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We, The First Congregational Church of Portland, Connecticut, are an Open and Affirming church. With God’s grace, we continue to be a congregation that includes persons of every race, ethnicity, age, family configuration, marital status, mental and physical ability,

economic status, gender identity, gender expression, and sexual orientation. All are welcome to share in the life, sacraments, missions, responsibilities, and blessings of participation in our community of faith.

2021 Anniversary Booklet

Church History

List of Ministers and Founding Members

Monthly Historical Tidbits

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Eva Cudmore is an ordained minister and has served as a pastor in many churches. She is married to Rev. Richard Cudmore, a chaplain at Covenant Living. They live in Cromwell and they have four children: Greta, Cedrik, Ian, and Karl. Eva is originally from Sweden, and her interests include things that fall in the "artistic and creative" category.

Eva will provide pastoral leadership during Rev. Hawken's sabbatical leave from June 15-September 6. During that time, Rev. Cudmore will lead Sunday worship services and provide pastoral care as needed. Because this is a most unusual time as we find our way out of the pandemic and since we do not expect Eva to maintain office hours, we have determined her commitment will be approximately one quarter time.

Eva is a pastor in good standing with the Evangelical Covenant Church, having been ordained in 1997 in Sweden. Eva was born in in Africa, and is the child of missionaries who lived and served in Africa. When she was about to begin school, her family returned to Sweden where Eva's schooling and theological training took place, with the exception of a semester in Chicago where she met her husband Richard, who is also an ordained clergy.

Eva and her husband have four children ages 17-22, and the family moved back to Sweden from 2010-2016 for the purpose of allowing their children to embrace their Swedish heritage. Eva has served as a co-pastor with her husband in Naugatuck,and also as an interim pastor in Cromwell, Granby, and North Easton, MA. While in Sweden, Eva was lead pastor in a church there for nearly six years. At this time Eva is in the process of pursuing clergy standing in the United Church of Christ.

Eva's experience is vast and she describes herself as well rounded in in most areas of ministry and comfortable dealing with most human needs and experiences, from cradle to grave. Eva is fully bilingual in English and Swedish, and adjusts well to new situations and changing circumstances, which will be helpful as we carefully begin to navigate our pathway post-COVID,

Eva's first Sunday service will be held on June 20 at 9:00 a.m. Watch The Weekly Word for details of the service.

Introducing our new Sabbatical Pastor

The First Congregational Church of Portland will hold a concert by The Wild Notes on Sunday, July 25, at 6:00 p.m. at the Gazebo in the field behind the church, at 554 Main Street in Portland. Attendees are asked to bring a chair or blanket. In the event of inclement weather, the concert will be moved into the sanctuary.

The Wild Notes is an energetic and exuberant traditional acoustic group with roots in Irish, Scottish, French-Canadian, jazz, and classical music. Our original arrangements of New England and Celtic reels, jigs, hornpipes, and waltzes delight and surprise listeners and dancers alike. We are known for intricate and melodic interweaving of the fiddle and concertina, which float above graceful harp arpeggios. Our sweet, soulful arrangements of American folk songs, Irish ballads, and Scottish laments will surely find a place in your heart.

The Wild Notes have been performing together for about 20 years and are Mickey Koth on fiddle, flute, whistle and recorder; John Kalinowski on concertina, accordion, fife, spoons and bones; and Kasha Breau on harp, piano and vocals. They play a wide range of music for both dancing and listening, from contra and barn dance music to Celtic, Finnish, German, and Americana music as well as original songs and tunes. Past members include Dan Hocott on bass, guitar and vocals and Peter Delaney on guitar and vocals and can be heard on two CDs. More recent Wild Notes tunes and arrangements can be heard on Kasha’s YouTube channel.

There will also be an opening act for Wild Notes, “In CaFlutes” a newly formed flute trio performing lilting music easy on the ears with Mickey Koth, Nancy Kalinowski and Bob Breau on flutes and Kasha Breau on Piano.

The First Congregational Church of Portland is pleased to offer this concert to the community, in a beautiful outdoor setting. For those who wish to remain in their cars, parking is available adjacent to the Gazebo where the musicians will be performing.