Faith Congregational Church, a vibrant, inclusive Christian community working for social justice through service to God, each other and our neighbors.
Welcome to the Faith Congregational Church website. You will find exciting videos, articles, and information designed to lift your spirit and feed your desire for helpful information. Faith Church is a diverse worship community, an inclusive, justice-minded and unapologetic about our faith and our witness. We celebrate diversity, we celebrate community and we celebrate Jesus Christ. It’s that simple, but be clear that there is so much more.
We invite you to explore the many ways we seek to be a faithful church in these challenging days. Ask us your questions, we like questions. Our church may be old, in fact, it is the oldest predominately black church in the city of Hartford, but our thinking is not old at all. We are affiliated with the United Church of Christ, the first mainline church in America to speak out against slavery, the first mainline church to ordain a woman and the first church to ordain a gay person into ministry in our nation. We stand on the side of justice because we want to always seek to be on the right side of history and besides that to do what we believe Jesus our elder brother and head of the church commands.
If you are in the Greater Hartford area, come worship with us. Whoever you are, you are very welcome at Faith. Now explore the website fully, come back to it often and know that we seek your prayers as we go forward in faith.
Pastor Steve
Who We Are – Where We Are Going – What We Believe!
We Celebrate Diversity
We are a church that welcomes all (and we do mean all)! No matter who you are and where you may be on life’s journey, you are welcome at Faith Congregational Church. We work toward celebrating all people, young and old, Black, Brown, and White, gay and straight, rich and poor; whomever God sends we will seek to embrace.
We Celebrate Community
We are a church faith community that embraces the wider community and seeks to serve in ways we can. Faith Church is a place where the community can come to talk, to work, to grow. We will be part of the solution, seeking to address community concerns. We will work for justice, not just us.
We Celebrate Jesus
We will celebrate the presence of Jesus Christ in our lives. We will never apologize for our love of Jesus Christ but will celebrate the faith of others and even those with no faith. For us, Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life. We will invite others to know Jesus and will share the love of Christ whenever and wherever we can.
Monday, Wednesday & Friday 9:00 – noon 860-547-0820
Isaiah 49:1-7 The Message (MSG)
A Light for the Nations
49 1-3 Listen, far-flung islands,
pay attention, faraway people:
God put me to work from the day I was born.
The moment I entered the world he named me.
He gave me speech that would cut and penetrate.
He kept his hand on me to protect me.
He made me his straight arrow
and hid me in his quiver.
He said to me, “You’re my dear servant,
Israel, through whom I’ll shine.”
4 But I said, “I’ve worked for nothing.
I’ve nothing to show for a life of hard work.
Nevertheless, I’ll let God have the last word.
I’ll let him pronounce his verdict.”
5-6 “And now,” God says,
this God who took me in hand
from the moment of birth to be his servant,
To bring Jacob back home to him,
to set a reunion for Israel—
What an honor for me in God’s eyes!
That God should be my strength!
He says, “But that’s not a big enough job for my servant—
just to recover the tribes of Jacob,
merely to round up the strays of Israel.
I’m setting you up as a light for the nations
so that my salvation becomes global!”
7 God, Redeemer of Israel, The Holy of Israel,
says to the despised one, kicked around by the nations,
slave labor to the ruling class:
“Kings will see, get to their feet—the princes, too—
and then fall on their faces in homage
Because of God, who has faithfully kept his word,
The Holy of Israel, who has chosen you.”
From the Pastor’s Study
Dear Faith Family and Friends:
It is my hope that you see life as a journey, not a settled event. Life has sorrow, sickness, losses and more, but it also has joy and peace when we are in that understanding. Life is not all negative, it has momens of positive things too. Faith is about longing for the day when peace and joy will be present in all ways. Jesus came to show us the way toward that peace and that joy, the kind we really seek. When dark moments touch our lives, or challenges want to overwhelm us, remember that joy is coming, often the very next morning. Just something to hold on to in these challenging times. Let joy be your aim in these days. Declare for yourself that Jesus is the light of the world and when tough things want to overcome us, when darkness lurks around us, there is God through Jesus saying come this way, here is the way through.
Don’t forget, the annual meeting is January 26, 2020 immediately after worship service. Our annual MLK service is Monday, 1/20/2020 at 3:30.
Be blessed… Pastor Steve
BTW, MLK Day service at 3:30pm on January 20, 2020.
Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
2020 Celebration 2020
Faith Congregational Church, United Church of Christ
2030 Main Street, Hartford, CT. 06120
Parking lot entrance behind the church – Doors open at 2:30pm
Monday, January 20, 2020 – program begins at 3:30pm
Great Music – Fellowship/Refreshments – Preaching
Guest Preacher: The Rev. Kari Nicewander, Immanuel UCC, Hartford
* Guest combined choir from several area churches – guest musicians *
Special guest presentation from Hartford Seminary student from Nigeria, Danladi Njehntengazoka James
Plus a moment with a “returning citizen”
“Only in darkness can we see the stars…” –MLK
This will be Pastor Camp’s last MLK celebration as pastor of Faith. He will be retiring in 2020…
Please join us for the celebration. All are welcome!
