History of

West Montgomery United Methodist Church

West Montgomery United Methodist Church, formerly Mt. Zion-Warren United Methodist Church, formerly Mt. Zion United Methodist Church, has a long and interesting history. As is true of the history of all institutions, we can only touch the tip of the iceberg. There are many, many things which are not only said but also not known. We will do our best to capture this history, as best as the memory allows. We have had some strong, influential, and dedicated ministers sent by God, who spent their terms of their service building and strengthening our church.

Rev. Elijah Awkward (or Awkard) was the first pastor recorded to have served here. He is recorded in the Minutes of the Washington Annual Conference as having begun his ministry in the church in 1867. He served Mt. Zion well and died on December 4, 1883. He is buried on the hill behind the Mt. Zion Cemetery in the Awkward family plot in the old cemetery.  The Elijah United Methodist Church, located in Poolesville, Md., formerly known as Elijah’s Rest Methodist Church, was named after him. During that time, there were four churches on this charge: Mt. Zion, Warren, Elijah, and St. Paul’s.

Rev. Awkward may have set up the first church in this neighborhood. The combination church, school, and hall were initially known as the old Meeting House. This property was deeded to Philip Spencer and others (Trustees and their successors) in 1867 by James). Trundle and his wife, Annie. This deed, recorded in February 1868, describes the parcel as Part Lot 2- Division of real estate of William Trundle. At present, there are three gravesites in the area: the Spencer lot, the Awkward lot, (where Rev. Awkward is buried), and the Mt. Zion Church lot.

Rev. Awkward was succeeded by the Rev. E.W. Wheeler, Rev. Thomas H. Brooks, Rev. Single Hughes, Rev. Washington Murry, and Rev. A. Young. These Ambassadors of God served and preached in the old Meeting House which stood in what is now the Mt. Zion Cemetery. The old Meeting House had one room with two blackboards in one corner. School was taught during the week, and most other meetings and gatherings were held in this building.

The first portion (6 acres) of the present Mt. Zion Church property was deeded by James W. Butler & his wife Susan L. to Washington Murry. Daniel Diggins, Thomas Johnson, John W. Nolan, Charles Johnson, Patric Hebron, and Peter H. Davis and their successors, Trustees of the Methodist Episcopal Church of Montgomery Country. Part of this was designated for a place of worship and part to go to the use of the parsonage or residence for the use of the Pastor or Preacher in charge and their families. Rev. Murry recorded it in January 1893.

Some class leaders around the turn of the century were: Richard Lee (father of Noah & Dennis Lee), who were born slaves, James Hallman, Thomas Johnson, Daniel Diggins, Enoch Spencer, Noah Lee ( born around 1852 and lived 100 years, 6 months, 18 days, and Dennis Lee.

The first baby christened in Mt. Zion at the present site was Mrs. Dora Sims Fisher. The first couple married was Mr. Henry Chase Onley and Miss Mary Fisher.

The next servant of God to serve Mt. Zion was the Rev. C.H. Arnold. Our present church was built on this site during Rev. Arnold’s pastorate just before the turn of the century. Some records show 1885; others show the year 1888. The cornerstone was laid in 1886. Rev. Arnold married Dora Sims and Maurice Fisher, and others of the community. He had a large family, and some of his children went to school at the old Meeting House and were taught by Miss Rachel Miller. Rev. Arnold and his family lived in the old parsonage before it burned in 1915.

Rev. D.L. Washington succeeded Rev. Arnold. There seems to be no record of his work here although Elijah UMC reported him in their history as being instrumental in church building there.

Our next Pastor was Rev. James Samuel Cole. He had nine children, one of who became the wife of Rev. Walter Williams. The parsonage burned while he and his family were living there. The following information comes from Rev. Cole’s daughters covering the period of his ministry.

“We have no historical information on our father, Rev. James S. Cole other than he pastored Sellman Charge for nearly 12 years from 1912-1923. During this period the four churches were divided, leaving Sellman and Warren together as a charge. Our father had a very happy and successful stay here with all of us. We made lasting friends. In July 1915 our mother, Lila Cole passed and December 1915, the parsonage burned down to the ground. With the help and workmanship of the members and friends of the four churches, another parsonage was rebuilt which is standing today. Our father continued to carry on his work successfully with the help of his faithful members until 1923 at which time he was sent to Jerusalem Church in Rockville, Md. , where he pastored until his passing  to the Great Beyond in July 1926.”

