Earlier this summer, Centenary United Methodist Church, located at 2300 West Friendly Avenue, send a letter to the residents of the Sunset Hills neighborhood that the church was closing. They no longer had the membership to be self-sustaining. We featured them six years ago and referenced an article by local journalist Jim Schlosser. He wrote that the church had been selling pumpkins as a fundraiser, around Halloween, since 1975. They would have been about a quarter of a century. We were suspicious this past October when we went to purchase a pumpkin and the youth group was not selling them.
The building and property was sold to Cone Health. They aren't quite sure what they will do with the property and invited the neighbors to a meeting to provide input. One of the ideas was to turn it into an affordable daycare. The church also didn't say where the congregation would be transferring. Christ United to the west and West Market Street, down the road to the east, are logical options. Perhaps members of the congregation will simply go to the place that is nearest their house. A lot is up in the air. A meeting with the Greensboro Planning and Zoning Commission will be held on August 19th at 5:30 p.m. If you have ideas, want a say in the matter, or just plain curious, that would be a good meeting to attend. Greensboro is known for being #3 in the nation with respect to cities with the most churches per capita. Many religious institutions have been struggling, especially post-Covid. Let's hope that the people who attended Centenary find a spiritual home a that Cone does with the property what is best for the community. It sure is a beautify building in a prime location. If your house of worship is thriving, do what it takes to keep it strong.
Happy Sunday!
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