@ Alt-Religion from NBC
Pope Francis names first woman to senior Vatican diplomatic post
https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&source=images&cd=&ved=2ahUKEwj5hoiC_ZDnAhVph-AKHQHnB00Qjhx6BAgBEAI&url=https%3A%2F%2Fnews.theceomagazine.com%2Fworld-news%2Fvatican-first-woman%2F&psig=AOvVaw2qLpjXhe6rVkaO3TfM7Jsl&ust=157956837254162
Italian lay woman and lawyer Francesca Di Giovanni, 66, will assume the newly-created post in a division known as the Section for Relations with States where she takes the rank of under-secretary, effectively one of two deputy foreign ministers. The Roman Catholic Church allows only men to be ordained as priests and women have traditionally been consigned to the shadows of its administration. However, women’s groups, including the International Union of Superiors General (UISG), an umbrella group of Catholic nuns, have long called on the pope to appoint more females to senior jobs within the Vatican bureaucracy.
United Methodist Church looks to split over LGBTQ issues
Daron Smith, left, and his husband, Chris Finley, right, worship at a Sunday morning service at Lafayette Park United Methodist Church in St. Louis, Mo. Smith, a lifelong United Methodist, said he feels hopeful ahead of a vote on LGBTQ ordination and same-sex weddings in the church. Shahla Farzan/St. Louis Public Radio
The United Methodist Church has proposed splitting into separate entities in order to resolve long-standing disagreements over the issues of same-sex marriage and the ordination of gay clergy, according to a statement shared Friday by the United Methodist Council of Bishops. The separation proposal will be voted on at the May general conference in Minneapolis. As it stands now, the UMC is the third largest U.S. religious denomination with 13 million faithful.
Pope Benedict no longer listed as co-author of new book
Retired Pope Benedict XVI sought to distance himself from an upcoming book that deals with the issue of priestly celibacy and asked that he no longer be listed as its author, his co-author, Cardinal Robert Sarah, said Tuesday.
A French newspaper published excerpts from the book over the weekend, angering some Roman Catholic scholars who said Benedict risked destabilizing the incumbent pope, Francis. Benedict announced his decision to resign in February 2013, citing the physical and psychological strains of the papacy. Francis was elected the following month. At the time of his resignation, Benedict pledged to stay “hidden from the world” in prayer and isolation.
In this Jan. 16, 2020, photo, from left, attendees of a black voter outreach event held by President Donald Trump’s reelection campaign at Philadelphia’s First Immanuel Baptist Church assemble for a group picture after the discussion. Trump’s reelection campaign is reaching out to black voters through one of their communities’ most important institutions — black churches. (Elana Schor/Associated Press)The president’s meager support among African Americans has shown few signs of increasing from the 6% of black voters he won in 2016, according to a Pew Research Center analysis. The president’s standing with black evangelical Protestants is similarly low. According to AP VoteCast, about 8 in 10 black evangelicals who voted in the 2018 midterm elections disapproved of his performance. But that isn’t stopping the campaign from trying to make inroads, hoping to persuade African Americans to back a president known for racially provocative rhetoric. The campaign’s visit to First Immanuel suggests that, as tough as that pitch will be for the GOP, faith-based appeals may provide a valuable way to start the conversation.
Muslim millennial’s site dispels stereotypes for millions
In this Dec. 20, 2019, photo, Amani Al-Khatahtbeh, founder of MuslimGirl.com, sits for an interview inside her family’s video game and electronic store business in Somerville, N.J. Al-Khatahtbeh started the website as a way to defy Muslim stereotypes after 9/11. A decade later, Al-Khatahtbeh has built it into an online magazine with a global audience. (Emily Leshner/Associated Press)
“Being bombarded with those headlines growing up and never feeling represented by them, I did what any millennial would do, which was to turn to social media,” Al-Khatahtbeh said. “I decided to put my own place out there and create that space for us to talk back.” Read more HERE.
@ Our History
DO YOU KNOW YOUR personal HISTORY? AFRICAN AMERICAN GENEOLOGY RESOURCES
- Family Search
- Genealogy.com
- Black Past lists of links
- Family History Daily 10 free resources
- Genealogy Bank
- Christine’s African American Genealogy Website
- The Root
- Cyndi’s List
- AfriGeneas
- Heritage Quest
@ History & Culture
Want to go to the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History & Culture?
SAME-DAY ONLINE
Same-day timed entry passes are available online beginning at 6:30 a.m. ET daily until they run out. Same-day passes are not available via phone. CHECK SAME-DAY AVAILABILITY
ADVANCE ONLINE
Advance timed entry passes for individuals are released monthly. Advance timed entry passes for individuals are released on the first Wednesday of each month. The next day for passes to be released will be Wednesday February 5. Passes go very quickly when released.
THE AFRICAN AMERICAN CIVIL WAR MEMORIAL & MUSEUM
The mission of the African American Civil War Museum is to correct a great wrong in history that largely ignored the enormous contributions of the 209,145 members of the United States Colored Troops. It tells the stories and preserves for posterity the historic roles these brave men of African, European, and Hispanic descent played in ending slavery and keeping America united under one flag.
Hours of Operation:
Monday 10am to 5pm
Tuesday – Friday 10:00am to 6:30pm
Saturday 10:00am to 4:00pm
Sunday 12pm to 4:00pm
The museum is located at 1925 Vermont Ave, NW Washington DC, directly across the street from the African American Civil War Memorial, located at 1th and U Streets, NW Washington DC. For more information, click HERE.
