Plymouth Magazine-Fall26-DIGITAL - Flipbook - Page 25
The Plymouth Church Story
Expansion Years for Music and Programs
The Rev. Dr. Frederick M. Meek was
installed in January 1944, and under his
leadership Plymouth retired its financial
debt, added a full-time religious education
director, and supported the Iowa InterChurch Council, a forerunner of the Des
Moines Area Religious Council. Meek
left Plymouth in 1946 to serve as pastor
at the Old South Church in Boston.
The Rev. Dr. Fred Hoskins served
Plymouth from 1946 to 1950 and
established a strong youth program,
continuing to emphasize social action
and inter-church relations.
The Thanksgiving Day Pilgrim worship
service was initiated in 1950 by the Rev.
Charles MacMillan Houser (1950-1959)
in recognition of the church’s Pilgrim
roots. Choir members and deacons
dressed as Pilgrims, while a drummer
stood at the front entrance summoning
worshippers. Old church rituals were
enacted, with men seated on one side of
the sanctuary and women and children
on the other. Wooden offering boxes on
long poles were extended into the pews,
and a large hourglass kept time, ensuring
the pastor didn’t preach too long.
An Iowa executive department
proclamation was read at the service for
several years by the sitting Iowa governor.
The proclamation acknowledged that
“Plymouth Congregational Church
has a special historical connection to
the pilgrims of Plymouth Colony who
celebrated the first Thanksgiving.”
At the invitation of the Rev. Houser,
John Dexter came to Plymouth in 1952
to serve as the church’s organist and
choirmaster. Plymouth was the first
church in the city to employ a full-time
church musician. Dexter established
five children’s choirs, including Matins
for high school youth, which still sings
regularly at the 9 a.m. worship service.
(Matins means morning prayer in church
liturgy.) During his tenure, musical
productions were staged annually, often
with children taking key roles. Adult
choir productions frequently included
full orchestral accompaniment.
In 1954, Plymouth established a nursery
school for preschool children as a pilot
project. The school met three days a week,
and children were under the supervision
of professionally trained teachers. Open
to the public on a tuition basis, the school
incorporated new ideas of religious
education into its curriculum. In 1955,
Plymouth Nursery School (PNS) became
one of the first licensed preschools in
Iowa. PNS is a now a non-profit program
open to children ages 2-5 years, offering
scholarships for those in need.
In 1947, the Women’s Federation was
renamed Women’s Fellowship, and
continued its work of serving church meals,
hosting wedding receptions, conducting
large rummage sales twice a year, sending
missionary boxes to hospitals, sponsoring
scholarships, and performing dozens of
other fund-raising and service efforts.
As the role of women in society changed,
Women’s Fellowship evolved, organizing
into subgroups that catered to member’s
interests and schedules. Some groups
gathered in the evenings to accommodate
women who worked outside the home
during the day.
Several programs grew from Women’s
Fellowship, including PWAG, a women’s
outdoor adventure group, and Moms and
Moppets, offering social time for mothers
and their preschoolers. The fellowship
launched the Plymouth Career Closet for
Women, which for more than 10 years
operated a boutique offering free clothing
for women starting out in the work force.
In 1957, Congregational Christian
Churches and the Evangelical and
Reformed Church merged to form the
denomination known as the United
Church of Christ (UCC). Plymouth
voted to join the UCC and was renamed
Plymouth Congregational United
Church of Christ.
Pilgrims ready for the Thanksgiving Service.
Children’s musical programs thrive.
Women’s Fellowship kitchen crew at Christmas
in 1995.
Louise Moon, member of the
Women’s
Fellowship
Plymouth
Magazine
25
at Christmas in 1995.
