TABCOM ANNUAL GATHERING IS ON!
Friday and Saturday, May 6 – 7, 2022
This event will be held at our old stomping ground, the Doubletree Hotel in Leominster!
FEATURING – Re-Imagining Church: Congregational Transformation in the New Reality,
a Fresh Expression experience.
We are prayerfully preparing for an in-person event. See COVID precautions below.
Go here to reserve your room by April 22nd.
- At the top there is a “special rates” button. In the group code space, use the code: CDTAME
- Room rates are $149.00 + tax per night for either a King or 2 Queens.
- If you have any issues, please call 978-534-9000 to reserve your room(s). Let them know that you are reserving a room for the TABCOM (American Baptist Churches of Massachusetts) group rate (CDTAME).
See information below with more to come some time next week.
COVID-19 POLICY FOR THE ANNUAL GATHERING
Masks are Required in all Annual Gathering indoor spaces, except at times of eating/drinking.
Thank you for honoring the complexities of this pandemic, and the myriad comfort levels of engagement folks feel called to in this time.
In an effort to meet in the middle, we respectfully request that all attendees mask for the health and comfort of those around them in indoor spaces. Masks can be taken down or removed for eating and drinking, but we ask that they be replaced after eating/drinking, and that they be worn for group singing. Those speakers facilitating times of worship or business, fellowship or workshopping, may take their masks down at the podium or while presenting, replacing them when returning to the gathered body. We understand and respect that there may be some who do not feel comfortable joining in meals or being in group settings – we support your agency and decisions toward your health and wellbeing, and invite you to take a meal outside or bring a lunch or dinner with you. Thank you all for agreeing to be a part of this journey together, and for all you have offered to one another of kindness, compassion and grace throughout these past two years. Masks are a small inconvenience for the wellbeing and comfort of our neighbors. I am grateful for your willingness to care for one another so well. We will request additional spacing at tables for meal times in an effort to curb the spread of any contagion other than joy 🙂
Blessings,
Daryn Stylianopoulos, TABCOM Board President
TENTATIVE SCHEDULE
FRIDAY, MAY 6
| 9:00am | ABHMS Breakfast with Meg Biddle – Coordinator Training |
| 12:00pm | Women in Ministry Lunch |
| 12:00pm | Staff/ Coordinators Lunch |
| 2:00pm | Partner Meetings |
| TBD | Coordinators/Liaisons |
| TBD | Youth |
| 6:00pm | Dinner/Worship (Fresh Expressions Keynote) |
SATURDAY, MAY 7
| 8:00am – 3:00pm | Creative Contemplation (available throughout the day) |
| 8:00-9:15am | Breakfast Buffet |
| 8:00-9:15am | AB Men’s Breakfast |
| 8:00-9:15am | AB Women’s Breakfast |
| 9:30am – 10:00am | Oceanwood Update / Break |
| 10:00am – 12:30pm | Fresh Expressions |
| 12:30pm – 1:00pm | Lunch (Banquet) |
| 1:00pm – 2:00pm | Lunch/Business Meeting |
| 2:00pm – 3:00pm | Workshop – For the Beauty of the Earth (outdoor) – Rev. Rebecca Driscoll |
| 2:00pm – 3:00pm | Workshop – Connecting Prayerfully (indoor) – Rev. Daryn Stylianopoulos & Rev. Jana Yeaton |
| 3:00pm – 4:00pm | Worship |
| Benediction for the Journey Ahead | |
CREATION CARE
Creation Care Lenten Devotional on “For the Beauty of the Earth” by Rev. Dr. Leah Schade 7pm Tuesdays during Lent (March 8-April 12)
Lenten Devotional Zoom link (https://ministrelife.zoom.us/j/97119480176)
Creation Care Sermon Series from Church in the Wild:
The Sunday after Easter (April 24th) is Earth Day Sunday! It’s the perfect time to kick off our new and shiny Holy Ground worship series though it can be used at any point during common time. This incredible creation care worship series is available now for digital download!! Purchasing supports Church in the Wild and will help your community better connect with and care for creation! 
