Uhrichsville pastor filled with the spirit of Elvis Presley
Organic Church members don’t get all shook up if their pastor Michael Brindley throws a few Elvis Presley jokes into his Sunday morning sermons from time to time. ● They know that Brindley has a special affinity for the
King of Rock ‘n’ Roll and his music. Moreover, they all know he has a side gig, working as an Elvis impersonator at shows around Ohio. ● “I have a late grandmother (Mona Walker) who lived in Alabama, and my parents allowed me to spend the summer with her,” he said in explaining his interest in Presley’s music. “Elvis records were always on the record player when we were there. So that was where my love of Elvis was born. ● “But the impersonation side came much later in life. I was probably 16 years old. My great-grandmother on my dad’s side was in a nursing home. At the time it was Morning View, now Schoenbrunn Health Care Center. My grandmother (Mina “Penny” Brindley) convinced me to put on an Elvis jumpsuit Halloween costume and go do an Elvis show. I did it and I never looked back.”
Putting together an Elvis wardrobe
Why did he decide to become an Elvis impersonator?
“I don’t know that I decided. I don’t think that you decide that,” Brindley said. “I think it decides it for you. So I did it once, did it twice, did it three times with the inexpensive stuff. I’m talking like a black pair of dress shoes that I spray-painted white – low end stuff.
“Many years later I decided that I wanted to do it semi-professionally, and I started buying what we Elvis entertainers call casual wear. It’s shirts and pants and belts and things like that.”
In 2022, he decided to buy his first Elvis jumpsuit. Three months later, he wanted another one and then another one.
“It didn’t take long before I had amassed a small collection of them,” he said.
His newest jumpsuit is modeled on the iconic “peacock” jumpsuit that Elvis wore during numerous concert appearances in 1974. It was Presley’s favorite jumpsuit, because he reportedly believed that peacocks brought him luck. It sold at auction in 2008 for $300,000.
Brindley’s replica cost a lot less. He said he paid a little less than $2,000 for the jumpsuit, which was made in Canada. The peacocks on the suit were sewn on by hand. It is covered with studded stones to give it an extra flair. He paid $500 for a belt to go with it.
Last year, he did eight shows during the month of August – the month in which Presley died. This year, Brindley will perform two shows a month for the entire year. Many of his bookings are in the Columbus area. His wife, Alyssia, travels with him to help him get in and out of his clothes.
“It’s been very ... interesting,” Alyssia said. “I knew nothing of Elvis before we met. Needless to say, I’ve learned all about Elvis and have even grown to be quite fond of his music.”
Brindley always gets a big reaction from members of the audience. “The old ladies, especially, love him,” his wife said. “Everyone thinks he’s a hoot! He’s naturally very funny, so not only does he give a good performance, he makes it fun for everyone.”
A native of the Uhrichsville area
Brindley, 36, grew up in Uhrichsville and graduated from Claymont High School in 2004. He has five children, ranging in age from 4 to 15.
In addition to serving as pastor of Organic Church, he is president of Five Star Management Group, which operates the Berlin Encore Hotel in Holmes County, along with a 400-person event center, the 600-seat Amish Country Theater and 70 cabin rentals.
His favorite Elvis song is “An American Trilogy” and his favorite movie is “The Trouble With Girls.”
Why did he go into the ministry?
“Again not something that you ever decide you’re going to do. It’s kind of you’re asked to do it, you’re called to do it,” he said.
For several years he served as worship team leader at the church, located off of North Water Street Extension. At that time it was known as the Uhrichsville Foursquare Church.
“Pastor Florence Fellers Mcnutt was my pastor, one of my best
friends,” Brindley said. “She was my spiritual mother. So I served with her a long time. She and I had an amazing connection. She could look at me and I would know exactly what it is that she needed from me. From a worship and pastor standpoint, it was an incredibly important relationship.”
Early in 2018, Mcnutt told him that she planned on retiring on Mother’s Day. She asked if he would be interested in being licensed and taking the church. He agreed, though it took him almost a year to get all of the paperwork done to get his license.
He noted that he does not dress up as Elvis when he is in the pulpit. He tries to keep those two worlds separate, beyond an occasional Elvis joke in his sermons.
However, one time before he became pastor of the church, Mcnutt asked him to sing some Elvis songs and wear his Elvis costume.
“I reluctantly agreed. So that was the first time I had ever done Elvis inside a church building,” he said.
Elvis show helps struggling church
His skills as a performer came in handy as his church struggled in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic. The church was closed for some time at the request of the Foursquare denomination to help slow the spread of the virus. The church switched to online services. Unfortunately, giving fell off.
“We came out of COVID, started operating in-house again and realized that we didn’t have the funds to keep the building open. So we started to struggle financially,” Brindley said.
Two other churches stepped in to help out. His church held a spaghetti dinner as a fundraiser, and Legacy Church in New Philadelphia bought a thousand tickets to the dinner, which it then distributed to people for free. Uhrichsville Christian Fellowship also made a sizable donation.
Still, that wasn’t quite enough to get the church on a good financial footing.
“So I came up with the wild idea to do an Elvis show,” Brindley said. “We set up about 120 seats in our gymnasium. We sold tickets, $10 a seat, had about a 90-minute show, pretty much sold out the whole thing, and it was fantastic. So we’re doing one again this year.” The show will likely take place in April.
Brindley has found a way to merge his love of everything Elvis with his Christian faith.
“We believe in meeting people where they are, so not everybody who comes to that Elvis show comes to church, not just our church but any church,” he said. “So in the middle of every Elvis show that I do, specifically the ones inside of a church building, there’s a gospel set.
“There’s a very pointed moment in which I switch from Elvis to pastor. I tell people about who Jesus is and what he has done for us and allow people to really just enjoy the gospel segment of the show and then obviously that invitation to come to church, find a church, whether it’s ours or somebody else’s. Find that church.”