History Of Homestead Park Rev. Robert C. Armstrong 1968-1980 (M.U.S.A. Special Appointment) 1960-1961 1962-1963 1963-1980 1983- Dr. John D. Van Horn Dr. Charles R. Wolf Rev. William G. Morris RETIRED ASSOCIATES 1946-1947 1956-1960 1947-1956 1960-1994 1994-2001 2001-Present * Completed the year as minister after Harding’s death. ASSOCIATE PASTORS Dr. John C. Kees Rev. Gerald Kolieske Rev. J.A. Kestle Rev. L.L. Hollenbeck Dr. E.K. Kerr Rev. J.H. Hartley Dr. W.R.Hofelt 1925-1934 1908 Rev. W.E Siess Rev. Thomas Chilcote 1918-1925 1915-1918 1911-1915 1937-1946 1936 1908-1911 1934-1936 Rev. R.D. Harding Rev. Harry Headlee B.T. Stonel 1936 * Rev. L.W. LePage Rev. R.R. Griffith Rev. H.G. Howell In 1908 the Methodists living in the Homestead Park area believed there was enough interest to form a permanent place of worship. An organizational meeting was held in the home of Mr. and Mrs. Alfred B Sherwin at 132 West Eugene Avenue. There it was decided that a new church be established and Rev. Joseph H. Laverty of nearby Anne Ashley Church was assigned to minister in the old #4 Fire hall which was located on East Virginia Avenue near the rear of what is now Sherman’s Pharmacy. Over the next 30 years the new structure became out-of-date and was condemned. During the morning worship services on June 9, 1960, a congregational meeting voted to purchase approximately 10 acres of land on Shady Avenue near Brierly Lane. The congregation also decided that with the help of local real estate developer Mickey McShane, a Senior Citizens’ Apartment building be constructed on the old church site. Today the Parkview Towers, also known as the Methouse, Inc., consists of 112 apartments. On June 26, 1960 the firm of Harold E. Wagoner and Associates was hired as architects of the new church. On February 20, 1964 the Ferraro Construction Company was secured and construction began one month later

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On February 28, 1965 the cornerstone was laid and on October 17, 1965 the new church was consecrated even though it wasn’t quite complete. The Ferraro Construction Company immediately began demolition of the old church and the construction of Parkview Towers. A Celebration was in order. Dr. Carl Michalson, Theologian at Drew University, and Bishop W. Vernon Middleton were the principal speakers at the construction services. Amidst the celebration it was evident that much work was yet to do done. Driveways and parking areas needed to be designed, graded, and paved. Acres of landscaping needed to be done and of course a dept had to be paid. The main force then became fund raising and involved every member and Sunday school class. In 1974 all depts. To architects and contractors were paid. On November 17, 1974 the mortgage was burned at a celebration at Churchill Valley Country Club. The building and facilities of the Homestead Park Church have become the focal point of community activities. Numerous community groups have used church building for meeting and events. This community ministry through the use of the facility continues to the present. Boys and Girl Scout meetings have been and are a weekly occurrence. The Senior Adult Lunchon program for elder adults meets in the church daily. Groups as diverse as the Association of Retired Persons and the cub Scouts meet in the Church. One major resource for community involvement is the Van ministry. Persons are transported to worship and to church events by two vans that are driven by volunteers. The vans are also available to meet the transportation needs of individuals and groups. Another outreach to community, developed in recent years, is the Food Bank. For over a decade now, basic food necessities are provided to families in need. Volunteers from the congregation administer the program that is supported through donations from the membership. Outreach to the wider world comes through the congregational connection to the Unites Methodist Church. In the early 1990’s Homestead Park began a covenant with United Methodist Missionaries Dr. John and Nancy Buterbaugh, medical missionaries to Zimbabwe. A portion of the salary support for the Buterbaughs is provided by the congregation. Some members participate in the United Methodist connection through service to district and conference boards, or through service to district functions and committee of the United Methodist Woman. Members have enjoyed and have enriched by experiences at United Method camps such as Jumonville and Camp Alleghany. Some members reside at Asbury Heights, the Unites Methodist Retirement Community located in Mount Lebanon. The congregation has grown since 1974 when the mortgage was burned. In mid-1994, the pastor who led this growing church, the Rev. John H Hartly, retired after 34 years as pastor. His pastorate with its achievements and many fruitful and effective relationships was celebrated on the last Sunday of June 1994. In the fall of 1994, Rev. Hartly was named Pastor Emeritus of the congregation. Beginning July 1, 1994 the Rev. Erwin K. Kerr was appointed pastor by Bishop George W. Bashore. He joined the on-going pastoral work of the Rev. William G. Morris who has served as part-time Associate Pastor of the congregation since his retirement as an active elder in 1983. After several years the Homestead Land Company donated the site at Caroline and McKinney Street, now occupied by Parkview Towers, and the George M. Hall Lumber Company was contracted to build a church. Following construction the church opened and visiting Bishop Berry conducted a sermon entitled “Be not worry in well doing, for in due season we shall reap if we faint not.” The church grew and prospered and in 1927 a Sunday school addition was built. The new structure was completed and consecrated in 1929. Dr. Richard Callahan MINISTERS WHO SERVED Rev. Laverty Rev. R.D. Walker Rev. Rich Phipps Rev. Lisa McCauley 1971-1978 1981-1985 1986-1988 The most significant changes came to the church in 2001 when Rev. Richard Phipps was appointed pastor. Rev. Phipps a native of Butler, PA was appointed from the Georgia Conference of where he served. A graduate of the Beeson School, Rev. Phipps brought a brash new approach to the church, ultimately guiding us from a traditional setting to a contemporary setting. Among some of the things that Rev. Phipps did was institute new worship services, introduced a flurry of contemporary songs, and encouraged members and friends to read the words for songs from a Power Point projection in the front of the sanctuary rather than the traditional hymnals. Although through the years, due to a number of factors, church attendance and membership slowly declined, since Pastor Rich’s appointment and his significant changes attendance has slowly began to rise once again, as on average our attendance has grown to over 300 a week. New faces, including many young families, are beginning to sprout up throughout the church as not only leadership, but the vision of the church has now changed to reflect a more contemporary, outreach approach. Our church has very simple goals: reach out to the unsaved and grow our believers in the faith of Jesus Christ. There is no telling how far and how large Homestead Park UMC can become, but we believe and we know that God’s firm hand is on our church and with His continued grace we will achieve even the most complex of goals with relative ease.