During February break, Harvard high school juniors Lucas Conant, Cameron Hettich, and Matthew Thornton traveled with a group from Central Congregational Church, Newburyport, to visit their sister churches in Chile. In 2010 a sister-church model was developed by the Massachusetts Conference of the United Church of Christ with the Pentecostal Churches of Chile to aid in recovery from devastation brought by an earthquake and tsunami. Houses and churches have been rebuilt and ongoing efforts made to develop connections between the two cultures.
From left: Pastor Viviana Muñoz, Keith Conant, Cameron Hettich, Pastor Carlos Muñoz, Matthew Thornton, and Lucas Conant stand in the newly rebuilt sister-church in in Talca, Chile. (Courtesy photo)
In 2013, the Congregational Church of Harvard, UCC, began a sister-church relationship with a Pentecostal Church in Talca, Chile, known as Talca 2. The Harvard church raised $5,000 to rebuild Talca 2. Members of the church community have reached out to members of Talca 2 via email and social media. In 2016 the Congregational Church welcomed a delegation of Chilean pastors, who participated in worship and shared a meal with church members.
The February 2017 trip was led by chaperone Keith Conant. The Harvard teens learned about Chilean culture while attending religious services, living with Chilean families, and working with other youth and Centro Shalom, an educational, religious, and environmental retreat in the Andes. With limited shared language, the teens made deep connections and experienced a culture very different from their own. The travelers will share their experiences during worship Sunday, March 12, at 10 a.m. All are invited to attend.
