About Us
New Life United Methodist Church: Our History
New Life United Methodist Church is a rebirth of Glen Addie Community Church (mission). Glen Addie was conceptualized in the mid 60's by a group of volunteers from First United Methodist Church in downtown Anniston. They began a ministry in the Glen Addie public housing project helping elementary and junior high age children with their schoolwork. The volunteers tutored reading, math and played educational games with the children from an apartment rented by First UMC. In June, 1992, Sunday school began in the apartment with approximately thirty children and volunteers in attendance. On Easter Sunday that year the first worship service was held in addition to Sunday School. Twenty-eight children attended which again filled the apartment to capacity. The group began having services in the housing project administrative building while praying for their own building.
A church building in the community became available and negotiations began to purchase it. With support from the North Alabama Conference, the Anniston District, and volunteers; the building was purchased in 1993. The mission's sole purpose was to invite and draw others to the knowledge and acceptance of God's unconditional love that will lead to improving and developing the spiritual, physical, psychological and financial conditions of the indigent, children, adults, and the community-at-large. The Glen Addie community has tremendous needs. The immediate needs of this community were, and still are in the areas of nutrition, substance abuse, childcare, parenthood, literacy, and medical education. Most importantly though, the mission has labored to share God's unconditional love and acceptance and assist in finding hope in the midst of crisis and hopelessness.
Our vision is that New Life United Methodist Church be a place of Hope and Transformation: a place where everyone will feel the love of God, find the joy of Christ, and experience the transforming power of the Holy Spirit. We will continue to partner with other churches in feeding the hungry as we provide lunch for the community on Saturdays at noon where we are feeding over hundred people. We will also continue to do the same on Sunday mornings at nine o’clock. Groceries are an essential part of what we do and we are committed to give families food once a month; currently feeding more than one-hundred-and-twenty families every month. We transport children and youth every Wednesday, help them with homework, provide space for study, teach them life skills, and feed them.
We believe that our mission is to intentionally Invite, Embrace, Empower, and Send all God’s children to be Spirit-filled witnesses of God’s unconditional and transforming love. We are sure God is calling us to focus on this because a number of people in the community are beginning to realize this reality and are willing to testify about the goodness of God, and what God is doing in transforming their lives.