Sunday, November 20, 2022 10:00 a.m.

Celebrating the Kirk's 75th Anniversary Tartan Piety - Rev. Dr. Norman M. Pritchard This year marks the 75th Anniversary of the founding of our church and we have a great deal to celebrate: a rich heritage of faith and service, deep generosity of founders and builders of the congregation, and the rich fellowship which God in his love gives his people for their life of faith. The Kirk’s 75th Anniversary Celebration has been planned by a committee of members and staff and has been at work on this momentous occasion since 2018. Our “founder” was Colonel Edwin S. George, a successful businessman and investor and a devout member of the Presbyterian Church. For nearly 50 years, he was a member of Fort Street Presbyterian Church in Detroit, serving for 25 years on the Board of Trustees. Colonel George commenced the ambitious program of building Kirk in the Hills with the same faith, optimistic courage, and confidence that marked his entire life. It was on March 4, 1935 that Colonel George conveyed a tract of land adjoining his home in Bloomfield Township and a commercial building in downtown Detroit to establish the Colonel Edwin S. George Foundation for religious, charitable and educational purposes. Col. George conveyed Cedarholm, his Tudorstyled residence, to the Foundation in November 1946. It was to be used as the church house and temporary place of worship, with the permanent Gothic church to be built later and a#ached to it. At the request of Colonel George, the new church, when organized, was to be known as Kirk in the Hills, the first word in the name signifying its Presbyterian origin and the last word denoting its location in beautiful Bloomfield Hills. Kirk in the Hills was organized and incorporated on November 23, 1947. Our Church, patterned after Scotland’s famed Melrose Abbey, is arguably one of the last great structures in America to be built in the classic Gothic tradition. It is thanks to Colonel George, our pastors, staff and the thousands of members over the years that we are able to celebrate our 75th Anniversary. All glory be to God and our unwavering faith in our Lord Jesus Christ. Music Notes This morning’s music includes 4 world premieres. Paul Mealor is one of the world’s most ‘performed’ living composers and has been described as, ‘the most important composer to have emerged in Welsh choral music since William Mathias’ and his music is, ‘marked by something outside of himself that is beautifully spatial and evocative of landscape… it illuminates both our past and our future’. Since January 2003, he has taught in the Music Department at the University of Aberdeen, Scotland where he is Professor of Composition. Mealor was catapulted to international stardom in April 2011, when 2.5 billion people (the largest audience in broadcasting history) heard his motet, Ubi caritas performed by the choirs of Westminster Abbey and Her Majesty’s Chapel Royal, at the Royal Wedding Ceremony of His Royal Highness Prince William and Catherine Middleton. It since topped the Classical singles charts in the USA, UK, Australia, France, and New Zealand. The Kirk commissioned On Wings of the Dawn, commemorating our 75th anniversary. An international carillon composition competition was conducted awarding three prizes, based on Scottish heritage; each will be premiered at today’s festival service. Over thirteen entries were received, from Japan to England, Europe and North America; all others will be premiered during our 75th anniversary year as part of our carillon preludes. Copyright Information Copyright acknowledgements: The following is used with permission, OneLicense.net License No. 717156-A All rights reserved. I Will Give Thanks © 1980 by Beckenhorst Press, Inc. Today’s Musicians Marilyn Biery, organist and conductor; Robert White, trumpet; Derek Lockhart, trumpet; Johanna Yarbrough, horn; David Binder, trombone; David Zerkel, tuba; Merideth Estevez, oboe; Dennis Curry, organ and carillon; Zoe Kai Wai Lei, piano; Nicole Joseph, youth choir director; Terry Bradley, bagpipes; Carol Beth Litkouhi, flute