Haddonfield United Methodist Church Celebrates 190th Anniversary

HADDONFIELD, NJ — Haddonfield United Methodist Church is celebrating its 190th anniversary with worship services throughout November. During these services, the church will celebrate its history and the vibrancy of its current programs while looking toward the future.

Worship services will take place on Saturdays at 5 p.m., and on Sundays at 8 a.m., 9 a.m. and 10:30 a.m. The 9 a.m. services will stream live on Facebook, and the 10:30 a.m. services will stream live on the church’s website and app.

A celebration dinner will be held on Wednesday, Nov. 20, 5:30 p.m. It is open to the public with advance reservations. Cost is $10 for adults and youth ages 13 and older, and $5 for children ages 4-12. The church is located at 29 Warwick Road.

A few dozen people, mostly farmers, met at a schoolhouse in Haddonfield in 1829. That meeting transformed into a vibrant congregation that continues to play an important role in South Jersey and beyond, the church said in a release.

It is now a regional church made up of 1,350 members and averages 438 in weekly attendance over four unique worship services, including traditional and contemporary worship styles, according to the church.

The church said it has a vibrant digital ministry that seeks to spiritually resource the congregation as well as connect people outside the walls with the church ministry through the church app, live-streaming, video ministries, and both paper and digital publications.

“We are who we always were; a people gathered and then empowered and sent out into the world to live out our gifts,” Senior Pastor Rev. Chris Heckert said.

The church offers an expansive music program, a Floral Arts Guild, Sunday School classes for all ages, and Connect Groups which meet to explore individual thoughts of the faith community.

It also hosts Wednesday night dinners, holiday celebrations and concerts, a pre-school program, a Steeple Club for people available during the day, and Cub and Boy Scout troops, as well as various recovery and support groups.

Because of its size and history, retired Senior Pastor, Rev. Dr. Charles Sayre, called Haddonfield United Methodist a "big crane" among churches, supporting mission projects as varied as building homes in the Dominican Republic to serving meals and entertaining children at Give Kids the World in Florida.

In the 1970s, Haddonfield United Methodist Church created Respond, Inc. in Camden which has a history of providing child care services, job training, and housing.

For more information or to make a dinner reservation, contact the church office at 856-429-0403 or office@haddonfieldumc.org.