About
The Story of GracePoint
Inspired by God ~ Made whole by Christ ~ Formed by the Spirit
Chapter One ~ Unofficial Beginnings: 1875 – 1890
Chapter Two ~ Officially the Church: 1890 – 1963
Known as Third Presbyterian Church
Chapter Three ~ Moving & Building: 1963 – 2002
Chapter Four ~ Being Moved & Rebuilding: 2003 – Eternity
“Unless the Lord builds the house, they labor in vain.”
Our triune God is the One rebuilding our house,
which is why we can be confident of a fruitful future.
Our missionary God is renovating us into
a house of prayer,
a temple of God’s presence,
a hospital, an equipping center, and a lighthouse.
As the Lord continues this mighty work,
we become a renewed place of grace —
GracePoint for God’s glory.
Click here for Chapter Summaries
Appendix ~ List of Pastors who Served God and the Church in the Eagle Point District of Dubuque
Important Dates in Chapter One
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1875
“Round House
Sunday School”
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Christian Education classes were held each Sunday in the round house of the Chicago, Dubuque, and Minnesota railroad (later the Milwaukee). |
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1876
Eagle Point
Mission Chapel
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Sunday School out grew the Round House space, so the YMCA built a chapel on the corner of Garfield and Stafford Avenues. Classes were held Sunday mornings, and Sunday afternoon worship was conducted by students from the German Theological School of the Northeast (now the University of Dubuque Theological Seminary). |
Important Dates in Chapter Two
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1890
Third Presbyterian Church
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The first protestant church in the Eagle Point area was incorporated as Third Presbyterian Church on January 26. The charter membership of 40 people grew quickly and a new building was built the next year. This mission church received an average of $400 a year support from the Board of Home Missions of the Presbyterian Church. |
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1907
Third became a self-supporting church
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The mission church reached a substantial condition thanks to the busy Milwaukee Shops, which provided good employment for many of the members. However, without the support from the Presbytery, years of struggle lay ahead. |
Women have played a significant, supportive role in the life of this church from the earliest beginnings. During the financially challenging years of the church’s first two decades, women raised money to support the ministers and the ministries of the congregation; so much so that when the suggestion came in 1986 to appoint a woman to the Board of Trustees, it was received positively. Since there were no term limits in the early years, no trustee position was open. The first woman trustee was elected in 1944. The first woman elder was elected in 1969.
Important Dates in Chapter Three
1963
Moved to 3100 Windsor Avenue |
The growing congregation needed more space. A Christian Education building and fellowship hall was built on the highest hill of Windsor Avenue. The first worship service in the new building was held November 17. |
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1968
More Building
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The sanctuary was added. |
1974
Bus Ministry Began |
Nearly all members of Third Pres were involved in some way with transporting and nurturing children whose parents could not bring them to Sunday School. |
1981
Expansion |
The Sisters of Mount Saint Francis provided rooms each Sunday morning for Christian Education. The overflow situation and a growing youth ministry pointed out the need for more space at 3100 Windsor. The new addition included offices for the pastor and secretary and seven classrooms. |
1990
Another Addition |
A Conference Room and Sitting Area were added to the main level. Two classrooms were added to the lower level. |
2003 – Church-wide Leadership Retreat
A mission statement and set of ministry goals were written and adopted by the congregation.
——– —– A New Era Begins — ——–
Important Dates in Chapter Four
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October 2005
Praise, honor, and total credit to God for…
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- unity shown among members and regular attendees of Third.
- John Knox Presbytery (JKP) Task Force who lovingly gathered information about our church and prepared a report for the JKP Council.
- task force chairperson, whose commitment to honor and glorify God led to a vision of “a better way”-a way to negotiate the dismissal of a church from one denomination to another and make sure that the ministry of Jesus Christ is not compromised.
- task force report, which included a recommendation that Third be dismissed with adequate resources to do ministry, and that the same task force was assigned a mediation role in the terms of dismissal negotiation process.
|
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May 15, 2006
First Vote |
The congregation of Third Presbyterian Church received details of the dismissal/transfer proposal from the Session and the JKP Task Force. Members approved the proposal for dismissal from the Presbyterian Church (USA) to the Evangelical Presbyterian Church by a vote of 76 “yes” and 7 “no.” |
| May 16, 2006
Second Vote |
At the regularly scheduled JKP Meeting hosted by the University of Dubuque, David King presented the same proposal, which overwhelmingly passed the Presbytery with a vote of 57 “yes” and 7 “no.” |
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December 5, 2006
Archived for Posterity
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The official records of the Presbyterian Church (USA) Third Presbyterian Church were officially archived at the Charles Myers Library on the University of Dubuque campus. |
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February 2008 –
June 2009
New Name
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The congregation, with more than a century of commited faithful service to the community and world, transitioned from being known as Third Presbyterian Church to the new name of “GracePoint.” |
Rev. George W. Smith ............... 1890-1891
Rev. M. E. Todd ................... 1981-1894
Rev. S. H. Noel ..................... 1894-1896
Rev. Andrew Doremus ............. 1896-1899
Rev. J. G. Woods ................... 1899-1901
Rev. George W. Healy ............. 1901-1903
Rev. Alfred Martin ................. 1904-1912
Rev. Thomas McGregor ............ 1912-1918
Rev. David I. Berger ................ 1919-1924
Rev. L. T. Krebs .................... 1924-1935
Rev. C. Vin White .................... 1936-1939
Rev. Thomas C. Dick ............. 1939-1940
Rev. Thomas Megahey ............ 1941-1944
Rev. Bruce Gillis ................... 1944-1948
Rev. Robert N. Allen ................ 1949-1953
Rev. Philip Lewis .................... 1953-1958
Rev. George Pike ................... 1959-1963
Rev. Glen M. Johnson ............. 1964-1973
Rev. Walter Hamer ................. 1974-1982
Rev. William Davis .................. 1983-1988
Rev. Edwin D. Allabough .......... 1990-2002
Rev. Dan Thornton (interim) ..... 2004-2006
Rev. Christopher B. English ....... 2006-
Rev. Dana Perreard ................... 2008-2016
