Trinity Church Celebrates 60 Years of Ministry

by Karen McDonald
Trinity Church, Gatlinburg
Trinity Church welcomes the community residents and visitors of any denomination!

Located in Gatlinburg, Tennessee's busiest gateway to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Trinity is a small church which serves not only the year round Episcopalian population, but many tourist visitors as well. While most of its visitors are Episcopalian, visitors of other denominations are, of course, welcome and often join the worship services.

Trinity Church, Gatlinburg, celebrates its 60th Anniversary as a parish this month [Nov. 2001]. The church was founded in 1941 with the intent to bring the Episcopal Church to visitors and residents of Gatlinburg and the Great Smoky Mountains Area. The small group of founders chose the name Trinity as it was evident from the start that three principal groups were represented, the National National Forest Service, the National Park Service and the U.S. Department of Highways. The founding was at a time long before Gatlinburg had become the large vacation destination that it is today. The founders were from many different parts of the country where there were established Episcopal Churches not commonly found in rural mountain areas such as this.

Trinity is a small church built in the neo-Gothic style. Its design adheres to the traditional proportions of medieval English country churches. The eighteen-inch walls are of grey fieldstone and the front entrance window openings, chancel arch, the bell turret opening and the Celtic cross surmounting the bell-cote are of limestone. The bronze bell brought from England weighs 330 pounds. The roof is of heavy red oak timbers, with the rafters and massive arch-braced trusses exposed to view from the inside.

A pipe organ literally fills the small church with music. There is an atmosphere inside that is quaint and warm, evoking a feeling of quiet spiritual peace.

Trinity is especially proud of her stained glass windows. The three windows over the Altar represent the Trinity (Father, Son and Holy Spirit). The windows in the chancel and nave present a combination of scriptures and various elements of Smoky Mountain nature dear to the person in whose memory they were designed. There is an interesting story behind each window.

The church is surrounded by well-manicured gardens which provide the Altar flowers for nine months out of the year.The gardens are planned and developed every year by a member, Bill Hooks, a former natural historian for the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. The St. Francis Memorial Garden is in a quiet area behind the church and serves as a lovely place to meditate.

Trinity has had an ongoing Outreach Program for the community for over 20 years. This charitable program works in conjunction with the Sevier County Dept. of Human Services to provide food and clothing and other necessities for those in need and also includes special Outreach drives to supply baskets for families at Christmas and Easter. Also at Christmas the church youth group adopts a family to receive food and clothing. Currently plans are being made to utilize space in the building for a "Help Closet" in which to collect food, clothing and other items to be available for help to victims of fires or other disasters in the community.

The church is available to small groups who wish to have a meeting room while in the Gatlinburg area. Member, Bill Hooks, along with his extensive gardening and floral knowledge, is also an expert on the history and the natural flora of the Smokies, as well as the history of trains and logging in the Smokies, and may be contracted to lead seminars on those subjects. A reasonable usage fee is charged for use of the church Parish Hall.

Trinity is working toward becoming more visible in the area both to tourists and newly arriving families. Its presence is important for the tourist population to have a church home away from home when on vacation. The church has several adopted "members" who come to Gatlinburg regularly every year and join the congregation for worship. The Rev. Charles W. Livermore is Priest-in-Charge at Trinity. Trinity welcomes any of you East Tennessee Episcopalians who come to visit the mountains to also visit with us!

Trinity Church Website: etdiocese.net/trinity