Bell Ringing August 25, 2019 is the 400th anniversary of the first landing of enslaved Africans in English-occupied North America at Point Comfort in Hampton, Virginia, which is now part of the Fort Monroe National Monument. The anniversary will be commemorated at Fort Monroe as a day of healing and reconciliation. The National Park Service is inviting all 419 national parks, as well as communities and the public across the nation, to come together in solidarity to ring bells simultaneously for four minutes, one for each century, to honor the first Africans who landed in 1619 at Point Comfort and the 400 subsequent years of African American history. As part of this nationwide commemoration, Lyme Congregational Church will be ringing its historic steeple bell. We will begin with the automatic tolling of the church bell at 3PM and continue to ring the bell by hand for the next four minutes. This symbolic gesture will enable our church and our community to participate in this historic moment to capture the spirit of healing and reconciliation while honoring the 400 years of African American history and culture.