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by David Cancelleri
The Grace family celebrated its 25 th anniversary on Sunday evening, November 16 with a special banquet. The banquet was attended by congregation members and many friends of Grace. Special guests were former pastor Mark Cushman and his wife Leslie as well as Jim and Ann Patton, two of the original members who were instrumental in starting Grace Presbyterian.
Pastor Scott Parsons opened the banquet by sharing with all a letter written by another of the original members, Comer Turley. Comer could not attend, but wanted to express his thanks to God for all He had done at Grace, thanks to brothers and sisters who have served through the years and the eager anticipation of looking forward to where God will take Grace in the future.
Jim Jolly, an elder at Grace provided a historical perspective of 25 years of God's work at Grace. One important facet of that work has been the Church's desire and commitment to support missionaries, both at home and abroad, as well as entities such as Covenant College and the Tennessee Valley Presbytery. The commitment to missions continues to be a priority at Grace and over the past two years has increased with significantly more local outreach efforts.
Jim also used the historical perspective to underscore how clearly we can see God's hand in the details of the life of the Church and its members, and how the past points forward in the knowledge that in all we undertake in His name, God is faithful.
After 25 years, Grace is now a generational church. Paul Belk reflected upon being raised at Grace Presbyterian and now serves as a Deacon. Paul emphasized how important it was to him to have been raised with a solid foundation in the truth of Scripture, and the delight it is to see his children being raised on the same foundation.
After 25 years, Grace is now a multi-cultural church. Assistant Pastor Carlos Ireta provided a humorous and poignant perspective of how God moved in his life to bring him to Dalton. Carlos and his family were content to be serving in Laredo, Texas and weren't seeking a move. Over the course of several years and various contacts and circumstances, God made very clear Carlos’ calling to Grace. Along with Carlos and his wife Adela, and their three children, God also called Assistant Pastor Alfredo Ramos to Dalton.
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This page was last updated on
Sun Jan 4, 2009.
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