Union Presbyterian in Murrysville marks 60 years since moving 'across the street'

Donna Doyle remembers watching her father supervise the construction crew that set the steeple on a newly built Union Presbyterian Church in Murrysville in 1959.

In March, members of the church will mark their 60th anniversary in that building. As Doyle looks at a photo of that steeple being lowered into place, she can’t help but laugh.

“Not only do I remember that, but my middle name, ‘Lorraine,’ came from that brand of crane,” said Doyle, of Murrysville.

Doyle’s family has a long history with Union Presbyterian, whose members first began meeting in 1857 in a barn owned by Ebenezer Steel. In the winter, church members worshiped at Beamer’s schoolhouse, a white frame building that was later moved to the current site of 380 Auto & Truck Repair to provide Sunday school classes after the original church was built in 1858.

Doyle’s grandmother joined the church on Oct. 20, 1883, according to church records. Her father, J. Roy Jones, joined Oct. 23, 1927.

Nearly a century after work began on the original building, ground was broken for a new church building in May 1959, just across the road.

Doyle can also remember the dedication service.

On Dec. 31, 1959, after the final service at the original church, the congregation went outside and looked across the road as the lights were turned on for the first time in the new building.

“I remember everyone’s ‘oohs’ and ‘ahhs,’” she said.

The building was officially dedicated on March 13, 1960. On March 8 of this year, the congregation will mark the current building’s sixth decade, using a replica of the 1960 church bulletin from the original dedication service, with a few modern updates.

“The original bulletin definitely didn’t have a church website on it,” joked Pearl Jones, the church’s clerk of session.

Nowadays as with many congregations, the membership skews older, but the church still holds a twice-annual rummage sale to help fund church family trips to Pine Springs camp as well as the needs of the church. Over the years the congregation has supported community outreach to organizations like the Alle-Kiski Area Hope Center in Tarentum, the Plum Food Pantry at Holiday Park United Methodist Church and the Kiski Area Youth Network.

The church is also seeking a new pastor. A series of guest preachers will take the pulpit in the coming weeks, and former congregant Lisa Dormire — now the vice president for mission support at Redstone Highlands in Greensburg — will lead the March 8 anniversary service at 11 a.m. at the church, 656 Route 380, Murrysville. An anniversary dinner will follow.

For Mary Jean Swank of Allegheny Township, the 60th anniversary is a chance to reflect.

“The people here are the same caliber as they’ve always been,” Swank said. “Everyone here is so friendly. It’s a wonderful, homey church.”