Can’t get to DC?
Watch these videos from the Library of Congress from the 2019 National Book Festival here.
Changemakers: Andrea Barnet discussed “Visionary Women: How Rachel Carson, Jane Jacobs, Jane Goodall and Alice Waters Changed Our World,” David W. Blight discussed “Frederick Douglass: Prophet of Freedom” and Andrew Roberts discussed “Churchill: Walking with Destiny” at the 2019 Library of Congress National Book Festival in Washington, D.C.
Race in America: Henry Louis Gates Jr. discussed “Stony the Road: Reconstruction, White Supremacy and the Rise of Jim Crow,” Judge Richard Gergel discussed “Unexampled Courage: The Blinding of Sgt. Isaac Woodard and the Awakening of President Harry S. Truman and Judge J. Waties Waring” and Steve Luxenberg discussed “Separate: The Story of Plessy v. Ferguson, and America’s Journey from Slavery to Segregation” at the 2019 Library of Congress National Book Festival in Washington, D.C.
Essential Libraries: Joshua Hammer discussed “The Bad-Ass Librarians of Timbuktu: And Their Race to Save the World’s Most Precious Manuscripts” and Alberto Manguel discussed “Packing My Library: An Elegy and Ten Digressions” in a conversation moderated by Carla Hayden at the 2019 Library of Congress National Book Festival in Washington, D.C.
Want to take a road trip?
African American Museum in Philadelphia, PA
National Underground Railroad Freedom Center in Cincinnatti, OH
Negro Leagues Baseball Museum in Kansas City, MO
National Civil Rights Museum in Memphis, TN
International Civil Rights Center and Museum iin Greensboro, NC
Tuskegee Airmen National Historic Site in Tuskegee, AL
Northwest African American Museum in Seattle, WA
National Center for Civil and Human Rights in Atlanta, GA
The Legacy Museum in Montgomery, AL
Birmingham Civil Rights Institute in Birmingham, AL
DuSable Museum of African American History in Chicago, IL
National Memorial for Peace and Justice in Montgomery, AL
Every Month is Women’s History Month Because Women’s History IS Everyone’s History
In Hamlet and in Life, Ruth Negga Does Not Hold Back
The Ethiopian-Irish actress returns to a “completely destroying” stage role. Next: a film adaptation of a 1920s novel about passing for white.
LOS ANGELES — What stage actor wouldn’t jump at the chance to play Hamlet? Ruth Negga, for one.
“Nothing helps you play Hamlet,” she laughed.
Negga ultimately took the role, however, earning rave reviews. The Guardian praised her “priceless ability to savor the language,” while the Irish edition of The Times of London called her performance “a stunning gift for Irish theatergoers.”
If she made it all look easy, however, it was anything but. “It nearly killed me,” said Negga, who is perhaps best known for her Oscar-nominated turn in the 2016 biopic “Loving,” in which she played a woman who endures jail time and exile for the then-crime of being married to a white man in 1950s Virginia. Read more HERE.
‘Hitting a Straight Lick With a Crooked Stick,’ by Zora Neale Hurston (Amistad, Jan. 14)
A new collection of short stories by the author of “Their Eyes Were Watching God” includes eight selections that were recently discovered in archives and periodicals. The stories here deal with race, class, migration and love, and are an invaluable window into African-American experiences during the Harlem Renaissance.
[ Read our review. ]
Kiley Reid’s Novel Is About Race and Class and Other People’s Children
“Such a Fun Age” explores the toll of emotional labor on a black babysitter. “I like the idea of all of these people freaking out,” she says.
“The reward of being with the same family and watching a child grow for four or five years was really wonderful,” Reid, now 32, said of her time as a babysitter. But the experience also got her thinking about how race and class interact in transactional relationships, and what it means to sell emotional labor.
Reid explores these questions in her debut novel, “Such a Fun Age,” out Tuesday. Reid’s book, for which Lena Waithe has already bought the screen rights, revolves around the intersecting lives of Alix, a privileged white mom in Philadelphia; Emira, her 25-year-old black babysitter; and Kelley, a white man Emira ends up dating. An incident in the beginning of the book, when a stranger accuses Emira of kidnapping Alix’s toddler, sets off a series of events that force the characters to reckon with their biases.
Every Month is Black History Month Because Black History IS American History
Navy Aircraft Carrier to Be Named for Black Pearl Harbor Veteran
Doris Miller was the first African-American sailor to receive the Navy Cross, for his bravery during the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor.
Credit...National Archives
Rutgers to Name Its First Black President, School Official Says
Credit...Sam Hodgson for The New York Times
By
Jonathan Holloway, the provost of Northwestern University, is expected to take over leadership of Rutgers University next week, becoming its first black president, a school official said on Sunday. Read more HERE.
Are you aware of the series “1619” in the NY Times? According to the NYT, “The 1619 Project is a major initiative from The New York Times observing the 400th anniversary of the beginning of American slavery. It aims to reframe the country’s history, understanding 1619 as our true founding, and placing the consequences of slavery and the contributions of black Americans at the very center of the story we tell ourselves about who we are.” Read, watch and listen HERE.
August 1619
A poem by Clint Smith
In Aug. 1619, a ship arrived in Point Comfort, Va., carrying more than 20 enslaved Africans, the first on record to be brought to the English colony of Virginia. They were among the 12.5 million Africans forced into the trans-Atlantic slave trade, their journey to the New World today known as the Middle Passage.