After a busy Lenten and Easter season, feel free to take a break from worship planning and use the Earth Day Sunday Worship Service and Resources Guide. If you have any questions, please email Rev. Rebecca Driscoll at driscoll@tabcom.org.
ELDER MINISTRY
Writing Your Life Workshop a Big Success!
Many thanks to the good people at West Acton Baptist Church for helping me launch the pilot program of “Writing Your Life” under the umbrella of TABCOM ELDER MINISTRY.
We had a regular group of six participants, who all have started a memoir project, which will be a gift to their family and friends. We learned a number of different techniques for recording our life stories, including photo stories, story prompts and art journaling. We were visited on two occasions by guest instructors, author and personal historian Marjorie Turner Hollman and art journal expert Rabbi Valerie Cohen. The richness that we experienced in sharing our personal joys, challenges and life experience was a blessing indeed.
Our group has agreed to continue meeting on a monthly basis to support and encourage one another to continue this important work.
We also discussed how helpful this method of sharing can be for the growth of the church, both by strengthening bonds within the current congregation, and by inviting others from outside our churches into our church communities to share in this way.
I am looking for the NEXT GROUP to start on this journey.
Pastors, church leaders, mission minded and elder ministry minded folks:
I am happy to visit your church (via Zoom) to lead this SIX WEEK workshop experience.
It is FREE for your church as part of my work with TABCOM Elder Ministry.
Reach out to me – keddy@tabcom.org and we can discuss getting started!
Here are some testimonies from a few of our group members…
“I am very thankful that I was moved to sign on for the six week offering and have captured some of my spiritual journey in a journal I most likely would not otherwise have taken time for myself. Those of us who participated will meet once a month as we journey on to share our stories. I am expressing thanksgiving and how God calls us to love God with all our heart, walk humbly, do justice, and love our neighbor as our self. God's message is powerful in love. Reflecting of how far my journey in faith has evolved by participating in this gift of time with Rev. Christine and my friends has been amazing part filled with thanksgiving to God "in time such as these".”
MISSION MATTERS
MISSION MATTERS Zoom Meeting!!
Please join us on Saturday, April 2nd at 9:30 AM
Our special guest speaker will be Esther Kisaghu, who will share with us about her mission to educate people about domestic violence in Kenya.
Esther is the Founder of The Rose Foundation, a domestic violence prevention and intervention organization in Nairobi, Kenya.
Esther is the author of The Triumph of My Life: Domestic Violence and Society’s Thundering Silence.
Esther is a Public Health professional with a Master of Public Health degree from Boston University School of Public Health and a BBA in Marketing from Africa Nazarene University.
Join Zoom Meeting https://ministrelife.zoom.us/j/4307410515?pwd=eUtvdFlmdWc4OHB4OTdHVlRldWs4dz09
Meeting ID: 430 741 0515 | Password: 914972
MISSION MATTERS Zoom Meeting!!
Please join us on Saturday, April 23rd at 9:30 AM
https://ministrelife.zoom.us/j/4307410515?pwd=eUtvdFlmdWc4OHB4OTdHVlRldWs4dz09
Meeting ID: 430 741 0515 | Password: 914972
GROTONWOOD ALUMNI REUNION
MAY 15, 2022 | 1-4PM
GROTONWOOD OPEN HOUSE
MAY 15, 2022 | 1-4PM
Grotonwood will host a camp alumni reunion in May for campers and staff of all decades ranging from the 1960s right through to present day.
Pre-registration is required. Visit https://grotonwood.org/openhouse
Grotonwood Open House with free cook out and activities. Pre-registration is required. Visit https://grotonwood.org/openhouse
CONFERENCE OF BAPTIST MINISTER IN MA – JOB OPENING
The Conference of Baptist Ministers in Massachusetts (CBMM) are currently hiring for an operations manager.
