The First Congregational Church of Marion is pleased to welcome The Rev. MaryAnn Purtill as our new Designated-Term Pastor effective February 4. She is a graduate of Andover Newton Theological School in Newton, MA and previously served as an Associate Pastor of the Marlborough Congregational Church in Connecticut.
Rev. MaryAnn is originally from Flanders, New York, on the East End of Long Island, a community not unlike Marion. She moved to Connecticut in 1984 after marrying, raised her son there, and co-owned a small business.
MaryAnn became very involved in the Congregational Church in Connecticut, was a church administrator and progressed to active lay leadership. This led to a three-week adult mission program to Malawi, Africa to work at St. Mary’s Orphanage, which her church had been supporting. There, working with the orphans, she recognized a greater need to work for God. Upon her return, she completed a six-month chaplaincy program at Hartford Hospital, where she discerned her call to ministry.
A local pastor recommended that she apply to a special program at Andover Newton Theological Seminary. MaryAnn summoned up the courage to step out in faith, submitted an application based on her life experience and was accepted. While she was in seminary, she was a Student Intern with the Windsor Congregational Church, a chaplain with Hartford Hospital, and Director of Christian Education with the St. James Episcopal Church in Glastonbury, Connecticut.
After four years at Andover Newton, she sought ordination. She joined the Marlborough Congregational Church in Connecticut, where she served as an Associate Pastor. She also became a staff chaplain with The Masonic Health Center. Her five years at the Health Center taught her the benefits and joys of ministering to the elderly and cognitively impaired.
Mission and service are at the heart of Rev. MaryAnn’s ministry. She feels that anytime we care for one another, we are preaching the gospel of Christ.
Rev. MaryAnn is very happy to be in Marion. She looks forward to meeting and getting to know its people and enjoys the comfort that a small town like Marion offers. Her characterization of The First Congregational Church of Marion is that it is “a church with a big heart and a lot of hope. Any challenges the church has faced matches my skills, abilities and my own need for spiritual growth.”
Feel free to email Rev. MaryAnn Purtill at pastor@marionfirstchurch.org, call the church office at 508-748-1053, or stop by the Community Center and say Hi.
The First Congregational Church of Marion is located at 28 Main Street, Marion, MA 02738. Sunday Worship Service and Sunday School are at 10:00 am. The sanctuary is handicap accessible with an elevator. The church office is in the Community Center, 144 Front Street, at the rear of the parking lot.
