Past Events

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Waterfall Hike
February 29th
Fifteen folks trekked through the woods on the slopes of Mt. Tam and feasted afterwards at the Mountain Home.  More pictures coming soon.

Pausing in Van Wyk Meadow for a group photo op in front of the big rock.

A lovely lunch in the sunshine with good friends. What more could you ask for?

Savoring the sights, sounds and smells of the forest.

 Trip trapping over one of the many little bridges along the trail and loving the sound of the water flowing beneath.

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An Evening with John Philip Newell
​Friday, February 21st

Our own Rev. David Gregory sat down with well-known teacher and author John Philip Newell for a wonderful, wisdom-filled evening of shared conversation. Over 100 people attended and did not go away disappointed (homemade desserts sweetened the deal). John Philip has written many wonderful books. You can find them here should you wish to explore further what this important teacher has to share.

The full-house crowd awaits the arrival of the speakers.

Program director Jennifer Stone introduces John Philip and David.

After the conversation between John Philip and David, attendees bring the light to their eyes and to their hearts-- one of several spiritual practices into which John Philip invited us.

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Annual Bird Walk
Saturday, February 1st
A small but mighty group of birders and would-be birders walked the trail at Hamilton in search of feather friends. What a lovely way to spend a Saturday morning!

Birdwalk leaders Dave and Richard come with all their fancy equipment to help bring the birds into clear focus.

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Hike to Cataract Falls
January 25th
Ten hikers met at Rock Spring parking lot for the walk to Laurel Dell picnic area and Cataract Falls, just below Laurel Dell. After eating our lunches at the picnic table, we hiked back to the parking lot, then headed to downtown Mill Valley where we enjoyed libations and more good times.

Happy hikers at the Falls

The hike back to the parking lot

Good times at the Gravity Tavern

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Christmas Eve Service
The telling of the Christmas story never gets old. Tonight we heard the story once again, sang favorite carols, shared the light as we sang "Silent Night," and were blessed by the music of violin and piano which took us into celestial spheres where we felt the joy of Christmas and the blessing of being together.

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Winter Solstice Labyrinth Walk 
December 20, 2019

All evening people came and went, walked the labyrinth to Diana Stork's diviniely beautiful harp music, sipped hot cider, ate apricots dipped in chocolate and other solstice treats, and drank in the beauty of this favorite CCC event. 

Rev. David opens the labyrinth with a Celtic verse.

'Round they go, following the path to the center (you can't get lost).

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Tripp finds his center.

Solstice magic

The labyrinth reflected in the chancel windows

Christmas Concert
December 15th

Singers sang, ukuleles twanged, bells rang. After the last heavenly chord of "O Holy Night" had rung out over the audience, guests enjoyed holiday treats, then gathered 'round the piano for carols. We departed after the final verse of"Silent Night," our hearts full of love and joy. What a night!

The CCC Choir

The ringers delighted the audience.

Such talent we have among us. Mele Kalikimaka!

Wonderful sounds from the kids of Academy DeTurk.

The grand finale: "O Holy Night." Uplifting, and so beautiful.

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Thanksgiving Feast!
Sunday, November 24th
Turkey and all the trimmings ... and a huge variety of desserts. Everyone was well-fed and had a wonderful time greeting old and new friends at our annual pre-Thanksgiving feast following our one service at 10:00.

Thanks to all who helped prepare the bountiful meal.

... and then we feasted.

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CCC Men’s Retreat
Oct. 18-20 at River’s Bend Retreat Center
The theme of the retreat was No history; no you! Know your history; know yourself. It was led by Rev. Dan Hatch, who declared the retreat to be "incredibly successful, as [he] facilitated by letting the Spirit be the facilitator." The focus was on self reflection, as the participants focused how Spirit was working within them. Dan observed that "the spiritual energy generated by the process was increasingly palatable after each session." The group had beautiful fall weather for their annual gathering.

