Hayden Congregational Celebrates 120 Years of Ministry

Hayden Congregational UCC joyfully remembered 120 years of ministry to Christ with a wonderful celebration on August 24, 2019. Folks traveled from Iowa, Montrose, Grand Junction, Colorado Springs, and Denver areas to join together in laughter, sharing of memories, learning more about the history of this congregation and, of course, enjoying delicious food through our potluck!

This church was originally built in 1903 after first meeting in people’s homes, then in a vacant, one-room log schoolhouse in August 1899. Amazingly, the large stained glass window in our sanctuary is original to the first building in 1903.

We were blessed with the presence of some of our past clergy and received letters from others who were not able to attend. The artist who made all the other stained glass windows in the 1970s also traveled to be with us in celebration. Some folks hadn’t seen each other in 20 years or more!

One of our members, Judy Green, beautifully portrayed Kate Haus, this congregation’s first female pastor from 1908! Kate was actually ordained here at Hayden. Her depiction was informational, fun and quite humorous.

Photo booth props fit right into the fun-loving attitude of this congregation! Folks of all ages had a wonderful time being silly!

Thank you to all who were able to attend and to those who were with us in spirit. We had a memorable time reconnecting to our roots!