FLEMINGSBURG, KY — A large vinyl welcome banner hanging above the main entrance of Cornerstone Community Church has displayed the incomplete greeting “You Are” since a windstorm tore away the second half of the message in October of 2019, a period now spanning six and a half years and four pastoral administrations.

The original banner, which read “You Are Welcome Here,” cost $214 and was installed in 2017 to signal the congregation’s commitment to hospitality. The remaining fragment, still secured by its original grommets, greets an estimated 180 visitors per year with an existential affirmation and no further context.

“Honestly, we’ve had visitors say it stopped them in their tracks,” said Diane Colwell, 58, chair of the Cornerstone hospitality committee. “One gentleman told us it was the most profound thing he’d read all week. We didn’t have the heart to tell him half of it blew into the Kroger parking lot.”

“We did submit a replacement request in 2021. It went to the facilities subcommittee. That subcommittee has not convened.”

Facilities deacon Roy Abernathy, 67, confirmed that a replacement banner was formally proposed during the spring 2021 budget cycle but was tabled pending a broader signage audit that has not yet been scheduled. He noted the current banner is “still technically accurate.”

“You Are,” he said. “That’s true of everybody who walks through that door. More than you can say for a lot of church signs.”

The congregation voted in March to add the banner replacement to the 2027 budget proposal for consideration.

At press time, a first-time visitor had paused beneath the banner for ninety seconds, nodded slowly, and walked inside.