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Community Cafe Luncheon
Tuesday, October 15th
There was an excellenet turnout for today's luncheon (spinach and strawberry salad, turkey meat loaf, mashed potatoes and gravy, broccoli, and apple crisp), which was followed by a presentation from  Marin therapist Jacob Brown. Jacob spoke on "Navigating the 3 M's of Aging:  Meaning, Mourning, and Memory Loss," and he covered a lot of ground with his talk. No doubt there we'll be having more conversations about the challenges and blessings of aging.

Enjoying each other's company and a delicious meal.

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Blessing of the Animals
Sunday, October 6, 2019

In the spirit of St. Francis and his love for all creation, Rev. David blessed our furry friends, on one of the most beautiful autumn afternoon we could have wished for. A good time was had by all, as the doggies munched on dog biscuits and the humans savored cake and other treats.  Said Rev. David:  "We celebrate unconditional love from our pets by returning our blessings to them."
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Autumnal Equinox Celebration on the Labyrinth
Sunday, September 22nd

A  group of about 25 folks gathered on the labyrinth at 4:30 to celebrate the Autumnal Equinox. Beautiful fall light blessed us as we shared gratitudes, sang chants, and called in the sacred directions. After the celebration we walked up to the lawn for a picnic while a drumming circle formed in the Seminar Room. It was a lovely evening and a wonderful way to welcome autumn.

Calling in the sacred directions.

Processing onto the labyrinth.

Labyrinth walk.

The drummers kept a steady beat.

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CCC Family Retreat
August 31st - September 2nd  
River's Bend Retreat Center in Philo, CA

A wonderful retreat attended by about 50 people, including members, family and friends. The food as always was fresh and delicious, the communion among us deep and sweet, and we were blessed by the presence of lots of  kids. Oh, and the s'mores were the best ever.
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River walkers pose for the annual photo by "the big tree."

Meals in the dining hall -- a great time to greet while we eat. Here Jan tells us about the silent auction (which raised money for retreat scholarships).

Fun and games after dinner on Saturday. Remants of the balloon toss can be seen on the ground.

The children come together at the swings. They really know how to have a good time.

Singing along .... The s'mores came a little later. And when it got dark, we could see ALL the stars.

Family connections around the fire.

Perhaps the youngest retreatant ever, she had a smile for everyone.

Worship on the deck on Monday morning. We shared our favorite moments as we prepared to say good-bye to River's Bend for another year.

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Marin Century Bike Ride
Saturday, August 3rd

Volunteers from CCC prepare watermelon to serve to returning riders. Sixteen folks from the church helped out with the race this year!

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Annual CCC Russian River Canoe Trip
Saturday, July 27th

This year we did the 4-mile half-day trip which is on the upper part of the river near the Healdsburg dam where the water flows best. There was plenty of time for socializing and swimming, and we stopped twice for casual back floats in our life jackets. Heavenly! The weather was very warm, and being on the river was the perfect way to cool off. Of course our happy hour at the Bear Republic Brewery afterwards was well worth paddling for.

Our first haul-out.

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Following our fearless leader. Thanks as always to Frank for organizing!

Bob knows how to relax while keeping his feet cool.

Good times at the brewery.

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June 23rd, 2019​
Yvette Lawrence in “Fools Who Dream”

 Over 120 people attended an evening celebrating the music of Broadway,  featuring Tripp Hanson, students of Academy DeTurk and Marin School of the Arts, with musical stylings of Scott DeTurk, Paul Eastburn, and Tommy Kesecker. Testimonial from one audience member:
She was magnificent ~ a unique, powerful sensitive, humorous, classic voice. The students, the musicians and Tripp were a total delight.

