The History of Covenant Presbyterian Church

1963-1972

In the Spring of 1963 Rev. Paul Kapperman was called to organize a new church in N.E. Cobb County. Chartered on July 26, 1964, the church chose the name Covenant. There were 58 members by the end of the year.

In April 1965, the congregation held its first service in its first building–a Chapel with an Educational wing.

In the fall of 1968 a weekday Kindergarten was begun.

By 1970 the church was in need of more space and a second Educational Building was constructed.

Boy Scout Troop 750 was organized in 1970.

In 1972 a second Sunday Morning Worship Service was begun.

1973-1982

By 1973 membership had grown to approximately 500 members.

The Rev. Fred Boozer was called to Covenant to assist Rev. Kapperman with his pastoral duties and to plant a new church in growing South Cherokee County. In 1976 Heritage Presbyterian Church was organized and Rev. Boozer was called as their first pastor.

1983-1992

Responding to continued growth a new sanctuary with a seating capacity of 500 was built in 1984 enabling the congregation to return to one morning service.

In May 1987, Rev. Kapperman retired.

Dr. Harry Fifield served as Interim Pastor from July 1, 1987 to June 30, 1988.

Dr. Robert J. Blumer, Jr. become the second pastor of Covenant Presbyterian Church in July of 1988 - a position he held until October 1994. During his tenure the Chapel was transformed into a functioning Fellowship Hall and named Kapperman/Williams Hall.

The music ministry at Covenant flourished under the leadership of Jerry Black who served as Music Director and Organist from 1991 to 2012 when he retired.

1993-1997

In October 1994, the Reverend Del Perkins became Stated Supply Pastor and was with us until June 1996 when he died from cancer.

In August 1996, the Rev. Jack Westlund became our Interim Pastor. Dr. Westlund’s gift to Covenant was celebrated on May 25, 1997 when the mortgage on the Sanctuary was burned.

1998

The Rev. Ken Terrell became the fourth Senior Pastor of Covenant on January 1, 1998. He has been a Presbyterian Minister for the past 53 years, with over 38 years in Cherokee Presbytery. During his time in Cherokee Presbytery, he served the Chickamauga and Morton Memorial Churches, the Calhoun Church and Covenant Presbyterian Church.

2001-2011

During Rev. Ken Terrell’s ministry, worship and music were enhanced with the purchase of a new organ in 2001, new lighting in the sanctuary in 2004 and a new grand piano in 2007.

Rev. Ken Terrell retired on April 1, 2011. Following his retirement, he served the Summerville and Beersheba Churches on a part-time basis. After his second retirement, he and his wife, Brenda, attend Kirkwood Presbyterian Church. Ken sings in two large choral groups, the Georgia festival Chorus, of which he is also the Assistant Director, and the Michael O’Neal Singers. He also spends a lot of his time playing Pickleball, ping-Pong and golf.

2011

On June 1, 2011, the Rev. Zeta T. Lamberson became Interim Pastor. Zeta Lamberson grew up in Columbia, South Carolina at Shandon Presbyterian Church.  A lifelong Presbyterian, she received degrees from Presbyterian College, The Presbyterian School of Christian Education (PSCE), and Columbia Theological Seminary.  After serving as a Church Educator for years, her first ordained call was to Peachtree Presbyterian where she served as an Associate for 11 years.  She was an Associate Pastor and then Interim Pastor at Macland Presbyterian Church in Powder Springs from 2003-2010.  Zeta became Covenant's Interim Pastor in June, 2011 until December, 2012. 

2013

Rev. Zeta T. Lamberson was installed as the fifth Senior Pastor on January 13, 2013. In January 2013, she became the Permanent Pastor at Covenant where she served until her retirement in July 2021.

In July of 2014 Covenant celebrated its 50th anniversary with an old-fashioned homecoming including a Car Cruise, Silent Auction, ice cream social, and hymn sing on July 26 and a special worship celebration followed by lunch on the grounds on July 27.

A Next 50 Capital Improvement Fund provided funds for new landscaping and the paving of a portion of our parking lot.

A renewed interest in mission began with a commitment to mission projects: becoming one of the founding congregations in Family Promise of Cobb County.

2016

In the Spring of 2016 Joyce Carr became Director of Music and Organist.

2021

Pastor Jim Simpson became our Interim Pastor in October, 2021. Jim Simpson was born in Hamilton, Scotland and lived in Motherwell,  all the way through High School. The year after leaving High School, Jim spent as a Training in Evangelism volunteer with the St. Ninian’s Centre in Crieff.  He received his undergraduate degree, a Bachelor of Science from the University of Dundee.  During his time at Dundee, Jim was accepted as a candidate for the Ministry of the Church of Scotland and became a candidate of the Presbytery of Hamilton before transferring to the Presbytery of Aberdeen, where he was licensed as a Preacher of the Gospel in June of 1986. That same year, he graduated from the University of Aberdeen with his Bachelor of Divinity with Honors in Systematic Theology and Church History. 

After arriving in the United Sates in 1996, Jim continued his theological education, graduating with his D. Min. from Columbia Theological Seminary in Decatur, GA in 2000.  

Jim was ordained to the ministry of Word and Sacrament by the Presbytery of Kincardine and Deeside on May 7, 1987, and inducted as Parish Minister in Newtonhill (Bourtreebush) and Portlethen Churches, near Aberdeen. He served there until accepting the call to serve the Northminster Presbyterian Church in Roswell GA in 1996. Between 2007 and 2009, he served as Director of Church Relations at Presbyterian College. Jim served as the Pastor and Head of Staff of Oakland Avenue Presbyterian Church in Rock Hill SC from 2009 to 2013 until moving to Blue Ridge GA to serve as Pastor of Faith Presbyterian Church in January of 2013. Jim served as interim pastor of Covenant Presbyterian Church from October, 2021 until April, 2023.

