Woodland
United Methodist is a Church that sits in the midst of a northwest Akron
neighborhood that is little more than forty years old, but the church is much
older than its surroundings. Although some members have come to Woodland in
recent years from other west Akron churches like Emanuel United Methodist Church
(previously Emanuel Evangelical United Brethren) and Westlawn United Methodist
Church, Woodland accepted its first thirty members at the dedication of its
first chapel more than one hundred years ago. Its beginnings were not in the new
neighborhood just north of Wallhaven, where it now resides, but in the much
older West Hill neighborhood of Akron to the east near Highland Square.
Although the structure at 444 North Hawkins Avenue was
indeed dedicated in October of 1964, the original structure for Woodland Church
was actually founded in 1895 as Woodland Methodist Episcopal Church (Woodland M.
E.) on a leased lot at the corner of Woodland Avenue and Balch Street.
Woodland's story really
began in 1894 when some people in the West Hill area began meeting in area homes
and expressed a desire for a church in their neighborhood. The society for the
establishment of a church was setup in October of that same year. The conference
appointed the minister of North Hill Church, Rev. E. E. Whittaker, to organize
the West Hill Church, and a lot was leased at the corner of Woodland and Balch
in December. Many people donated labor and materials to the construction of the
original one-room church. The total cost of the little frame building was about
$600.00. The church was dedicated April 21, 1895, and thirty people were
received as members that day. The name Woodland Methodist Episcopal Church was
suggested in a motion offered by Mr. E. P. Humes and became the official name of
the new church in September of 1895.
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| 1902 Dedication Invitation |
When
the lease expired on the lot where the original Woodland Church was located,
legal barriers prevented the church from purchasing the lot. Undaunted, the
church members secured a new lot at the northeast corner of Balch and Crosby
streets and actually moved the church to it in December of 1897. Although the building
was enlarged after the move, it became apparent by the spring of 1901 that the structure was
too small for the congregation, and a project was started to build a new church
building. Many groups within the church came together to raise funds for the
ambitious plan, including the church women's group, which was at that time called
the Ladies' Aid Society. They held an oyster supper as a fundraiser in October of
1901 and a second supper in November. The small church was sold in 1901 and
moved to a vacant lot where it was made into an apartment house. A beautiful,
new, brick and stone church was built on the lot at Balch and Crosby streets,
and it was dedicated on December 21, 1902. Reverend William F. Wykoff was the
church pastor who led the church during the construction period and for the
first few years in the new
facility.
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| 1915 Directory |
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| Woodland M. E. 1914 bulletin |
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As
time flew by in the new facility, the church membership increased and the Sunday
School continued to grow. Additional Sunday School rooms were added in the lower
part of the church, and a kitchen was eventually built. By 1917 the church
women's organization had grown considerably and was meeting as four separate
circles to support multiple church causes. Woodland Methodist Episcopal Church
quickly became a recognized and effective organization in the West Akron
community.
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| Inside Woodland M. E. |
In
1939 three church denominations came together. The Methodist Episcopal Church,
the Methodist Episcopal Church South, and the Methodist Protestant Church were
combined. This larger Methodist consolidation had an effect at Woodland as
well. It was around this time that Woodland stopped using the word Episcopal and
began using the name Woodland Methodist Church. In 1940 the church's three women's
organizations -- Women's Home Missionary, Women's Foreign Missionary and Ladies
Aid Society were also combined and were called the Women's Society of Christian
Service (W. S. C. S.). The new organization continued to contribute to missions
and provide financial support for local church
activities.
During
the 1940's and 50's the church had a basketball team that became City champions in
the city church league. They received several trophies for their efforts.
Although we don't know exactly when it came into existence, by 1963 the Methodist
Men's Club had been formed. Its purpose was for men of the church to get better
acquainted and to help out with church
causes.