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Village Workday
May 25th​, 2019
"Thank you everyone. Great work day, excellent company, spectacular food!"
"Incredible dedicated effort by everyone to keep CCC being the outstanding place to be.  
  A huge thank you for your work.   🙏🏾🥰"

                       ~ Barb Killey & Sylvia Victor ~ Sacred Space team leaders  

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​Community Cafe
Tuesday, May 21st, 2019

As always, great food, great fellowship. 
​And great chefs! Please join us next time.
All are welcome.

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Sacred Space Beautification Party
Saturday, April 27th, 2019
9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.

Wow, what a great, productive, gourmet workday we had!  There were 22 of us there. Two truckloads of junk went to the dump, one load of redeemables to Goodwill,  invasive flowers and weeds were cleared from the labyrinth perimeter,  all the clutter of the kitchen was cleared out (to the dump or Goodwill),  we did weeding around the chancel window area, the stove and oven got cleaned, the redwood sprouts were beaten back from the path down to the labyrinth, the lawn was mowed, the windows cleaned (everyone please check out the kitchen windows ~ you will see things never visible before!), the storage shed cleaned out and much stuff sent to the dump; the evergreens along the back path to the deck were trimmed off, the weeds down the hill removed, the hanging succulent baskets re-filled and rejuvenated, the  refrigerator drip possibly stopped. And after all that,  a mouth-watering gourmet brunch! Thank you everyone!! Let's do it again soon (keep a lookout for the next date), and guys, how about recruiting other guys and trying to outnumber us gals!

With much appreciation, 
​Sylvia & Barb

Ta-da! A clean and tidy kitchen drawer.

Ah, time to feast after the hard work.

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Easter Sunday, 2019

A packed church, 17 kids, inspiring words and music, and then a great feast. The day couldn't have been more joy-filled as we joined together for our Easter celebration.

"Ave Maria" brought tears of the best kind. 

A full house.

Rev. David shares an Easter message with the children.

The tables are set for the Easter feast!

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Wildflower Hike to Chimney Rock
April 20th, 2019
Hikers went out to the coast in search of wildflowers and were not disappointed. ​Glorious!

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Full Moon Hike
April 17th, 2019

The sky was clear and there was very little wind as 10 hikers trekked above Marin City to watch for the almost full moon to rise. As always, we shared food and fellowship and gave a good howl as we saw the moon rising over the East Bay Hills.

Waiting for moonrise while enjoying a feast of finger food.

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Maundy Thursday Service
Thursday, April 18th, 2019
Supper at 6:30 pm
followed by Communion and Tenebrae

Over 25 people attended our beautiful service, comprised of a silent simple supper and readings that told the story of the Last Supper. After each reading a candle was extinguished leaving us in holy darkness until Sunday morning.

The aftermath of the supper.

The setup for the Tenebrae service.

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Waterfall Hike
to Carson Falls
March 23rd, 2019
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The falls were full and the fellowship was fine for the last of three wonderful waterfall hikes led by the intrepid Frank Valone.

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         Community Cafe
​         March 19th, 2019

                  ... good food and lively conversation, as always.

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March 3rd, 2019
Installation of Rev. David Starbuck Gregory
as CCC's minister
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David Gregory was formally  installed as CCC's settled pastor, and joy filled the room as many witnessed the blessed event.

Yes!!

Laying on of hands.

David's favorite: chocolate cake to celebrate the occasion.

The official signing of the papers by the rep from the Golden Gate Association (UCC), our co-moderator and Rev. David.

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Women's Retreat
March 1st - 3rd, 2019
She Carries Me
 Encircled by the Sacred Feminine

Over 30 women gathered for the weekend at Santa Sabina Center in San Rafael for CCC's annual women's retreat. We were blessed to have as our retreat leader Kimberly Elliot, a minister, drummer, singer, dancer, and devotee of the Sacred Feminine, who brought us images, songs and prayers to move us deeply into an experience of "the Mother of us all." Along with savoring the fabulous food from the Santa Sabina kitchen, we danced, did art, and nurtured each other's spirits with our deep sharing.  Blessed be!

Dancing' up a storm.

