About

Ringgold UMC has been part of Ringgold’s history from the very beginning. Located in historic downtown Ringgold, we are an integral part of the character of our hometown.

The beginning (1845)

In 1845 the Ringgold Methodist Episcopal Church South was formed as Rev. Drury Fowler began holding weekly worship with a small group of people between White Oak Mountain and Taylor’s Ridge. The new church began two years before the town of Ringgold was established in 1847. On July 22, 1848 Georgia Representative William B.W. Dent deeded a lot on Lafayette Street so that a “forever house of worship” could be built on the property within five years.

First expansion (1926)

The small, one-room, wooden, white steeple church gave way to a larger brick church with room for childcare and other ministries. It still stands downtown as a wedding chapel.

New location (1972), and expansions (1996 and 2007)

The church needed to expand again, and a new sanctuary that could seat almost twice the existing attendance was built, including nursery rooms, classrooms and a small fellowship hall. As we grew, we addressed the needs of our community by building a gym, rooms for children and preschool, and a multipurpose room.

Foreign mission travel begins (2004)

Our first group of international missionaries travelled to Mexico in June 2004. The next year we connected with El Ayudante in Nicaragua. These grew into consistent outreaches to Momance, Haiti and Leon, Nicaragua, with missionaries travelling several times a year to provide free dental and medical clinics, build houses, schools and churches, and provide clean water solutions.

Multiple worship styles begin (2008)

On May 4, 2008 a contemporary worship ministry called “Water’s Edge” became the first contemporary worship experience at RUMC. On September 12, 2010 the first Sunday morning contemporary service was attended by 108 people, giving birth to multiple styles of worship at our church.

Major partnership outreach begins (2010)

Nourishing Children in Catoosa began in September 2010, delivering 301 snack packs each week to Westside Elementary School. The programme expanded to additional schools and now serves 1,600 snack packs every week.

Tornado recovery command center (2011)

When a devastating class 4 tornado ripped through Ringgold on April 27, 2011, the people of our church reached out to our neighbours and offered the church itself as the command center for tornado recovery. The church postponed much-needed repairs to its own facilities until others in the community had been sufficiently helped.

Recovery at Ringgold (2013)

Recovery at Ringgold began in 2013 — a weekly ministry for people from all walks of life struggling with divorce, codependence, loneliness, grief, alcohol or chemical dependency, debt, compulsions or obsessions. It is rooted in scripture, worship, small group time and the 12 steps.