Rev. Cole was a powerful preacher, a hard worker, and a good businessman. He helped this neighborhood in many ways. The people would go to him for almost any advice or money when in need. He ran a sawmill, and the men of both charges cut logs and hauled them to the sawmill for the building of the parsonage. The inside of the parsonage was plastered by Mr. George Claggett Sr. and Mr. Charley Claggett of Barnesville, Md. Rev. Cole always listened to the plans and asked what he could do to help and proceeded to do so in any way he could.

Many times people paid Rev. Cole back in chickens, pigs, and vegetables. When he received too many, he would sell them on the market. He also did some farming and raised fruit. We have many good spiritual memories of this time. It was a time of the mourner’s bench, old camp meetings, revival meetings, class meetings, prayer meetings, testimony meetings and just plain old fashioned heaven and hell preaching, shouting, singing and praising God.

Rev. Walter Dorsey served us during the years of 1920-1923. The old Bible, which was on the pulpit stand in our Educational Building as late as 1972, was presented to Rev. Dorsey by his daughter Etta, in 1923.

 In 1924, Rev. John Roan, his lovely wife Celia, and daughter Marguerite came to serve. This family will never be forgotten. He was a preacher and a teacher, who worked hard with both children and adults.

During the conference year of 1928, Rev. Walter Williams was sent as our leader. He served us for four wonderful and fruitful years. During his tenure in 1930,  2 ½ acres located in front of the parsonage were deeded to Issac Graham, Richard King, and OthoThompson, Trustees of Barnesville Charge of the Methodist Episcopal Church by members of the Poole, Warfield, and Mayor families. When the 1930 deed was temporarily lost, the 2 ½ acre parcel was re-deeded by members of the Poole family to, William B. Bell, Atlee F. Onley, Walter L. Craven, Dennis Owens, George T. Johnson, Lenard R. Coleman, John T. Thompson, Obie J. Dorsey, Allen H. Thomas, Lemuel W. Graham, Trustees, in trust for the sole use and benefit of the Mt. Zion M. E. Church.

After the conference moved Rev. Williams, Rev. John C. Norris was sent to serve and work with us. He stayed for five years and is remembered well for his cane and storytelling of events that happened before he came to serve here. Mrs. Norris was a “real old fashioned Lady” and was loved by all.

Rev. Norris married many couples while he pastored the Barnesville charge. The first two were: John Thompson and Myrtle Hamilton, and Alonzo Gram and Ethel Johnson.

In 1937, Rev. Joseph Stemley came and remained with us for twelve years. Rev. Stemley worked hard. Among his accomplishments was the remodeling of the inside of our church. The vestibule and “bell tower” were added to the church during this period. His wife did substitute teaching.

In 1949, Rev. Howard Wallace was appointed as our leader. He was a kind and gentle man and served us well for three years. He was the last of our ministers to live in our parsonage until its renovation in 1977.

The next able, forceful and dedicated leader was Rev. William E. Lee, who came to the charge in 1952. He completely and thoroughly organized both Mt. Zion and Warren. He organized the first Methodist Men with Rev. Lawrence Onley, who was a local Pastor, as President, the first Usher Board with Mary Johnson as President and Frances Barnes as Vice President; the first Finance Committee composed of George Johnson, Idella Craven and Mary Johnson; and various other committees and commissions. The Finance Committee was set up so that business could be cared for smoothly and effectively in case anything should happen to the minister. Detailed reports were submitted quarterly, a practice which is being followed today.

Rev. Lee worked hard to see that our church rated second to none. In January 1959, he was called from labor to reward, being the second minister to die while still serving our charge. May God rest his soul.

In March of 1959, Rev. Luther Brown was appointed to serve out Rev. Lee’s term. He remained with us until the Washington Annual Conference convened in June of that year. Rev. Brown was a great help to Mt. Zion, giving assistance with the choir and other organizations. This was his first church. He went on to pastor Sugarloaf Mountain Community Church, in Comus, Md.

In June 1959, Rev. George Allen was appointed to lead this congregation. He was an efficient and dedicated leader, untiring, and hard working. The Barnesville Charge loved he and his wife and son.

