Our Journey: Trusting in Christ, obeying his word
The Early Days
Oakland Church was born in 1881 when the small group of people who had been meeting as the Mt. Hope Sabbath School was officially organized into Oakland (for the grove of Oak trees on the 1/2 acre lot) Methodist Episcopal Church, and a new building was constructed. In the 1970's a single wide trailer was added to the site to provide a bathroom, Sunday School rooms and a kitchen.
Bethany Church, which merged with Oakland in 1993, also began as a Sunday School in 1882 with construction on their new building in Bardane.
JoAnne Alexander began serving as a part time pastor at Oakland, Bethany, and Kabletown churches in 1977 while a student at Wesley Theological Seminary working on her masters degree. Upon her graduation in 1980, she was appointed to serve full-time by the Baltimore Washington Conference at just Oakland and Bethany.
Growth and a New Beginning
Kent Tice, JoAnne's husband joined Oakland as co-pastor in 1986 after serving at College Park UMC and then Marvin Chapel. They have been serving together ever since. The church began to grow in the 1980's and '90's, purchased 60 acres of orchard land in a miraculous series of events, subdivided it into the Oakland Heights Community and kept 7 acres for a new church. Meanwhile the congregation of Oakland moved worship to Page-Jackson Elementary School, merged with Bethany Church, then moved into a double-wide trailer on their new land on Oakland Terrace. Finally a new church was completed between 1997 and 2000 utilizing many work teams from other churches and their own volunteer labor. The church construction was supervised first by contractor Richard Kale and then by Pastor Kent Tice.
Beginning in 2006, Oakland UMC added a preschool, Upward Sports, a limited service restaurant called "Paul's", Angel Food Outreach ministry and multiple other ministries, including working on the possible purchase of the neighboring Dailey Farm for a community center. By 2012 attendance ranged upward of 230 each Sunday.
Denominational struggles began to impact the congregation by 2013 and by 2015 the Administrative Council began to seek a way out of a denomination that heavily supported abortion and the LGBTQ agenda.
Our Journey of Faith Takes a New Turn
In May 2018, Oakland Community Church left the United Methodist denomination. With another location for meeting not yet secured, we met our first Sunday at Eackles-Spencer and Norton Funeral Home. We were so grateful for their hospitality. The service was a recognition of the death of the old and a celebration of new life... perfect for a funeral home! Also special was the fact that it was Mother's Day and we baptized a new baby into the fellowship.
Our Journey Continues
We moved to the Whitmore Business Center in Charles Town which had a place for us to set up worship, get new offices up and running, and also have room for nursery, classes, and special gatherings. This was our home for 2 years until the pandemic prompted us to look for larger space where we could spread out and social distance for Sunday Worship. In May of 2020 we moved a few blocks to the Independent Fire Hall in Ranson for Sundays and moved offices and meeting space to member's homes.
It's interesting that over the years, Oakland has met in a single room building, a school, a double wide trailer, a new fully equipped church, a tent (following the fire in 2008 that destroyed our sanctuary), a rebuilt sanctuary, then a funeral home, a business center and now a fire hall. And every step of the way, God has provided just what we need to continue to serve him in the places he puts us. He is faithful.
We are a Wesleyan Church with contemporary worship and lots of opportunities for spiritual growth and service in the community.