For more years than anyone seems to remember, the second Sunday in October has been Homecoming at the Lone Star Church. The 121-year-old frame structure with car siding walls and distinctive twin wood stoves has long been a community church and gathering place in northern Taney County, Missouri, near the village of Swan. Above the front door is a hand-painted blue five-pointed star with gold trim. “Church of God, Lone Star, Since 1901” reads the inscription.
With recent exception, the church building only saw services for the Homecoming, a June revival or an occasional wedding. The October Homecoming was a time when members came from near and far to reminisce about growing up in the surrounding hills and attending the old school, now gone. There would be a casual service with lots of singing and other music followed by a picnic lunch.

I’m not a particularly religious person but these rural churches represent an important social fabric that is as interesting as it is lasting. I have felt lucky to photograph several reunions there but I particularly like this first one from the 1980s. I know many of these folks are gone now and it was a simple, small event that felt like stepping back a century.