The composer of the hymn, “The Old Rugged Cross” — the Rev. George Bennard — was born in Youngstown in 1873. He moved away as a young boy going to Iowa, according to cemetery board member ...

In 1998, the Old Rugged Cross Foundation Inc. was formed to restore the original church building in Pokagon. It had been in use as a barn for many years and had fallen into disrepair. For ...

DEAR EDITOR: As Lent progresses to Easter, the “Old Rugged Cross” crucifix comes to mind. It stands 22 feet high and can be seen next to a pool, traveling east on East Midlothian Boulevard at ...

I will cling to the old rugged cross, And exchange it some day for a crown.” George Bennard lived his retirement years in Reed City, Michigan, and passed away there in 1958.

POKAGON - As the driving force with her husband, Bob, behind the Old Rugged Cross Church restoration project, Molly Shaffer knows quite a bit about the church's history.