@ Prayer
Our God who art in heaven, Hallowed be thy matchless name
Let Your Kingdom reign in heaven. Dwell on earth in us, the same
Give us, Lord, this day for worship; Give us manna from on high
Give us bread to serve your kingdom, Lord our name we glorify.
Lord, forgive us, free us, love us, Grant us wisdom to forgive
Lead us not into temptation; grant us grace so we can live
Evil cannot stand against us, Your deliverance we need
Bind us, Lord, in one another, We, Your church, Your love receive.
Thine the kingdom, Thine the power, Thine the glory evermore
Thine all majesty and honor tGod to you we praise, adore
You are God, You reign forever, “Sovereign Holy Lord!” we sing
Our God who art in heaven Lord, eternal King of Kings.
Written by Tony McNeil and dedicated to Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta, and sung to the tune “Nettleton/Come Thy Fount.”
What Do We Believe?
We believe in God:
Who created and is creating, who has come to us
To reconcile and make new, who works in us and others by his spirit.
We trust him.
Jesus calls us to be his church:
To celebrate his presence, to live and serve others,
To seek justice and resist evil, to proclaim Jesus,
Crucified and risen, our judge and our hope.
In life, in death, in life beyond death, God is with us.
We are not alone.
Thanks be to God. Amen.
(from United Church of Canada)
History @ Faith Church
Faith Celebrated Its 200th Anniversary!
Faith Congregational Church in Hartford, Connecticut began in 1819 as a place for African Americans to worship on their own since they were previously only able to worship in the backs of churches and in church galleries (balconies). Unable to sit in the main sanctuary and tired of second class treatment, a group of African Americans began worshipping in the conference room of the First Church of Christ in Hartford, Connecticut, which is now known as Center Church. Our ancestor congregation moved to a building on State Street in 1820 and formed the first black Congregational Church in Connecticut and the third oldest in the nation. (According to Mary M. Donohue and Whitney Bayers writing for Connecticut Explored at connecticuthistory.org, Dixwell Avenue Congregational Church in New Haven was founded in 1820 as the African Ecclesiastical Society by Simeon Jocelyn, a white abolitionist, and 24 former slaves.)
The church, now known as Faith Congregational Church, initially called itself the African American Religious Society of Hartford and vowed to create a place of worship where there would be no assigned seating and where anyone was welcome to worship. The congregation purchased property in 1826 where it built a stone-and-brick church on the corner of Talcott and Market Streets. For more information, read HERE
@ Faith Church
MEN OF FAITH Men’s Ministry Monday evenings @ 5:30 p.m. Bible Study, Food and Fellowship! All men are welcome. No meeting on January 20 because of the MLK celebration. Choir rehersal for Men’s Chorus Wednesday.
Don’t forget, GIRL SCOUT TROOP 10003 meets on 2nd and 4th Sundays from 1 – 2:30 pm. We are really proud of our girls.
There is a seat for you on Tuesday at Bible study. We start at 7 pm. Bill Hollis is leading. Great group, great conversation, and great learning!
The CHOIR could use your voice! It’s a great way to serve at Faith Church. Wayne Dixon is waiting. Choir rehearsal on Wednesday at 7 p.m.
Sunday School for children is in the fall/winter term. Join us. Volunteer for one Sunday per month. We look forward to seeing you and your children.
@ Faith General Info
Annual meeting January 26, 2020 immediately after worship service.
Faith Church cookbooks are still available for purchase, $20 each. 
See Jennifer Robinson.
Prayer service Friday, January 24, 2020 at 6:00 pm.
Want a CD of the service? Give Bruce MacCullagh a written request or send him an email.
Need a ride to church? See Deacon Pam Walters for details and to schedule a pickup.
Know someone in need? Leave a message with Patricia Gray or Deacon Pam.
Need more information? Call the church office 860-547-0820 Monday, Wednesday or Friday mornings. Sunday service begins at 10 am.
Nursery Staffed for Sunday Services
A reminder: the nursery is available when your child is restless or unhappy during service. You may not mind your child’s crying, but others would like to hear the service.
Would you like to volunteer? We need Sunday School teachers, a historian, and just maybe you can think of ways that you can help! See Pastor Steve or Patricia Hollis for details.
Remember our Sick and Shut-ins. Don’t forget to send a prayer, card or note. If you don’t see someone, why not call and see how they are doing?
Deacon Mamie Barnum @ home
Annie Holmes @ Touch Point, Farmington
Jim Williams @ Meriden
Rachel Taylor @ home
Lunnie Butler @ Mt Sinai
@ Our UCC Friends
Southern New England Conference Begins
1/5/2020 – Together, As One
The Southern New England Conference officially came into being with the New Year, and the change is becoming more and more visible.
At the end of December, the Conference’s Articles of Incorporation were filed with the Massachusetts Secretary of State’s office, establishing it as a nonprofit. On Jan. 1, employees of the three historic conferences became employed by the Southern New England Conference.
Perhaps more visibly, the Conference launched a new Facebook page and new website – sneucc.org – and all staff now have email addresses that end in sneucc.org (last name first initial @ sneucc.org, such as vailt@sneucc.org).
