Embracing Our Story: a brief look into the church’s history

Everybody’s got their own story — so do churches. How would we retell the Hendersonville Church’s story? We might mention key dates: September 28, 1952 — the purchase and construction of church building on Oakland Street, 1976— appointment of the first elders, and 1979 — the construction of the church building on Haywood Road. You might tell our  story with a list of key members: William Roe, a Floridian, who donated the lumber off his property to build the Oakland building, Jim Davis who was the church’s first fulltime minister, J. B. Henderson who was in the church’s first eldership and continued to serve for 29 years as an elder, and Jerry Senn who gave 22 years to this congregation.  Many memorable events — mission trips to Russia, Honduras, and Haiti; mountaintop experiences; and unfortunate ones all figure into our story as a church.
     The congregation was originally begun by Floridians escaping to the beautiful Blue Ridge Mountains. Following World War II the county was the leading agricultural county in western North Carolina. Then industrial growth surged when General Electric and others built plants here.
     In this era of growth, the church was planted.  Sixteen gathered for its first worship service in the Henderson County Courthouse on September 23, 1951. One year later, September 28, 1952, the church had purchased property in a quiet neighborhood on Oakland Street.
     By 1955 the average attendance was 30. The church then enjoyed growth as families moved in to work at the General Electric and Olin plants. By 1976 the membership was 85 and the church appointed its first elders and deacons. Within three years construction began on a new building on a much larger site at our present location.
     Nine preachers served the church in its first 30 years. Then Jerry Senn gave the church 22 years of grace-centered messages which held together this body of believers with its many diverse backgrounds. New members from different regions brought their experiences from the Anti-cooperative churches of Christ, the Boston Movement, Independent Christian churches, and traditional churches of East Tennessee.
     The church’s new building, a steady flow of Christians transferring in, and the construction of a new educational wing fueled steady growth. Growth in attendance crested in 1999 at 225 and has roughly maintained that level to the present.
     Our story continues — one that we invite you to join us in writing. How will the optimism and excitement in the youth ministry, weekly small groups, vibrant women’s retreats, Pathfinders, and marriage mentoring affect that story? How might the addition of new elders and new deacons shape this story now and ten years from now?  
     It’s a story we invite you to be a part of and experience God at work in each of us. — Steve Teel