Welcome to Community Congregational Church

Pastor Art Stratton Senior Pastor	Pastor Art was raised in a family that had roots in Roman Catholic, Baptist and Presbyterian traditions in New York City. He came to a personal faith in the Lord Jesus Christ at age 18. His first career was in aerospace engineering and production supervision. After marrying Nancy Lou Berg, in 1973, their commitment to serve Christ led him to enroll in seminary. He completed both his Master of Divinity (1980) and Doctor of Ministry (1988) degrees at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary in South Hamilton, MA. After graduating from seminary, his first pastorate was in southern New England: a Baptist church which experienced the Holy Spirit’s blessing spiritually and numerically. Dozens of individuals came to faith in Christ and were either discipled or mentored over a period of six years. This was an example of Dr. Stratton’s passion for discipling people one-on-one. In 1987 Pastor Art and his wife, Nancy and a small group of dedicated people founded New Hope Christian Chapel, an independent, interdenominational church. Growth of the Chapel was attributed in part to the biblical discipleship principles and methodology developed by Pastor Art.
Five generations of people within the Chapel were discipled and or mentored and several pastors from other churches in New England were trained in the multiplication of leaders for the local church. Pastor Art assumed the position of Senior Pastor of Community Congregational Church in July of 2005. A great deal has occurred since that time. His vision for creating a learning and worshiping environment through biblical teaching made relevant in today’s world is positively affecting our church. Our Senior Pastor is a disciplined pastor-teacher, evidenced by the detailed expository sermon outlines in the bulletin each week. Ask him and he will tell you he loves to go deeper and deeper in the Word of God, and he loves the pastoral ministry which affords him the opportunity to help people grow in their faith. Pastor Art has been married to Nancy over thirty years and they have two children. Their son, David, and his wife, Michelle pastor a church in Massachusetts and they have made Art and Nancy the proud grandparents of Elias Barclay Stratton. Their daughter, Grace, is a student and an accomplished pianist.
Dan McLaughlin Associate Pastor of Christian Education	Dan McLaughlin joined the staff of CCC in January 2007 as Associate Pastor. His primary area of responsibility is in the area of Christian Education where he envisions providing people with the resources and direction to develop their relationship with God and with each other. Prior to joining CCC, Dan has served as a youth pastor, senior pastor and teaching pastor. Dan grew up on the south side of Indianapolis, graduating from Perry Meridian High School before attending Taylor University in Upland, Indiana to earn his Bachelor of Arts in Psychology and later completing a Masters of Arts in Religion through Trinity Evangelical Divinity School in Deerfield, Illinois. Occasionally finding time for hobbies such as golf and woodworking, most of his time is dedicated to spending with his growing family. He and his wife, Denise, were married in 2001 and they have 2 children.
Deanna Miles Music Director	Deanna Miles joined the staff of CCC in June 2008 as Music Director. She and her husband, Matt, have 3 children.
Kathleen Donaldson Choir Director	Kathleen Donaldson is our Choir Director. As a pianist she earned her Bachelor of Music from the University of Windsor, in Ontario Canada. Desiring to use her music to serve in worship, she continued her education at Baylor University where she earned a Master of Music in Church Music. Through these studies she gained an appreciation for the history of church music, including the stories behind hymns and their writers. The Baylor handbell choir also introduced her to the art of ringing. Kathleen joined the staff at Community in September 2000 and enjoys working with choirs of all ages and incorporating music from ancient to modern into worship.
Debi Macy Church Secretary	Debi Macy has been our secretary since 2002. She has a caring and helpful spirit with a joyful love for God. You could say she is the glue of the church, making sure the weekly operations and Sunday morning Worship run smoothly. If you stop in to say hi, you will get a friendly greeting in return. When not working at the church, she and her husband, Roger Smith, share their musical gift with their music ministry of Macy and Smith & Co. Their love of various music styles takes them many places throughout Indiana to perform, bringing joy and laughter to those they come in contact. She is a life-long member of Grace United Methodist Church in Franklin, where she has always been active in the music ministry and Roger is Minister of Music. Debi loves her family, cooking, gardening, refinishing furniture and the outdoors. Teenagers, Hannah and Adam round out the family.