Oysterponds: Scouts to begin ramp demolition at Poquatuck Hall Dec. 26

The Christian world stops this Sunday to honor the anniversary of the birth of Jesus Christ. There are many opportunities to participate in the church celebrations of this event. Orient United Methodist Church will have its normal 11 p.m. candlelight Christmas Eve service led by Pastor Bev Furey and a 10 a.m. Sunday prayer and worship service with Geoff Proud delivering the sermon. The Congregational church will have its usual renowned 4 p.m. children’s Christmas pageant, which is always a fantastic way to spark the spirit of Christmas. They’ll also have a simple 10:30 a.m. worship service on Sunday.

Added to St. Agnes’ normal Mass schedule will be a 6 p.m. children’s Mass/pageant and, in order to save Father Tom from answering the phone and the same obvious question every year, the time of “midnight” Mass is … duh … MIDNIGHT.

Oysterponds also wishes all their Jewish friends a special Hanukkah, for which the first candle was lit Tuesday evening, and which continues to next Wednesday.

Another bright thought as this paper goes to print: On Thursday, we all welcome the day when sunlight starts getting longer.

No matter how you celebrate the eve of 2012, please plan to start the New Year at Poquatuck Hall chowing down on a great brunch to support Jake Thorp’s Eagle Scout project. For those who might have missed it, with Jake in the lead, the scouts will restore Poquatuck’s handicapped ramp to make it safe for folks with disabilities. Brunch tickets are $10 for adults, $6 for children. (Children under 4 admitted free.) They will be available at the door, or Jake will deliver them to you if you call him at 477-6382.

Jake and Boy Scout Troop 51 will begin demolition of the old ramp on Dec. 26. If you want to stop by and cheer, you may also want to check out the new community signboard, which was a long time in planning and execution. I hope you’ll agree it was worth it. I will share more on that in my next column.

Speaking of my next column, it will show up on the newsstand Jan. 12. If you want to see something in it, please get it to me by Sunday night Jan. 8.

I’m sure many of us will relate to the thought that 2011 has whizzed by in a nanosecond. Where did it go? Oysterponds has been seriously diminished by the loss of so many incredible residents who wove the special colors of the thread into our hamlets. Even though I am not running for a pageant title, I’m still hoping for world peace and a return to some sort of normalcy and prosperity. So many bumper stickers here reflect “Save What’s Left,” which is such a great mantra, not only for here but for the world.

May God bless America and all of our friends and families. See you next year.