Henryetta First United Methodist plans celebration

Henryetta’s First United Methodist Church will be celebrating 122 years of existence this weekend, with a slate full of activities planned. Pastor David Shahan, Deacon James McCullough and the congregation are excited about the activities which will include an open house, special church service and dinner, and visits from former leaders and members. Shahan has led the First UMC congregation for the last two years. In preparation of the milestone, McCullough has assisted in gathering information about the church’s history. The Henryetta Methodist Church was chartered in 1901 and the original church was located at 6th and Broadway. In 1912, a new building was erected to replace the previous. Now the church is located at 1212 South Lake Drive, which was completed in 1976. On April 29, there will be an open house with light refreshments. “In the fellowship hall, we will have lots of memorabilia,” the pastor said. “There will be lots of pictures, scrapbooks, clippings - all kinds of stuff will be set up in there. We will be open from 1-4 (p.m.) People can come by and check out the pictures, etc.” Shahan stated the church will be open for tours. On Sunday, April 30, during worship at 10:15 a.m., there will be a special service with the district superintendent bringing the message that morning. “We have invited the past ministers that are still living to attend,” Shahan said. “There may also be someone from the conference office to attend.” The District Superintendent is scheduled to give the message during the service. McCullough’s father Grady was pastor at First UMC, and was instrumental in getting the current church built. “All this rock - James helped pull this rock from Tiger Mountain,” Shanan said. “James has a big vested interest in this church.” McCullough’s father, now age 94, is making plans to be in attendance this weekend. “I’m excited about that,” he said. “I’ve been wanting to meet him.” After the morning service, a catered BBQ dinner will be served in the Family Life Center, with attendees able to socialize and catch up. “We are really excited,” the pastor said. Why 122 years instead of 120 or 125? The pastor explained it this way: Plans were being made by the previous pastor to celebrate the church’s 120 year anniversary. However, the arrival of COVID-19 wrecked those plans. Then shortly after his arrival in Henryetta, Pastor Shahan and Mc-Cullough started discussions again about the anniversary. However, a resurgence of the coronavirus sidelined the celebration once again. “Now, it just seems like we need to do this now,” he said. “We don’t want to wait three more years for the next round number - 125, so let’s just do it now. That’s why it’s 122.” Hundreds have been invited to this weekend’s festivities, including those in the community, along with former members that may have moved elsewhere. Postcards that were printed thanks to Bruce Lawless at Brown’s Printing, were mailed out. “Whether it was this church, or at the previous church location, this church has been instrumental in their lives one way or the other,” Shahan said. Also invited to come share in the weekend celebration are the many groups and organizations that hold or have held their activities at the church, including the Boy Scouts, Henryetta Lions Club and the Henryetta Chamber. Shahan added that some of the previous pastors have also been invited, but some are still active and may not be able to make the trip due to previous engagements with their own congregation. “We are planning on a big crowd,” he said. Shahan has been in pastoral work for 25 years, having received his calling while growing up in the small town of Lindsay. “I received the calling in high school, and proceeded to run away from it,” he said. In 1999, he ‘gave in’ and started his ministry. He was a part-time minister, then changed over to full-time several years later. Shahan has two sons, who is an ordained elder, and leads a church located near Oklahoma City University. McCullough recalled the first event at the current church, which was barely complete. “Literally the night before (in 1976), we were in here putting the pews in,” he said, “and the parking lot was still dirt. “We are excited to be able to celebrate being a part of this community for 122 years,” McCullough said. The second location of the church, at 6th and Broadway, according to McCullough, was a four story building near downtown, and was a community center also. “There was a full basketball court, and a movie projector downstairs, and we were ahead of the times,” he said. “We were doing staging, so they could put on plays.” Around 1934, that building was condemned due to portions of Henryetta being undermined. Structural issues to the four-story structure required the use of cables stretching both directions through the building to stabilize it. When it came time to tear down the building, it “took three days to come down with a wrecking ball,” McCullough said, adding that the “building was better built than they thought.” His father, Grady, served as pastor from 1973 through 1978, then moved to Claremore. McCullough will be joined by his brothers during this weekend’s celebration. The public is invited to share in the joy as they plan on another 120 years of community involvement. --- Henryetta FUMC Pastors 1901-2023 1901: D. Culpepper - Circuit Rider 1901: A.N. Lusk 1902: H.P. Lasley 1903: M.K. McElhannon 1904-06: Diando Shay 1906-08: George W. Martin 1908: J.B. Blackwell 1909-12: J.C. Fowler 1912-13: W.T. Ready 1913-14: A.M. Belcher 1914-16: C.H. Buchanan 1916-17: A.N. Averyt 1917-18: L.L. Evans 1918-23: J.C. Curry 1923-25: A.N. Averyt 1925-26: Charles L. Brooks 1926-27: E.A. Reed 1927-28: W.Y. Switzer 1928-30: Argus Hamilton, Sr. 1930-31: J.D. Peterson 1931-35: Mike Cassady 1935-39: B.L. Williams 1939-40: Wallace Crutchfield 1940-42: J. W. Mayne 1942-45: J.B. Cooprider 1945-48: J.D. Cunningham 1948-49: B.W. Wilkins 1949-53: A. Max Holcomb 1953-55: R.G. Harris 1955-58: Keith Kelly 1958-60: R.C. Viers, Jr. 1960-63: J. Cecil Coover 1963-66: Charles Puckett 1966-67: V. Clint Purtell 1967-73: Wayne Douglas 1973-78: Grady McCullough 1978-81: Marvin Polson 1981-84: M. David Bates 1984-87: W.A. Stacy 1987-90: David Croninger 1990-94: Wayne Parker 1994-2003: Rick Robart 2003-09: Ric Marion 2009-13: Dale Durnell 2013-19: Kyle Kiner 2019-21: Kyle Clark 2021-Present: David Shahan