Mike Reinert has seen all kinds of weather during his years of officiating the Easter Dawn Service atop Mount Penn.
“I don’t think I’ve ever driven in such a fog as this morning,” the pastor of Grace United Methodist Church said in his welcome. “I was praying all the way up, and as I was coming up Skyline Drive and saw the light of the cross on the tower just shining through the fog, I knew that I was in the right place because the light from Jesus’ cross shines in our lives and shows us the way.”
Worshipers gather in the dense fog at the 113th Easter Dawn Service at the William Penn Memorial Fire Tower atop Mt. Penn on Sunday, April 5, 2026. (BILL UHRICH/READING EAGLE)
Over 150 worshippers who braved the chilly, foggy weather Sunday morning to attend the 113th annual service agreed.
“It’s a tradition,” Allison Vandersall of Wyomissing said as she sat bundled with her young daughter next to her husband, Dean. “I’ve been here when it’s warm enough that you can wear a T-shirt, and I’ve been here when it’s so cold, you can’t even feel your feet.”
But they both feel that’s the purpose of the morning — to glorify the Lord.
“It’s not hard to get up and do this when you think about what the Lord did,” Allison said.
Melney Reich of Leesport is a lifelong member of First Baptist Church in Reading, the congregation that started the annual service in the early 20th century. She attends each year with her daughters Lindsey Gebhart of Bel Air, Md., and Jessica Madeira of Stillwater, N.J., as part of an Easter reunion.
“We grew up at the First Baptist Church, so I’ve been coming for years. They’ve been coming for years,” Reich said, nodding to her daughters, “and now, when they visit me for Easter, this is our tradition.”
Their attendance is also a way to honor the members of First Baptist, which has combined with the congregation of Jesucristo Es El Rey church to sponsor the service.
“We come to worship the Lord, Resurrection Sunday,” Reich said, “and also the memories of those that have come before. Our whole church had always been right here in the front seat, and we’re still trying to continue that tradition.”
Steve and Beth Gordon of Exeter Township, who aren’t members of a church but are on a faith journey, attended the service for the first time.
“Those ladies that went to the tomb early in the morning,” Beth said, “I don’t know what the weather was like then, either, but it made me wonder if they didn’t even sleep all night, just because they were waiting for the Sabbath to be over, and to go watch over Jesus’ body, and then he wasn’t there.”
From left, Allison and Dean Vandersall of Wyomissing and Beth and Steve Gordon of Exeter Township worship during the 113th Easter Dawn Service at the William Penn Memorial Fire Tower atop Mt. Penn on Sunday, April 5, 2026. (BILL UHRICH/READING EAGLE)
The service this year marked the official passing of the torch from the congregation of First Baptist Church to Jesucristo Es El Rey church.
Rev. Jose Pagan, pastor of Jesucristo Es El Rey, paid homage to the tradition.
“The act of passing the torch,” he said, “is not only about the physical transfer of leadership but also about the spiritual and moral leadership that comes with it, which is crucial for the Easter Dawn service mission and the well-being of the community it serves.”
The Jadah Dancers of the youth group at Jesucristo Es El Rey performed a liturgical dance that depicted the Passion story from the Crucifixion to the Resurrection.
The Jadah Dancers of Jesucristo Es El Rey Church in Reading perform a liturgical dance during the 113th Easter Dawn Service at the William Penn Memorial Fire Tower atop Mt. Penn on Sunday, April 5, 2026. (BILL UHRICH/READING EAGLE)
Though Jesucristo Es El Rey is the main sponsor, the ecumenical nature of the service was shown with music by Andrew Angstadt from St. John the Baptist de LaSalle Roman Catholic Church and with prayers by Craig Caltagirone of Calvary Mohnton United Methodist Church and by Pastor Reinert and Gretchen Manmiller of Grace United Methodist Church.
Benjamin Reber of Sts. Constantine and Helen Greek Orthodox Church sounded the shofar.
Mike Reinert, pastor of Grace United Methodist Church in Reading, preaches the message “Jesus Delivers!” during the 113th Easter Dawn Service at the William Penn Memorial Fire Tower atop Mt. Penn on Sunday, April 5, 2026. (BILL UHRICH/READING EAGLE)
Reinert gave the message “Jesus Delivers!” and spoke of the imperfect nature of this world.
“Jesus broke the chain of death, probably the strongest chain that we know,” he said. “So God’s resurrection power can break any chain that’s binding you right now.”
He pointed out the hope that lies in belief in Jesus’ power.
“It won’t be a perfect world until Jesus returns,” he said. “But we have hope. We have Easter hope. We have resurrection hope. We have hope in Jesus, who delivers on his promises.”
After Jackson Garcia, the youth pastor of Jesucristo Es El Rey, gave the benediction, he noted that it was Reinert’s birthday and led the congregation in the singing of “Happy Birthday.”
Reinert thanked the assembled for their kindness, and as the morning light brightened in the dense fog, he looked out upon the gathered worshippers.
“Just as with the son of God, we may not be able to see the sun as it rises,” he said, “but we know that the light of Christ is shining.”
Worshipers bundle up in the chilly fog during the 113th Easter Dawn Service at the William Penn Memorial Fire Tower atop Mt. Penn on Sunday, April 5, 2026. (BILL UHRICH/READING EAGLE)