Kimberly and her drum.

Hugs and smiles during our "Angel Walk" in the Prayer Room.

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February 23rd, 2019
Waterfall Hike on Mt. Tam

The group took the Matt Davis Trail to Bootjack Camp, then down to Van Wyck Meadow and back up to the Mountain Home for a brew and continuing good fellowship. We crossed many little babbling creeks, and every time we came to a bridge we stopped to regroup and pose for pictures. Thanks as always to Frank for organizing and leading us.

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Saturday, February 16th, 2019
10:00 am to 1:00 pm

Award-winning singers/songwriters
Jan Garrett & JD Martin
presented
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Embodying Your Authentic Voice

Jan and JD welcomed adventurous souls ~ singers and non-singers alike ~ to the workshop,
and offered them fun, empowering, and practical ways to find and express
their Creative Voices, how they show up in the world. 
Participants were encouraged to become a
 "finely-tuned instrument through which Inspired Universal Intelligence can flow freely."
The sharing was deep and real, and the good times flowed.

Visit Jan and JD's website HERE.​

Jan led the group around the room, clapping and singing, while JD accompanied on the piano.

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Annual Bird Walk
February 9th, 2019, 2019

Twenty people came out to the wetlands at Hamilton Field for a day of birdwatching amid intermittent rain and sun. Our resident expert birders brought their high-powered 'scopes and everyone got to view the birds up close and personal. One participant reported:  Besides viewing numerous duck species and feeding avocets, it was thrilling to see a red-tailed hawk take flight from a nearby tree and circle several times before disappearing.

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Not in Our Town visits CCC
Thursday, February 7th, 2019

Members of the local community gathered for a film screening and conversation presented by Not In Our Town, which aims to stop hate, address bullying, and build safe, inclusive communities for all.  To learn more about Not in our Town, go to NIOT.org. ​

The audience listens attentively as folks share their experiences with hate crimes and their thoughts about what can be done to stop them.

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January 12th, 2019
First Winter Waterfall Hike
to Cataract Falls

The weather gods were with us as we hiked the Cataract Trail to Laurel Dell, walked down the trail to see the spectacular waterfalls, then back up to the picnic area to eat our lunches. About half the group returned to the parking lot the way we had come, and the others took a longer return hike  along the Benstein Trail.
​After four hours of hiking, we rewarded ourselves with drinks at a local watering hole.
​We knew we'd been blessed by this one day of sunshine amid a week of rain.
Thanks to Frank for organizing and leading us.
There are still two more hikes coming up (see the Events page of this website for dates).
​All are welcome on these wonderful adventures.

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“Winter Wakening"
One-Day Women's Retreat in Inverness
Saturday, January 5th, 2019

On a stormy day in West Marin, nearly 40 women gathered at beautiful St. Columba's Church and Retreat House for a day-long retreat. Fires glowed in the fireplaces as we snuggled in for a delightful day of sisterhood and sharing. After convening at 9:30 in the dining hall, where we enjoyed goodies from the local Bovine Bakery, we moved into the Sanctuary upstairs and learned how to do "winter pruning for future flowering," focusing on the branches of our inner trees. We sang chants, heard poems, partook of a delicious catered lunch, then chose among four activities:  a dream workshop, a drive and short hike to nearby Shell Beach, an opportunity to get creative using a variety of art materials, a walk in the neighborhood, or a time to rest in one of the cozy common rooms upstairs from the Sanctuary. We left with hearts aglow, grateful for the sweet time we had spent together.

Getting creative in the dining hall.

We built a beautiful altar in the Sanctuary, complete with a St. Brigid's cross to honor the Celtic Christianity practiced in this church.

Some of us ventured out in the rain to visit Shell Beach, a short drive from the Retreat House.

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Christmas Eve Service
"Silent Night" to candlelight, the lighting of the Christ candle, lessons and carols.
​We left the service warmed and spiritually nourished.