Grace Street plays the piano for worship every Sunday at Whiteside Baptist Church. She is 99 years old and has been playing the piano at Whiteside for about 85 years. She shows no signs of stopping anytime soon.
“I never felt like it was my duty, but I just started playing,” Street said. She said she took piano lessons from Lorene Creech, a lady at the Presbyterian church, when she was a young teenager. Later, her aunt, Marion Teague, taught her — and around the age of 14 or 15, she began playing for the worship services at the church.
There have been others in her church who have played, but mostly it’s been her throughout the years. She’s consistent and rarely misses a Sunday.
Her pastor, Bill Patrick, said she is committed to it. One time, he recalled, someone in her family was getting baptized in another church, and she was not planning to attend because she thought she should be at Whiteside to play the piano. He was able to talk her into going to the baptism, though.
He said she is a friendly person, and she and her late husband have two sons. One of her sons, Robert, helped her as she was interviewed by The Pathway. He said Whiteside is a small community in eastern Missouri, located near Troy. It’s a place where everyone knows everybody. Many are farmers, and a good number commute to other cities for work.
“I do have a satisfied feeling when I play,” Street said. “When I’m not there, there is no one else to play, and that’s not what you would want to hear.”
EDITOR’S NOTE — This story was written by Richard Nations and originally published by the Pathway.