By
the late 1950's many members of Woodland Methodist Church had moved west within
Akron as the city expanded in that direction. Instead of walking to the church,
they were driving and parking along the streets of the neighborhood around it,
due to a shortage of parking at the facility. On Sunday, June 8, 1958, the
congregation met and decided that Woodland Church should relocate. A committee
was appointed to find a new site to the west, and a meeting was held Sunday,
September 7, 1958 where they recommended a 5.7 acre site on North Hawkins
Avenue. The congregation voted to buy the land and build a new church building
on the
site.
A
successful building fund canvas in 1959 raised $80,000 for the construction
project, and Reverend Milford began holding dual services in 1960 at Litchfield
Junior High School at 9:15 A.M. and at Woodland at 10:45. In June of 1962, the
church chose Mr. John VonGunten of Cleveland to be the architect to design the
new church, and he presented his plans later that year. The church raised an
additional $132,000 through pledges, and in January 1963 the congregation voted to
accept the part of the master plan that could be constructed with the money
pledged. Ground was broken in July of 1963.
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| Woodland UMC. |
The
dedication of the newly completed church was scheduled for October of 1964. Three
hundred Eighty-five people packed the old Woodland church building on Balch
Street on September 27, 1964 for the final Sunday. It was a communion service
that was packed to the balcony as the church members bid a solemn farewell to
the former home of their church. The following Sunday, the former Balch Street
congregation joined the Litchfield group to bring a total of four hundred ten
people to the first combined service in the new church on North Hawkins Avenue.
The formal opening services were held on October 10th, 1964 when the five
pastors who had preceded Reverend Milford joined him, Bishop Kearns, and a
congregation of about 500 for the event.
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| Woodland Preschool |
The
mid 1960's was a time of unification for the Methodist
Church. It was also around this time that Woodland, as a form of service to the
community, began providing space within the church for a non-denominational
pre-school . During this period, the Methodist Church and the Evangelical United
Brethren Churches were in the process of uniting, and many ministers of the two
denominations exchanged pulpits from time to time. Then the two denominations
merged in 1968 to form the United Methodist Church . After the tragic
assassination of Martin Luther King Jr., a very memorable service was held for
him at Woodland on April 7, 1968, and prayers were said for deliverance from
such troubled times. The choir sang from the Oratorio "Lord have mercy on us,"
and the sermon was followed by baptism of children and the reception of new
members.
In
1971, Many members of the former Emanuel United Methodist Church (previously
Emanuel Evangelical United Brethren) chose to join Woodland, and the members of
Woodland United Methodist Church welcomed the Madison Avenue people with open
arms. The people of Emanuel Church brought with them many interests and causes
such as that of the mission at Red Bird, Kentucky that continued to be long term
causes supported by the people of Woodland Church. In 1972, to reflect the new
spirit of unity, the name of the church women's organization was changed to
United Methodist
Women.
In
1973, as a memorial, the church received a beautiful set of hand bells from the
family of Edward and Ferne Swartz, who had been long time members of Woodland
Church. Subsequently, a bell choir was organized under the direction of Linda
McDonald, and the bell choir became a much appreciated feature of Woodland
services in the
years that followed.
Reverend
Harold Milford, pastor from 1960-1969, made a return visit to Woodland in 1974
for a special day designated to celebrate Woodland's eightieth birthday and the
tenth year on North Hawkins Avenue. The date chosen was October twentieth,
and everyone enjoyed having their former pastor back once again. The church was
filled with current and former members, and a program by "Life" singing group
was
presented.
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| A Liturgical Dance Group |
From 1975
to 1977, Woodland United Methodist Church had its first Interpretive Movement
Group who used rhythmic body movements to illustrate songs sung by the choir and
by soloists. Mary Lyon organized the group of five teenage girls in 1975, which
included Jacqueline and Jennifer McMellon, Carol and Karen McCormick, and
Dorothy Leisher. The girls performed their presentations for numerous special
occasions, and they were always well received by church attendees. Although three
members of this first group of girls gave a farewell performance in 1977, Dorothy
and Karen were joined by Tina Teter, Tari McCormick, Debbie Lewis and other girls
as they continued this new Woodland tradition. The girls gave a particularly
memorable performance at Lakeside in 1980 or 1981 for the Akron District Institute.