Rev. Allen’s accomplishments and contributions to Mt. Zion were numerous. Some outstanding achievements during his pastorate were: our church was painted inside and out, floors were redone, roof repaired and grounds improved. In 1964, he was instrumental in seeing that our Educational Annex was erected and paid for. Central heating was installed in both parts of the building. A mortgage loan of $4000.00 was obtained in 1966 to finance this. A new piano was purchased shortly afterward.

In March 1970, Mt. Zion became involved in community action when six representatives appeared before the County Human Relations Commission to protest the Montgomery National Capital Park & Planning Commission’s destruction of the old Sellman School House which was adjacent to the church. This building which replaced the school in the Old Meeting House was built on one-half acre deeded in August 1894 to the Board of School Commissioners of Montgomery County by Algernon & Mamie Poole. As a result of Mt. Zion’s action, in July 1971, Park & Planning, who had taken over the property without the benefit of a deed, quitclaimed it to Mt. Zion. This space is the present parking lot.

In 1972, under Rev. Allen’s leadership and with the cooperation of the Trustees, members, friends, and well-wishers, Mt. Zion underwent an extensive renovation and redecorating. The outside of the church was bricked and an extension added to the front.  The handicapped ramp was also added. The main part of the sanctuary was turned around so that the pastor’s study was placed in the new addition. This allowed us to make full use of the Educational Annex as additional seating space.

Realizing that Rev. Allen, who owned his own home in Catonsville, Md., would not be here forever, attempts were begun to bring our parsonage up to County standards.

We welcomed Rev. Pearlena L. Woolridge to the charge in 1975. Her first year here was a stormy one. Rev. Allen had led for 16 years with very little delegation. There was considerable feeling against women in any position of authority. Many ministers from other churches also converged on the charge advancing this feeling. During her pastorate, many changes were made in the office of the church. Additional positions were added and filled. Lay Speakers were increased from one to five, and some female trustees were elected.

The main accomplishment during this time was a modernization of the parsonage. After eighteen perk holes and an administrative appeal, the County finally gave the go-ahead. There were many meetings and decisions made, but ultimately, on October 20, 1976, a contract was signed for the work to be done. A bank loan for $10,000.00 was obtained without having to mortgage any property. A committee was set up and composed of: Allen Thomas, Arthur Thomas, and John Thompson of Warren UMC, Fred Stearns, Chairperson, William Berkley Bell, and Richard C. King of Mt. Zion. Rev. Woolridge was talented at obtaining money, and the Conference donated $10,000.00, designated “for payment on the Barnesville Parsonage commercial loan.”  Also, there was a Board of Missions donation of $5,000.00, a Methodist Union of $2,000.00, and $470.78 donated by other United Methodist Churches. The $5,000.00 loan from the Methodist Union was paid entirely in January 1987. The outside booth, new bulletin board, air conditioning, and stained glass windows were added to our church. To quote from a statement made by Mrs. Katherine Onley at Rev. Woolridge’s farewell service: “This is the first time we have ever gotten more from the Conference than we put in.”

In 1979, Rev. Odell Carr was appointed to the Charge. He and his wife, Rev. Alice Carr, worked as a team to serve the Charge. During their stay, many additional improvements were made to the church and parsonage. Various pulpit items, carpeting, lights, fans, shrubbery were added during their pastorate. Rev. Odell Carr strove to continue his work, but became ill in late 1982 and passed on April 1983. Rev. Alice Carr continued to serve as our Pastor until the end of the Conference year.

In 1983, Rev. Homer Bullett was appointed to the Charge. Under his leadership, Mt. Zion’s kitchen was renovated, a ramp built into the church, extensive work done on the grounds and parking area, additional carpeting installed in the Educational Annex, new steps built into the side entrance of the church, a church dehumidifier purchased and a new fan, bookcase and picture donated. The parsonage porch was screened in, and a tv antenna, phones, bug zapper, and a lawnmower purchased.

In October 1991, the Rev. Laurence K. Bropleh was appointed as the new part-time Pastor.  He immediately zoomed ahead like a house fire.   Both attendance and financial support increased. In 1993, as Rev. Bropleh was due to be ordained as a fulltime Pastor, the charge decided to opt for full-time service to keep him as our Pastor. Rev. Bropleh converted the church library at Mt. Zion, next to the main church entrance into his office and began regular office hours. During Rev. Bropleh’s pastorate, the new church office was extensively redecorated, and the bathrooms at Mt. Zion were made entirely handicapped accessible.

