The Shirley Community Church will hold a special service at 11 a.m. on this Sunday only (regular Sunday service time is 9 a.m.) followed by dinner at the Shirley Town Hall at 12:30 p.m. The church service will include a message by Dr. Everett L. Parker, church pastor, and there will be special music for the occasion.

The dinner will feature home cooking by some of the Moosehead region's finest cooks. The menu will include ham, potato salad, cole slaw, homemade baked beans (two kinds!), bread and beverage. Dessert will be something many people look forward to all year -- a wide variety and assortment of homemade pies.

Cost of the dinner is $7.00 for adults and $3.00 for children between ages five and 12. Children under five are admitted free of charge with parent. Proceeds for this annual event will benefit the Shirley Community Church, and this is one of the major annual fundraisers for the church.

The "mortgage burning ceremony" will take place during the dinner as church members celebrate paying off the $29,000 purchase price of the former United Methodist Church building. The total purchase price was raised within a few months of last fall's purchase, but the church council decided to wait until this summer to have the official mortgage burning ceremony.

Recent work at the Shirley Community Church should make it more comfortable for those attending activities or worship. A new furnace was recently installed, replacing an antiquated system, and Lee Turner's work on the stained glass windows will now allow the windows to be opened for better air flow on hot days. "Likely the windows have not been opened in 20 years or more," Dr. Parker said of Turner's work. "It can be very hot and sticky at Old Home Sunday time, and hopefully with improved air flow, it will be more comfortable for those attending."

The public is encouraged to attend both the church service and the dinner. To reach the church from the north, turn right on the Upper Shirley Corner Road and go through town. The church is on the hill next to the Shirley Elementary School. From the south, turn left on the Lower Shirley Corner Road and travel through town to the church. The Shirley Town Hall is located on the shore of Shirley Pond in the village.

Next year, the Shirley Community Church building will celebrate its centennial, and special activities and events are planned throughout the year.