2023-2024

On Sunday, April 30, 2023 we bid farewell to Pastor Jim Simpson who has been our Interim Pastor since October 2021. We are grateful for his diligence, energy and inspiration as he goes to serve the Johns Creek Presbyterian Church with our good wishes and prayers.

The Session at Covenant Presbyterian Church was happy to announce that Pastor Don Esa would be joining Covenant as the Interim Bridge Pastor effective May 1, 2023. Pastor Esa has served several churches within Cherokee Presbytery and lives in the Marietta area. We warmly welcomed Pastor Esa and his wife, Mary. The Session has executed a contract with Don Esa as our pastor effective May 1, 2024.  This contract will be renewed annually and it is our hope that Don will be with us for many years.

Reverend Don Esa has been a member of Cherokee Presbytery since 1997 when he and his family moved here from Cincinnati, OH, to accept the call as the Associate Pastor of Education at First Presbyterian Church of Marietta. For more than 12 years, he guided FPC’s very large education program, overseeing six staff members in the department and over 200 volunteer workers. In June 2012, at the request of the presbytery, Rev. Don Esa began serving as the Pastor at Woodstock Presbyterian Church, and added ministry at Trinity Presbyterian Church in August 2013, making the 23-minute trip between the two churches each Sunday. He retired from serving those two churches in October 2021, and then served a six month stint as Stated Clerk of Cherokee Presbytery following its major reorganization. He is a graduate of the University of Denver (BA in Mass Communications), Princeton Theological Seminary (MDiv), and Fuller Theological Seminary (DMin). He served as youth pastor at Pleasant Hills Community Presbyterian Church in Pittsburgh, PA, and then in Cincinnati, OH at Madeira Presbyterian and Mt. Washington Presbyterian Churches before moving to West Cobb, GA in 1997. Prior to seminary, Rev. Esa worked in broadcast news for several Colorado radio stations. He tells his parishioners that he decided to leave the broadcast industry so that he could tell the "Good News” rather than merely reporting all the bad news in the world.

EVERY YEAR THE KIRKIN’ O THE TARTANS REMINDS US OF OUR PRESBYTERIAN HERITAGE AND THE REFORMED FAITH THAT WE INHERITED FROM OUR SCOTTISH FORBEARERS AND SHARE WITH SO MANY PEOPLE AROUND THE WORLD.

The History...

The ceremony of Kirkin’ o’ The Tartans is of American origin though based on Scottish history and legend. After Bonnie Prince Charlie’s Scottish forces were defeated by the English at the Battle of Culloden in 1746, Scotland once again came under British rule. To control the Scots, an Act was passed that forbade the carrying of arms and the wearing of kilts or tartans with their distinctive plaids representing various Scottish clans and families. Orders were given for British troops to kill any person dressed in or displaying a tartan.

As the Legend Goes...

This Act prompted the Scots to secretly carry with them a piece of their tartan as they went to their Kirk, the Scottish word for church. The minister then slipped a blessing (a Kirkin’) into the service for the tartans. The prohibition against tartans lasted for nearly 50 years. When at last repealed, the Church of Scotland celebrated with a Service of Family Covenant at which time the tartan of each family was offered as a covenant expression for the Lord’s blessing.

The First Kirkin’...

The Saint Andrew’s Society of Washington, DC, held the first Kirkin’ during the early years of World War II. The late Dr. Peter Marshall, an eloquent Scot, then Chaplain of the U.S. Senate as well as a pastor, led the service in 1943, choosing “Kirkin’ O’ The Tartan” for the title of his sermon. Peter Marshall preached many sermons in support of the British War Relief and the Scottish Clans Evacuation Plan. His sermons were so popular that a request was made for their publication, with the proceeds designated for war relief programs. As the war continued, the D.C. St. Andrew’s Society continued to hold prayer services for the British subjects. These became known as Kirkin’s.

The Worship Service...

The worship service is of traditional content, using much liturgy from the Church of Scotland. From the Middle Ages into the Reformation, ownership of Bibles was rare among common people. A Beadle, a lay officer within the church, began each worship service by carrying the Scriptures into the sanctuary with the congregation standing in respect. At the end of the service, the Beadle would remove the Bible for safekeeping. In addition, the Claymore is a two-handed Scottish sword that is carried like a cross. It reminds us of the sacrifice Christ made on the cross as well as the price paid by thousands of Christians down through the ages as they stood for their beliefs. Bagpipes have been played for centuries throughout large parts of Europe though the Great Highland bagpipe of Scotland achieved widespread recognition particularly when it was used with drummers to form a military band. The Royal Scots have records referring to pipers dating back to the early 17th century.

The Scots Confession is the first Reformed Confession of Faith in the English language. The Scottish Parliament invited John Knox and five colleagues to prepare a confession for the church and nation. They completed their work on August 17, 1560, a 15-page document penned in only four days!

A central part of the Kirkin’ Service is the presentation of various tartans, through flags and the wearing of tartans, for a blessing—the Kirkin’. However, the Kirkin’ is intended to encourage all participants, irrespective of national origin, to reflect with thanksgiving on their own family and ethnic heritage and to celebrate God’s grace that has been poured out on all peoples.