Members of the First Congregational United Church of Christ are quick to let people know theirs was the first church in Lehigh Acres. And from their non-denominational gathering other church were formed when the old Lehigh Corp. provided the land at no charge for a new place of worship.

Now the church is going to do something else new and for the first time – which some other churches have already done – and that is to build their first float for the Spring Festival Parade on Saturday, March 28.

Ada Thompson, a spokeswoman for the church, said the members are excited about their new venture.

“Our outreach board of about seven members are making plans and I am sure many of the members of the church will help to build it,” she said.

“Right now, they’re trying to come up with a design. They may try to use a theme that shows that the church was the first built in Lehigh and is still on the

same site at 200 Leeland Heights Blvd. It’s the church with the really steep roof design.

First Congregational United Church of Christ is not a sit-back and do nothing type of church. Members are busy doing much for the community. A few years

back, they celebrated their 50th anniversary with events that lasted throughout the year.

Ada and her husband, Doug, retired to Lehigh, and are active members of the church now for about 23 years, she said. They are from Barrington, N.H., where they owned the local Ace Hardware store. For 19 years, they ran the Lehigh Landowners Association, sending out newsletters all over the world to people who owned land in Lehigh. It kept them up to date about the community and the property and its values.

Thompson said the oldest member of the church is Helen Hanover who is in her 90s and they certainly want her on the float. Another is Edna Kunna, an active member, who is the daughter of one of the people who started the church a half century ago.

The first church service of the church was on Dec. 2, 1956. That first meeting of the church, led by Rev. Leo Myers, was held in the house that later became the sheriff’s office substation and has now it has become a real estate office on Leeland Heights Blvd., not far from the Lehigh Walgreen store.

The forming of the church came with the support of the Congregational Church of Fort Myers and the house was donated by the Lehigh Corp.

Pastor Myers preached from the kitchen with the choir and piano behind him. The worshipers sat in the living room and an altar was placed in the doorway

between the living room and the kitchen. The bedrooms served as Sunday school meeting rooms and along with the carport, were used to accommodate early expansion of the church. Many programs were held outside the house on the lawn.

Construction on the church at its present location began in 1959.

The church was founded with the intention of establishing a place of worship for the entire community of Lehigh because at the time there were no other churches.

Mildred and Oran Gibbs were the first residents of Lehigh and were also among those who sought a group seeking to start a church in town. Mildred Gibbs was a member of the church until her death in 1993.

“As years passed, many of the members of various faiths who came to Lehigh gathered to build their own churches … and the lands were donated by the

Lehigh Corp. But we’re very proud that we were the first church that helped to start all the others and that we’re still active and doing good things in the

community,” Thompson said.

Letters went out last week to those who were in last year’s parade. Andy Reisinger remains the chairman of the parade and he asked participants to

remember the theme of this year’s Spring Festival as “Journey Through The Ages.”

In fact, the special logo marking this year’s festival is an illustration of several program books that were saved over the years.

Reisinger said that as last year, the staging area for the parade will be in the area of South Loop Blvd., Plaza Drive and Business Way. He said it is essential

that any and all parade vehicles and participants enter the lineup and staging area from Homestead Rd. to south Loop Blvd. only. Participants are being told to not enter the staging area off Plaza Drive off

of Homestead Rd. or Business Way by means of Beth Stacey Blvd., and that floats and vehicles and marching units should be at the staging areas at 9:30 a.m. They can start arriving at around 8 a.m.

Reisinger said trophies will be given for the most unique and creative, the most original decor and design, the most outstanding, the best implementation of the theme, the best costumes, and the best crowd pleaser. He said parade judges will be traveling along the lineup to take a first look

at all parade entries. The trophies will be presented after the parade on the outside stage at Veterans Park.

There is no entry fee to enter the parade, Reisinger said. You can go online at Lehighspringfestival.com for an application form. The Lehigh Spring Festival

begins March 20 and continues to Saturday, March 28. It has never rained on Parade Day, but Reisinger warned that people should be prepared if it should

rain. He also advised participants to bring sun screen products to keep them from becoming sun burned.