Cross of flowers brightens Easter at new church in Fletcher

: Clockwise from left, Bonnie Duffner of Mills River, Connie Burt of Brevard and 13-year-old Juliana Franklin of Atlanta help put the finishing touches on this outdoor cross that members of Trinity Lutheran Church in Fletcher decorated with fresh flowers on Sunday.

Buy Photo GARY GLANCY/TIMES-NEWS

Published: Monday, April 9, 2012 at 4:30 a.m.

Last Modified: Sunday, April 8, 2012 at 10:11 p.m.

FLETCHER ? Piece by piece, board by board, fixture by fixture, a group of volunteer worshipers are making the Trinity Lutheran Church their own.

Uniquely situated as the centerpiece of a small shopping center on the corner of St. Johns Road and U.S. Highway 25 in Fletcher, the storefront church resides in a former consignment shop that was transformed last year through the hard work of its membership, which currently is about 60 strong.

On Easter Sunday ? the holiest day of the year in Christianity ? the members helped create a fittingly creative symbol outside the front door. As the congregation prayed and sang inside, bumblebees buzzed around the colorful and aromatic flowers that adorned the cross.

About two dozen people contributed to the flowered cross ? bleeding heart, bluebell, wisteria and numerous other varieties ? before the start of Sunday morning service.

?What we're hoping is that this will inspire the people in Western North Carolina,? said Donna Van Kampen, a charter member of the church. ?I was in Columbia (S.C.) about 10 years ago, and after the (Sunday) service my hostess took me on a drive through all of Columbia and every church ? small and large ? had a cross of fresh flowers. It was absolutely breathtaking.?

Still, Van Kampen said she had no part in the creation of the decorated cross other than to pitch in with some flowers of her own. She said such intiative is indicative of the spirit of the recently formed church, which belongs to the North American Lutheran Church ? a new Lutheran denomination formed in 2010.

?It is so beautiful,? Van Kampen said, ?and with our tourism here, people coming for Easter, It could spread all over. But we'd like to get it started in Western North Carolina. We serve three counties (Henderson, Transylvania and Buncombe), and we've got people coming from as far away as the South Carolina state line, and all of this came about because of the cultural changes within the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America.?

The congregation intially began worshipping last spring at Groce Funeral Home Chapel, then moved into the St. Johns Marketplace space next door to its current location. Finally, after members ? with an average age of 75 ? and their friends built the chancel and kitchen, redecorated the bathrooms and cleaned and painted the entire suite, the church found a more long-lasting home in the 5,000-square-foot consignment shop space in November.

The church welcomes new members, with retired Pastor Phil Anderson serving as spiritual advisor and interim pastor. For more information call 828-357-4068, email info@trinitylutherannc.org or visit www.trinitylutherannc.org.

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