A TASTE OF WINCHENDON 2025
WINCHENDON
WHERE THE WILD THINGS ARE
Easter Sunrise Service
Yesterday was Easter Sunday. Our congregation gathered with two other local congregations as part of the council of churches for an Easter sunrise service in the town’s old center.
It was cold and windy, but those were small prices to pay for the work of church unity.
COUNTING THE COST FOR OUR LITTLE TOWN
A $4,000,000.00 CHALLENGE
Yesterday, The Beals Memorial Library, in Winchendon, hosted the 2025 Legislative Breakfast to discuss library policy for our region. I was blessed to be in attendance with about 70 other leaders in our town.
We heard a lot about the history of libraries in New England and about the benefits of having a library in a town. We also heard about some of the specific benefits that Beals brings to our town.
But even as we celebrated the accomplishments and benefits of our library we learned that our town, Winchendon, faces a $4,000,000.00 shortfall this year that comes largely because of an increase in insurance and retirement costs for town personnel (something I am keenly aware of as our own church insurance costs have soared this year).
If our town cannot come up with a solution to meet this challenge, then our library, our senior center and our parks and recreation department will all be shuttered.
I spoke with the head librarian briefly after the meeting. I told him I was bringing this information to my congregation. I am beginning to pray into this. I am beginning to speak into this. I don’t yet know what God will do, but I feel like He is going to do something!
H.I.N.T AND L.I.A.N.
COYOTES
I am awake most mornings between 3 and 5 A.M. I am always out with Snug (the youngest Maltese) at that hour. We don’t usually venture far from the house, especially in this cold, but yesterday we discovered another reason to stay close to home.
We were just finishing our loop around the house and were standing by the light pole at the edge of our driveway when the shrieking started.
At first I thought it was someone in trouble. Then I saw them crossing the road about a hundred feet in front of us. Snug and I beat a hasty retreat back into the house. Country livin’…….Time to start carrying a big stick I guess.
TOY TOWN FESTIVAL OF LIGHTS 2024
Last weekend was Winchendon’s Festival of Lights.
My volunteer position was as a greeter at The Breakfast with Santa. It was mostly traffic direction and helping one of the vendors carry her boxes up to the craft fair.
The dining room stayed full for most of the morning, and Santa was kept busy taking pictures with the kids and handing out candy canes.
Ms. Grinch also put in an appearance.
While the breakfast was going on downstairs at The Toy Town Senior Center, The great hall upstairs was hosting a craft fair.
My daughter Melanie is on The Parks and Recreation Committee which hosted the whole day.
The town wide Cookie Crawl started at 9 A.M. and went until 2 P.M. Area business provided cookies that could be gathered in these boxes.
The town held a gingerbread house competition and a letters to Santa time. Then the whole night was capped off with the tree lighting at Grout Park on our local Bike Path.
How does your town or family ring in the holidays?
THE REGION CELEBRATES
The holidays are upon us, and with the holidays comes holiday preparations and celebrations! Our region is becoming more and more like a Hallmark movie every year.
Gardner is hosting a special Thanksgiving market this coming Saturday. I think I shall have to go and take a peek.
Meanwhile Winchendon is hosting its annual Festival of Lights on December 7th. Here is a list of all the events happening.
Don’t Miss The Festival of Lights: Saturday 12/7! 
Kick off your holiday season with a day full of family fun and festive cheer! Here’s what we have planned for you:
Pictures with Santa by Rustic Lens Photography:
9:00 AM – 10:00 AM & 4:00 PM – 6:00 PM
Breakfast with Santa:
9:00 AM – 11:00 AM
Suggested donation: $8 per person
Holiday Craft Fair:
9:00 AM – 2:00 PM
Come support local vendors
Gingerbread Man Decorating:
2:00 PM – 4:00 PM
$8 per kit
GNOME PAINTING
2:00 PM – 4:00 PM
$8 per gnome
Letters to Santa:
12:00 PM – 4:00 PM
$10 per kit
Tree Lighting at Grout Park:
5:00 PM
(The park with the big metal bicycle near the bike path!)
Mr. & Mrs. Claus Appearance:
4:00 PM – 6:00 PM
“The Night Before Christmas” Reading:
4:00 PM – 5:00 PM
Old Murdock Senior Center
Caroling at Grout Park:
With Mr. & Mrs. Claus
Also on December 7th is……..
