The Congregational Church of Union

A congregation of the United Church of Christ

We consider ALL who participate and call this church their home to be OUR MINISTERS, for we all share in the priesthood of believers in Jesus Christ.
Among these Ministers, several hold particular offices of service within our church:

Kevin Scanlan	Moderator
Steve Babbitt	Chair, Prudential Committee
Jeannine Upson	Chair, Deacons
Denise Babbitt	Director of Sunday School
Jeannine Upson	Historian and Clerk
Carol Berner	Treasurer

If you need to be in touch with any of these individuals, feel free to email here.

ABOUT OUR PASTOR
Rev. Dr. Robert R. LaRochelle

To us, he is Pastor Bob. He joined us on February 25, 2001 as a part time pastor, which he still is as he continues to serve as a full time counselor at South Windsor High School. Yet, from the beginning, he has embraced his ministry here with the conviction that even if he is part time, ours is a full time church, a community which needs to offer spiritual opportunities and to reach out to individuals who may be affected by what we do.

Since he has arrived, he has emphasized the importance of good preaching and worship. As a matter of fact, during his time here, with our support, he received his doctorate degree in preaching from Chicago Theological Seminary. He is a firm believer that it is necessary to preach sermons on tough topics and has done so throughout his tenure, whether the topic at hand be war, race relations, human sexuality, the death penalty or any number of other hot button issues. He has also emphasized education and the opportunities for individuals to raise and face difficult questions. Over the years, his educational programs and discussions of his sermons have provided many opportunities for us.

He came to us with a passion for Youth Ministry, for justice and for creating a church environment that is welcoming. Under his direction, our youth programs have thrived and we have embraced the theme ALL ARE WELCOME as descriptive of the mission of our church.

Now in his 11th year with us, he will be celebrating the 31^st anniversary of his marriage to Patricia Coppinger LaRochelle, who teaches English at Bolton High School. In these ten years, we have watched their three children grow: Brian, 27, is a school counselor at Amity High School, Woodbridge, where he coaches JV Baseball, Kathleen, 25, recently received her Master of Divinity from Yale University and is currently serving as a Campus Minister at Marist College in New York and Stephen, 19, will be entering his second year at Hamilton College in Clinton, New York. And, by the way, our part time pastor recently published a book on the topic Part-Time Pastor, Full-Time Church. This was released in October 2010 by Pilgrim Press. You may contact Pastor Bob at rpbksl@cox.net

BACKGROUND INFORMATION

D. Min, Chicago Theological Seminary, 2007
M.S., Counseling, Central Connecticut, 1987
M.Ed, Institute of Religious Ed. and Pastoral Ministry, Boston College, 1976
Graduate study: Luther Seminary, Gordon Conwell, Graduate Theological Union, Berkeley, California.
A.B., College of the Holy Cross, 1974

ORDAINED MINISTRY

2001-present Pastor, Congregational Church of Union, UCC
1989-1998, Permanent Deacon, St. Margaret Mary Roman Catholic Church, south Windsor, Connecticut

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE

Thirty Five years in education, including twenty two as counselor, South Windsor Public Schools
Director of Religious Education and Youth Minister in local Protestant and Catholic churches.
Director of Adolescent Religious Education, Diocese of Providence
Varsity Baseball Coach, winner of four Conference championships, state semifinalist, South Windsor High School
Retreat Director
Workshop leader, presenter, keynoter at conferences and conventions for different denominations. Upcoming programs scheduled in Illinois and New York State.

PUBLICATIONS

Articles on preaching(2) in THE LIVING PULPIT and CONGREGATIONS magazine.
Articles in STILL SPEAKING and SHARING THE PRACTICE as well as three part series on www.day1.org
WEBINARS on part time ministry offered through Center for Progressive Renewal.

Teaching an ONLINE COURSE in Fall 2011 on part time. church ministry
Sermons published on www.ctucc.org
Doctoral thesis available through ACTS library system and Chicago Theological Seminary- ‘ All Are Welcome: Preaching and the development of church identity in a small town.’
Part-Time Pastor, Full-Time Church, Pilgrim Press, 2010

See profile on Pastor Bob on www.creedible.com