A Hendersonville church says it will continue publicly supporting LGBTQ+ people after a Pride flag displayed outside the congregation was torn down and damaged earlier this week.
Trinity Presbyterian Church of Hendersonville shared photos on social media Wednesday showing damage to a wooden church sign where a Pride flag had been mounted. According to the church, the flag was removed sometime overnight on Tuesday. The flag holder also appeared to be ripped from the signpost.
In the Facebook post, the church described the incident as “a right of passage” and said the vandalism would not change its values or support for the LGBTQ+ community.
“Sometime last night, someone tore down our brand new PRIDE flag out front of the church. That’s sad. But, it’s just a flag. No matter. Our VALUES don’t change just because someone took down our symbol,” the church wrote. “So keep on tearing it down and we’ll just keep putting it up again ’til y’all get tired.”
The congregation later posted an update saying that a church member had remounted the Pride flag Wednesday morning.
The post quickly drew hundreds of reactions and comments from supporters online. Some commenters thanked the church for publicly affirming LGBTQ+ people in Western North Carolina, while others said the visible support made them feel more welcomed and encouraged in the community.
One commenter wrote that seeing the church’s Pride flag helped reassure them that “there are still so many out there living what they preach.” Another called the vandalism “proof why representation matters.”
According to church administrator Katie Cilluffo, the Pride flag was first installed in late April in anticipation of upcoming Pride events in Hendersonville, including an upcoming concert by the Atlanta Gay Men’s Chorus on May 30 and Hendersonville NC Pride Fest scheduled for June 6 at Jackson Park.
Cilluffo told WSPA that the church expected the possibility of vandalism after conversations with other affirming congregations in the area.
“Our congregation is a member of the PCUSA’s ‘More Light’ organization,” Cilluffo said in an email to the station. “So we wanted a clearer signal.”
Trinity Presbyterian Church officially joined More Light Presbyterians in 2020, an organization within the Presbyterian Church (USA) advocating for the full inclusion of LGBTQ+ people in church life and leadership.
The church’s website states that the congregation welcomes people “without regard to race, ethnicity, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, physical or mental ability, education, economic circumstance, your place of origin or any other issue that divides God’s family.”
The Presbyterian Church (USA), the nation’s largest Presbyterian denomination, has formally affirmed LGBTQ+ inclusion through multiple General Assembly actions in recent years, including support for transgender and nonbinary people and opposition to discrimination and violence targeting LGBTQ+ communities.
As Pride Month approaches across the Carolinas, the church’s response has resonated online as both a statement of solidarity and a reflection of ongoing tensions surrounding LGBTQ+ visibility in faith communities and public spaces.