Annual Meeting – February 19, 2012
Our annual meeting will be held after church service on February 19th. It will also feature a Pot Luck luncheon. Please bring your favorite pot luck dish to share.
Rev. Rene A. Perez, District Superintendent of the Central Massachusetts District of the United Methodist Church, will be in attendance.
All members are encouraged to attend and cast their votes. Non-members are also invited. However, only members can vote. If you have been thinking about church membership, please speak to Pastor Hannelore as soon as possible.
Interim Minister hired at The Federated Church of Ayer
Rev. Hannelore Nalesnik is the interim pastor at the Federated Church of Ayer. Originally hired for seven months, her time here has recently been extended until May 31, 2012. She and her family live at the parsonage on Highland Avenue.
A welcome pot luck luncheon was held for her and her family after church on Sunday, November 14.
Rev. Hannelore, pronounced Han-na-lor-ah, is originally from North Andover and is the daughter of two United Church of Christ pastors. She attended college in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, at Moravian College and continued her education at the Moravian Theological Seminary.
When asked why a New England girl would chose to go to college in Pennsylvania, she replied, “I went to a festival with my mother while I was in high school. It was at Moravian College and I enjoyed walking the campus and imagining myself as a student there. I applied in my junior year and got an early acceptance. I was excited that I didn’t have to worry about that in my senior year.”
Rev. Hannelore is married to Rev. Thomas Nalesnik and they served as co-pastors at their last church and would like to have the opportunity to work together in that capacity in the future. They have two daughters who Rev. Hannelore refers to as, “my hope”. Nadia, which means ‘hope’ in Russian, is ten years old. Her younger sister, Esperanza, which means ‘hope’ in Spanish, is six. They are attending Page Hilltop School.
Along with husband and children, the family also has two dogs, Walle and Miko. Rev. Hannelore enjoys exercise and you will probably see her about town walking and running with the dogs. She also enjoys bike riding and looks forward to taking advantage of our bike trail. Two guinea pigs, Lone Star and Winkie make up the rest of the family.
“The Federated Church has a small yet vibrant congregation. They have a strong commitment to mission and help support various ministries in the local community. Through their ministry many in the local and wider communities are touched with God’s love, and I look forward to helping the congregation prepare for a long and promising future with their next pastor,” said Rev. Hannelore Nalesnik.
At the time of her initial hiring, former church moderator Marie Paige commented, "We are happy to have Pastor Hannelore on board with us over the next several months. We look forward to a day of welcome on November 14th and hope everyone will join us as we move into the holidays."
Rev. Hannelore Nalesnik would like to be called 'Pastor Hannelore', or 'Pastor H'.
The Federated Church is composed of three denominations which include the United Church of Christ, American Baptist, and United Methodist. The pastors rotate among the denominations. The last pastor was a United Church of Christ pastor. The next pastor, who will be arriving in July 2012, with be with the United Methodist Church.
Electric Updating
In the life of any building, it comes time to refurbish it. Last year we celebrated the repair of our bell tower and are now enjoying the former Plantation Bell call us to worship once more.
Our project for being good stewards for our church at the close of 2009 and the beginning of 2010 was the complete updating of the electrical system throughout the building. Ruel Electric from Fitchburg did an outstanding job working in our Sanctuary for several months and then in the other parts of the church.
The Chapel's Stained Glass
