Our church historian, Jane Barber, has compiled a comprehensive chronicle of our amazing pipe organ, and the intriguing people who have played it. We plan to share with you a serialized version of that story, starting with this introduction and overview. More to come! The organ. It was a big part of our worship life in what now feels like a long time ago. Built […]
“One of the contractors who put a bid on the ceiling restoration said to me, ‘this church has secrets still to be discovered.’” That quote from Pastor Daniel Meeter confirmed what we had suspected all along. Our sanctuary chandelier is as mysterious as it is beautiful, with a hazy, unclear past. “We don’t know who made it,” Pastor Meeter says. “We don’t know when it […]
Ash Wednesday begins the season of Lent, and comes out of the ancient Jewish tradition of penance and fasting. The imposition of ashes is a strangely joyful receiving of the somber admonition to “Remember that you are dust, and to dust you shall return.” Old First will be offering ashes to the public outside on our 7th Avenue steps from 8:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. […]
One of the unsung heroes of Old First: our kitchen stove. We use it on the second Saturday of each month to cook our meals for Christian Help in Park Slope (CHiPS), the Fourth Avenue soup kitchen and social service provider. CHiPS partners with local churches, synagogues, civic groups and volunteers to cook and deliver food to the hungry and homeless. It serves as many […]
“A few months ago, we did the stations of the Cross for St. Mary’s Church in Manchester, New Hampshire. We completely restored the old church and a couple of ladies walked in and started crying.” This from church restoration artist Marko Golubovic, who is in the process of bringing all of us at Old First to tears as well. His company, Milan Restoration, has been […]
Lowering our breathtaking chandelier for cleaning and maintenance is not an event that happens often. Since Pastor Daniel Meeter’s arrival in 2001, it’s only been lowered three times. In fact, the last lowering, in 2010, is what thankfully led to our discovery that the ceiling needed to be reinforced. The custom-made chandelier, technically called an electro-gasolier, was first installed in the church around 1889. Along […]
Please join us Monday, January 15 at 1pm for our Annual MLK Interfaith Prayer Service, to honor the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr and pray for justice and peace in our world, nation, and borough of Brooklyn. All are welcome. RSVP on Facebook. For more information or to volunteer, please contact info@oldfirstbrooklyn.org.
The Old First Restoration Steering Committee is pleased to announce that we have selected Milan Church Restoration LLC to repair, clean, and paint the sanctuary ceiling. Milan is a New Jersey based firm that works exclusively with churches. They come highly recommended and are specialists in the work our sanctuary ceiling needs. Over the past week, the Milan crew erected scaffolding in the sanctuary and laid […]
River terrapins are considered a critically endangered freshwater turtle species, mostly due to human consumption and habitat destruction. The Turtle Conservation Society of Malaysia (TCS) is a non-governmental organization (NGO) that is working hard to reverse and/or eliminate this unfortunate trend. Our Vera Nieuwenhuis’ impactful images are helping TCS to spread the “word.” Each year, Photographers Without Borders (PWB) connects volunteer photographers like Vera to […]
The word “vision” can have many meanings and stir many emotions. At Old First on Saturday, December 9, we’ll get to see — and hear — a choral interpretation of what may be our most mystical sense. The Accord Treble Choir presents Oculi as its winter concert, the latest of its performance tradition at Old First. The work is an attempt to explore the mystery […]