Community Thanksgiving service Sunday at Grace Lower Stone

Published 2:34 pm Friday, November 16, 2018

Recorder music will resound within the 2-foot-thick rock walls of Grace Lower Stone Reformed Church at 4:30 p.m. Sunday.

The Windsong Recorder Ensemble’s musical program will be a reflection of the music first heard in the historic stone building, completed in 1795. The ensemble’s performance will be a prelude to a Community Thanksgiving Service that begins at 5 p.m.

Grace Lower Stone’s congregation is inviting the Rowan and Cabarrus county communities to worship in Rowan’s oldest house of worship in continuous use.

The church was organized by German settlers in eastern Rowan County in the mid-18th century. The congregations of St. James Lutheran Church, Rockwell United Methodist Church and Ursinus United Church of Christ will participate in the service, which will be led by Pastors Brian Russell, Catherine Costello and Jason Huebner.

Windsong Recorder Ensemble was formed during the Christmas season of 1994 by Nancy Sloop and Jon Hutchinson. The group is 12 members strong, and they use six sizes of recorders. On Sunday, four members will be participating: soprano recorder Vicki Williams; alto recorder Gwen Sembroski; tenor recorder Barry Sherlock; and bass recorder Nancy Sloop.