Westminster Presbyterian Church Building History
he story begins in the mid-1940s. First Presbyterian Church of Waynesboro, Virginia, and Lexington Presbytery felt led to start a new Church. By 1953, baby boomers were crowding Sunday school classrooms, and the landlocked location of First Church convinced them to colonize a new church in West Waynesboro rather than try to expand their downtown location.
	This apple orchard on Mount Vernon Street, already divided into lots creating a city block, and with one house under construction, was selected as the site for the new church, and the lots repurchased from the owners.
	This photograph was taken in 1952, looking east from the church lot, down what was to become the future Westminster Road.
	Mrs. Lyda Wood was employed in 1953 to develop a Sunday school. The completed two-bedroom house was devoted to the Sunday school. Later, in 1954, with the arrival of organizing pastor, the Rev. Dr. John Womeldorf, it served as home for his family of five, while doubling as both Sunday school and Church!
	The first Sunday school assembled March 7 1954, with 84 present. This is a picture of the people who attended one of the early services. At first only Sunday school was held, but with the arrival of Dr. Womeldorf later that year, worship services began in the garage-breezeway.

	Each Sunday, the Womeldorfs arose, had breakfast, straightened up the house, and set up numerous folding chairs in every room, including the utility room. Pictured here is a class of kindergarten-aged children meeting in the den. We could never adequately thank the Womeldorf family for their infinite patience during this crowded time.
	Enthusiasm of the early colonizers, arrival of 100 new families transferred to Waynesboro by GE, and faithful visitation by Dr. Womeldorf soon made it imperative to start construction of the new church. These elementary aged children met close by the kitchen sink.
This Junior High class met under a tent erected just outside the open garage door, a space that became part of the "sanctuary" during morning worship. Charter members fondly remember this expansion on beautiful Spring days when as many as 155 people regularly attended in cramped quarters. About 100 feet from this spot, construction was underway to build a Chapel, Sunday school, and Fellowship Hall to house this congregation of mostly young parents and their children.
The church was formerly organized as Westminster Presbyterian Church at a meeting in the uncompleted Fellowship Hall on October 9, 1955 at 3 PM. Of the 240 charter members, about two thirds transferred from First Church. Of course there were also innumerable children of these younger families. Under a new pastor, the Rev. James Allen, we continued growing and quickly filled the new building. Membership doubled in six years, and Sunday school enrollment grew to 350, necessitating the second phase building program.
The church was patterned after the Mary-Martha Chapel, Sudbury, MA, and a copy of it built by Henry Ford in Dearborn, MI. Architect Fleming Hurt drew a "100 Year Plan" before any building was done, carrying out the Mary-Martha theme in the Chapel, and later the Sanctuary. Specially shaped bricks and other finer touches were used to create a beautiful structure.

 

The first phase building was complete and the cornerstone was laid June 3, 1956. Two services were necessary to accommodate the growing congregation. Chairs in the aisles allowed 144 to be seated at one time. Portable partitions were used to accommodate multiple Sunday school classes in the Fellowship hall, as attendance grew to 250.
	Groundbreaking for the new Sanctuary and additional classrooms took place July 9, 1961. Pledges to this building fund, plus our regular giving, brought recognition that Westminster had the highest per capita giving of any church in the 500-member category in the denomination. Eighteen months after groundbreaking, the Sanctuary was sufficiently complete for us to enjoy Christmas Sunday, Dec. 23, 1962, in the new building. Completion of the Sunday school rooms and other parts of the structure followed in 1963. A pipe organ installed in 1966, and the electronic organ was returned to the Chapel.
	The tall white spire, visible from many parts of the city, rises above the trees, pointing folks to God and reminding them of the love of our Savior, Jesus Christ. Numerous shepherds have served among us for more than a generation. The Rev. Eugene Soud joined the Rev. James Allen as Associate Pastor. The Rev. Jan Owen, Dr. Bland Dudley, and Dr. Kyle Allen followed in turn. Dr. Jonathan Lovelady has been our pastor since 1998.
The above two pictures are of our Sanctuary, decorated for Christmas. It has witnessed rejoicing at the birth of babies, the growth of these babies through Christian adolescence, men and women dedicating themselves to each other and to their Lord in marriage, and celebration of the lives of those who once lived among us. Through it all, the young and diverse congregation that began in 1955 has grown into a loving family of Christians who seek to follow the leading of the Holy Spirit, and who welcome others to join them.
There is not room here to tell of the spiritual nurture that takes place within our buildings, nor of the ways in which we seek to carry the love of Jesus Christ to others as we leave the sanctuary and return to the world about us. In addition to a strong youth emphasis and other church centered activities, we have recently taken part in missions to West Virginia, Florida, and Ethiopia, and partially support missionaries in three foreign countries. We cordially invite you to visit with us and learn about us first hand, and to join with us if you are so moved.

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