Chucrh gets set for anniversary celebrations

anniversary.

Church officials are hoping that former members of the congregation, now scattered throughout the country, will travel to Portadown for two special events marking the anniversary.

The first is on Sunday, May 20, when former Presbyterian Moderator, the Rev Dr John Dunlop, will be the guest speaker at an anniversary service in the church (11 o’clock), followed by a congregational meal.

And then, two days later, May 22, there will be an exhibition of photographs highlighting events in the church with a talk by long-serving elder, Mervyn Gilmour, on the history of the Presbyterian Church in Ireland.

This event is in the church hall and Mitchell Graham, chairman of the organising committee, said, “The exhibition should create much interest. It features many of the main events over the years and many of the photographs are from the Fifties and Sixties.

“We are hoping that many people will turn up and maybe see themselves as they were all those years ago.”

The church was founded on a winter’s night in 1868 when 16 men were elected as the first committee of the congregation, this meeting taking place in the town’s old Town Hall, now the Halifax Building Society on High Street.

The Armagh Road congregation has played a leading role in Portadown’s history and the current minister, the Rev Christina Bradley said, “This is a proud year for the congregation and we are hoping that people from near and far join us for the celebrations.”