Not even a dreary overcast day in June could keep Bob Leonhardt's spirits down as he played hymns on a new Allen organ at United Lutheran Church of Rockford.
“It’s much easier to play,” he is quick to note.
It’s not as big as the typical organ one might imagine. It looks at first like a typical household piano. Yet it still sounds just as powerful, thanks to the organ’s digital system that combines nine organs into one.
“It also has a feature," Leonhardt shared, "that I can play a solo trumpet with the top note but the rest of hymn along with it — all on the same keyboard.”
The new organ is a significant improvement for the church.
“It was time," Leonhardt said, "and we couldn’t get parts for it, and it was just too expensive to repair.”
United Lutheran Church was part of a merger between two congregations more than a decade ago, but the old organ had been in service for more than two decades and was showing its age.
So, when it became clear that the time had come to get a new organ, which didn’t come cheap, the decision among the congregation was nearly unanimous. That’s according to United Lutheran’s pastor, Julane Nease.
“I think the fact that the congregation had consensus to buy this organ," Nease said, "really means that we have some hope for the future.”
The organ was ordered in January and was originally scheduled to arrive in March, just in time for Easter. But delays pushed back the delivery date to late May.
Organist Bob Leonhardt says it felt a bit like Christmas morning when the organ finally arrived from Indiana.
“It took [the installers] about three hours to get things set up," he said. "In the meantime, I messed around with it while they were running back and forth getting parts.”
And once it was all set up, congregants got a chance to share in the joy of the new arrival.
Mary Lou Sterkeson is a member of the church choir at United Lutheran.
“It was just something new we never had," she said, "and we were all excited."
The organ made its debut this past Sunday. Pastor Nease says she could feel the mood shift.
“I could really feel the excitement in the room as people listened to it,” she said. "We heard some of the different 'voices' the organ can play in. Accidentally, at one point, he hit a cymbal, and all of a sudden, we thought we had a worship band here on the premises.”
Pastor Nease says the new organ solidifies the church’s presence in the community and helps advance its mission.
“We are always trying to figure out ways that we can connect with our neighbors," she said, "in order to follow Jesus’ commands to love and serve our neighbors in new ways. We are hoping for the organ is one way we will be able to do that.”
A public concert will be held on Sunday at 3:00 p.m. at United Lutheran Church of Rockford. It will feature performances by members of the Rockford Chapter of the American Guild of Organists.
After that, it will be back to organist Bob Leonhardt to keep the music flowing.