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Thank you for helping to make our 145th Anniversary Celebration possible! We had a wonderful time worshiping together and sharing our stories over a delicious meal.
We will continue to share the stories and memories submitted for this celebration. This month we are sharing highlights from Rev. Mark McMurry's time with us at Orchards UMC.
Highlight from Rev. Mark McMurry
2000-2009
Hard to believe it was 26 years ago that Jennifer and I arrived at Orchards with a 3-year-old Jackson and a 3-week-old Adeline, to start 9 wonderful years with you all. Trying to think of just one highlight to share during that time is difficult. Goodness! Some of you have heard me preach over 400 sermons from the Orchards pulpit (sorry for you all who sat through them all).
I remember fun times like sitting in the back parking lot after VBS watching the bats fly out from the sanctuary roof like drops of oil that would burst into wings. I remember watching Betsy Hemphill get pounded into the pavement as a bucket full of cold water slammed into her from 10 feet in the air with the force of a small bus… all in the name of “fun” after VBS.
I remember your kindness when I got word on a Saturday afternoon that my father had a heart attack and I needed to get back home now! I called Worship team members and SPR members, trying to get things taken care of for Sunday worship, and to an individual you all said, “Go! We will handle it!”
I remember laughing and smiling with you as we watched friends make lifelong commitments to one another in wedding ceremonies. I remember crying with you when we said goodbye to friends at memorial services.
I remember my second day in the office and the intercom in my office crackling, “There is a reporter from the paper here wanting to ask questions about why we are cutting down the 100-year-old freedom tree?” … “WAIT… WE ARE DOING WHAT?"
I remember celebrating with you as a couple who once lived on the street got married in our sanctuary, and got back on their feet because of your caring. Hearing the groom say, while we were posing for pictures, “We were sleeping in this bell tower, and now we are taking our wedding pictures in it.”
I remember the difficult conversations when another homeless person we had helped broke in and vandalized the building, and some of us were not sure helping people in need was worth it.
The 9 years I spent as your pastor were the best of my career in parish ministry. I learned so much about faith, about God and community, in a journey we took together. You were great to my family, and our time with you will always be special to us! Thank you for letting me be part of a chapter in your lives and for being a special chapter in mine!
Rev. Mark McMurray
Pastor Orchards UMC
2000-2009
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