Parishioners of Community United Methodist Church are bidding their final farewells, as the Slingerlands church is set to close its doors this summer.
The church has faced financial difficulties in recent years due to low membership and high maintenance costs. The final service will be held at the end of June.
“In the past, churches could operate like old mom-and-pop, corner store businesses,” said the Rev. Laurel Phillips. “Now, you have to pay for insurance, and there’s the added expense for upkeep of an old building.”
According to Town Historian Susan Leath, the church was originally established in 1871 after the town’s Methodists split into two groups following an argument over where to build their new church. Land and building material was eventually donated by Albert I. Slingerland to the splinter group, and the new church building was dedicated that December. Slingerland also built the patronage next door a year later.
Phillips has only been with the church for four years, but said membership has declined and there aren’t enough younger members to make up for the work being done by the church’s older congregants.
Ten years ago, about 90 people were attending services in Slingerlands each Sunday. Phillips said when she started in 2010, membership was at about 50 people. Now, she said 25 people at best attend services.
“We’ve been in a financial decline for the last few years,” said Phillips. “We’ve been sustaining ourselves with endowment money, since we had to start using that to pay for general expenses.”
Phillips said the membership has changed because the town’s demographics have changed. A similar problem is being faced by churches across the country.
“Most of the people living in Slingerlands now are younger people who aren’t necessarily looking for a church,” said Phillips. “Organized religion isn’t as popular with younger people with busy families. We didn’t have what was needed to attract younger people, which is other younger people.”
Phillips credited the current congregation for working twice as hard in recent years to make sure the church could stay open for just a bit longer.
“I think we have some of the most hard-working and active people in their 70s and 80s keeping everything going, but when we don’t have people in the 30s and 40s coming behind them, we don’t have the critical mass to keep going,” said Phillips.
The church is a local landmark and is within the Slingerlands Historical District that was dedicated last year.
Phillips said the church also got some grants from the Methodist Conference, but the larger institution is also having financial troubles, so they couldn’t ask for more money. The building is held in trust by the Conference. It’s unlikely another Methodist congregation would want the building because many are now renting space to hold services so as not to be tied down to a building. They can then also spend money to do more mission work or community service.
“Many people love our church and our building, and stop by if we’re doing fundraisers, but that kind of support is no longer enough to keep a church going,” said Phillips.
The plans are for the conference to sell the building, but they are governed by certain guidelines for a preferred buyer. The first preference is for another Methodist congregation to want it, but that is unlikely. The second is for another Christian church to purchase the building, and last is for it to go on the open market.
Church officials thought about merging their congregation with another church, or possibly renting a new space, but Phillips said many felt if the congregation couldn’t stay together in their old building, it was best to free other members to go where they wanted.
“When you leave a church after 30 years or so, you’re a different person,” said Phillips. “So, a positive spin is they now have the time to reevaluate what they need spiritually.”
Phillips said some might go to the First United Methodist Church in Delmar, while others might go to Delmar Reformed Church where their former music director now plays. The former pastor of Slingerlands Methodist is at a church in the City of Albany, while they also already have an established partnership with Delmar Presbyterian.
“I think people could go to a variety of places. It all depends on what they’re looking for,” said Phillips.
The church plans to hold an event sometime in June as a thank you to the community.