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Dr. Joe Utterback
Contact Us
First Congregational Church of Stratford, CT
2301 Main Street, Stratford, CT 06615
Church Phone: 203-378-2644
Church Fax: 203-377-6749
Church Email: firstchurchofstratford@yahoo.com
Our Staff
To contact the he wonderful and caring staff of the First Congregational Church of Stratford directly via email – click on the highlighted name:
Senior Pastor: Rev. Edward P. Rawls
Associate Pastor: Rev. Joshua Sander
Director of Music: Dr. Joe Utterback
Church Administrator: Sandy O’Neill
Facilities Manager: Bill Hickey
Financial Secretary: Don Coulson
Web Site Manager: Dawn Angileri
Our Safe Church Training Program
Every person who is in any position to interact with your children in either educational or advisory capacity has been through our Safe Church Training program. We instituted this policy as one means to safeguard all of our children against any types of harassment or exploitation (including sexual). We would be happy to provide you with a copy of our Safe Church Policy. It is on file in both our church and Sunday School offices.
Our Ministerial Staff
The First Congregational Church of Stratford is blessed with two wonderful ministers who act as our shepherds on our faith journey. Both bring unique talents and strengths to their ministry at First Congregational.
Bringing a touch of the south to our old New England church is Reverend Edward Rawls. As Senior Minister, Rev. Rawls works in concert with our Church Council, Board of Trustees and Board of Deacons to set the overall direction and goals of our church.
The Reverend Joshua Sander joined us in September of 2005 as our new Associate Minister. A Connecticut local, Rev. Sander focuses much of his time in the areas of Christian Education, Benevolence, visitation, new educational programs and social programs.
Rev. Edward Rawls - Senior Pastor
Biography
Pastor’s Pen
I walk through the sanctuary and see the plaque which reads, “In honor of Rev. Adam Blakeman, born in Staffordshire, England, 1598; a scholar of Christ College, Oxford; Preach of the gospel in Leicestershire and Derbyshire and in the wilderness of the new world; first minister of the church of Stratford from 1639 until his death in 1665.”
You have no idea how humbling that is to read. Our first pastor was born in the same century that Martin Luther, John Calvin and Ulrich Zwingli forged the protestant reformation; the same century that the Gregorian calendar was adopted and Copernicus theorized that the earth revolved around the sun; the century of William Shakespeare and Michelangelo.
What king of foundation does it take for a pastor to begin a church that weathers more than three and a half centuries? I started a church in Cary, N.C. in 1988. I wonder if it sill still be there for the next generation, let alone the next century. It was a wonderful colonial building that made this possible. I hate to think in what kind of place Rev. Blakeman and those first settlers worshipped.
It was much more than that. It was the same kind of vision and spirit that we find throughout the history of the United Church of Christ. It’s the idea that our faith is not so much built on adhering to a creed as it is owning a covenant. What I’ve always loved about covenantal theology is that it calls us to embrace what we will do as much as what we will believe.
The first covenant in the new world read like this: “We do bynde our lives to walk together in all God’s ways.” African American churches say, “It’s not only talking the talk but walking the walk.” In the United Church of Christ (U.C.C.) Statement of Faith, we confess, “You call us into your church to accept the cost and joys of discipleship, to be your servants in the service of others, to proclaim the gospel to all the world and resist the powers of evil, to share in Christ’s baptism and eat at His table, to join Him in His passion and victory.”
It’s one thing to adhere to a set of beliefs. It’s another to commit to a way of life, to covenant with others to walk together in all God’s ways or sign on as a disciple. Faith has as much to do with calloused hands as with enlightened minds.
As James wrote, “Show me your faith apart from your works, and I, by my works, will show you my faith.” Or as Jesus said, “By their fruits you shall know them.”
Our faith is not built on simply adhering to a certain doctrine but by committing to a way of life, a way of sacrifice, of commitment, of joy in service, of mission, that allows a church after 350+ years to not only weather the storms and survive, but to thrive, to grow, and be a lighthouse to the people of Stratford in these uncertain times, and in the shifting moral and spiritual tides of the 21st century.
Rev. Joshua Sander - Associate Pastor
Biography
Rev. Joshua J Sander grew up in the Congregational Church (UCC) in North Stonington, CT. One day, after a spectacular week-long high school conference at Silver Lake Conference Center, Josh was asked by a member of the church if he had ever considered going into the ministry. He had not. But from then on out his sense of being called to ministry grew and grew.
He did his undergraduate work at Phillips University and Culver-Stockton College and graduated Suma Cum Laude with a BS in Philosophy and Religion. He quickly went on to earn his Master of Divinity degree from Andover Newton Theological School.
A week after graduation Josh got married to his high school sweetheart, Jennifer, and in a little over a year he received his first call to the Associate Pastor position at First Congregational Church of Stratford.
Rev. Sander was Ordained in accordance to the practices of the United Church of Christ on November 27th, 2006 and was duly Installed to his position by the Fairfield East Association of the UCC on March 19th of the same year. He recognizes that he is still learning, and growing, and describes First Congregational Church as a good place to be.
