By JILLIAN STAMBAUGH

Eagle Staff Writer

After playing a steadfast part in the lives of United Methodist churchgoers for the past 177 years, Tennessee's United Methodist Church (TUMC) held its final sermon Sunday, April 26.

Gina Sheridan, pastor of TUMC and it's sister church, the Colchester United Methodist Church, has been leading the congregation for the last two years and said members did not appear surprised at the news they received earlier this year.

"It was the board decision," she said. "I don't think anyone was surprised."

Donna Wetzel of Colchester has been a member of TUMC all her life, having gone through confirmation, baptism, then accepting membership as a teenager. She said there had been definite warning signs for the congregation.

"We knew it would just be a matter of time because we had been told two years ago that either when our membership or our funds dropped to a certain amount we had no choice (but to close)," Wetzel said.

Several factors played into the church's closing, but something that appeared to prove bothersome was the ever-decreasing size of the congregation.

Wetzel said when she was a child, there were "probably at least 30 kids every Sunday, but times have changed."

In the last year, Sheridan said her report concluded 17 to 18 people - adults and children combined - attended the church on a regular basis. The number was just not enough to keep things going, especially given the small surrounding community and the age of its members.

"We had lost so many of our members either through death or moving away and that was the people who attended the church; the older people," explained Wetzel. "Older ladies that had moved to Macomb would drive down in good weather to come."

"We tried - we did outreach things, tried to have different things people would come to but it didn't work," said Sheridan. "Everyone was tired; the congregation had aged and keeping up the older building was difficult."

Wetzel took over the church's financial books in January, 2009, only to find utilities were extremely high and the church was coming up in the red around $500-$600 dollars each month.

"We still had money in the savings account but we were using it every month to pay the bills," said Sheridan, adding that giving had also dropped off.

Over the years, more and more functions were held at its sister church in Colchester, which, unlike Tennessee, has a kitchen, handicapped accessibility and also a larger membership with attendance of at least 70-80 people each week.

Those who had membership in Tennessee have the opportunity to change membership to any church they choose. If they do not do so Sheridan said their membership would be transferred to Colchester United Methodist.

"Not everyone from Tennessee will go to Colchester, said Sheridan, "but if they're going someplace to go to church, I celebrate that."

Sheridan said the final service was like a funeral for the building as it celebrated life and continuation afterwards.

"We laughed and we cried but it was healing," she explained. "We mourned we would not be there anymore but celebrated the fact that everyone will continue on in a different place."

The TUMC is now for sale and Sheridan said there has been interest, ranging from storage to possibly housing another church, yet no written offers have been presented as of yet.

As the church closed its doors for the last time, Sheridan offered words of wisdom for small-town churches in similar circumstances.

"What happens with small churches or ones that end up dying...they start focusing inward instead of remembering our mission is to go into all the world and preach the gospel and make disciples for Jesus Christ, not keep our churches open," she said. "There's still service to God beyond that."