Even when the song is about corn bread, buttermilk and turnip greens, the intent is to reach out with the message of God’s love. That’s how the Picking, Singing Pilgrims sees its music ministry to nursing home residents in the Walker County area.
The Pilgrims is composed of manager Alfred Hartley, 67; J.W. Sticher, 76; Don Painter, 65; Carlos Tubbs, 67; and Faye Tubbs, 64. Hartley is pastor of Kansas Baptist Church in Walker Baptist Association.
Sticher is a retired pastor, last serving at Mount Carmel Baptist Church, Cordova, in Walker Association. Painter served as pastor of churches in Indiana before retiring and moving to Alabama. The Tubbses attend Oakman Church of God.
The four men play guitars, with Hartley pitching in on mandolin and harmonica as the number demands.
Faye Tubbs provides a strong lead vocal on many of the songs, while the men alternate singing lead on others.
The group performs old songs from gospel to country with sweet harmonies and a lot of humor. An upbeat bluegrass number is thrown in here and there to provoke a little foot patting.
“When we perform the old hymns, you can see their (the nursing home residents’) lips moving,” Sticher said. “They are remembering the words and singing along.” And the Pilgrims never leave without playing “Amazing Grace.”
Jeannie Smith, director of The Terrace at Jasper, an assisted-living and retirement center, said the Pilgrims is the most popular entertainment the center has on its schedule. “When the residents won’t come out of their rooms for anything else, they will come to hear this group,” she said.
The band selects songs that will tap into earlier memories for the residents.
The set opens with the song for which the band is named, “Singing Pilgrim.” Its set includes a Buck Owens tune and folk songs popular 50 years ago. And Hartley leads the audience in “Y’all Come,” with the residents joining in on the refrain.
The band was founded around 2000 by Hartley and the late Lacy Moon, music director for Hermon Baptist Church, Curry, in Walker Association, while Hartley was pastor. After retiring as pastor of Hermon Baptist, he attended Farmstead Baptist Church, Jasper, in Walker Association. There he joined up with Sticher and his wife, Myrtle, who helps Hartley manage the group.
“We like to go around and shake hands and talk to the residents after we perform,” Hartley said. “They are glad to see us and ask us to come back again. These folks can’t get out and go anywhere. They just need some interaction, and the bonus is that we bring some music into their day.”
For information about the Picking, Singing Pilgrims, call Hartley at 205-221-7660.
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