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The History of Gentle Shepherd Metropolitan Community Church
The seed that grew into Gentle Shepherd Metropolitan Community Church of Tallahassee was planted on September 12, 1993. It was on that day that thirteen people, calling their group the Tallahassee Parish Extension of St. Luke’s MCC of Jacksonville, met to discuss the spiritual wants and needs of the people of Tallahassee, the birthplace of Reverend Troy Perry. The format for weekly Bible studies was introduced during the three meetings that followed. These Bible studies were named Shepherd L.I.F.E. Groups and the training for leaders was provided by Reverend Frankye White of St. Luke’s MCC. The Unitarian Universalist Church provided the facilities for these early meetings. Following in the early apostles’ footsteps, Tallahassee Parish Extension eventually met in small groups in various homes, sharing meals and praising God together. (Acts 2:44-47) The first worship service was held on Sunday, October 31, 1993 with Reverend White leading and twenty-seven people in attendance. Worship services for the Tallahassee Parish Extension were held on the third Sunday of each month, while Shepherd L.I.F.E. Groups met on the other three Sundays. Eventually, services were increased to twice monthly, with St. Luke’s and other MCCs in Florida providing pulpit leadership. Services are currently held weekly. Several people and events are recognized in our church history as instrumental in our development and progression. Twelve people attended the first congregational meeting on February 5, 1995 to discuss future plans for the church. Reverend Carol Hale, a former Associate Pastor of Joy MCC in Orlando, began offering her time as interim pastor in March of 1995. Tallahassee Parish Extension achieved its New Works status and became Gentle Shepherd MCC on June 3, 1995. Gentle Shepherd MCC hired its first part-time pastor, Reverend Neil Parker, in November of 1995. During this time, the attendance for services averaged twenty to thirty people. Almost every attendee was involved with one of the two Shepherd L.I.F.E Groups and eighteen were members. When Reverend Parker returned to his hometown of Orlando in July of 1996, a search for another pastor began. Reverend Susan Tedder came to Gentle Shepherd MCC as a part-time pastor in September of 1996. Under her direction, the church achieved Commissioned status with the Southeast District UFMCC in November of 1997. At the time of her resignation in October of 1998, the congregation had grown from eighteen to thirty members. We are happy to report that even though our pulpit was empty for over a year, we retained our Commissioned status and installed three new members during November of 1998. Also during this time the Board of Directors made a very important strategic decision. They felt that a full-time pastor was more important than finding a permanent meeting location. Therefore, they continued to meet at the Unitarian Church and saved money so a competitive, full-time benefits and salary package could be offered. In a specially called Congregational meeting on November 21, 1999, the congregation voted unanimously to call Rev. Paul Anway to fill the pulpit. On December 13, 1999, Pastor Paul started full-time. Since 1999 we have continued to grow in service and number. We now have over 50 active members who are involved in 6 different ministry areas, and more are being planned! God continues to send new people our way, and we are thankful for the work God is doing in our midst. On December 4, 2007, we closed on the sale of our own church property. Our new location is 4738 Thomasville Road and our first service in the new building will be December 23, 2007. |