CHCC History

(Note: Much of this historical account is taken from the printed program for the Colonial Heights Church of Christ 50th Anniversary and Homecoming, held September 6-8, 1985. The account has been edited and updated to reflect more recent events in our church history.)

Colonial Heights Church of Christ has a rich history, beginning in the newly developed community of Colonial Heights in Norfolk, Virginia more than 70 years ago. A brief account of our journey follows.

Dennis C. Myers was born in South Norfolk on September 9, 1892. He commenced his ministry at the age of 11 years, and having assisted in the commencement of several congregations, he met with a small group of people at the home of Mr. & Mrs. Hannibal Cole at 844 Mayfield Avenue in 1934 to discuss the formation of a congregation in the Colonial Heights area of Norfolk County, a community of twenty homes. Mr. Myers, along with four other people - Mrs. Irene Cole, Mrs. Bertha Edwards, Mary Myers Harris, and George W. Harris - held open-air meetings to which seven members were added. The original five, along with Miss Myrene Cole, Mrs. Martha Chisholm, Mrs. H.A. Burmeister, Miss Elaine Edwards, Robert Elmore, and Mr. & Mrs. John Sharp, became Charter Members of the Colonial Heights Church of Christ in the summer of 1935.

With a church now established, the group set out to build a place for worship. They purchased a lot from Mr. Bellamy and he, realizing the value of having a church in the community, donated another. Through the combined efforts of God, this small group, their friends, and neighbors, a new facility was in use by the end of 1935. Russell M. Edwards was active in the construction of the original building. This is a quote from his memoirs: "The congregation grew so fast and that soon there wasn't standing room. I ran a stairway and floored the attic which was turned into three classrooms. Still, we needed more space, so in 1937 we built the Church Auditorium with free labor. The Pounders came just before this and Mr. Pounder was a great help in this building. Bill Craig and James Hall were also a great help."

A baptistry was installed, and in addition, a steeple with church bell was installed to summon the residents of Colonial Heights to worship on Sunday mornings. The church continued to grow and by 1949, more space was needed. $8,000 was borrowed from Mr. Myers and a two-story Bible School was commenced. A New Testament, a history of the congregation, membership roll, and 1949 coins were inserted into the cornerstone of the new structure, which was completed in 1950.

Mr. Myers served the congregation from 1935 to 1960 and for a large portion of those years, he served without a salary, supporting himself independently. During Mr. Myers' 25 years with the congregation, 506 members were added to the church at Colonial Heights. Much work was accomplished. In 1955, J. Homer Styons arrived from Roanoke Bible College to serve as Youth Minister. He served here about a year, then moved on to a North Carolina church to serve as its Minister. Mr. Myers moved on to form a new congregation in the Ocean View area of Norfolk in 1960. He is now deceased, but he will long be remembered by those who were at Colonial Heights during this period.

In October 1960, Robert Manship became the preaching minister at Colonial Heights. It was during his ministry that a home was purchased on Marvin Avenue, adjacent to the church property, as a parsonage. 79 members were added to the church during Mr. Manship's tenure. The following are excerpts from a letter to the church from Mr. Manship in 1985: "I was called to the pulpit in October 1960 and resigned in June 1963. It has been a long time since then, and many things have been forgotten that happened. We had many baptisms, and the Wednesday night programs increased greatly. Many experiences have been indelibly made and changed the course of my ministry for the better because of Colonial Heights. God bless the work there. In His Service, Robert Manship."

Elwood House, along with his wife Dorothy and their three daughters, came to Colonial Heights on September 1, 1963. He indicated his preference not to reside in the church parsonage, but wanted to purchase his own residence instead. He immediately set out to learn the congregation and its needs, and after a year of intensive study he implemented a program challenging the congregation to "Come Alive in Sixty Five," and asked church members to complete a talent sheet reflecting his belief that each Christian should become a G.I. and "Get Involved" in Christ's Army. God blessed Mr. House's efforts with growth, and the need arose to upgrade the Sunday School and all the classrooms, sell the church parsonage on Marvin Avenue, and purchase several lots on Mayfield Avenue adjacent to the church property. A house on one lot was used as a Sunday School annex.