Yippeee! I love the cookie crawl.
WHAT FUN THINGS DOES YOUR TOWN DO FOR CHRISTMAS?
SABBATICAL DAY 13: The End Part Felt Like a Hallmark Movie
I am just about half way through sabbatical 2024. I have had the privilege of attending three conferences and 10 prayer meetings so far.
HERE ARE SOME OF THE THOUGHTS THAT HAVE STOOD OUT TO ME DURING THE CONFERENCES AND PRAYER MEETINGS:
- During this next season, believers must begin to cultivate eternal mindsets and put away worldly mindsets.
- The next season will be about deliverance. Like repentance, deliverance is more about what you are moving toward than what you are moving away from. In fact, you will never be delivered until you have a firm vision of what you are getting in place of what you are giving up, and until you believe that what you are getting is better than what you are leaving behind.
3. Our congregation must begin to cultivate an abundance mindset in place of a scarcity mindset.
WHAT YOU THINK DETERMINES WHAT YOU SEE. WHAT YOU SEE DETERMINES WHAT YOU DO. WHAT YOU DO DETERMINES WHAT YOU GET.
REMEMBER YOU ARE WORTHY OF SUCCESS. SUCCESS IS STORED UP BEFORE IT SHOWS UP. LIFE HAPPENS FOR YOU NOT TO YOU. PERSONAL GROWTH EVOLVES INTO ABUNDANCE.
PROCRASTINATION COMES FROM SCARCITY. ANTICIPATION COMES FROM ABUNDANCE.
4. Your conflicts may be the key to unlocking your peace.
5. Life will bring you people and circumstances to reveal to you where you are not free yet.
6. Conflicts start inside our hearts not outside, but we spend most of our time trying to change what’s outside.
I have also accomplished several personal and ministry goals during this season including:
Sermon planning for 2025 and 2026 (though there is a lot more work to do here)
filling out and sending in my ordination paperwork.
Reviewing staff budgets and submitting my personal budget for FY 2025.
Winterizing the chicken coop (though honestly this was mostly Kristine)
I removed the air conditioners from the windows at the Vicarage and started planning the steps to winterization. I also started bringing in some herbs for the winter for a window garden and planning the gardens for next year.
So far I have had one fire to burn brush….there are many more fires to have throughout the winter.
Yesterday, I took a couple of hours to mix and mingle at Winchendon’s annual Fall Fest. This event made Me feel like I was living in a Hallmark movie.
Amanda, Joe, Kristine, Sevy and I met up with our friend Paula and her granddaughter Leila and went down to visit the 205 vendors set up on Central St. Fairs are my kryptonite. I can end up buying a lot of things I don’t need, so having strong people around me to curb the buying frenzy is essential.
The town was mobbed!…milling and seething through the mob was like mixing it up at a family house party. I ran into Denise and her granddaughters who I hadn’t seen since the oldest grandy was probably three (she is now thirteen). I saw Walter and chatted with Andy at the Fidelity Ice Cream cart. I hugged several Rathier children and stopped at the Rathier/ Lambert booth.I checked in with Tamie about her husband Brian who had knee surgery recently, and planned a coffee date with Father Henry when I stopped at The Immaculate Heart Booth. I stopped at Nancy’s fudge booth and caught up a bit with her while earnestly resisting the desire to buy a case of her homemade fudge.
Actually, as you can see from the picture above, there was plenty to buy. I did well. I tried some of the leftover pies from the pie baking contest when I checked in on my daughter Melanie. I also bought a sourdough pretzel with cheese sauce from her booth (Winchendon Parks and Rec). And…
I bought these books for a donation to the local library…..and
this new walking stick to replace the one I lost at Kimball’s Farm.
What made my heart most glad about this festival, though, were the number of people from our congregation who were working for different town booths our just attending the fall festival. I met some of the members of my son’s Gideons outpost. I saw our friends and neighbors the Ash-Sears family and we said hello to our friends the O’Briens. As I walked up and down the street with my new walking stick..I was struck by the richness and depth of relationship I felt flowing through our little community. I am not sure if the change is in me, in our community or in both of us. All I know is it was a wonderful day in the midst of this wonderful sabbatical.
Notes From the Vicarage 