the book.
Leadership and Staff
The Rev. Erin Flinn serves as Rector, with the Rev. Maggie Labinski as Supply Priest. Ms. Jenn Dugan leads the children's ministry, and Steven Fasano directs the music program. The parish is governed by a Vestry with Co-Wardens William Faye and John Blake, Treasurer Ruth Vitale, and Clerk Mary Sawyer, alongside members Glenn Brielmann, Patty Flanagan, Marissa Goodnight, Cindy Hatchett, Andy Lavigne, Michael Lillpopp, Mary Sawyer, Mary Shepherd, and Bob Thompson.
The church office is open Tuesday and Thursday from noon to 6 p.m. and by appointment. Visitors and newcomers are welcome at any service - "whoever you are, wherever you find yourself on life's journey, whatever questions dwell in your heart, you are welcome here." The parish stands across from the Rathbun Library, a short walk from the East Haddam swing bridge, the Gelston House, and the Goodspeed Opera House, on land that once also held the historic Nathan Hale Schoolhouse, now preserved above and behind the church by the Connecticut Society of the Sons of the American Revolution.