Former Methodist church to continue to serve as a place of worship
Thanks to the generosity of a congregation and the hard work of a local couple, the former Tyndall United Methodist Church will continue to serve as a place of worship after 130 years. (File)
Thanks to the generosity of a congregation and the hard work of a local couple, the former Tyndall United Methodist Church will continue to serve as a place of worship after 130 years.
Prior to the church closing in November 2020, evangelist Sheldon Mencer expressed interest in acquiring it should it ever close or need to be sold.
Mencer grew up in the community. When he was a child, he attended an after-school program at the church and had family members who were part of the congregation. In August 2020 he was contacted by the current pastor and asked if he was still interested in the church. When he said yes, the congregation voted to give it to Mencer’s Mission 3:16.
Mencer and his wife Tammy paid $1 for the building to make it official and since then have been working hard on all the details that involved transferring the property. They have several ideas for the building. Many of those will be shared at the Saturday, Sept. 11 dedication event they are planning.
“We want it to be a place that people have a good experience and our comfortable,” Mencer said. “Everything is dated. I think the last thing that might have been done was in the ’70s. We have a lot to fix and get up to date so we can accommodate folks.”
They plan to have regular Bible studies and prayer meetings and may have Sunday worship services down the road. Concerts also are being scheduled.
“We are hoping in October to have some type of concert, a Thanksgiving service in November and would like to have a service or two in December,” Mencer said.
Franklin Township will take care of the cemetery by the church. However, the church would be available for funeral services for those being buried at the cemetery.
Anyone interested in learning more about the Mencers’ plans for the church is welcome to attend the 10 a.m. dedication service on Saturday, Sept. 11.
“The service will be about an hour and a half, and then we will have light refreshments,” Mencer said. “We want people to come in and see what we’ve done so far and what our vision for the building is.”
Guest speaker at the service will be Dr. Charles Travis from the Logos Global Network, which Mission 3:16 falls under.
For more information about Mission 3:16 Tyndall, call Mencer at 740-502-2125 or drop a note to P.O. Box 1288, Coshocton, OH 43812.
“We are going to continue to minister here and the purpose this building was built for,” Mencer said. “It’s very important now during this season of difficulty our nation and world is facing. People need a place to belong, worship and a house of prayer. We want this to remain an accessible place for people to do that.”
Category: Faith
