On the northeast side of downtown Columbus sits a modest church, with a community garden neatly tucked beside it. It is home to a small congregation of just under twenty people: Lee Avenue United Methodist Church. Many might pass by its unassuming exterior without a second glance, unaware of the powerful story rooted within its walls.
Founded around 1909, the gathering of believers met in various homes before the residence of Oscar Coleman became the sole meeting place. From the very beginning, the vision was clear: to create a lasting spiritual home grounded in community. That vision soon became reality.
The land for Lee Avenue Methodist Church was acquired in 1910, and construction began the following year. The members, Black laborers from the railroads and factories, built the church. The commitment of these men to build a place of refuge and worship motivated them to arrive each evening after long working hours, to lay bricks, cut wood, and build their church with their own hands.
Five men- James Coleman, James Baleman, William Scott, Dock Gaither, and G.N. Peary- are remembered as founders of Lee Avenue, but it was truly a unified labor of love from the entire community. At the time, resources were scarce. There were no pews, so members brought chairs from home. On Sundays, Dock Gaither and local youth traveled by horse-drawn wagon through the neighborhood, gathering chairs for worship and returning them afterward. Despite losing early records in a fire during the 1950s, the spirit of Lee Avenue endured. Through decades marked by war, economic hardship, and social change, the church remained a steady presence in its community, sustained by generations of faithful leadership.
As time passed, the original building deteriorated, prompting the relocation in 1967 to its present location. Once again, members of the church played a role in its construction. In 1985, a fellowship hall was added, creating space for meals, celebrations, and community gatherings.
In the front hallway of the church, once home to a window into the kitchen where families passed plates of homemade food and shared in hospitality, hangs a plaque honoring the first Sunday School class. Today, the church is still cared for by those very children: the founders’ sons and daughters, now grown, with children and grandchildren of their own. Among that first Sunday School class was the current senior pastor of Lee Avenue UMC, Rev. Rosalind Porter.
“We are formed out of many bricks, elders, and members, who laid the path and have passed the baton. We continue the work of sharing and proclaiming God’s Word to all people,” commented Pastor Rosalind. “As the song of our elders rings within our hearts, I’m going to work until my day is done, we remain small but mighty workers in God’s vineyard.”
Today, Lee Avenue UMC may be small in number, but it remains rich in purpose. It is more than a building; it is a testament to what can be created when faith and community come together, carrying a legacy more than a century strong, still standing and still serving.
Written by Mackenzie Kuhn, Multimedia Producer