Conference staff had their first all-staff meeting together over two days in December. They will now be organized under the new, transitional structure, with news lines of supervision and new team configurations. (Related: Transitional Realignment of Staff Planned, July 28, 2019)
Staff (with the exception of those from the historic Rhode Island Conference – see related article here) continue to work out of the same offices in Framingham, MA, and Hartford, CT, where they have been working. Contact information can be found on the new website staff directory.
History? Of Course…
REUTERS/Desmond Boylan
Amistad
The Amistad was and is many things:
-
-
- It was a Cuban coasting schooner,
- It was a famous court case,
- It was an historic event that shaped the nation and the United Church of Christ,
- It is a contemporary floating museum,
- It is a special Sunday in the United Church of Christ,
- It is an inspiration.
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History
In 1839, a group of enslaved Africans broke free while being transported around the island of Cuba aboard the coasting schooner Amistad. They attempted to sail the small vessel back to Africa, but where captured by the US Revenue Brig Washington off the coast of Long Island, charged with mutiny, and threatened with return to slavery.
Connecticut Congregationalists formed the Amistad Committee, which organized a legal defence, eased the captives confinement during the lengthy court case, and eventually funded their return to Africa after winning a favorable decision from the US Supreme Court. [Faith Church’s ancestor congregation played an important role in the entire event, raising money to assist in the defense, and sent 2 missionaries to accompany the former captives back to Africa.]
The Amistad Committee became a seed for wider advocacy for the abolition of slavery in the United States. In 1846, Lewis Tappan, an Amistad Committee leader, founded the American Missionary Association, the first abolitionist organization with integrated leadership. After the Civil War, the AMA went on to found schools, churches, libraries and universities for the newly freed African Americans of the South.
Freedom Schooner Amistad
In 2000, a two-year building project sponsored in part by the UCC climaxed in the launch of the Freedom Schooner Amistad, a reconstruction similar to the schooner of 1839, as a floating museum about the Amistad Incident and the history of slavery. Homeported in New Haven, Connecticut, she sails the Atlantic coast on her mission of education and reconciliation. The non-profit organization Amistad America operates the schooner.
Amistad Sunday
The UCC commemorates the 1839 struggle for freedom, the Amistad Committee, and the American Missionary Association’s heritage on Amistad Sunday, typically held the second Sunday in March.
Amistad Videos
Go to an annotated bibliography of Amistad videos available through the Ruth Dudley Resource Center
@ In Our Community
https://depositphotos.com/30561155/stock-video-downtown-hartford-connecticut-skyline.html
Developer, loan fund working together to bring grocery store to Hartford to serve downtown, city’s northern neighborhoods
A developer and a community revitalization loan fund which have separate proposals to bring a grocery store to an area just north of downtown Hartford said Friday they are now working together on the effort. At the same time, the Hartford Community Loan Fund, a nonprofit organization, has been leading an effort to bring a grocer, fresh foods and healthy eating services such as a teaching kitchen to city-owned land around the historic Keney Memorial Clock Tower. The location, at the intersection of Main Street and Albany Avenue, is in the same area but not part of the Downtown North development. Read the article HERE.
Hartford History Makers Art Exhibit & Reception
Thursday, January 23rd: 5:30 p.m. – 7:30 p.m. 
Join us in celebration of African-American changemakers in Hartford! Artists came together to create portraits in many mediums to represent these amazing folks. A short talk by the artists is followed by a reception with refreshments. Dwight Branch, 7 New Park Ave, Hartford, CT 06106.
From Civil Rights to Human Rights: African American, Puerto Rican, and West Indian Housing Struggles in Hartford Country, 1940-2019 (On Display 10/29/19 – 2/1/20)
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Hartford History Center, Glass Cases & Administrative Wall
3rd floor, Downtown Library
Hartford Public Library’s Hartford History Center, CT Humanities and the University of Connecticut present “From Civil Rights to Human Rights: African American, Puerto Rican, and West Indian Housing Struggles in Hartford County, 1940-2019,” a new exhibit curated by historian Dr. Fiona Vernal (University of Connecticut).
The exhibit draws on oral histories, newspapers, and archival images to explore eight decades of migration, settlement, mobility, and housing access in the Greater Hartford region. It uncovers the relationship between racial discrimination, residential segregation and public housing while also exploring the lives, loves and families of those who made Hartford home. Photographs from Hartford History Center’s Hartford Housing Authority and Hartford Times collections are part of the exhibition.
African American Literature Book Club
Tuesday, February 4, 2020: Tears We Cannot Stop by Michael Eric Dyson.
The AAL Book Club is for anyone interested in reading and discussing African American literature, both fiction and nonfiction, as well as sharing information and learning about the African American experience. It is an opportunity for us to get to know each other while we engage in lively and stimulating discussion of topics of interest to us all.
Please RSVP to Carolyn Korber at cjkorber@gmail.com.
Encounters: Public Punishment & Race Remembrance
Saturday, January 25th: 10 a.m. -1 p.m. Old State House
What does the history of punishment in Connecticut mean for us today? Join us for conversation and lunch.
Mujeres Empoderadas/ Women Empowerment Group Meets
In collaboration with the Hispanic Health Council, Maria Ortiz provides presentations on domestic violence to raise awareness. Guests are invited to present on different topics: financial literacy, educational opportunities, library resources, literacy etc. Come and share with Maria.