In March 1966, directional signs pointing the way to the church were installed on Mayfield Avenue at Tidewater Drive and Old Ocean View Road. Today, a newer sign stands at Tidewater Drive end of Mayfield Avenue. Also in 1966, the congregation voted to implement a bond program to finance the construction of a new Sanctuary at a cost of approximately $100,000. After extensive planning and preparation, construction was begun with Pat Carter serving as Construction Superintendent. The dedication ceremony was held on September 8, 1968 with 350 in attendance. This brick facility is pictured on the CHCC Website welcome page.

One of the congregation's main obstacles to consistent growth has been the transfer each year of a number of military families away from Norfolk. Mr. House emphasized the need to involve new families in the work here. His efforts resulted in improved youth programs and musical groups, necessitating in the purchase of three additional pianos for church use. In 1966 an organ was purchased for the sanctuary. In addition, the annual church budget grew from $15,000 in 1964 to $36,000 in 1970.

Mr. House left Colonial Heights on July 5, 1970 and returned with his family to Chilhowie Christian Church in Chilhowie, VA. A quote from a letter by Mr. House: "It was a great ministry from beginning to end. A good relationship between the church and minister. During my ministry, the present sanctuary was constructed and for several years, the attendance broke all previous records."

On August 9, 1970, Charlie Alligood and his wife Donna came from the Center Christian Church in Mays, IN to minister at Colonial Heights. There were 99 additions during his ministry here. This quote is from a letter about his memories of Colonial Heights: "Basically, I came to believe that the two biggest needs in the congregation were to integrate the newer or young members into the elected leadership and to help mature the congregation's understanding of the great Biblical themes such as grace, faith, discipline, justification, etc. I worked very hard trying to get the congregation to think about and respond to the Lordship of Jesus Christ rather than giving them lists of dos and don'ts. Hopefully some of the body benefitted. My memory of the congregation is of a group with hearts as good as gold, but easily the most diverse in understanding of scripture in my sixteen years of full-time preaching ministry. The extended Naval tours of many of the men provided special domestic and spiritual challenges for the families and the church."

Terry Schultz, a Timothy of Colonial Heights, was ordained into Christian ministry on May 16, 1971 in services led by George BonDurant, then-President of Roanoke Bible College, from which Terry was graduated.

Brother Alligood resigned on July 18, 1972 to go into full-time evangelistic work. He agreed to fill our pulpit until a new minister could be found, staying on until October of that year.

On November 5, 1972 Byron Miller and his wife Faye, along with daughter Cammie, came to Colonial Heights from the Portsmouth Christian Church in Portsmouth, VA. There were two additions to the Miller family during their time at Colonial Heights: a son, Braden and a daughter, Alayna.  Brother Byron loved to sing, and a quartet was formed consisting of Raymond Hamlett, Glenna Underwood, Mary Dixon, and Byron. They were known as "The Joint Heirs Quintet", realizing that the Lord was the fifth member! The name was given to them by John Peters, who enjoyed and recorded several tapes of their music. Byron became part of the "I Love America" Bicentennial Choir. When the choir performed at Colonial Heights on November 9, 1975 there were 431 in attendance.

On December 13, 1972 the decision was made to approve a project to obtain a bus for the church to use. The project, called "Let's Get Rolling", raised the money needed to purchase a bus. The bus was then renovated and painted. A survey was taken to determine the best usages, and the bus began to roll on November 3, 1974.

In July, 1973 Allen "Big Al" Quain from Roanoke Bible College was hired as Youth Minister. He served for several months in that capacity.

Mary Dixon was hired as part-time church secretary on October 7, 1974. She served the Lord and the church in that capacity until her retirement in January 1999.

During the summers of 1975 and 1976, Leland Duncan served as Youth Minister, returning in the fall to his studies at Bluefield College of Evangelism.

Also during Byron's ministry here, cottage prayer meetings were begun, devotional services were started at the Shore Drive Convalescent Home, and the Tidewater Christian Service Camp (Camp Rudolph) was opened in Yale, VA with young people from Colonial Heights attending there for the first time in 1976. Byron moved to Elberton, GA on January 30, 1977, to begin a ministry there. Professor William Griffin of Roanoke Bible College filled in as Interim Minister from February 6 until June 26, 1977.

