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On March 4, the congregation of Cochrane Street United Church met for their Annual Congregational Meeting to review the work of the past year. As Secretary of the Church Board, I have been directed to report to the wider church community "good news from Cochrane Street". As some people in the province may know, our congregation, in 2002, in attempting to be proactive in obtaining further insurance coverage for our oil tank, had some testing done and a leak was discovered. This was a great blow to us, with the insurance company still refusing to cover any of the substantial costs involved in rectifying this situation. The congregation pulled together and over $100, 000 was raised to cover the costs of remediation and without borrowing. In 2007, the Treasurer, Stephen Jones, and the Chair of Stewardship, Elizabeth Squires, reported that since the oil spill problem was paid off, the finances of our congregation have been improving every year. In 2006, envelope givings were up 7%. A bank loan is now down to about $50,000 and as the congregation contributes specifically to this every year, little money has to be taken from envelope givings to pay down this loan. At the end of 2006, we had money in the bank. Over the past number of years, the congregation has undertaken a major restoration project which will see the roof over the four corners of the sanctuary repaired and the exterior masonry repaired and painted, with the effort this year focusing on the roof. This work is being done without any borrowing. This approach to Stewardship is seen to be especially important. Started as a Sunday School in 1878, the first church that was built for the congregation was a wooden Gothic structure and was tragically lost in 1914 to fire. Learning from the problems with wood, and recognizing that the congregation should not be put into unmanageable debt to build a new church, and with having to build during wartime with limited financial, material and human resources, the Trustees and the Building Committee took the giant step of erecting a structure which is unique in the province and which has served the congregation well for over 90 years. The structure with a Northern Italian exterior, Byzantine dome and barrel vaults houses a magnificent Casavant Frères organ, celebrating 50 years this year, and is the largest single pipe organ in Newfoundland. There are lots of good things happening inside the four walls as well. For over 25 years, the lower floor of the Sunday School building has housed first a Head Start program, then a Nursery School and now a Day Care. The top floor has been home to the United Church / Presbyterian Food Aid Centre for over 20 years. In addition, Daybreak Parent Child Centre's Toy Lending Library is also located here. The congregation is busy, with Sunday Services at 11 AM during which the choir ably contributes to the service with the organ almost always being played. Apart from Sunday School and choirs, we have three UCW groups, a Men's Club, Time Out For Women and a Bridge Club, both of which meet weekly. Some of these groups have members from outside the congregation. Mothers and young children are more than welcome to TOFW and this will be especially true this year, as, so far, four members of the congregation, including three members of the choir, will be welcoming six babies as they start their families. With a new constitution and Board structure in place with only three committees, the work of the church is more streamlined and improved communication is the end result. On the Outreach side, the subcommittee has been hosting seniors and baptism parties and these have been very well received. The Bags to School project was a great success and only the beginning for support in this area. For the third summer this year, and begun as a way to celebrate our congregation, TOFW and the Records and Archives sub committee, and with the assistance of many members of the congregation, will again be opening our doors for Thursdays at Cochrane with tours of the sanctuary, lunches served in the church hall and organ recitals by well known organists. The Sunday School is busy and active and looking for more space in the building. During the Christmas season the students designed and sold Christmas cards with the money purchasing a special tree for a drought ravaged area, hens and a rooster, and rabbits, so that some families in the Third World could begin to be self sustaining. They have now concluded their current project, Small Change for Big Change, with the money raised going to UCC Mission and Service Fund. The Church sanctuary has long been known for its concert hall qualities, and it and the adjoining hall and rooms are in greater demand than ever by local and visiting choirs and bands as a venue for them to share their talent with the community. We are pleased to be able to share in many ways what our forefathers and foremothers in their wisdom have bequeathed to us. We know that we must not grow complacent. God has been good to us and the hard work and faith of our Church community will take us into the future. As we continue to grow, we ask God's blessing on the many facets of what makes up Cochrane Street United Church. Visit us in person or at www.firstcity.net/cochraneuc. Linda Bowden
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