150 Years on Sixth Street
Holy Trinity Lutheran Church is a congregation of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America that has anchored the west side of Hickory, North Carolina, since 1957. The congregation was organized on September 22, 1876, by twenty-seven charter members who met in Hickory City Hall. Rev. Dr. A.J. Fox was the first pastor. Since then, twenty-six pastors and seven interns have served Holy Trinity, and the church is now marking a century and a half of ministry in the Catawba County seat.
The congregation is known for its educational and music ministries and for its long history of benevolence for local, synodical, and churchwide ministries. The current home, a 680-seat worship center with a 165-seat chapel and an outdoor chapel, has been expanded twice since the move from the original small white wooden church and the 1904 facility at 3rd Avenue and 4th Street NW.
Three Sunday Services in One Building
Worship is the central work of Holy Trinity, and the church offers three Sunday morning services that share the same gospel in three different settings.
The 8:15 a.m. service is a relaxed gathering in Trinity Chapel with piano, clarinet, organ, and string bass. Holy Communion is celebrated every Sunday. At 10:15 a.m., the contemporary service is led by a worship band in a come-as-you-are style; communion is celebrated at most services. The 11:00 a.m. service is the high church liturgical offering, with rich pipe organ accompaniment, choir anthems, and communion every Sunday; it is livestreamed each week. During July the three services collapse into a single 10:00 a.m. gathering.
Adult Bible study groups meet at 9:30 a.m. between the first and second services. The LIFE Class, a discussion-based group with a monthly social, meets in the Martin Luther Room. The Resurrection Class, a study-based group with service and fellowship projects, gathers in Room L2/L4 downstairs.
Music at the Heart of Worship
Music ministry is woven into the life of Holy Trinity, with eleven ensembles spanning preschool to adult. Andrew Robinson, who joined as Director of Worship and Music Ministry in May 2025, oversees the program. David Lail has served as organist since 1994 and also directs the Chapel Choir and Luther Choir. Kimberly Vegter directs the handbell choirs, and Kate Lawhorn leads the Contemporary Worship Team.
Wednesday evenings are the rehearsal hub. Children start with Carol Choir (ages two to three), Cherub Choir (age four through first grade), and Joy Singers (grades two through five) from 5:00 to 5:30 p.m. Older students join Luther Ringers (grades nine through twelve) at 5:00 p.m. and Luther Singers (grades six through twelve) at 5:30 p.m. The Prime Chimes handbell choir for grades three through five and adult beginners rehearses at 5:30 p.m. Adult ensembles include the Chapel Choir at 6:00 p.m., Trinity Ringers at 6:30 p.m., and the Chancel Choir at 7:30 p.m. The Contemporary Worship Team rehearses at 5:00 p.m. in Trinity Chapel. The church also offers a Liturgical Dance group, for ages ten through adult, that meets Sundays from 12:15 to 12:45 p.m. in the Nave.
Growing Up at Holy Trinity
Faith formation at Holy Trinity stretches from cradle to college, and the church walks alongside families through the milestone-marked Faith Stepping Stones program. Infants through age four gather as Faith Explorers in the Nursery Class, where Bible stories follow the lectionary from the larger sanctuary and each session includes a snack and a take-home family sheet.
Children in kindergarten through fifth grade meet as Faith Explorers on Sunday mornings, beginning as a whole group in the Rainbow Library for a Bible story before splitting into Trailblazers (kindergarten through third grade) and Pathfinders (fourth and fifth grade) for crafts, games, storytelling, and discussion. Every other month, Faith Explorers Family Sundays invite parents to learn alongside their children. Rainbow Kids, for grades three through five, also gathers for a Sunday afternoon activity each quarter.
Confirmation is a three-year journey for grades six through eight. The first combined class for sixth and seventh graders covers the Old Testament one year and the New Testament the next. Eighth graders then study Lutheran theology, church history, and the central teachings of the faith. High school students in grades nine through twelve meet in the Youth Center each Sunday for Faith Walk, with coffee, fellowship, discussion, and lessons that connect scripture to current events. Junior high and senior high youth groups also meet through the week, sharing prayer, conversation, and games, with parents often invited for special events.
The Preschool and a Beloved Chapel Dog
Holy Trinity Preschool is the congregation's weekday ministry for young children, a program that began in 1957 and now includes a Discovery program for one and two year olds and a Preschool program for three and four year olds. Lori Trimm and Kristy Edens serve as co-directors, and a non-refundable registration fee holds a place. The program is interdenominational and faith-based, with a hands-on approach through art, music, play centers, building materials, and manipulatives. Monthly visits from a Science Center, an Art Center, Stretch 'n' Grow, and Music Time complement weekly chapel visits led by the pastors and other staff. The campus offers large classrooms with a private bathroom, a well-equipped playground, and a children's library.
The preschool has also been home to Charlie, a beloved Chapel Dog who greeted children with a wag, comforted those in need, and made everyone feel at home with a gentle presence, and whose legacy of love and loyalty lives on in the life of the church.
Caring for One Another
Caring ministries are a long-standing emphasis at Holy Trinity, anchored by Stephen Ministry, Prayer Ministry, and a cycle of visits that extend Holy Communion to those who cannot be in worship.
