Upcoming Events
Janet Reitman, award winning journalist, contributing writer for The New York Times Magazine, best-selling author, and Springs resident joins The Church’s Knowledge Friday series! The author of The Inheritance: An American Tragedy in Five Acts (Random House, October 6, 2026), speaks about writing the newly released and highly acclaimed narrative non-fiction work and invites audiences to learn more about her story.
Reitman is joined by Sheri Pasquarella, Executive Director of The Church, who will lead the conversation covering Reitman’s one-of-a-kind experience that is chock full of insight and revelation. A riveting Q&A and book signing to follow the discussion.
The Inheritance, a stunning piece of narrative non-fiction, examines how 9/11 transformed America from a country revered for its democratic ideals to a nation defined by its fears, as told through the eyes of its nine characters. The Inheritance, devoid of an omniscient narrator or an introduction to set up a polemic, creates a stunning portrait through hundreds of hours of interviews with its subjects, allowing their stories and voices to illuminate the culture of fear that has impacted American values.
Learn about how Reitman, who also penned the national bestseller Inside Scientology: The Story of American’s Most Secretive Religion, integrated her experiences as a war correspondent in the Middle East, and covering post-9/11 America as a contributing editor at Rolling Stone, and as a current writer for the Times Magazine to tell the stories of nine Americans over three turbulent decade, creating magic in The Inheritance.
Thank you to our community bookseller Book Hampton of East Hampton for joining us for this program!
PLEASE NOTE: This talk was previously announced to include Dini von Mueffling, who is no longer able to join. Thank you!
The Sag Harbor Partnership (SHP) has launched a new initiative focused on preserving the unique character, diversity, and long-term vitality of Sag Harbor’s Main Street Business District.
In response to growing concerns about maintaining the distinctive mix of independent business, welcoming atmosphere, and local identity that make Sag Harbor such a special place to live and visit, the Partnership is hosting an important meeting at The Church to discuss innovative economic solutions.
The Main Street Initiative Public Meeting will be led by members of the SHP-led task force and present the initiative’s objectives and explore opportunities for community participation and public-private collaboration.
The meeting will provide an opportunity for residents, business owners, and community stakeholders to learn more about the initiative, ask questions, and participate in the discussion about Main Street
PANELISTS WILL INCLUDE:
· John Alschuler, founding member and former chairman of HR&A Advisors, an international economic consulting firm.
· April Gornik, co-founder of The Church and chair of the Sag Harbor Cinema.
· Susan Mead, land-use attorney, a founder of the Sag Harbor Cinema restoration effort, and current Co-President of the Sag Harbor Partnership.
· Fred Thiele former New York State Assemblyman and principal advocate for the creation of Suffolk County’s Community Preservation Fund and Community Housing Fund.
· Shawn Sachs, partner and CEO of Sunshine Sachs Morgan & Lylis, a global strategic communications and public relations firm.
Amber Esseiva, curator of Dear Mazie, leads an illuminating conversation with Emanuel Admassu and Jen Wood, founding partners of the acclaimed art and architecture practice AD—WO, whose work is included in the exhibition. Together, they will shine a light on our current show, taking attendees through the exhibition’s conception, actualization, realization and its journey to Sag Harbor. Following the discussion there will be an insightful Q&A with the curator and her guests followed by an opportunity to view the exhibition outside our normal exhibition hours.
Calling all songwriters and music enthusiasts, here’s an opportunity to learn from East End’s own lyrical mastermind, Inda Eaton! Eaton joins us for our musical November Insight Sunday, inviting audiences to peer into her creative world and gain insight into her songwriting process. Using her song “Once” from her album Shelter in Place as a portal, Eaton will reflect on her process and examine the inspiration and impetus driving her work. Following the discussion there will be a delightful Q&A with the audience.
We are pleased to offer a members exhibition tour of Dear Mazie, with our Executive Director Sheri Pasquarella.
November 22 - What is pain for?
Still, Small Voice draws its name from the idea of the "still, small voice" within—a quiet, inner voice that guides us in moments of reflection. This monthly gathering, started in 2023 as an artistic experiment, now returns as a community-led practice with rotating facilitators. It invites participants to engage in silent reflection and thoughtful sharing, centered around a question about creativity, community, and being human. We forever ever grateful for Nanao Anton & Erling Hope for their contributions, inspirations, and commitment.