OUR ASSOCIATIONS
Adoniram Judson Baptist Association
The Rev. Dr. David Kilpatrick, Coordinator
C- (617) 799-0705, E-Mail: dklpat@umich.edu | Rev. Dr. Kilpatrick is also the Pastor of West Medford Baptist Church – West Medford
Rev. Dr. Esther Pearson, Association Liasion
epearson@tp-group.net and C- (978) 257-5725
The Rev. Ellen Tatreau has been called as Interim Pastor by FBC Woburn for 6 Months while the Rev. Yaliang Zhao is on leave.
RENTAL OFFICE SPACE – MELROSE, MA
Green Street Baptist Church has two connected unfurnished, ground level offices available (12’ x 15’ & 9’ x 12’). Each carpeted office is connected by a door and has a window and access to an internal hallway with convenient access to a restroom. We would prefer to rent to a religious or community service-related non-profit organization. Previous renter was a division of the Red Cross. Please contact Property Committee Chair, Dave Hamilton, at davidwardhamilton@comcast.net, or 978-609-7679 for further information.
Berkshire Baptist Association – The Rev. David Anderson, Moderator/Coordinator
C- (413) 652-4179, E-mail: d_anderson@mail.com
Rev. Anderson is also the Senior Pastor of First Baptist Church – North Adams
Boston South West Association – The Rev. Dr. Moreen Hughes, Coordinator
C- (978) 430-5355, E-mail: mphug@msn.com
Rev. Dr. Hughes is also the Associate Pastor and Minister to Women and Families of Concord Baptist Church in Milton
Central Baptist Association – The Rev. Yvonne Miloyevich, Coordinator
Rev. Yvonne Miloyevich | e-mail: 17desiree50@gmail.com | (978) 618-2526.
Central Association Clergy meets to share, support, and pray with each other on the third Tuesday of each month from 9:30 – 11. This is a Zoom meeting.
Merrimack Valley Baptist Association – The Rev. Jim Leavitt, Coordinator
C- (508) 954-8034, E-mail: pastorjimleavitt@gmail.com
The Merrimack Valley Baptist Association Clergy gather monthly. Please contact Rev. Jim Leavitt for more information.
Old Colony Baptist Association
OCBA Clergy meeting will be held, via Zoom from 12:00-2:00 pm on the third Thursday of every month.
If generally you use zoom without signing in, this does require that you first make an account with them. Here is a link for a step by step guide to setting up a zoom account https://www.theverge.com/21506307/zoom-guide-how-to-free-account-register-sign-up-log-in-invite.
If you wish to enter this meeting by phone, please call +1 (669)9006833, and use meeting ID 2750874694 Passcode is 6970
Avon Baptist Church has replaced their hymnals and is making the version that was replaced available to churches or individuals who have a use for them. Please contact the church’s office for further information. (508) 583-8076.
Pioneer Valley Baptist Association – The Rev. Theresa Temple, Coordinator
C-(860) 978-5595, E-Mail: revtheresa777@gmail.com
Rev. Temple is also the Pastor of First Baptist Church – Holyoke
Pioneer Valley Baptist Association clergy meet on the 4th Monday of the month at 6:30 pm.
This is a Zoom gathering. Please contact PVBA Coordinator, Rev. Theresa Temple for the link, discussion topic and presentation information.
