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A HISTORY OF GRACE UNITED CHURCH OF
CHRIST
WEST POINT, PA
Early in the year 1907, the
teachers and workers of the West Point Union
Sunday School, feeling the need of a church organization
to further their re-
ligious work, held an informal meeting one evening at
the home of Mr. and Mrs.
Harry M. Nase. With them met pastors of three nearby
churches - Rev. D. K.
Laudenslager of Went's Reformed Church, Rev. T. R.
Taggart of Lower Providence
Presbyterian Church, and Rev. Reiter of St. Luke's
Reformed Church, North
Wales, who discussed with them plans for such an
organization. It was decided
to hold an open meeting for this purpose on February 7th
in the Chapel.
On February 7, 1907, a special meeting was held in the
West Point Union
Sunday School Chapel. A temporary church orginization to
be named Grace Re-
formed Church was started with Rev. D. K. Laudenslager
as temporary president
and Edgar S. Kriebel as secretary. At this meeting,
temporary By-laws were
adopted to be in use until the church would be
incorporated by the Goshenhoppen
Classis of the Reformed Church of the United States. The
following officers
were elected at this meeting: H. M. Nase, president; P.
B. Miller, V presi-
dent; Bessie T. Mattern, secretary
and J. F. Fenstermacher, treasurer. Rev.
D. K. Laudenslager was nominated and elected temporary
pastor. Three services;
two evening and one afternoon - were to be held each
month in the chapel.
Myrtle A. Mattern was elected organist and George B.
Seipt, choir director for
these services.
On June 3, 1907, there was a meeting of the
congregation of Grace Reformed
Church for the purpose of organizing the church
permanently. The following
officers were elected;
ELDERS - H. M. Nase, J. F. Fenstermacher
DEACONS - James Stroh, Edgar Kriebel, P.B. Miller, I.
W. rosenberger
At this meeting, Rev. Laudenslager read the constitution
as prepared by
the Committee on Organization as appointed by the
Classis. The congregation
voted to adopt this constitution.
On June 4, 1907,
the church was formally organized by this committee -
Rev. Evans, Rev. Rousch, and Rev. Laudenslager as
appointed by the Goshenhoppen
Classis. This committee ordained and installed the
officers who were elected
at the June 3rd meeting.
Regular worship services and annual congregational
meetings were held in
the Chapel from June, 1907 until the building of the
new church in 1957. Five
pastors have served the congregation during that time -
Rev. D. K. Laudenslager from 1907 to 1910
Rev. D. D. Brendle from 1910 to 1927
Rev. George W. Hartman from 1927 to 1948
Rev. Ralph Folk from 1948 to 1955
Rev. Raymond H. Ahrens, Jr. from 1955
The Ladies Aid Society of Grace Church was organized in
April of 1907 at
a meeting held in the home of Mrs. P. B. Miller. It
remained active in sewing,
quilting and financially helping the church until 1956
when it disbanded with
Mrs. Irving Quinn then its president. With its remaining
treasury it purchased
the cross, the candlesticks and the flower vases now
used on the church altar. |
