"Did you know that Memorial's mission reach extends over four continents?" Pastor Rachel asked the group from the Wesley Dinner Club who gathered Thursday night. "These mission partners allow us to grow our own missional impact. Thought this United Methodist Connection, we can expand where we care. We can see the image of God in the diversity of the people we reach, and we can share the love of Jesus Christ to more people." Pastor Rachel was referring to the six internation

" All of this coming together to create such a real, tangible change in the trajectory of an entire family is something only possible through God..." When asked to sum up the favorite part of her trip, Lucinda Lautz said, "The whole experience was my favorite part of the trip!" On March 14th, 2026, Memorial's annual weeklong mission trip to Porch de Salomon in Guatemala began. Missionaries gathered at the airport in Guatemala City from various parts of northeast Florida. The

Rev. Samantha Aupperlee "We get to be the light to the world. We are, together, the body of Christ." These were the words that Rev. Sam Aupperlee used to encourage the those at the Wesly Dinner Club to stay engaged with mission and connection through the United Methodist Church, Rev. Aupperlee was one of the guests Pastor Charlie invited to speak at the latest Wesley Dinner Club. Also joining Rev. Aupperlee, were Memorial member Jim Mitts, who serves as the Disaster Response

Navana played the flute. Sixty-four members of the Community Band were in Maxwell Hall giving a tremendous performance on Thursday night (March 11th, 2026). The all-volunteer band was on hand not to simply present a concert but to raise money and awareness for the PET Project/Mobility Worldwide. Seven people from Memorial's played in the band, including Navana Kern and Pastor Rachel. Another member of the church family involved in the band is Jack Burk. And he does not just p

Mary Negron, Memorial Member and President of the United Women in Faith for the North East District Each spring, the Children's Week Florida welcomes school children to Tallahassee from around the state to tour the Capitol building and meet legislators. Also in attendance during the week are teachers, social workers, faith leaders, nonprofits, and businesses advocating for the health and safety of children. They come to learn from one another and to also meet with legislators

If you look in sills of the stained-glass windows of the Sanctuary during Lent, you'll find some beautiful stone relief depictions of the stations of the cross. These are prayers markers on loan to Memorial from First United Methodist - Baton Rouge (Louisiana). These 10 prayer markers were commissioned for First UMC in 2014 and designed and created by liturgical artist Deborah Luke, who is a Baton Rouge native. Two sets were made and dedicated on Palm Sunday in 2016. Of the t

You may have heard Pastor Charlie call the United Women in Faith at Memorial a "force for good" during his recent sermon on the State of the Church. And he was right! During their most recent UWF Brunch on January 31st, the women offered up their own "State of the UWF" and celebrated their accomplishments as a chapter, recognized new offers, handed out awards to member of our congregation who are living out the mission of the UWF. Over 85 people, most representing the 136 m

As an act of collective pastoral care for our community, a group of local pastors offered a time of vigil and prayer Thursday night. Around 250 people gathered peacefully on the steps of Memorial to recognize their shared hurt by praying, singing, and finding comfort together. The vigil was led by clergy from Memorial, First Presbyterian Church, New Vision United Church of Christ, Prince of Peace Lutheran Church, Greater Fernandina Beach Church of God, and chaplains from Bapt

1.15.26 | Maxwell Hall: Leaders at Memorial were invited to attend the monthly Wesley Dinner Club along with the church family to hear a special panel discussion. Pastor Charlie chatted with four members of our congregation who represented four different generations. Each of the panelists grew up in the church and had memories, ideas, and hopes to share. Pastor Charlie asked the group if they could name one thing is important to them that has remained constant at Memorial ove

Throughout the four weeks leading up to Christmas, Memorial has been active in our area participating in and hosting events for our community. The first weekend of Advent, Memorial's Women's Circle hosted the No Room at the Inn Nativity display in the Sanctuary and Partin Center. This two-day event saw over 200 visitors, even during the raining weekend. The circles were able to raise nearly $615 dollars for our unhoused neighbors. That same weekend, members from our church of

For many years, local churches have gathered in Fernandina Beach to give thanks together in an interfaith Thanksgiving Worship Service. This year, Memorial decided to add a dinner on to this tradition. There is no better way to connect with others than by sharing a meal together (even Jesus knew that!) So, thanks to the help of an anonymous donor, a catered dinner was provided for free to anyone who RSVPed. We even invited some of our neighborhood unhoused to eat with us. Ove

Gratitude, music, and joy filled the air as Memorial United Methodist Church welcomed over 1,000 neighbors to its first-ever Gathering in Gratitude Free Community Fall Festival. The aim of this event was to celebrate the season of thanks and the many helping hearts in our community.

In honor of the recent Laity Sunday, Memorial was blessed to have a meal and discussion with Derrick Scott, III at the last Wesley Dinner Club. A long-time friend of Memorial, Derrick wears many hats within in the Conference and Denominational work of the United Methodist Church. Using his gift of breaking down topics into the core issues, and his skill with communicating to multiple generations, he spoke to the group about the role of the laity, our relationship with young p

On Thursday, September 18th, Memorial hosted its monthly Wesely Dinner Club in Maxwell Hall, the monthly night of great food and...

Clergy and laypeople from Churches from all over the North East District gathered in Ocala on September 13th for an annual day of...

Nearly 100 local teachers, representing 4 counties and 27 different schools, picked up free school supplies for their classrooms on...

Nearly 30 members of the church family, including several youth, showed up in their red shirts to connect with our friends at The Arc Nassau.

Learning about sea turtles and how to keep them safe during one of the science lessons. Wow! What a fun week we had at Camp Memorial...

(Part 3 of a special series on Florida Annual Conference) The consensus of the Memorial members after leaving Lakeland at the beginning...

Part 2 in a series of articles about 2025 Florida Annual Conference. When Memorial members who attended Annual Conference were asked what...