Liturgical dance continued at Woodland into the Eighties and, as older girls left,
younger ones took their places. Later in the eighties and nineties, one of the group's early members,
Jennifer McMellon, assumed direction of the group. (Jennifer's name can be found on
current church rosters as Jennifer Hissem, our Church Youth Director.)
The
seventies, eighties, nineties, and beyond have been a time of cooperation
between Woodland and several other area churches such as High St. Christian
Church, and First Baptist Church. These and other congregations have worked
together with the community to focus on West Akron area concerns, and the result
as been more cooperation between neighbors and increased awareness of local
issues that are important to members of the
community.
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| Inside Woodland UMC |
In
1988 Woodland United Methodist Church received its first female Pastor, Barbara
Houston. She led the church for quite a few years and was
a wonderful asset to both the church and the community. Barbara’s family also played
an active role in church life. Rev. Houston’s husband, Jim Houston, who was a former Cleveland
player, led the men's group on a trip or two to Browns games at the old Municipal Stadium..
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n 1995, Reverend Ray Kovach became the church pastor, and during his tenure some
significant changes have taken place at Woodland. In his years with the church,
he and the people of Woodland introduced a contemporary worship service to
complement the traditional services. The vacation bible school program was re-introduced
as a neighborhood outreach. The church also began sponsoring a monthly free lunch for
people in-need. 2003 saw the premier of a new annual event,
the Woodland Chili Cook-off. Also, a special children's Summer Sunday School program was
introduced for the first time in 2003 to fill in during the summer when the regular
Sunday School program is on hiatus. Also, in June of 2003, the church launched this site on
the World Wide Web. The easy to remember URL is:
http://www.woodlandumc.org
In the spring of 2005, Woodland began receiving
natural gas from a new gas well on church property. The contract with the company that established the well
provided enough free gas to the church to supply about one quarter of what is typically reqired to
heat the building. The free gas came in just in time to offset the significant increase in utilities
that occured in the fall of that year. As a result, the church was spared the considerable financial
burden of trying to cover those increases.
In recent years, Woodland has continued to proceed along its traditional path of
continuous improvement. This includes both our facilities and our programs. 2004 saw the attic storage space
undergo a major upgrade with the addition of shelves along the walls, and the parking lot was resealed that summer.
The main sanctuary roof was replaced and the church Sunday school classrooms for children were renovated in 2005.
In 2007, a new sign graced Woodland's front lawn in place of the deteriorated original from 1964. We also added a large storage
building off the back parking lot late that year. In 2008 the people of Woodland have bid a fond farewell to our pastor of
thirteen years, Reverend Kovach, who has taken on new responsibilities as pastor of a United Methodist Church in
Clyde, Ohio. In his place, we welcome Reverend Debbie Gibbons, who has left a sixteen year appointment at Nottingham UMC
in Cleveland, Ohio to come to Woodland and the Church Of The Good Shepherd. Through everything, the people of Woodland continue to sponsor
regular events like the Chilli Cookoff, the monthly free lunch program and the ice cream social that's held every summer. In
addition. they've added a monthly spaghetti dinner fundraiser, initiated a gift card sales program, and raised money for both
hurricane and flood relief. The Church now also participates in the Angel Food Ministry, which brings
a monthly assortment of grocery items to Church members and neighbors at less than half their retail price. At Woodland,
each year is viewed as a new opportunity for self-improvement and outreach to our neighborhood.
Because our church is well over a century old,
our founders are no longer with us, but we do have members who remember the early days
at Woodland Methodist Episcopal Church. These people have supported the church and its
causes for many years, and because of them, Woodland continues to be a church that makes
a difference in the lives of people on the west side of Akron. Although many names and
faces have changed during the past century along with the name and location of the church, one
thing has remained the same. Woodland is a church of friendly, Chistian people, who strive to
help others.
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| Former Woodland M. E. |
This picture is a recent photo of the
former Woodland Methodist Episcopal Church on the corner of Balch and Crosby Streets
in west Akron. Yes, the century old church is still standing, and it is still in use.
It is currently the House Of Prayer For All People.
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