Dale Baldwin, with his wife Cheryl and daughters Dawn and Bambi, came to Colonial Heights from Potomac, IL in June 1977. In June 1979, the congregation celebrated completion of the 12-year bond program, which financed construction of the sanctuary completed in 1968, with a note-burning ceremony. January 1982 saw the need to do something about the deterioration of the Education Building. On April 4, the decision was made to renovate the existing building. Another bonding program was instituted, raising a sum of $80,000 for the purpose of making extensive renovations in the Sunday School classrooms, and other improvements to the church property and parking lot. The work was completed, and the renovated facilities put into use in June 1982.

Dale started the program "One of Sixty-One", encouraging sixty-one people to commit themselves to service in the various programs in the worship services. Commitment began December 6, 1981.

Dale left Colonial Heights on December 20, 1981 to return to Potomac, IL. The congregation agreed to purchase his house at 8137 Old Ocean View Road to be used as a parsonage.

In his letter for this historical account, Dale wrote: "Our four and one-half years at Colonial Heights were a joy. It was a joy to see the attendance rise. It was a joy to serve with the outstanding brothers and sisters in Christ in Colonial Heights, Tidewater, and the state of Virginia. It was a joy to share in the new birth of so many different individuals: Don Murphy, Chris Anderson, Frank Gambito, Octavia Johnson, and her late husband. It was a joy to share with ones through the Equipper's Class. And to see them move out and serve the Lord through teaching and witnessing, like John and Gloria Nemier, Ron and Irene Baldwin, Chris and Jean Anderson, and Don Murphy. It was a joy when Indiana beat North Carolina in the final game of the 1981 NCAA. It was and remains a joy to consider ALL as our Christian friends."

Eugene Brockley served as Interim Minister from January to June 1982. He was then hired as Associate minister for Education, a position he held until December 1983.

Bob and Bea Neal arrived on the field in June of 1982. He began his preaching ministry the second Sunday of that month. One emphasis in his preaching and teaching was in the area of every-member involvement. Many messages from Bob focused on the Scriptural teaching of the fact that every Christian is a minister in the eyes of God and should be serving the Lord and His church with whatever gifts He has blessed them with. Loving and caring for one another in Christ was another area of emphasis for Bob's ministry here.

On August 16, 1982 the decision was made to remodel the Civic League Building, and blacktop the rest of the church parking lot. The Civic League Building was used for many years as extra classroom space. The remodeling, completed in May 1983, converted the building into three offices for use by the ministers and the church secretary.

Gene Cordon became Youth Minister in January 1984, and resigned in March 1984.

Lewis and Nona Maysey came to Colonial Heights on April 1, 1984 to serve with the youth program and were with us until 1985.

Keith Buddemeyer served as Associate Minister from July 1986 until 1989.

Bob Neal left our congregation in March 1990, desiring to be closer to his family (particularly his granddaughters) in California. Blair Yager served as Interim Minister from March until June of 1990.

Steve Jones arrived from Florida with his wife Tami and children Steven and Katie, and began ministry here on June 26, 1990. During Steve's ministry with us, a new emphasis was placed on the development of leaders in the church. A significant change was implemented in 1994 with a major revision of the church by-laws and the abolition of the church Advisory Board. The congregation agreed that the church of the New Testament was governed by elders selected by the congregation to provide leadership and oversight. The dissolving of the Advisory Board moved the church to a form of government more compatible with the New Testament pattern. Also in keeping with the example of the early church, a strong emphasis on lay ministry within the church family was revived. Departments and committees were reorganized into ministries, and an attitude of ministry and servanthood began to flavor more and more of the workings of the church. Also during Steve's ministry, the church offices were computerized, and a $100,000 renovation of our facilities, primarily the Education Building, was begun.

Steve's work with the elders, deacons, and ministry leaders in the congregation provided a solid foundation for the current focus and direction of the CHCC family.

Steve moved back to Florida in December 1996 to be closer to his family there. Bill Ferguson, from the Denbigh Christian Church in Newport News, VA served as our Interim Minister from January until November 1997.

Ken Gosnell served as preaching minister from December 1997 until September 2001.

Our current senior minister, Mike Curry, arrived on the field with his wife Dale Anna and their four kids and began his ministry here on April 7, 2002. We look forward with great excitement to what God will do through Mike and his family during their ministry here with us. We hope it will be a long and fruitful partnership for the Kingdom!