Flaggs will say goodbye to church after many years of service

MEREDITH — Just as shopping malls have their anchor stores and ships depend upon their anchors for stability, so does the Union Church of Meredith Neck have several anchors who have given their ongoing love, time, and energy to the church for many years. With weekly revolving ministers, Denominations, guest musicians, and even pianists at times, the Union Church has come to depend upon several people who return each summer, to create a family reunion for those present.

The Sunday, August 30, last summer service for the 2015 Union Church season, will be a bittersweet moment, as true anchors, Pastor Jennifer Worden Flagg and her Rock-a-Billy Hall of Fame husband, Bill, will be saying a goodbye to the church and entering into a well deserved retirement.

Pastor Jenny has been involved with the Union Church for more than 60 years, as her grandfather was a summer minister, her parents arranged ministers and musicians, and she herself became a minister to lead years of Sunday worship services. Bill Flagg has performed and written touching songs which relate to his wife's sermons. In the August 12, 2015 issue of the Boston Globe, reporter James Sullivan chronicled Flagg's music career, which has been fascinating, from the days of Elvis Presley to the present.

For their last service, at 10 am in the Inter-Denominational Union Church of Meredith Neck, Pastor Jenny's message will be entitled, "Remembering Loved Ones with Joy". Bill Flagg plans to sing, ""I Dreamed About Mama Last Night," written by Fred Rose, and "That Silver-Haired Daddy of Mine," popularized by Gene Autry, the Singing Cowboy. In addition, he will probably do "Hold On", a song he wrote, inspired by Pastor Jenny's sermon, "When You're at the End of your Rope, Tie and Knot and Hold On." The two form a partnership that allows their listeners to laugh, to cry, and all the time, to cherish loving memories.

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Bill and Jenny Flagg. (Courtesy photo)