Our Music Director and Accompanist, Sherry McCamley, wrote and lead the HUUC choir in a musical parody to Rev. Bill Gupton at the recent Open House to celebrate his upcoming retirement. Due to many requests for the lyrics, Sherry has supplied them below.
Bye Bye Rev. Bill
(sung to the tune of American Pie)
By Sherry McCamley
A long, long time ago, HUUC hired a new minister named Bill
And he knew if he had his chance, he could help us sing and dance
And he knew we’d be happy for awhile
In joy and love, we did shiver with every sermon he’d deliver
Good news on our doorstep, he helped us take one more step
Toward social justice for everyone
And we’d make a difference when day was done
Bill has touched us, everyone, and now we say goodbye
Chorus:
So bye, bye, Reverend Bill’s a great guy
Won’t be pastor but he’s lasted a long time so don’t cry
He won’t be far, a few miles as the crow flies
Digging holes & planting trees that won’t die
Digging holes & planting trees that won’t die
Bill believes in the power of love & he gave us faith in the universe above
He’s led the people with that love
And he believes in rock ‘n’ roll, the Beatles are part of his mortal soul
And we sing “Imagine” real slow
We pass the plate but we give it away, to some others who really need it today Our abundance we can share, Bill’s made it very fair
With Candles of Community, our connection’s strong as you can see
Our Bill has left a legacy, so we say thanks and goodbye
Chorus:
For 23 years through good times and strife
Thru weddings, births and celebrations of life
Bill’s been there to lend a hand
He’s headed to Heritage Acres now, where he shows folks the best way how
To preserve and protect our land
So now we honor Bill for real with stories, songs and vegan meals
No gluten for him please – just rice and frozen peas
And while he munches on serviceberries in the park
The choir sings folk songs in the dark
We sure will miss your intense spark
As we must say goodbye
So bye, bye, Reverend Bill’s a great guy
Won’t be pastor but he’s lasted a long time so don’t cry
He won’t be far, a few miles as the crow flies
So we won’t be really saying goodbye, we won’t be really saying goodbye
Image source: https://tinyurl.com/m942kb2m