Nevada County Picayune and Gurdon Times Newspaper Archive

Homecoming Scheduled For Methodists

The Willisville Methodist Church will celebrate homecoming on May 26.

Rev. Rayford L. Diffee will deliver the sermon at 11:00 a.m. At noon there will be a potluck dinner, followed by congregational singing and specials featuring Carolyn Tye and The Third Generation.

The Willisville Methodist Church came into being in September 1946 when Mr. and Mrs. E.L. Holloway gave a parcel of land to the trustees of Holly Springs Methodist Episcopal Church so they could build a church that was more centrally located to its members.

Holly Springs Church was established in the early 1870s and was very active through the years. In 1945 they had 111 members.

The members decided to tear down the old church building and rebuild it in Willisville. It was a slow process as most of the labor was donated. The members met in the school building until the new building was completed. The average attendance in 1946 was 75.

The Rev. Osburn White was pastor at the time the church moved to Willisville. Rev. Kirvin Hale served as pastor in 1947 and during that time the greater portion of the new building was completed. In 1947 the congregation grew by 22 members when the Waterloo Methodist church transferred to Willisville.

The building was completed when Rev. J. Wayne Mann was the pastor. The building was formally dedicated by Bishop Paul E. Martin on September 25, 1949. Other ministers were W.B. Savage, Rayford L. Diffee, Clyde Swift, Horace Grogan, Carl V. Matthew, John B. Ross, J. Frank Hamm, Robert Eckberg, Edward Warren, Larry Ferguson, David Swift, Cary Don Womack, Colin Ward, Susan Kemp and Wayne Bell. Jessica Lee Jones Durand is the pastor now.