Stephen Ministry trains and organizes members to provide one-on-one Christian caregiving to people in the congregation and community. Jan Jolly, the Stephen Ministry Referrals Coordinator, meets with those who request a Stephen Minister, pairs them with a trained caregiver, and oversees a relationship of about an hour each week, marked by listening, prayer, and confidentiality. The Prayer Ministry keeps a parish prayer list prayed for at staff meetings, weekly services, and by an Intercessory Prayer Team that meets Thursdays at 10:00 a.m. in the Christus Victor Library. Prayer team members are also available in the Prayer Room after the early Sunday service for confidential prayer.
A rotation of lay and clergy visitors provides hospital visitation, and trained laity extend Holy Communion to those who cannot be present. Marriage services are intended for church members and follow premarital preparation, coordinated through Melissa Cashmore. At the time of death, the church offers several rites, including the Commendation of the Dying, Comforting the Bereaved, and a funeral service.
Reaching Beyond the Church Walls
Holy Trinity supports a wide circle of local, regional, and global ministries through prayer, volunteer time, and giving. Locally, that includes Catawba Regional Hospice, Catawba Valley Habitat for Humanity, Centro Latino, Exodus Homes, the Family Care Center of Catawba Valley, the Greater Hickory Cooperative Christian Ministry, the Hickory Church Connection, the Hickory Soup Kitchen, and NETworX CATAWBA.
Nationally and globally, the church walks with ELCA World Hunger, Lutheran Disaster Response, Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service, Lutheran Services Carolinas, and Lutheran World Relief. The congregation also maintains a companion-synod relationship with the Lutheran Church in Costa Rica and has a long history of disaster relief mission trips, refugee resettlement, family mentoring, and housing support for the homeless. Former outreach efforts have included providing worship and education space for a multi-racial, non-denominational congregation until they moved to their own church home in 2003.
The Endowment Foundation
The HTLC Endowment Foundation is an independent nonprofit that manages endowed funds to strengthen and expand the ministries of Holy Trinity in perpetuity. Donors may direct gifts toward specific purposes such as scholarships, seminarian support, music, and technology, and the foundation awards grants four times a year on March 31, June 30, September 30, and December 31 for ministry projects outside the church's regular operating budget.
Each spring, the foundation invites applications for scholarships. Three funds support seminarians - the Moser Seminary Endowment, the Purkey Lutheran Seminary Fund, and the Robert Holland Fund - while four others, including the Charlie and Mickey Shuford Scholarship Fund, the Purkey College Scholarship Fund, the Ramseur-Troutman Scholarship Fund, and the Paul S. and Virginia H. Speagle Scholarship Fund, support undergraduate and graduate students. Applications close on March 31.
Faith for Adults of Every Age
Adults at Holy Trinity can choose from a range of ongoing studies. Beyond the Sunday morning LIFE and Resurrection classes, Pastor Allen leads a weekday Bible study in Community Rooms A and B on select days at 12:15 p.m., and a small group Bible study meets Sundays at 7:00 p.m. via Google Meet. Studies have included works by Henri Nouwen, Jen Wilkin, C.S. Lewis, and Margaret Feinberg.
On weekday mornings, the Prayer Shawl Ministry gathers Tuesdays at 10:00 a.m. in the Christus Victor Library to knit and crochet prayer shawls, baby blankets, and caps, and to teach newcomers the craft. The Men's Breakfast meets Mondays at 7:00 a.m. at Granny's Kitchen on North Center Street, and the Senior Adult Ministry, for anyone aged sixty and older, hosts quarterly lunches and outings throughout the year.
Leadership and Staff
Pastor Chris Webb is the senior pastor. A native of Tampa, Florida, and a graduate of Lenoir-Rhyne University and the Lutheran Theological Southern Seminary in Columbia, South Carolina, he also serves as a chaplain in the United States Air Force Reserves. Pastor Hannah Norem joined the staff on June 3, 2024, as associate pastor, focusing on ministries with young people, outreach, and faith formation. A graduate of Augustana University in Sioux Falls and of the joint Juris Doctor and Master of Divinity program at Wake Forest University, she also passed the North Carolina Bar Exam in 2023.
Deacon Mitzi Budde serves as deacon for senior adult discipleship, bringing a Doctor of Ministry in Ecumenism and Reconciliation and a long career in teaching and library work, most recently at Virginia Theological Seminary. Katie Bencken directs youth and young adult ministries, Caitlan Killian coordinates faith formation, and Carol Dickson serves as volunteer ministry coordinator. Andrew Robinson leads worship and music, with David Lail as organist, Kimberly Vegter directing handbells and instrumental music, and Kate Lawhorn leading the contemporary service. Lori Trimm and Kristy Edens co-direct the preschool.
What Holy Trinity Believes
Holy Trinity is a congregation of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, led by Christ: helping, teaching, loving, and connecting. The congregation confesses the Triune God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, and proclaims Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior and the Gospel as the power of God for the salvation of all who believe. The church teaches that Jesus Christ is the Word of God incarnate, through whom everything was made, and through whose life, death, and resurrection God fashions a new creation. The canonical Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments are the written Word of God, inspired by the Spirit speaking through their authors, recording and announcing God's revelation centering in Jesus Christ. The Church is a people created by God in Christ, empowered by the Holy Spirit, called and sent to bear witness to God's creative, redeeming, and sanctifying activity in the world. Renewed by God's grace and welcoming to all, the Holy Spirit inspires Holy Trinity to worship, grow in faith, and equip disciples for service so that all may know Christ's love.