Unity Hill United Church of Christ stands at 364 White Plains Road in Trumbull, where Sunday worship begins at 11:00 a.m. and continues into coffee and conversation in Lynch Hall. The church is known for a Sunday service that pairs traditional forms with newer elements, a strong family and youth program, small groups for adults and older adults, support for people with early dementia, and mission work that ranges from local food assistance to international relief.
Two Bridgeport Roots, One Trumbull Church
Unity Hill's story reaches back more than a century through two predecessor congregations with Bridgeport and Trumbull roots. On June 5, 1988, Trinity United Church of Christ and Park Street Congregational Church merged and incorporated as Unity Hill. The new congregation brought together 111 members and five associates from Trinity with 124 members and two associates from Park Street. Formal recognition followed on September 11, 1988, through the Fairfield East Association of the United Church of Christ. The Reverend Arlene B. Studer and the Reverend Harold C. Smith, D.D., who had served Park Street and Trinity respectively, became the merged church's co-pastors.
Trinity descended from the First Evangelical and Reformed Church, founded in Bridgeport in 1860. When the Evangelical and Reformed Christian Churches merged into the United Church of Christ, the congregation adopted the name Trinity United Church of Christ on January 1, 1966. Anticipating redevelopment in downtown Bridgeport, members authorized a social hall in Trumbull, later named Lynch Hall. Its corner stone was laid in 1970, and services moved there in 1973. Groundbreaking for the current sanctuary began on February 4, 1973, and the church dedicated it on April 29, 1974.
Park Street's history also reached into the nineteenth century. Its sanctuary and balcony filled to overflowing on holidays during the 1930s and 1940s, when Sunday school included 75 children and 10 teachers. Membership declined after World War II, and an active merger committee was selected by the mid-1980s. The union with Trinity was intended to create a more vital and effective church for the Greater Bridgeport area.
The Word at the Center of Shared Life
The Bible and God's living word form the church's foundation. Unity Hill understands God's family as the entire human race: all people are brothers and sisters and children of God, called to lean on one another and on Jesus. The church reads the Body of Christ as a community in which the gifts and graces of its members are shared. Its use of the United Church of Christ's God Is Still Speaking movement emphasizes what God is saying both to individuals and to the congregation.
Unity Hill's mission is to form mature disciples equipped to glorify God through belonging to God's family, serving in the church, and sharing faith in the community and beyond. Its vision rests on the conviction that small things done with great love can change the world. The congregation also describes itself as a community of faith that covenants to walk together as followers of Jesus Christ through worship, fellowship and outreach.
Sunday Worship, Coffee and a First Visit
Sunday worship begins at 11:00 a.m. in the sanctuary. The service combines traditional forms and newer elements in what the church calls an uplifting experience. Members and visitors may also worship through recordings on Unity Hill's YouTube channel. Those who remain after worship are welcome for coffee, conversation and fellowship in Lynch Hall.
Newcomers do not need a church background or familiarity with another worship tradition. A greeter meets each person at the door and provides a service bulletin that follows the order of worship. Visitors may choose any seat, follow the biblical readings with a Bible provided in each pew, and join the singing from the hymnal. Reading and singing are optional, and there are no tests before newcomers participate fully in the congregation's life.
There is no dress code. The range seen in the congregation includes jeans and T-shirts, flannel, suits and Sunday-best dresses, so each visitor can wear what feels comfortable. This open participation and varied dress accompany the church's simple message that all people are welcome.
Preaching and Music for the Whole Church
Pastor Todd has led Unity Hill since 2011. The Reverend Dr. M. Todd Shipley focuses on pastoral care for all and on faith formation across age groups. His preaching connects the sacred and the secular, even when they seem to be at odds, with an emphasis on teaching and encouragement. He previously served as a chaplain at Bridgeport Hospital and Vitas Hospice.
Music Coordinator Jeffrey Stokely plans, directs and performs for Sunday worship and other church events. He approaches music as prayer rather than a performance and combines classic hymns with contemporary songs. Soloists, guest musicians and young players add further styles, while a small group of handbell ringers occasionally fills the sanctuary with his arrangements. The musical mix can range from classical and hymns to pop, jazz and country, including occasional duets with Pastor Todd.
Kids Connection and Silver Lake Camp
Children and youth are welcome at worship. Kids Connection Sunday School meets at 11:00 a.m. from September through May, concurrent with the service, with classes for preschool children through eighth grade. The classes meet in dedicated rooms created for teaching, creative activity and fun while children consider what God has in store for them.
Unity Hill also offers a summer camp experience at UCC Silver Lake Camp in Sharon. Young people encounter nature, make new friends and explore faith across more than 60 acres of wooded land and lakeshore. The program is intended to provide a safe, fun and God-honoring environment where children can develop lifelong relationships while learning what it means to follow Jesus.
