This Sunday, a special needs group will hit the stage to perform a Christmas program for its church congregation.

New Mission Sunday school/Wednesday night class, headed by Terry Conner, will present its Christmas program at 15^th Street Church of God on Sunday night at 6 p.m. The group of more than 20 people, comprised of church members with developmental and/or physical disabilities, will perform a small Christmas-related program, followed by singing accompanied by a blue grass band, Conner said. The band includes her son and other musicians from area churches. Following the singing part of the program, the group will perform sign language to several song selections, Conner said.

“I try to do something that each one of them has a part in,” Conner said. “They are all very included. After we do our little program, we go into the choir, and they sing songs. Then, they all do sign language. It’s very organized.”

Conner said she started the class 18 years ago and continues the class in memory of her daughter, Missy, who was born with Down’s syndrome and passed away in 1997. Conner went to the Christian Education Board of the church and floated the idea of starting the Sunday school class for those with special needs, and the idea was not only accepted but encouraged throughout the church. At that time, the class had three people, but since, the class has grown to have a membership of more than 20. Conner conducts the class with help from her coworkers Shelby Hodges and Thelma Chauncey, she said.

“I don’t think there were classes out there that really involved them that much, and I asked if I could start a class,” Conner said. “They agreed, and I started with the three people I had. I had a daughter with Down’s syndrome, and that’s when I got involved with working with people with special needs. She passed in 1997, and I continued it on because I felt the importance of having a class for people with special needs. And it’s sort of a legacy that’s in her memory.”

For the hour-long program, the group will don jeans and red shirts to be not only festive with the season, but to correlate with the bluegrass band, Conner said. They will perform some Christmas songs, as well as several traditional hymns, including “This is the Day” and “I’ll Enter His Gates with Thanksgiving in my Heart.” The theme of the program is a secret and won’t be unveiled until the start of the program, Conner said. Last year, around 300 people attended the performance.

Conner said she enjoys working with the class, and the church is very accepting and supportive of them. The group is also very involved with the church and dedicated to not only their class but attending church services, as well.

“I love each and every one of them,” Conner said. I do it for them, not just for my daughter, but it’s because of her the class got started because God gave her to me and opened up the door for me to work with people with special needs. That was the way my daughter was — she loved church — and I could dearly say she’s in heaven right now because of her love for Jesus Christ. It’s something I enjoy doing, and my whole family is involved. We have a loving and supportive church. Our class is very loved and supported by the church, and the group is very committed to the class and to the church, as well.”

15^th Street Church of God is located at 336 East 15^th Street in Washington.