In July 1993, the churches, Mt. Zion and Warren, voted to merge as one. The merger was finalized at the Charge Conference which was held on October 25, 1993. On January 9, 1994, a service was held in celebration of the merger. The churches became “Mt.Zion-Warren United Methodist Church.” At the time the merger took effect, Mt. Zion celebrated its 107th anniversary, and Warren is 90th.

On July 1, 1998, the Rev. Joan H. Coates was appointed as the new part-time Pastor. Under Rev. Coates’ leadership, Warren Church was sold to the Warren Historic Site Committee, Inc. and became the “Warren Historic Site.”

Rev. Coates served as Pastor for Mt. Zion-Warren for three years due to her being ill.

In July 2001, the Rev. John H. Chaney Jr. was appointed as the new part-time Pastor. He came with new ideas and challenges. However, due to some medical challenges, he served only one year.

In July 2002, District Superintendent (DS) Marcus Matthews introduced Rev. Bryan K. Fleet as the new Pastor for Mt. Zion-Warren United Methodist Church. Once again, Mt. Zion-Warren was blessed with a pastor who was full of energy, excited, but serious about preaching and teaching the word of God. He came to us with his lovely wife Cyndi and young daughter Kylie. Their family grew during their time with us when they open their home to Anaiya, Amanda, and Dominique. Rev. Fleet introduced a church-wide Disciple Class with up to 15 people in each group for the study. He empowered the congregation to step up and share teaching this class. We were very excited about this class study.

In 2009, the Baltimore Washington Conference and the DS Vivian McCarthy for our district allowed the pairing of Mt. Zion-Warren and St. Marks UMC in Boyd’s, Md., to become the Barnesville Charge.

Also under Rev. Fleet’s leadership, two Special Charge Conferences were held on Sunday, May 1, 2011, at St. Marks UMC. The first was a joint meeting with members present from both churches. At this meeting, the decision to continue the established relationship between the churches was voted on and approved.

The second Special Charge Conference meeting was held on May 1, 2011, with members of Mt. Zion-Warren members and Rev. Edgardo Rivera, the Central Maryland District guide. The congregation of Mt. Zion-Warren UMC who were in attendance after this second meeting unanimously voted to merge with Elijah United Methodist Church located in Poolesville, Md. This merger was to be effective on July 1, 2011. The church voted to rename Mt. Zion-Warren, rather than add another name. Therein lies, “West Montgomery United Methodist Church.”

On July 1, 2011, this congregation welcomed Rev. Bernadette Armwood. Rev. Armwood was the first Pastor to serve West Montgomery United Methodist Church.  Rev. Armwood and her husband, Mr. Charles Armwood, has a big heart for the people.  They were a very loving couple who worked tirelessly giving and supporting West Montgomery UMC.  Rev. Armwood bridged the gap between her hometown of Baltimore by inviting United Methodist Church congregations to worship with us through gospel concerts, dinner theaters.  She started a small group study in our congregation and took Bible study outside of the church to various venues. She states, “Let us remain steadfast and faithful to our calling of Loving, Living, Learning, and Leading in the kingdom of God.”

Rev. Armwood also encouraged the four Lay Servants and used them regularly to help with worship, serve with her in the community, and provided opportunities for them to preach on many occasions.  Additionally, one Lay Servant, Joycelyn Camper, furthered her studies and became a Certified Lay Minister (CLM).

Our church is proud to acknowledge one of our own, Rev. Jason Jordan-Griffin, who was ordained Full Elder in the Baltimore Washington Conference of the United Methodist Church in 2014. In October 2018, Rev. Jordan-Griffin was awarded his Doctorate of Ministry from United Theological Seminary in Dayton, Ohio. The doctoral studies entitled: SEEING MANY IN OUR MIRRORS: A Model for Transforming High Steeple Churches into Community Revitalization Centers.

West Montgomery UMC welcomed Rev. Crystal Miller-Davis (Pastor Crystal) and her two daughters on July 1, 2018. She is a Lieutenant Colonel in the Air Force Reserve and continues to serve as a Chaplain. We are blessed to have her and her daughters. Pastor Crystal only served with West Montgomery for one year due to out of state deployment obligations. We thank you for your service in the US Air Force.

Our CLM Joycelyn Camper answered her call to ministry and was appointed as a Lay Hire to serve as Pastor of St. Marks UMC, Boyd’s, Md., on July 1, 2019.