Tyndall church celebrates 130 years
COSHOCTON — As renovations near completion on the former Tyndall United Methodist Church, new owners want to invite the community in for the building's 130th anniversary.
Sheldon and Tammy Mencer acquired the church in November 2020 after the congregation, which had grown older and smaller, decided to merge with Conesville and New Moscow United Methodist churches.
The Mencers held a dedication ceremony in September 2021 for their Mission 3:16 Tyndall. Remodeling has been taking place since that time along with the occasional concert and special event.
An open house and concert to celebrate the building's anniversary, which was constructed in 1892, will be at 4 p.m. Aug. 7 at the church, 18091 Township Road 284. The event will offer hot dogs, chips, drinks and chance to see renovations. The trio of Mencer, White and Cheney will play at 6 p.m. The group, together since 1999, will be playing traditional hymns and original songs.
Services for Christmas and Thanksgiving are being planned along with a release party for Mencer's new music album in September and a mission conference in October. Mencer said they want to start having regular services and might have an announcement on that at the open house.
"I think everyone will be pleasantly surprised, especially if they've been here before the renovations," Mencer said. "We've reached a milestone not only to celebrate the longevity of the facility as a place of worship, but also we've been able to update and make the atmosphere of the room much better."
Work has included clearing of trees and expanding the parking lot, shoring up the foundation, remodeling a bathroom, interior painting, reconfiguration and painting of pews, removal of paneling and painting of beadboard, sanding of wooden floors, installation of a new water system and hot water,
Left to do is weeding and landscaping outside, installation of a second bathroom, finishing trim work and some work on the fellowship hall. The addition with the fellowship hall and bathrooms was added at some point in the 1950s, Mencer said.
Mencer is grateful to the assistance they've received in renovations, including in-kind donations of materials and labor.
"I can't tell you the amount of man hours. It's in the thousands of man hours we've put in here," Mencer said. "It speaks volumes to the hearts of people who still want to be apart of a local church and a ministry. I've had so many say, 'this is the Lord's work and we want to do it for the church and the Lord.' That shows there are still a lot of good in the hearts of many people."
Mencer also wants to stress that the church is accessible even as the Ohio Department of Transportation is doing full depth replacement of nearby Ohio 16. Heading west on Ohio 16, one can go County Road 6 to Township Road 284. Heading east on Ohio 16, one can turn left onto Township Road 285 at Cleveland Cliffs, and go to Township Road 290 to Township Road 284.
The cemetery on the grounds went to Franklin Township Trustees. The cemetery is closed, but people who previously bought plots can still be buried there and the township will maintain it going forward. Mission 3:16 will permit funeral services in the building for those being buried in the cemetery.
Tax deductible donations can be sent to Mission 3:16 Tyndall, P.O. Box 1288, Coshocton, OH 43812.
Leonard Hayhurst is a community content coordinator and general news reporter for the Coshocton Tribune with close to 15 years of local journalism experience and multiple awards from the Ohio Associated Press. He can be reached at 740-295-3417 or llhayhur@coshoctontribune.com. Follow him on Twitter at @llhayhurst.
This article originally appeared on Coshocton Tribune: Tyndall church celebrates 130 years
