From Clare Baum

Heidi Souza, organist and concert pianist, will be the performer for the Sunday, Sept. 22, 2019 organ recital planned at St. George’s Episcopal Church, Engelhard, to celebrate the 100th birthday of the church’s 1919 Hinners Pipe Organ.  The recital begins at 2 p.m. and will include works by Bach, Handel, and Buxtehude along with audience participation in singing of “How Great Thou Art” and “Seek Ye First.”  The public is cordially invited to attend the free performance.

A classically trained pianist who performed many solo piano concerts in other states, Heidi Souza has performed extensively in North Carolina since moving to Bath, NC in 2001 with her husband, the Rev. Ray Souza.  She has also been a church organist for 30 years, serving in VA, TX and NJ before coming to NC.  More recently, she has served as organist at St. Thomas (Bath), Trinity Lutheran Church (Rocky Mount), and First Christian Church (Robersonville). Currently, she is the organist at Zion Episcopal Church in Washington, NC.

St. George’s Hinners Pipe Organ (Opus 2526) was originally built in 1919 for the Zion German Evangelical Lutheran Church in Johnstown, PA.  By the 1990s, it was in storage, was purchased by St. George’s in 1995 and restored that year by organ builder, John Allen Farmer, Inc., in Winston-Salem.  It has been in place and a part of services at St. George’s since late 1995.   Designated funds at the Beaufort-Hyde Community Foundation have helped with the 100th birthday celebration for the Hinners Pipe Organ.

St. George’s Episcopal Church is located at 31655 US Hwy 264 near Engelhard, NC.