Our church is a multicultural congregation celebrating 69 years of service in 2022. If you are in search of a church home, attend a Sunday morning service at 10am and consider joining us on a regular basis. The folks of Loch Raven are a friendly, caring and supportive church family. In the early 1950's, Carroll Doggett, a young pastor, was assigned by the Methodist Church to organize a congregatio
n to attend the new church which was still to be built at the corner of Loch Raven Boulevard and Glendale Road. Beginning in March 1953, Doggett, along with his wife, Nan, knocked on the doors of the newly built homes of Loch Raven Village informing residents of the new church that was to be built and inviting them to join. The area was in transition from rural to residential at the time. Land where the Loch Raven Village homes were built in the early 1950s had been used as pasture for black Angus cattle owned by William Hahn just a few years before Loch Raven Boulevard was a two-lane road soon to be a four-lane highway with shopping centers springing up. On Sept. 13 of that year, a large crowd turned out for the first service held in a little white cottage on the property; 102 people joined the church and chose the name Loch Raven Methodist Church. Construction of the church building started on May 30, 1954, and the first service in the new building was held on January 15, 1956, with several hundred people in attendance. Since that first place of worship took seed, the little white cottage has since been replaced over the past several decades by a beautiful air conditioned sanctuary, an education building with auditorium, Fellowship Hall, kitchen, chapel, parlor, two floors of classrooms and staff offices. The congregation supports many local and international mission projects and is the site of a preschool program, after-school children's center and numerous community meetings. Doggett returned to the church to join Loch Raven pastor, the Rev. Cliff Webner in leading the 60th anniversary service. Henry Thompson and his wife, Carole, who served the church in the 1990's also attended as did the church's Minister of Visitation Rev Robert Fringo. One hundred and fifty-six people attended and a special luncheon followed in the church's auditorium. At the service, Ardith Luttrell, was recognized as the only charter member still attending the church regularly. She said, "Rev. Carroll Doggett and his wife came to my door in 1953 as they visited everyone in the newly built and growing Loch Raven Village. We were new to the area and we liked that a church was to be in our area. Our children were young and we wanted a church home that would be good for them, where they could grow. The Doggetts had young children, and we knew they could relate to a young family like ours and the many others in our neighborhood." We look back at those first 69 years in 2022 as the church plans for its future. Witnessing the love and presence of Jesus Christ through worship, fellowship, study and service, we invite you to follow the steeple and become a part of the Loch Raven UM Church family as we gather together each Sunday. The church has an active music program with the Chancel Choir under the direction of Bryan Alston, who became Loch Raven's Music Director in 2021. Cathy Miles directs the Handbell Choir. Patti Gould is organist. If you have a special interest in music, singing, bell ringing, or playing an instrument, the choirs are always ready to welcome new additions. The 65th anniversary celebration, the last major gathering of present and former church members, brought back many memories for current and former church members and if you have a memorable Loch Raven moment, please share here.
