After a more than two-year process to decide the future of its congregation, Myerstown United Church of Christ is set to take the biggest step in its 170-year history next month when it finalizes the sale of its church building to Evangelical Christian Baptist Church.
As LebTown reported in February, the church was prepared to auction off the building this spring after church members decided unanimously in November 2023 to sell the property. At that point, it was well into a process led by its interim pastor, Rev. Bruce A. Greer, to chart a course for a congregation that had seen its ranks decrease by more than 80% over the last 40-some years.
The sealed bid auction was cancelled when a buyer stepped forward and made an offer that Greer said was very appealing to the congregation.
Read More: Attendance in long decline, Myerstown UCC selling its sanctuary and parsonage
Even if the auction had been held, the congregation was determined to only sell to a buyer who planned a use for the building they saw as fitting its ecumenical roots – a religious or humanitarian purpose, such as a nonprofit. But the buyer they found seems like a perfect fit to church leadership.
Greer, who has been in the ministry for 47 years and specializes in “interim ministry,” is no stranger to helping churches navigate difficult situations. Employed by churches on short-term (2-3 year) contracts, his job is to “help congregations find their focus and make very thoughtful decisions about their future.”
Greer said that when he came in 2022, closing the church was already on the table. The church had gone from having one out of six people who lived in Myerstown Borough or Jackson Township among its parishioners, to having one out of 90 – a combination of population growth alongside dramatic cultural and demographic changes.
Greer said that with so many churches closing at an increasing pace across the country, the sale of the Myerstown UCC campus represents a very positive outcome.
The Evangelical Christian Baptist Church is a mostly Ukranian-Russian congregation that currently worships in a building outside of Lititz.
It’s a delight, Greer said, to pass the property on to such a thriving group, “a feather in the community’s cap.”
Myerstown UCC president Marie Hibshman called the Evangelical Christian Baptist Church a “vibrant” congregation, one that is very much in need of additional space, and said that the church could not have asked for a better outcome.
“At the beginning of the process, I was very concerned that somebody would buy the property and remodel it into apartments or whatever commercial use might be there, so I’m really delighted that the property went to another church,” said Hibshman.
Greer, who was on his 13th (and possibly last) interim deployment in Myerstown, was extraordinarily suited to the situation, said Hibshman. “He’s had a multitude of experiences with all different kinds of congregations.”
The process was one with lots of exploration and many starts and stops before the congregation found collective enthusiasm on a direction to move forward. The process was admittedly frustrating at times, Hibshman noted, because of the amount of effort needed to make it work, and she said Greer was indispensable throughout the process.
“He’s been a great leader for us – very calm and logical – keeping us focused and on track, and helping us to make decisions,” said Hibshman. “I’ve leaned on him constantly.”
Hibshman said she thinks everybody in the congregation is very sad to leave the building, but it’s a very large property that for many years has been under-utilized.
“Even though we all know this is the right thing to do, it’s still very, very sad,” she said.
The incoming congregation performed a worship service on May 8, introducing themselves to the community. Hibshman said the Evangelical Christian Baptist Church congregation has extraordinary musical talents.
“Everyone I’ve talked to who was there was just thrilled with their skill, their talents, their joy,” said Hibshman. “So it was a very good occasion.”
The growing congregation of Russian Baptist Christians is also expected to make good use of the historic, three-manual pipe organ that was installed in the church’s annex in 1900.
The organ had originally been purchased in 1880 by Robert H. Coleman and installed in his Cornwall music hall. As local historian Bruce Chadbourne has chronicled, Coleman found time away from his industrial empire to relax in his music hall, also referred to as an organ conservatory, and play the instrument which he had in his earlier years.
Myerstown UCC church historian David Brightbill said that he is pleased the organ will be used and enjoyed by the new congregation. He said he’s been told that the incoming congregation has very capable organists.
“It is an emotional situation for me,” said Brightbill. “I spent a lot of time on the bench learning how to play the organ all the while taking organ lessons from the late Ruth Killian of Lebanon.”
Brightbill’s interest in the organ is multi-faceted: He was baptized and confirmed in the church; attended Sunday School and church faithfully; and as a musician, a pianist, and a person deeply interested in Coleman’s story, especially relative to his railroad holdings, it was just natural that he found himself drawn to the organ and its history.
Greer’s term ends July 1, when he’ll move back to New England, and he won’t be here to guide the congregation through whatever comes next. The church is currently grappling with the question: Should it stay in existence or not?
Hibshman said that the congregation will be renting a space at 101 East Washington Avenue in Myerstown, a building that was the Myerstown Borough Hall before they bought their current building.
“Our long term future is uncertain but we plan to worship together for at least the next six months,” said Hibshman. “Our church office is now in that same location and our phone number remains the same.”
With the sale still yet to close, LebTown did not yet get an opportunity to interview the incoming congregation for this article through Myerstown attorney Ken Sandoe, who is also navigating another tricky legal question, the rebooting of the defunct Myerstown Cemetery Company. The plan is to use proceeds from the church sale to fund the cemetery for perpetual care and the cemetery will eventually operate as a separate, nonprofit organization.
Sandoe also declined to speak with LebTown on the record about the cemetery matter prior to settlement, but the church has said that the cemetery will continue to function as an independent nonprofit and that all lot ownerships will be honored.
“Legal issues still need to be resolved but until that happens, we will continue to handle the care of the cemetery,” said Hibshman, stressing that the cemetery will not be deserted.
The sale is set to close in early July and the outgoing congregation seems buoyant knowing they navigated a difficult situation to find an outcome centered around the heritage and future of its historic campus on the 300 block of Main Avenue in Myerstown.
“We could have lingered on for many years and gradually depleted our resources,” said Hibshman. “We could have continued heating and cooling all those empty rooms. But we felt that was not good stewardship; our resources need to be used in better ways.”
The church found the courage and consideration it needed to choose its own fate and secure a second life for the building which will see it once again occupied by a growing and vibrant congregation.
“We made the decision before we were desperate,” said Hibshman.
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