Decatur church cuts ribbon on all-purpose trail

DECATUR — Pastor Neil Dye, several members of his congregation at the Decatur Seventhday Adventist Church, and guests gathered at the church Sunday afternoon, Oct. 2, to cut the ribbon on a new trail they have opened on church property. The 1.3-mile trail winds through 25 acres the church owns on the hill behind their church building on East Roller Avenue.

Church members have been working for a year on the allpurpose trail which has been opened to the public, and they invite all area walkers, joggers and bicycle riders to come and use it. Inspiration for the trail came from a congregation member, Wes Stabel, who saw a similar trail in California when he visited Weimar College in Weimar, Calif.

Attractive metal signs along the trail are inscribed with Bible verses, and Dye explained that those who created the trail hope that users would not only get good exercise and enhance their physical health but will read the texts, learn about Jesus and also improve their spiritual health.

The trail was at first covered in gravel, but church members soon realized that the gravel would not remain in place long when rain fell on the hilly sections. They regrouped and gave the trail a second covering, this time with a layer of chip and seal paving. It takes a winding course up over the hill and loops back down to the church. Several benches are placed along the way where walkers can rest, meditate and pray and enjoy the beauty of the trees and other works of creation.

Congregation members welcomed visitors near an arch at the head of the trail and served watermelon slices and glasses of lemonade to refresh those who returned from their walk.

Westside Eagle Observer/SUSAN HOLLAND Neil Dye, pastor of the Decatur Seventh-day Adventist Church, cuts the ribbon to mark the opening of the church’s new 1.3-mile trail Sunday afternoon, Oct. 2. The trail, located behind the church on East Roller Avenue, is open to the public.

Westside Eagle Observer/SUSAN HOLLAND The first sign on the newly opened trail at the Decatur Seventh-day Adventist Church is a fitting introduction for trail users. It is one of 30 signs inscribed with Bible verses and quotes Psalm 119:105, “God’s word is a lamp unto our feet, and a light unto our path.”