Music trio retires after 32 years together at Rock Hill church

The Oakland Baptist Church music team – Shelden Timmerman, minister of music; Barbara Beam, organist; Melanie O’Neal, pianist – will retire Sunday with a combined total of 96 years of music ministry at the church.

Befitting the occasion, Sunday will be “Music Sunday” beginning at 10:30 a.m. Beam and O’Neal will play at least four pieces, the choir will sing four or five anthems and the congregation will join in with five hymns.

Beam became organist in the spring of 1984; followed by her daughter O’Neal as pianist a few months later. Former pastor Bob Shrum, hired Timmerman in the fall. The trio has been together since.

“When Shelden started talking about retirement,” Beam said, “it seemed fitting for us to go out together.”

“They have been an essential part of our church,” the Rev.Christy McMillin-Goodwin, associate pastor, said. “They have made worship, worship with their music.” A lot of time, people can connect more with God through music than the spoken word, she said.

“We had a good team for a long time,” said Shrum, who retired last fall as senior pastor, “and we actually liked each other.” Those sentiments were echoed by the musical trio.

Shrum knew Timmerman as a young man and followed his career through college and seminary. When the minister of music position at Oakland came open, Shrum said, Timmerman was the first person he wanted to call. “We set up an interview and as they say ‘the rest is history.’”

Timmerman inherited Beam and O’Neal, who were were already in place as organist and pianist. Beam is a retired Rock Hill school district principal. O’Neal teaches music at Westminster Catawba Christian School.

“The mother and daughter have rocked our ears and it makes worship so much more enjoyable,” Shrum said.

Timmerman says the two have supported every thing he has ever done. The Chancel Choir, which grew from about 25 members to its height of 70, has done same.

“I don’t know of another team like Barbara and Melanie,” Timmerman said.

Timmerman is consummate musician, Shrum said. His ability to be a minister to the congregation as well as a musician is incredible. “As a senior minister, that’s incredibly valuable,” he added.

The choir has performed with members of the Charlotte Symphony Orchestra during worship. Under Timmerman’s tenure they formed partnerships with the Rock Hill Ecumenical Choir for holiday performances and with Mount Prospect Baptist Church for special concerts. Several years ago, they presented “Broadway at Oakland,” a musical review of show tunes.

The sanctuary was renovated to build a larger choir loft to accommodate the growing choir and music ministry. “We had to add 60 seats for the choir, move the platform out and we lost some front pews,” Shrum said.

Oakland has two adult choirs, a youth choir, and a beginning handbell choir for older elementary-age children.

The hand bell choir attends handbell festivals and one group has traveled to England to play bells. They have also played at the White House, New York City, Biltmore House and the South Carolina State Capital.

Timmerman helped establish an early worship service by first, playing the piano for the service and then hiring Mike Jeter and James Smart to lead the music in this creative worship service.

One outreach that Timmerman helped establish and has moved beyond Oakland, is the annual Festival by the Sea choir retreat for youths and adults. Last January more than 200 singers from 17 churches attended the adult festival in Charleston. In March, as many as 300 youths from about 24 churches attended the youth festival in Myrtle Beach.

As the three look to retirement, they want to travel and spend more time with family and friends. On Sundays, you’ll find Beam and O’Neal and their family on the first pew in the balcony at Oakland. Timmerman and his wife plan to move to Greenville to be closer to their daughters and grandchildren.

“All three are wonderful Christian human beings who happen to be Baptist,” Shrum said, “and I happened to be lucky enough to hook up with them. The church was blessed and the community was blessed.”

This story was originally published July 29, 2016 at 3:32 PM with the headline "Music trio retires after 32 years together at Rock Hill church."