Dozens attend annual township picnic despite rainy weather
Photo by Dennis Mansfield
Patty Hough, the wife of Pastor Kimberland Hough, helps her grandson, 5-year-old Nathan Hough, get a helping of a tasty dessert while at the Aug. 25 Garfield Township Community Pioneer Picnic at Veterans Memorial Park. Earlier in the day, the Houghs received the Garfield Township Historical Society's honor as the 2018 Pioneer Family on behalf of the Garfield Country Church, which is currently celebrating its 100th anniversary.
GARFIELD TWP. – Mother Nature couldn’t spoil the annual Garfield Community Pioneer Picnic, as dozens of local residents attended the event despite rain and cloudy skies on Saturday, Aug. 25.
As early morning rains dissipated, the Garfield Historical Society (GHS) helped kick off the event by honoring the Garfield Country Church as its 2018 Pioneer Family and then hosting tours at the township museum on West Sharon Road, just off of M-66.
GHS officials said the church was being honored, not only for its role in the community, but also due to fact it is currently celebrating its 100th anniversary.
Pastor Kimberland Hough said the church actually started in 1916, holding services in a nearby schoolhouse until the stone church, just a short drive from the park, was built a couple of years later.
“There were 112 people at the first communion,” Hough said. “They came from all over.”
He added that the GHS decision to honor the church provided a chance for it to reconnect with the community it continues to serve.
“It’s pretty neat,” Hough said. “It’s raised awareness of what we do, who we are.
“People say, ‘Hey, there’s a church there.” he added. “(And) it’s not just about the church. It’s being part of a ministry, a family. This gives us contact with (township residents), and us with them.”
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