14th Christmas Country Church Tour kicks off Thursday

The 14th annual Christmas Country Church Tour highlighting 33 churches and their unique holiday flair within Cape Girardeau, Perry and Bollinger counties will be held Thursday and Friday.

The newest church added this year is Old McKendree Chapel in Jackson, according to Trish Erzfeld, director of Perry County Heritage Tourism.

St. Mary of the Barrens Catholic church in Perryville, Missouri.Submitted

�We�re real excited to have them be part of our church tour,� she said.

Each church � many more than 100 years old � will display traditions and culture ranging from Roman Catholic English, Scotch-Irish Presbyterian, German Lutherans and several others, according to the event�s Facebook page.

This is a separate, albeit similar, country church tour from the Southern Country Church Tour over this past weekend in southern parts of Cape Girardeau County.

Pleasant Hill Presbyterian Church in Fruitland.Submitted

Some of the sights available include a Nativity collection at the St. Mary of the Barrens in Perryville and a Christmas tree display of more than 50 trees at the Lutheran Heritage Center & Museum in Altenburg and a drive-thru live Nativity in Frohna, Missouri, depicting the birth of Christ at the Saxon Lutheran Memorial.

Erzfeld said last year, more than 1,000 people attended the tour. She said each one of the churches requested people sign a register when they visit.

�Three of our churches are done in candlelight; they predate electricity. And because of their age, some of these churches may not be handicap accessible. Those are identified on our brochure.�

Pleasant Grove Baptist Church in Crosstown, Missouri.Submitted

She said the idea began with a group of people who enjoyed decorating for Christmas and wanted to share what their decorations were with a neighboring church.

When the event began 14 years ago, six churches � located in Perry County � decided to host an open house, Erzfeld said, and has grown over the years.

All of the churches on the tour will offer refreshments, she said, along with music featuring organs or choirs.

Trinity Lutheran Church in Friedheim.Submitted

�They really do a great job of showing people what country hospitality is,� Erzfeld said.

The tour runs from 2 to 9 p.m. Thursday and Friday. More information can be found online at visitperrycounty.com.

A full list of churches includes: St. Mary of the Barrens Catholic Church Association of the Miraculous Medal in Perryville; Hill of Peace Friedenberg Lutheran Church in Friedenberg; Zion Lutheran Church in Longtown; Grace Lutheran Church in Uniontown; St. Joseph Catholic Church in Apple Creek; St. Maurus Catholic Church in Biehle; Trinity Lutheran Church in Friedheim; New Salem Methodist in Daisy; First Baptist Church of Oak Ridge in Oak Ridge; Sargent�s Chapel Lutheran Church near Sedgewickville; Caney Fork Baptist Church in Oak Ridge; St. John�s United Church of Christ in Fruitland; Pleasant Hill Presbyterian in Fruitland; Apple Creek Presbyterian near Pocahontas; St. John�s Lutheran Church in Pocahontas; Zion Lutheran Church in Pocahontas; Saxon Lutheran Memorial live Nativity drive-thru in Frohna; Immanuel Lutheran Church in New Wells; Lutheran Heritage Center & Museum in Altenburg; Trinity Lutheran Church in Altenburg; Immanuel Lutheran Church in Altenburg; Concordia Lutheran Church in Frohna; Brazeau Presbyterian Church in Brazeau; Salem Lutheran Church in Farrar; Bethlehem Baptist Church in Crosstown; Zion United Methodist near Old Appleton; Pleasant Grove Baptist Church near Crosstown; Crossroads United Methodist Church, off Route KK; Whitewater Presbyterian Church, off Route KK; Our Lady of Victory Catholic Church in Sereno; Zion Lutheran Church in Crosstown; St. James Catholic Church in Crosstown; and Old McKendree Chapel in Jackson.

jhartwig@semissourian.com

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