Greenfield Hill Congregational Church was founded in 1725, and the current church building dates to 1855, though it was extensively remodeled after a hurricane in 1944 blew down the church's steeple. Greenfield Hill Congregational Church is run by its congregation. The congregation elects members of boards that run the church, select the church's ministers and staff and approve budgets and programs at the church's annual meeting in late January. Adult programs at the church include volunteering at Operation Hope, a Fairfield agency that helps the homeless, and for the church's annual Dogwood Festival, which raises money for charities. Adults also serve in the church's Compassion Group, which exists to help members of the church and the broader community, and as confirmation mentors, church school teachers and advisers for youth programs, the Boy Scouts and service trips to Appalachia. Youth programs include serving as junior deacons, service trips to Appalachia, staffing a soup kitchen in Bridgeport, the "Super Bowl of Caring," which collects donations during Super Bowl week to assist food pantries, and fundraising for cancer research. Money donated by church members assists local and international charitable organizations. The church's co-pastors are the Rev. David Johnson Rowe, who has served as a pastor at the church since 1997, and the Rev. Alida Ward, who has served as a pastor at the church since 1989. Greenfield Hill Congregational Church is the site of the annual Dogwood Festival, a much celebrated event in the spring that draws thousands of visitors from around New England and that raises money for local, national and international charities. The 2010 Dogwood Festival, which will be the 75th, takes place on Mother's Day weekend from May 7 through May 9. Greenfield Hill Congregational Church says its mission is to be a welcoming community which proclaims the Word of God and the Gospel of Christ, nurtures Christian beliefs and behavior and lifelong maturing in faith, and empowers everyone to grow as a Christian and to minister to others spiritually and physically.