Central Baptist Church of Westfield is in search of a Worship Director
The Worship Director will be primarily responsible for developing and facilitating a dynamic, inspiring worship ministry consistent with the overall mission of the church. Through thoughtful planning, the Worship Director will be responsible for implementing, coordinating and providing leadership for the Sunday morning worship services implementing both traditional and contemporary worship styles to include but not limited to music, worship team, adult choir, children’s choir, drama, multi-media, and instrumentals. The director will conduct weekly rehearsals in preparation for the Sunday worship service and will work with the Pastor to develop an order of worship that supports the weekly sermon. Additionally, this position plans/leads special worship events such as for Holy Week, Advent and special events (ordinations, recognitions, installations, etc.). This is a part-time salaried position requiring approximately 10-12 hours. Application and more information can be found on our website https://www.centralbaptistchurchwestfield.com/?page_id=171
Central Baptist Church of Westfield
P.O. Box 95 | 115 Elm Street | Westfield, MA 01085
(413) 568-0429 | https://www.centralbaptistchurchwestfield.com
Samuel Stillman Baptist Association – The Rev. Dr. Loretta St. Louis, Coordinator
C- (617) 835-6767, stillmanarc@gmail.com
Rev. Dr. St. Louis is also the Associate Pastor for Congregational Care of Union Baptist Church – Cambridge
UPCOMING EVENTS
AMERICAN BAPTIST WOMEN AND GIRLS
Dear Friends,
Save the Date: July 21-24th for the National Women’s Conference to be held in King of Prussia, PA and virtually. More info to come.
We’re taking our worship experience on the road and coming to your city on our Elevation Nights Arena TourUse the unlock code EFAM20 to get your tickets 20% off!Elevation Nights: Boston, MATD GardenMay 5, 2022 at 7:00PM
AMERICAN BAPTIST WOMEN IN MINISTRY (ABWIM)
June 15-18, 2022 Join us this summer, Wednesday, June 15 through Saturday, June 18, at the historic American Baptist Green Lake Conference Center, in Green Lake, Wisconsin for a unique conference.
From the pioneering women of long ago to the trailblazing leaders of today and all women who have responded to the call of God along the way, the movement of women into ministry has involved the whole family of faith from all across American Baptist Churches USA. With women serving in a multitude of ways and a variety of roles throughout the United States and around the world, American Baptist Women in Ministry (ABWIM) is hosting a unique conference: Radical. Redeemed. Ready.
Held at Green Lake Conference Center in Green Lake, Wisconsin, where the first national gathering of women in ministry occurred in 1980 and where American Baptist women have gathered for many years, the conference will feature inspiring speakers, creative worship, engaging workshops, and multiple ways to connect while experiencing innovative approaches to ministry.
Celebrating Ministering Women – We are celebrating women ministerial leaders, their myriad journeys into ministry and their many ways of ministering. We are also celebrating the 40th Anniversary of the Women in Ministry Project, now known as American Baptist Women in Ministry (ABWIM), which fully launched in June 1982 with Rev. Dr. Margaret A. Cowden as the first Project Director, following the historic 1980 gathering in Green Lake.
Radical – ABCUSA has carried out a radical witness, and a radical witness is still needed.
Redeemed – Churches flourish and our world is transformed when all God’s gifts in all God’s people are fully accessed, embraced, and utilized. We are all then redeemed.
READY! We are READY. Are you?
PLEASE NOTE: TABCOM is reserving one of the Lakeside houses to be the “TABCOM House” during the conference. If you would like to stay at “TABCOM House” please do not register for housing, but email Executive Minister Mary Miller to reserve a spot. Cost will be similar to or lower than other housing options.
Learn more about our:
Conference Leaders | Awakenings (workshops) | Full Schedule
All are Welcome!
And we do mean all…all ministerial roles, experiences, and contexts; all ages, cultures, and genders; American Baptists and any and all friends in faith
That means YOU! Join Us!
Register Now
Radical. Redeemed. Ready. Planning Team
This conference is hosted by American Baptist Women in Ministry (ABWIM), a ministry of the ABCUSA Office of General Secretary.
TABCOM VOICES BROADCASTS
VIDEO INTERVIEW WITH REV. NGOZI ROBINSON
WORLD REFUGEE DAY HAPPEING IN JUNE 2022
APRIL HAPPINESS CALENDAR
