
07/08/2025
Atkinson Congregational Church Announces Interim Pastor and New Sunday Worship Time
Atkinson Congregational Church has announced that Rev. Paige Besse-Rankin will be its interim pastor beginning Sept. 8, 2025, upon the retirement of Rev. Jim Thomas. Besse-Rankin is also the interim pastor at nearby Hampstead Congregational Church and will continue in that role. Under a shared agreement with
HCC, Besse-Rankin’s first worship service in Atkinson is scheduled for Sept. 14, 2025, at 10:30 a.m. – a new Sunday worship start time for ACC. HCC will also have a new start time beginning that day – 9:00 a.m. – allowing Besse-Rankin to move between the churches to deliver services at both. Sunday worship start times will be reevaluated in January.
“As I leave ACC, the congregation will undoubtedly be in excellent hands, knowing Paige is stepping in as interim pastor,” said Thomas.
“I’m honored to be called to serve through this transition into a shared reality for bothcongregations,” said Besse-Rankin. “This will strengthen the ministries of both congregations and open up many new ways of serving our communities.” Besse-Rankin’s background is highlighted by 30-plus years serving the United Church of Christ in both settled and interim pastoral positions across the U.S. She earned her Master of Divinity degree at Andover Newton Theological Seminary, and she is credentialed by the Interim Ministry Network.
Besse-Rankin is married to Rev. Gordon Rankin, the conference minister at the N.H. Conference, United Church of Christ. Their daughter, Emily, is a graduate of Piedmont University.
Looking ahead, the churches are at the beginning stages of searching for a settled pastor, one who will also serve both congregations. Shared pastorships are not new to either church. According to church records, ACC and HCC shared a single pastor from 1946 to 1965.