Carol McMillin always enjoyed the flowers on the altar of Holy Trinity Church and thought that “one day” she would devote herself to this endeavor. That day came after she retired and found that she had more time to devote to planting flowers for the glory of God in the church.

McMillin said she enjoys her job providing flowers for church services alongside six teams of two to three people each. The group is called the Flower Guild.

McMillin explained that a flower guild is “a group of lay people who are members of the church. We buy and arrange flowers every Sunday for church services and other celebrations such as weddings or funerals. We do this as an act of service and love to our community and to God.”

Although the exact founding date of the Flower Guild is unknown, the group’s founding is attributed to the now deceased church member Julia Erhardt.

To pay for the flowers, the guild maintains a fund financed by donations.

“Every Sunday, flowers are laid ‘in loving memory’ of someone or as thanks for something, such as the birth of a child or a wedding,” McMillin said.

She explained that the person wishing to dedicate the floral arrangements usually makes a donation to cover the cost of the flowers.

In contrast, for solemn holidays such as Lent and Advent, only green plants are used. After the holy season is over, the guild produces the flowers. At Christmas, McMillin says, red poinsettias are placed around the church.

“We blow it up on holidays, Christmas and Easter, and we decorate the whole church,” she said. “We have greenery, every window and every door is decorated. It’s just full of beautiful colors and flowers.”

When asked if flower arranging courses are needed, McMillin said most people have no formal training and simply enjoy working with flower arranging.

“We are people who love flowers,” she said.

The church keeps books that can be used as a reference for patterns if needed.

“We teach each other,” she said. “We learn from each other. It’s a service to our church and to God.”

McMillin added: “We follow a few rules. We don’t use artificial flowers, only fresh ones. We never make the arrangement on the altar higher than the cross in the middle because it is still the most conspicuous part of the altar. Some things we have learned over time: through our stained glass windows, blue and purple flowers just disappear. That’s why we don’t use some flowers.”

Holy Trinity is known for its stained glass windows, most notably the six designed by the famous artist Louis Comfort Tiffany of Tiffany Studios in New York. Tiffany is now better known for high-quality jewelry.

The Flower Guild extends beyond just the altar, said member Ruth Wilkerson.

“We do all weddings, funerals and special occasions,” Wilkerson said.

The Guild does not usually receive many requests for specific colors or flowers, but when providing decorations for weddings, it works with the wedding party to ensure the flowers harmonize with the chosen color scheme. For most Sundays, the Guild chooses colors and arrangements that it likes.

Nancy Gates, a long-time member of the Flower Guild, said, “I’ve learned a lot about how to arrange flowers and how to care for cut flowers. I really enjoy decorating the church for Christmas and Easter.”

“After Sunday, we take the arrangements apart and put them in little baskets,” McMillan said. “If the person who donated doesn’t want them, we take them to members who may be in the hospital or nursing home or just going through a tough time and need a little floral therapy.”

McMillin said, “It is a joy for all of us to work with God’s beautiful creations.”