@ Jobs/Education
Census Job Day 
Thursday, January 23, 10 a.m. – 1 p.m. Main Floor – Downtown Library
Be a Census Worker! Extra income, flexible hours, weekly pay and paid training. Visit the information desk on the Main Floor of the Hartford Public Library, 500 Main Street, for more information.
City of Hartford Job Opportunities
The City of Hartford is currently hiring:
- Corp Counsel – Asst Corp Counsel
- Public Works – Carpenter
- Public Works – Superintendent
- Emergency Services & Telecommunications – Dispatcher Trainee
- Families, Children, Youth & Recreation – Early Learning Teacher Assistant
- Families, Children, Youth & Recreation – Life Guard (Seasonal)
- Public Works – Maintenance Mechanic
- Emergency Services & Telecommunications – Public Safety Communications Supervisor
- Police Department – Re-Entry Services Specialist
- Families, Children, Youth & Recreation – Recreation Assistant (Seasonal)
- MHIS – Senior Systems Analyst
Click here to learn more and apply
SNAP SCHOLARSHIPS
The Community Renewal Team is hiring preschool teacher assistants and teacher aides!
Please bring your teaching credentials to the job fair.
On-the-spot interviews for qualified candidates!
Call 860-560-5665 for more information and to RSVP.
Apply online at www.crtct.org
Come to our Job Fair on Wednesday, Jan. 22 from 2-6 p.m. @ 555 Windsor Street in Hartford.
@ Hartford
Mayor Luke Bronin announced a Fee Relief Program for delinquent personal property and motor vehicle taxes, which will run from December 15, 2019, to January 31, 2020. During the Program, any taxpayer with outstanding delinquent personal property or motor vehicle tax bills will have all unpaid collection fees waived, as long as the outstanding tax and interest are paid in full. When the Program is not in effect, the city’s tax collection agency administers a 15% fee on delinquent personal property or motor vehicle tax bills.
“This Fee Relief Program will make it easier for residents to pay back taxes they owe,” said Mayor Luke Bronin. “Last year we ran a Fee Relief Program for personal property taxes only, and this year we are expanding it to motor vehicle taxes as well. We hope as many people take advantage as possible, so they can stay current with their taxes and the city receives the revenue we need to serve all of our residents.”
Once the Program ends, the City of Hartford’s collection agency will enforce the collection of remaining outstanding delinquent personal property and motor vehicle tax bills. There will be no exceptions to the time frame of this Program. If payment is not made by January 31, 2020, the full collection fee of 15% will be due.
Residents can make payment online at www.hartford.gov by clicking on the “$” symbol or in the Tax Office at City Hall, 550 Main St, Room 106, Hartford, CT 06103. Residents can call (860) 757-9630 if they have questions.
Public Works – Snow/Ice Removal Reminder
The next 2 Council meetings will be held on Monday, January 13 and 26, 2020 at 7 PM, preceded at 6 PM by public comments. All meetings are held in Council Chambers in Hartford City Hall, 550 Main Street, 2nd Floor.
Click Here for a Complete List of Meetings Dates & Agendas
Assessors Office – Important Revaluation Data Mailer
The assessor’s office has begun the 2021 real estate revaluation process with a mailing to residential real estate owners requesting verification of the physical descriptions of their properties. Please review the information on the mailer and return it to the assessor’s office in the envelope provided with any corrections that you believe necessary or none if you believe the general description to be accurate.
The information will be used as the foundation for an October, 2021 city-wide reassessment. Revaluations, mandated by Connecticut State Statute, must be conducted every five years. They are required to re-align real estate assessments with current market values and correct any assessment inequalities that may have developed since the previous revaluation in 2016.
Board of Education Meetings
Office of Sustainability – Single-use PLASTIC BAG Ban Effective December 15, 2019 for 8,000 sq ft establishments in phase 1.
Like Jazz? Want to Keep Up With What’s Happening?
You can add the Hartford Jazz Society’s events to your calendar automatically HERE.
Baby Grand Jazz Is Back
Saskia Laroo Band – JANUARY 26
Amsterdam trumpet player Saskia Laroo does not only present her new album “Trumpets. Around The World” with her band, she also celebrates three anniversaries. Laroo turns 40 “stage years”-old, has run Laroo Records for 25 years and the Saskia Laroo Band has existed for 25 years. The “Lady Miles Davis of Europe” – dubbed so by the press and public in America –is one of the few women on trumpet in the international stage four decades at top level and leader of her own band for so long. She is known for her improvisational purity, music to which she’s given her own twist, flavored with influences from all over the world. It is music with the mystical elusiveness of jazz improvisation, packed in modern grooves, beats, vocals and rap.Seats might be set aside on her new album release tour performances, because interaction with the audience is an important element of Laroo’s energetic live performances. The “Dutch Lady of Jazz” plays with her bands all over the world on large and small festivals, in concert halls, clubs and more; this year so far in Thailand, Burundi and the United States. Her music, in kind, sounds like a musical journey with not just pure jazz, but also influences from hip-hop, dance and world music – as if those styles have always belonged together. Saskia Laroo— trumpet, vocals |
Professional and Amateur Artists from Middlesex and Hartford counties are invited to participate in this annual art show; it is free to register and offers cash awards for winning work
HARTFORD — For nearly 30 years, the Community Renewal Team (CRT) has hosted an annual National Arts Program® (NAP), providing an opportunity for all local artists to showcase their art within the community. Youth, teens, amateurs, intermediate and professional artists from both Middlesex and Hartford Counties are invited to submit their work now for the 2020 art show, which will be on display at Capital Community College (950 Main Street in Hartford, CT) from February 13 – March 2, 2020. All forms of visual arts are accepted for this show; from paintings and photographs to sculptures, crafts and textiles.
