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We Are a Mission Church...

What does it mean to be a "mission church?" It means that our congregation is in partnership with other churches and individuals to provide ministry here in Seward. We also are in partnership with our sister church, Moose Pass United Methodist Church, in Moose Pass, Alaska.

We aren't quite big enough to be self-sufficient with full-time ministry. A number of friends throughout the lower 48 states support our work on a regular basis. Churches and individuals support us with prayer, financial help, mission teams, and even pulpit exchanges.

Also, our pastoral leadership comes from missionary pastors, bringing experience from service in other parts of the country. Our pastor is currently "on loan" to us from the Desert Southwest Conference of the United Methodist Church. Previous pastors have come from Western New York, Rocky Mountain, and New Mexico conferences.

In the Spring of 2008, our pastor visited congregations in Fullerton, California, and in Cottonwood, Sedona, Prescott, Mesa, and Tempe, Arizona, telling the story of the Alaska Mission of the United Methodist Church. We are most grateful for the support these churches have provided us.

 

A History of Caring Ministry

(Watch this page for new developments... coming soon!)

The United Methodist Church has been doing ministry in Alaska since 1886, when John and Ethelda Carr were sent by the Women’s Home Missionary Society to teach and preach on the island of Unga on the Historical ImageAleutian archipelago. Four years later, the Jesse Lee Home was established under the leadership of missionary Agnes Soule, providing care for Aleut orphans. The orphanage was moved to Seward in 1925 and several generations of children were cared for and introduced to the love of God in Jesus Christ by the extended faith community. The orphanage sustained major damage in the 1964 earthquake and was moved to Anchorage where the work continues to this day under the name of Alaska Children’s Services.

In addition to the Jesse Lee Home, the United Methodist Church has established medical facilities, nursing homes, and even a university here in the far north.  The UMC has brought pastoral, medical, and educational ministries to Alaska for over a century, and that long tradition continues to this day through the churches and ministries of the Alaska Conference.