PORT REPUBLIC — It will take the power and prayers of a congregation to save the steeple of an iconic Methodist church in this small town. St. Paul’s United Methodist Church — now 143 years ...

Cleo Parker of Port Republic stands in front of the spot where her parents, Blanche and Oliver Parker Sr., are buried at Brown’s United Methodist Church cemetery.

McSee was the seventh- and eighth-grade choir teacher at Port Republic Elementary School and choir director at St. Paul's United Methodist Church, where the child's family attends services.

Pastor Frank Brown is spearheading an effort to raise $75,000 to restore the steeple and enhance the exterior at St. Paul's United Methodist Church, Thursday Sept. 3, 2015, in Port Republic.