Entries submitted must be the original work of the applicant and completed within the last three years – up to two entries per artist. Participants must be current residents of Hartford or Middlesex County, or an employee or family member of an employee of CRT.
Artists can submit their work for free to this show. By removing the financial and commercial requirements of most exhibitions, this special show creates a sense of community and artistic fulfillment for all participants.
The deadline to register for the 2020 National Arts Program in Central Connecticut is Friday, February 7, 2020.
To register for the show, please visit the NAP registration page: https://www.nationalartsprogram.org/hartford/
Artists In The Area
New England Concert Reviews and Music News
Jan. 17-18, 7, 9 and 10:30 p.m CYRUS CHESTNUT TRIO at Smoke, 2751 Broadway New York, NY 10025
Call: 212.864.6662 3pm – 2am, smokejazz.com
Jan. 22, 7:30 and 9:30 p.m.LARRY WILLIS: A LIFE IN JAZZ at Dizzy’s Club, Broadway and 60th Street, Jazz at Lincoln Center 212-258-9595, jazz.org/dizzys
January 23, 2020 Patti Austin @ The Cabot – Cabot Performing Arts Center, 286 Cabot St, Beverly, MA 01915 https://thecabot.org/
Saturday, February 1, 2020 Ladysmith Black Mambazo, The Bushnell, 166 Capitol Avenue, Hartford, CT
February 5 – 9, 2020 Dee Dee Bridgewater, Blue Note, 131 W. 3rd St, New York, NY 10012, 212-475-8592, http://www.bluenotejazz.com
Saturday, February 8, 2020 Cécile McLorin Salvant, The Bushnell, 166 Capitol Avenue, Hartford, CT
Saturday, February 8, 2020 Dianne Reeves Berklee Performing Arts Center, 136 Massachusetts Ave, Boston, MA 02115
March 28, 2020 8:00 PM Leslie Odom Jr. Fox Theater, Foxwoods Casino
Live in Hartford? Get Your Free Tickets Today!
Hartford residents who are Hartford Public Library cardholders can now reserve up to 2 free tickets to plays at Hartford Stage as part of our new partnership. Each of the seven branches of Hartford Public Library will have a two-ticket pass per eligible show. Patrons can check online to see where passes are available, but they must ask for them in person at any of the seven Library locations. Once you have reserved the tickets at a Library branch, you must confirm the seats by calling the box office at Hartford Stage, 860-527-5151.
Sizzlin’ Winter Salsa Dancing Night
Tuesday, January 21st: 6 p.m. – 7:30 p.m. Atrium – Downtown Library
Stay warm this winter at our Sizzlin’ Winter Salsa Dance Night! First time salsa dancer? Looking to freshen up on your salsa moves? We will be offering salsa lessons from 6-6:30 followed by a Salsa Dance Night from 6:30-7:30, hosted by Latin Jazz Band Agua Pa Chocolate.
@ General Info
Want to improve your vocabulary painlessly? Subscribe to Word of the Day or Merriam-Webster’s Word of the Day. Or get the Word of the Day app at the Google Play Store or the Apple app store.
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Free Stuff
Free college classes at Coursera.
Go to GreaterGood.org to help others for free.
Go HERE to find free dental care.
Improve your vocabulary and donate rice to help hungry people HERE.
Not free but cheap!!! CheapOAir!
Go here to find free stuff like paper towels, beauty products, etc.
Do you know about this? Footwear with Care provides new shoes and socks to homeless folks. Read all about their work and look for the next date if you know someone who might need shoes.
@ On The Web
Top 10 Internet Safety Rules & What Not to Do Online
1. Keep Personal Information Professional and Limited
2. Keep Your Privacy Settings On
3. Practice Safe Browsing
Read all 10 rules HERE.
How Careful Are You When Online?
When you are reading your email, do you click on attachments from people you don’t know? Do you click on attachments from people you do know without verifying that they sent you something? What about free things, like games, you can download – how careful are you? Do you back up your work to the cloud or a portable hard drive? How are you protecting yourself?
In Baltimore and Beyond, a Stolen N.S.A. Tool Wreaks Havoc By NICOLE PERLROTH and SCOTT SHANE
American cities are being hijacked with an N.S.A. cyberweapon that has already done billions of dollars in damage overseas. The N.S.A. will say nothing. Read the NY Times article HERE.
@ Health is Justice
https://q1medicare.com/q1group/MedicareAdvantagePartD/Blog.php?blog=Understanding-the-2020-Medicare-Part-D-Donut-Hole&blog_id=766&category_id=9
Medicare’s Part D Doughnut Hole Has Closed! Mostly. Sorta.
The drug coverage gap was widely loathed, but the new scheme may still leave some older Americans holding the bag.
By Jan. 17, 2020
With the new decade comes this long-awaited milestone: the Medicare Part D doughnut hole has closed. Two cheers.
