New Florence church prepares for centennial celebration

United Methodist Church of New Florence members will gather for the centennial celebration of their church at a special worship service 3:30 p.m. Sunday, led by the church's pastor the Rev. Sharon Hamley.

The church is very excited to be celebrating the centennial of our building, said Hamley. The congregation has put a lot of time and energy into planning our centennial year and our final worship celebration is a service that will be filled with much music and joy.

Thomas J. Bickerton, Bishop of the Western Pennsylvania Annual Conference, and the Rev. James Pond, the UMC District Superintendent for the Indiana District, will be participating in the service.

Additionally, the Chancel Choir, directed by Paula Blankenbicker and accompanied by pianist Michael Brown, and the church's hand bell choir the Faith Ringers will perform.

Local church members formed a congregation in 1849 and built their first church soon after. The church was torn down and replaced by the current church in 1914.

A long-time member of the church, Barbara Keeler, whose aunt was a member of the congregation during the church's construction in 1914, said she remembers family stories about the ladies aid society cleaning the mortar off the bricks of the old church so that they could be used to build the interior wall of the new church.

In 1968 the New Florence Evangelical United Brethren Church and the new Florence Methodist Church jointed to form the United Methodist Church of New Florence

Through the years, our building has not only served our church family, but also served as a gathering place for the town for graduation ceremonies and baccalaureate services, said Barbara Lynne of New Florence, who has served as church secretary since 2003.

Lynne's parents resided here and were very active within the church.

My mother was one of the people who got the bell choir started in 1996, she said.

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New Florence church prepares for centennial celebration