Pastor’s Pen
To my Church Family,
Thanks to my wife’s knitting, I have entered cyberspace. It’s a strange thing to say… and now that I’ve got your attention, I’ll tell you how. You see, Jenny spent a long time looking for knitting. She tried out all kinds of crafts, from decoupage to soap-making, but she was never satisfied… until she found knitting. She taught herself how, through the use of books and the wonders of the internet. Pretty soon she was knitting fairly constantly, and looking for new things to knit in new patterns with new kinds of yarn. This constant searching eventually led her to various knitting blogs. “Blog” is an abbreviation of “Web Log,” and that’s basically what they are. They are public journals accessible through the internet. Pretty soon, Jenny had to try it out, and so www.yarnpie.blogspot.com was born. Pictures of her latest knitting and little stories about the events of her day were (and continue to be) posted up in cyber-space. Jenny is in constant contact with a number of people through their blogs, and yarnpie went even more public as First Congregational Church’s own shawl ministry group got off the ground. Pictures of the shawl ministry meetings have been posted and yarnpie was mentioned in the Courier and the Sunday bulletin in reference to the shawl ministry.
I had to get in on the action.
I’m not jealous, but being something of a creative writer myself, I craved the opportunity to journal as well. I could see the wonderful possibilities of blogging for my own needs and those of my ministry. I have lots of thoughts, feelings, and ideas concerning the intersection of culture and spirituality that quite frankly get put on the back burner or even slip through the cracks (or whatever cliché you prefer), in the day to day hustle and bustle of ministry. No more! Now I have www.dragonpastor.blogspot.com to get these thoughts out! At first, I had decided not to mention First Congregational Church by name at any point in the blog. I didn’t want to make it too easy for unscrupulous people to get at my personal information, and I wanted to make it clear that I am not speaking as a representative of First Congregational Church in my blog. I’m speaking as myself, on my own behalf. My opinions are not necessarily shared by First Congregational Church! However, as time has gone by, I have come to realize that my blog is one way to make people aware of this community, which I have grown to love. I am now holding on to the possibility that someone might find First Congregational Church of Stratford through my writing. And now that the church’s website has been revamped, it is a perfect time for my blog to officially link itself to First Congregational Church of Stratford!
So when you have a chance to have a look, check out www.dragonpastor.blogspot.com and see what you think. Feel free to comment on what I’ve been writing right there in the blog. I hope that this journal will become more conversational as time goes by, and that it will become a vehicle not only for you to get to know me better, but also for me to get to know you!
God loves you,
Be good to each other,
Rev. Joshua J Sander
Associate Pastor
Sermon 11/12/06 - “Homage for Widows”
Dr. Joe Utterback - Director of Music
Biography
Dr. Joe has served as Director of Music at First Congregational Church of Stratford since 1996. He plays the forty-rank Austin pipe organ and the Yamaha baby grand piano for morning services. Dr. Joe conducts three choirs, serves as Artistic Director of the Rose Window Concert Series and rehearses the Oratorio Choir for the annual Palm Sunday Concert in which over 80 choristers from the congregation and the community participate.
A jazz pianist, Joe performs solo concerts throughout the United States. Connoisseur Jazz has recorded six CD’s: Gershwin: Porgy and Bess Jazz Suite, the Grammy nominated Blues and Ballads at the Movies, Night & Day (Broadway favorites), Christmas on the Mountain, Night Train (jazz classics) and Stardust. Recent releases by Jazzmuse include Dr. Joe’s Jazz Gospel and jassDREAMz.
Dr. Joe has a rich performance life outside our sanctuary. He can be heard each December in the lobby of the Empire State Building. He has been booked each year since 2001 for the Tony Awards Gala. New Yorkers have enjoyed Joe’s improv for over 23 years with long term gigs at the G.H. Club, Regents East, Regents on 53rd and The Lion with special appearances at The Hotel Mark, The Waldorf Astoria and The Pierre.
Joe has created more the 275 compositions (published by Jazzmuse 732-747-5227) performed in more than 50 countries since 1994. His works for piano, organ, voice, chorus and chamber ensembles have won ASCAP (American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers) awards annually since 1991. Dr. Joe’s commissions have come from both sides of the Atlantic. His piano works have been recorded by David Allen Weir, his piano or organ duets by the Canadian Duo Majoya, and his organ works by several artists including a CD devoted totally to his organ works by Dr. Andrew Shenton from Trinity Church in Princeton.
Dr. Joe truly is a “Doctor” with his BA and MA in piano performance at Wichita University and his Doctorate of Music Arts from the University of Kansas. Dr. Joe teaches at Sacred Heart University, conducts the seventy-voice Stratford Sister Cities Chorus and offers individualized piano and composition lessons.
Dr. Joe’s concerts and commissions are arranged through his manager, Bill Todt (732-747-5227 or wmtodt@apl.com). For private parties and special gigs, contact Dr. Joe directly at jutterback56@aol.com.
Rose Window Concerts