More than 61 million Americans are Medicare beneficiaries, and about 46 million of those are enrolled in Part D. The doughnut hole, more formally called the coverage gap, has been one of Part D’s more detested features since the drug benefit took effect in 2006.
“It’s great that the doughnut hole is closing,” Dr. Neuman said. “But people will continue to be exposed to very high drug costs without Congressional action.” Read the entire article HERE.
What You Need to Know About Part D Prescription Drug Plans
Questions? Read this article on the AARP website HERE.
Win
at Weight Loss Using Mindful Eating
Being more present with what’s on our plates can help us eat less and shed pounds. Here are 7 easy ways to do it.
Why Sitting Too Much Is Bad for Your Health
Do you sit all day like I do? If so, you need to look at this slideshow or watch this video. Get up and get moving.
Are You Old For Your Age?
According to Dr Christine Northrup, “There is a HUGE difference between chronological age (the age on your driver’s license) and biological age (the age of your tissues).”
She continues, “Believe it or not, our cultural programming about what to “expect” at a certain age is more powerful than our genes when it comes to how our biology will react. We need to be more aware of our culture’s negative messages about growing older and make a conscious effort to reject them.”
Learn how your thoughts affect your body and how you can change your beliefs so you can grow older without aging. Watch the first video in my FREE 4-part video series now! Go HERE for more information.
Whole Grains You Should Be Eating
Why do people who eat more whole grains, like oatmeal, gain less weight than those who fill up on refined grains, like white rice? Whole grains keep food in your stomach longer, so you’re less likely to fill up on junk foods. But a slender shape isn’t the only reason to eat whole grains. Their texture and flavor can also wake up taste buds tired from a white-bread diet.
Check out the slideshow HERE.
30 Days of Apples: Our Favorite Recipes for Everything from Homemade Applesauce to All Kinds of Pies
Fall means is here. Whether you get apples from a grand picking expedition, a jaunt to the farmers’ market, or a visit to the store, be sure to explore the available as well as enjoying your time-honored favorites.
When shopping for (or picking), choose that are heavy for their size and feel firm when pressed gently, and always try to avoid bruised fruit. For the longest shelf life, store apples in the of the and use within three weeks (though with all the recipes ahead, we doubt that will be a problem).
Whether you’re looking for a new go-to recipe, are ready to make an , or fancy some , we’ve got the recipes you need. You’ll find more than just sweet options ahead—there are plenty of savory apple recipes, too, like crisp and . To ensure there’s something for everyone, we’re sharing a mix of the classics and some new twists to try, including a sweet apple version of and recipes for homemade and . Remember all the years you said you were going to make your own applesauce? Now’s the time!
(My favorites? Apple pie of course, and glazed apple fritters – not with powdered sugar!)
Billings Forge Year Round Farmers Market
Winter: The Studio, 563 Broad Street Hartford, CT Phone: 860-548-9877
Mental Health
Do you know what narcissism is? Go HERE.
Do you know how stress affects your body? Go HERE.
Are you depressed? Aren’t sure? Go HERE.
Need mental health/addiction information? Go HERE. Services? Go HERE.
Find a community health center HERE.
Gun Violence
Trump abandons proposing ideas to curb gun violence after saying he would following mass shootings
President Trump has abandoned the idea of releasing proposals to combat gun violence that his White House debated for months following mass shootings in August, according to White House officials and lawmakers, a reversal from the summer when the president insisted he would offer policies to curb firearm deaths.
Trump has been counseled by political advisers, including campaign manager Brad Parscale and acting chief of staff Mick Mulvaney, that gun legislation could splinter his political coalition, which he needs to stick together for his reelection bid, particularly amid an impeachment battle.
Read the entire article HERE.
Criminal Justice
NAACP, State Team Up To Help Inmates Find Employment
by Lisa Backus @ ctnewsjunkie.com
The Connecticut NAACP and state officials are hoping to find 10,000 jobs for formerly incarcerated individuals in the next three years.
Connecticut is a pilot state for the NAACP’s national “Million Jobs” campaign to get major businesses on board with hiring former inmates who will receive training that actually leads to a job, said Scot X. Esdaile, president of the Connecticut NAACP and the chair of the national NAACP Criminal Justice Committee.
“There are a lot of people dealing with addiction services, housing issues, mental health issues, but no one is dealing with the jobs issue,” Esdaile said. “The number one social program out there is a job.”
Esdaile and more than 100 business leaders and state officials, including Gov. Ned Lamont, met Tuesday to start planning the implementation of the program which they hope to launch by mid-September.
Read more HERE.
REALM – A New Way to Participate
Our church is moving to a new kind of church record keeping solution called Realm®. It primarily serves the administrative needs of our staff, but it also offers some exciting opportunities to support the way you are involved in our church. Not only will this improve work life for our ministry staff, it will make it easier for our church family to connect with each other, keep up with what’s going on, and grow as a connected community of believers.
There are three things you should know before we highlight what you can do:
1. We’re updating the administrative tools our staff uses to run the daily operations of our church.
2. We’re adding more ways to communicate and connect as a church, all while leaving current methods in place.
3. You determine how much you want to make this part of your experience with our church, but we encourage you to participate.
To get the app at iTunes, click HERE.
To get the app at Google Play, click HERE.
OR click on the QR below.
