VOLANT GLOBAL METHODIST CHURCH
Founded: 1869
Mailing Address: 1100 Main Street, Volant, PA 16156-6918
Phone: (724) 533-2731
Location: 1100 Main Street, in the Village of Volant on Route 208 and Church Street in Lawrence County, PA.
Volant Methodist Episcopal Church was part of the Erie Conference and was founded in 1869. Services were held in the J. P. Lock’s barn until 1873 when the first Church building was erected. The new Church was built at a cost of $12,000 and dedicated on January 25, 1912. From 1869 to 1880, it was part of the Harlansburg Circuit. Since 1880 it has been associated with White Chapel and in 1968 it was part of a two-point Charge with White Chapel. The membership in 1968 was 107. The membership on January 1, 2003 was 85.
Located in the quaint borough of Volant in Lawrence County, Volant MC is in the heart of that community’s significant network of shops, stores, and restaurants. A truly intergenerational faith community (with many young children), Volant UMC makes it a priority to provide Christian education and spiritual formation for people of all ages. Through the church’s engaging worship, intentional Bible study and small group ministry, commitment to prayer, and strategic outreach to the community, Volant MC continues to make disciples of Jesus Christ while offering the love, truth, and ministry of Jesus to those both inside and outside of the church’s walls.
In 2023, Volant Methodist Church disaffiliated from the United Methodist Church and joined the Global Methodist Church.
Pastors who have served Volant Methodist Church:
Harlansburg Charge: Volant:
Ebenezer Bennett 1869-1870;
Nathaniel Reno Morris 1870-1873;
Harlansburg/Mount Pleasant/Volant:
Job L. Stratton 1873-1875;
John Milton Crouch 1875-1878;
James M. Foster 1878-1881;
Volant/White Chapel Charge:
John Crum and Frank Randolph Peters 1881-1882;
Nathaniel Reno Morris 1882-1884; John Eckels 1884-1886;
Richard M. Bear 1886-1888;
John C. Gillette 1888-1889;
Frank Randolph Peters 1889-1892;
Winfield Scott Shepard 1892-1895;
Daniel Wellwood Thompson 1895-1897;
William Franklin Flick 1897-1901;
Ottis H. Sibley 1901-1904;
Arza Ozial Stone 1904-1906;
Joel Smith 1906-1909;
Samuel Thompson Davidson 1909-1914;
Elmer Orville Minnigh 1914-1918;
James Eugene Hillard 1918-1922;
Palmer Newton Taylor 1922-1925;
Jeremiah Bates Edwards 1925-1926;
Lewis W. Miller 1926-1929;
Homer Henry Thompson 1929-1932;
Earl Delamater Thompson 1932-1936;
Robert Sherwood Naylor 1936-1939;
Reuben Knight Rumbaugh 1939-1942;
Albert J. Renwick 1942-1944;
Ormel Grier Shindledecker 1944-1946;
Harry Agnew Silvis 1946-1952;
Milo Davidson 1952-1953;
Verell Henry Oviatt 1953-1956;
LaVerne Proctor 1956-1958;
Emory Beggs Billingsley 1958-1961;
Elmer Edwin Tannehill 1961-1969;
John Eccles Calderwood Matthews 1969-April 8, 1976;
Oden Robert Warman 1976- 1981;
William Fleming Hess 1981-1987;
Raymond Campbell Schafer 1987-1990;
Rodney Oliver Doughty 1990- 1992;
Dennis Jay Cornelius 1992-1994;
James Richard Webb 1994-November 1, 1996;
Volant:
Ronald George Naugle, Sr. November 16, 1996-2010;
Homewood/Volant:
Gary Lee Hilton 2010-December 31, 2012;
Homewood/Volant/Koppel: First:
Gary Lee Hilton January 1, 2013-2014;
Eastbrook/Volant:
Nelson Thomas Thayer 2014-August 31, 2015;
Sarah Elizabeth Adkins Associate February 1, 2015-August 31, 2015;
Loren Andrew McQueen September 1, 2015-2022;
Mary Jo Gould 2022-2023;
Volant Global Methodist Church:
Frank Hodges 2023--.