Grace First Presbyterian Church celebrates 150 years

Friendship is contagious at Grace First Presbyterian Church of Weatherford. Guests are showered with greetings, smiles, and conversation while walking the halls or attending a service.

Warm greetings were even more plentiful at the congregation’s 150th anniversary celebration Sept. 15.

The City of Weatherford was just 16 years old when Grace First Presbyterian was established in 1874. Back then, reaching a wooden courthouse from the east was done on horse or in a wagon over Town Creek with no bridge. The automobile would not be invented for another 12 years, the same year the current courthouse was built in 1886.

Now, a century and a half later, the congregation carries on its primary mission focused on faith, service, and acceptance.

The church was founded in 1874 at a building that still stands on the west side of South Main Street, one block south of the courthouse. The congregation built their current facility at 606 Mockingbird Lane at the intersection of S. Bowie Drive in 1974.

Elder Dave Kaiser performs multiple duties, including communications, audio/video for the services, and singing in the choir.

“We are the little church that could,” Kaiser said. “We are not a large congregation, but we act like it. We try to do as much as we can serve the Lord and to serve the community. We have our hands in almost everything.”

The church helped establish the Weatherford Child Advocacy Center, has volunteers at Manna Storehouse, and helps build homes for Habitat for Humanity. The annual Habitat for Humanity Mike Munson Service Award is named for a member of the church.

Pastor David Styter, who came to Grace First Presbyterian in 2009, said women of the church present hand-sewn prayer shawls to every new Habitat for Humanity family.

“The most important things in this church are what happens outside of its walls,” the pastor said. "We encourage being in the community, being part of the community, and making a difference in people’s lives.“

Betty Mills is one of the many members that have been part of Grace First for more than 50 years. She was born into the church at its original building on South Main.

“This is a wonderful church to raise a family,” the life-long Weatherford resident said. “I grew up in this church and I raised my children in this church.”