This is a space to hear your and others’ authentic voices & own it in community, free of judgement or reaction, as necessary
This is not group therapy, a study group, a political action group or Quaker Meeting.
Please review our Community Values before attending.
Celebrate a local living legend Dr. Georgette Grier-Key - esteemed culture leader and acclaimed historian, educator, and advocate! The current Executive Director and Chief Curator of Eastville Community Historical Society will shine a light on her story. How did a child with a dream became a woman making monumental strides in her community and worldwide? Her impact is profound and her work paramount in creating a more inclusive community that prioritizes, with pride, accurate historical narratives. Come join us as we learn from this incredible woman and community pillar. An enlightening Q&A to follow.
An influential leader in several arenas, Dr. Grier-Key’s legacy is actively and effectively shaping a civic and cultural landscape that celebrates education, preservation, art, history, and culture. Disrupting the frameworks that uphold institutional and structural exclusion and fiercely advocating for the education that distills the ignorance of cultural incompetency, the Medger Evers College Professor also holds several leadership positions throughout New York State. This includes the President of the NAACP Brookhaven Town Branch, advisory board member of the Preservation League of New York State, among others.
This Knowledge Friday is programmed in tandem with our current exhibition Dear Mazie, an exhibition that celebrates the life, legacy and enduring influence of Amaza Lee Meredith our nation’s first practicing Black female architect and Azurest co-founder. Dr. Grier-Key’s work is directly responsible for the preservation of the Azurest community and her trailblazing legacy a wonderful mirror to Meredith’s enduring presence in her community.
Experience a multimedia event that celebrates the 50th anniversary of E.L. Doctorow’s groundbreaking novel Ragtime and explore his life and legacy with someone who knew him best - his daughter, Caroline Doctorow. Join us in welcoming the acclaimed singer-songwriter, as she weaves together excerpts of the novel, radio interviews, family photos & anecdotes, and more. Caroline will also treat audiences to a live performance of several songs relevant to the occasion, noting how her father’s book found new life on stage as a Tony Award-winning Broadway musical. Following the discussion, Caroline welcomes questions from the audience.
Published in 1975, Ragtime burst onto the literary scene and broke new ground as it wove together fact and fiction, creating a tapestry of early 20th-century America. Set against the backdrop of an era defined by seismic social and cultural shifts, the novel explores themes that remain strikingly relevant today: immigration, racial tension, and the evolving role of women in society. With its rich characters, masterful narrative, and profound insights into the American experience, Ragtime continues to resonate across generations.
Come explore the legacy of the late world-renowned author and one of The Church’s beloved Sag Harbor Saints.
Thank you to our community bookseller Book Hampton of East Hampton for joining us for this program!
We are pleased to offer a members exhibition tour of Dear Mazie, with our Executive Director Sheri Pasquarella.
Explore nature’s ephemeral metamorphosis with Roisin Bateman, an established artist born and trained in Ireland and Sag Harbor resident for forty years. Though not a traditional landscape painter, her work is known for its exquisite use of color to evoke nature’s continual change. Using her work Rising Air as the focus of exploration, Bateman will discuss her approach to making art and insights along the way. Following the presentation there will be a delightful Q&A with the audience.
In her pastel drawing, as in her use of thin layers of oil paint, beeswax in other works, Bateman illuminates the way colors appear and disappear in the crossing of air, water, warmth, light. Join us as we reflect on nature around and within us through an artist who sees more than what meets the eye.
Stop in ahead of the program, between November 20 – December 13, during our exhibition hours 11 AM – 5 PM, Thursday through Monday, to see Bateman’s work Rising Air in person.
Help us give Pari Stave, Head Curator at the National Gallery of Iceland in Reykjavík, a warm Sag Harbor welcome as she illuminates the Iceland chapter in the life story of Sag Harbor whaler Thomas Welcome Roys (1816-1877). From the remote fishing village of Seyðisfjörður, in Iceland’s East Fjords, Roys transformed whaling industry with his discoveries and his audacious (and ultimately failed) experiments in industrialized whale hunting and processes. Following the discussion, Stave welcomes questions from the audience.
In his Sag Harbor ship Superior, Roys sailed through the Bering Strait and into the Arctic Ocean, where he discovered an abundance of “new-fangled monsters,” the Western Arctic bowhead whale. This discovery would open the door to new travel patterns and new hunting grounds for whalers from all over the world. Roys also developed and patented whaling rockets to hunt faster and more powerful species that had until then eluded European whalers.