Groups That Turn Fellowship into Service
Small groups are one of Unity Hill's clearest expressions of fellowship. The church presents gathering as a way for people to grow in faith, and its named groups build connection around shared interests, life experience, encouragement and service.
The Fellowship of Unity Hill
The Fellowship of Unity Hill began in 1960 as a group for young adults to gather and socialize. Its identity expanded when Golden Hill Church in Bridgeport began feeding people on the street. Members of three or four cooked, stirred, fried or baked meals, then served them together, beginning a tradition that has lasted more than 50 years. The Fellowship has also raised money for church needs, including an air conditioner for the hall, and has formed lifelong friendships through shared meals, parties and service.
Adam's Men's Group
Adam's Men's Group meets on the first Wednesday of each month at 7:00 p.m. Members share Christian faith, build friendships and grow their knowledge of and connection with God. The group also organizes social outings and special activities and responds when a fellow member needs help.
Women's Fellowship and Welcoming Women
Women's Fellowship focuses on health and spirituality through shared lunches, informative or entertaining programs, encouragement and opportunities to serve. Its members take part in the CROP Hunger Walk and assemble hygiene kits for Church World Service. The group also encourages women to bring friends or relatives into its fellowship and outreach. Welcoming Women emphasizes deep friendships among congregants and the wider community, bringing women together for fun, inspiration and service.
George's Hill
George's Hill is a monthly social engagement group for people with memory loss or early dementia and their care partners. Meeting from 11:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. on the second Thursday, it offers art, music, games, exercise, conversation and companionship in a comfortable setting. A light lunch is served from noon to 12:30. Activities encourage physical, social and creative engagement, helping participants remain involved and connected for as long as possible. The group is named for George Brezina, a longtime Unity Hill church officer.
Food, Shelter and Care in Greater Bridgeport
Unity Hill's missions and outreach are practical and wide-ranging. The church works chiefly through established organizations while also collecting food and hygiene supplies and providing monthly Communion at a Trumbull residence. Its partnerships extend across Greater Bridgeport, the United States and Haiti.
Council of Churches of Greater Bridgeport. Through this council, Unity Hill helps meet the needs of people at risk and youth in crisis while working to break the cycle of poverty in the Greater Bridgeport area.
Bridgeport Rescue Mission. The mission provides vital services to men, women and children facing hunger, homelessness and addiction. Its work seeks to help people heal and return to the community whole.
Daughter of Charities. This grassroots rescue mission serves people experiencing poverty in Bridgeport. Unity Hill helps meet needs for food, clothing and other necessities while supporting efforts that address underlying causes of poverty and help people become self-sufficient.
Trumbull Food Pantry. Unity Hill has donated food to the pantry for many years and organizes collections throughout the year, including special holiday collections. The pantry supplies food to people in need across the local community.
Community Suppers. For 30 years, Unity Hill has supported the community meals cooked and served every other month at Golden Hill United Methodist Church. The church contributes both finances and volunteers to the program, which provides a hot meal to anyone who is hungry.
Communion at Middlebrook Farms. On the second Wednesday of every month at 3:00 p.m., Pastor Todd and Carole Fanslow provide Communion for Middlebrook Farms residents in Trumbull. Unity Hill has offered this monthly service for more than 20 years.
Mission Work Across Borders
Church World Service. Unity Hill collects and distributes hygiene and school kits each year. Winter collections also fund blankets delivered to families affected by hurricanes, tornadoes, flooding and other crises, as well as homelessness and poverty.
CROP Hunger Walk. Unity Hill joins the annual CROP Hunger Walk, a nationwide movement sponsored by Church World Service. The walk raises funds to address hunger and poverty in the United States and around the world.
Haitian Helping Hands. Through this partnership, Unity Hill supports Living Jesus Church in Tiby, Haiti, and the surrounding community. Past mission trips to Port-au-Prince included work to rebuild a church and school and to deliver food and supplies to people recovering from the earthquake of 2010.
Our Church's Wider Mission. Unity Hill supports the United Church of Christ's youth, pastors, churches and missions through Our Church's Wider Mission. It also contributes to four Special Mission Offerings: One Great Hour of Sharing, Strengthen the Church, Neighbors in Need and The Christmas Fund. This support earned the church a Five for Five certificate.
A Step-Free Entrance on White Plains Road
Unity Hill's group gatherings are accessible to people using wheelchairs or those who have difficulty with mobility. Those individuals may enter through the kitchen door at the back, where there are no steps to negotiate. The church also has accessible bathrooms. The rear entrance and accessible facilities support the monthly meetings of Adam's Men's Group, Women's Fellowship, Welcoming Women and George's Hill.
Unity Hill's shared life remains centered on the Word, worship at 11:00 a.m., fellowship in Lynch Hall, education for children, companionship across generations and service directed beyond its own walls. The congregation walks together as followers of Jesus Christ through worship, fellowship and outreach.