KIRKLAND, N.B. — St. David’s Presbyterian Church in Kirkland, N.B., will celebrate its 140th anniversary on Aug. 28, 2016 at 2 p.m. with a special performance by the Weavers, an award-winning local southern gospel group from Benton, N.B.
Luke and Bonnie Weaver, along with their daughters, Lisa and Lyndsey, who share singing lead, make up the family group. They have been performing together for the past 11 years, capturing the Joey Knight Award and two Maritime Gospel Association Awards. They have also been recently nominated for induction into the Maritime Gospel Hall of Fame.
“Our goal is to spread the gospel and the good news about Jesus through our songs and to see people’s lives touched and changed through the music and message we share,” Bonnie Weaver said.
Bonnie (Leighton) Weaver grew up in Benton and met her husband, Luke, while travelling and singing in the United States. The couple moved back to Benton where they raised their family and established the Village Lighthouse church in the early 1990s. As co-pastors, their leadership and dynamic music has helped build a vibrant church community in the village, while also calling them to perform at concerts and musical events across the entire region and on both sides of the international border.
Also performing at St. David’s are Tracey Burkhardt and her 7-year-old daughter, Emily. They will each perform an individual solo during the service dedicated to the Connors family.
Rev. Wendy MacWilliams of St. James Presbyterian Church in Fredericton has been invited to officiate.
A free-will offering will be received. Memorials to former church members and residents of the community will be included in the program. Descendants of the Kennedy, Graham, Dickison, Dykeman, MacDougall, McNerlin, Greer, Gidney, Slater, Ivey and Connors families are expected to attend.
Following the service, the congregation will gather outside the church for anniversary cake and lemonade.
St. David’s was built by the community of Kirkland in the late 1800s, primarily by Scottish, Irish and English settlers who came to the area as pioneers. The established date of the church is 1876.
The community of Kirkland is named after St. David’s, which was once referred to as the Scottish Kirk. St. David’s is one of two early Presbyterian churches still remaining in Carleton County, and was one of the first to be built in rural New Brunswick.
The church was named a provincial historic site in 2005. For the past several years, it has hosted many gospel groups from around the province and continues to attract large audiences for its anniversary service.
St. David’s is located at 1589 Route 540 in Kirkland, across the international border from Houlton. Follow Route 95 and take the Richmond Corner exit to Route 540 South. Travel straight ahead on Route 540 for approximately 15 miles.
