Notes on Two Hundred Years (and More)
by Douglas H. Parkhurst

Continued from November 2024…

The year 1958 was a watershed for First Universalist Church (now Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Danbury). It was the first full year of the pastorate of Rev. Gaston Carrier, and in January Mrs. Mary Carrier became director of religious education. Three attainable goals were being pursued: 1) for First Universalist to become a local leader in liberal religion; 2) for the continuing development of the religious education program; and 3) for the improvement of the church building and grounds. More visitors attended Sunday morning services and membership increased (six people had signed the membership book in 1957 and twenty more in 1958). The Sunday school, with nine classes registered, outgrew existing facilities. A major construction project, partly underwritten by an ambitious fundraising campaign, transformed the church basement into classroom and chapel space. [See “Notes…” articles of September, October, and November 2024.]

Still, routine matters and immediate problems had to be addressed. Repairs and repainting after the sanctuary fire of November 1957 were completed. The church oil burner required work as did some windows in the building. The sidewalk in front of the church was repaired and lawn reseeding done in the spring. The parsonage needed work also, including furnace repairs and removal of a dead tree.

The church organ, in service since 1893, was in poor condition with major repairs estimated to cost at least $1,000. On top of this, long-time organist Adelaide Grabert fell ill and a substitute organist, at $10 per Sunday, was recruited to fill in for a time. Two local groups, the Humane Society and the Mental Health Association, applied and were approved to hold monthly meetings at the church.

In April, the board of trustees voted the church take a summer recess from June 29 to August 24, with the exception of Sunday, July 27. This July date was when First Universalist was scheduled to broadcast a Sunday morning service on Danbury’s WLAD radio.

Earlier in the year, Rev. Carrier recommended to parishioners a book by Clinton Lee Scott titled Religion Can Make Sense. The board authorized purchase of enough copies to give one to each new family joining the church. On October 25, the Connecticut Universalist Convention held its fall conference at the Danbury church from noon to 7:30 pm. An outside caterer provided box lunches, and a buffet dinner for attendees (at $1.85 per person) was served at the Elks hall across the street. Among the afternoon’s activities was a religious education workshop attended by several local members.

Rev. Carrier, at church board meetings, usually gave a summary of his monthly activities. Typical was his report for November which included: seventeen parish calls, four Sunday services plus a service at the United Jewish Center, and five church school services [see note below]. Also, during the fall, Rev. Carrier led what were characterized as “regional” gatherings, in Brookfield and Kent, for people interested in learning about Universalism.

A very special event was held at the Danbury church in June of 1958. Fond memories remained of Rev. Dr. Harry Adams Hersey and his ministry at First Universalist, after his retirement and move to Massachusetts a decade earlier [see note below]. Many members of the church and people in the larger Danbury community warmly recalled his pastorate (1930-48), the Hersey family’s long residence in town, and Harry Hersey’s engagement in a variety of community activities. On Sunday, June 22, following morning worship, the large meeting and social room on the first floor of the church building, adjoining the sanctuary, was dedicated as The Harry Adams Hersey Room.

Participating in the formal dedication was Lottie Champlin Hersey, Dr. Hersey’s widow, who offered a prayer and read a tribute prepared by the couple’s youngest son, William Hersey, also present. Harry and Lottie’s daughter, Helen Hersey Dick, and son-in-law, Rev. Robert Dick, and three grandchildren were in attendance. Rev. Gaston Carrier led the regular 11 am service, which was broadcast on WLAD. Soloists were Clarence Murphy and Pauline Olmstead. Rev. Dick, then associate minister at Church of the Redeemer, Universalist, in West Hartford, preached the sermon, “On the Shoulders of the Past.” In his presentation, Rev. Dick quoted the following from a sermon Dr. Hersey delivered on the occasion of his 75th birthday, on April 22, 1945, as World War II was nearing an end.

“Today I have more faith in man, more faith in youth, more faith in God, more faith in the influence of the church, more faith in the deathlessness of human life, more eagerness for truth to be known, more interest in life, more enthusiasm for living than I have ever had. I know I shall die in sight of the Promised Land and you will, and perhaps our grandchildren will, but someday mankind will enter it to live in fellowship, brotherhood, prosperity and peace….Someday mankind will know the truth and the truth will make them free. Someday the knowledge of God will cover the earth as the waters cover the sea. So as I leave my 75th birthday behind I thank God for my rich and happy life, for my wife and children and descendants, for my many friends and good neighbors and fellow-citizens as I have known them in many places through many years….”
[Note – First Universalist’s Sunday morning service began at 11 am. The children’s service and Sunday school started at 10:30, the same time as the adults’ coffee (half) hour.]

[Note – The “Notes…” article of September 2023 offered an overview of Harry Adams Hersey’s life and career. He was born and lived his early years in Dorchester, Massachusetts, and passed away at home in Somerville, Massachusetts, on October 11, 1950, at age eighty. Dr. Hersey prepared an interesting series of reminiscences about life in Dorchester in the period 1870-1890. It can be seen on the website of the Dorchester Atheneum at https://www.dorchesteratheneum.org/project/harry-adams-hersey-1870-1951/.