United Church of Christ

Churches | United Church of Christ
570 Klem Rd. | | www.uccwebster.org

The United Church of Christ was formed in 1952 by a group of Webster residents. Rev. Ralph H. Winn was called to be the first pastor. For the first two years, services were held in the home of Jasper Willsea on Lake Rd. In November of 1953, six acres of land on Klem Rd was purchased from Mrs Mabel Stephenson. Two more acres were acquired in the spring of 1954. The groundbreaking for the church building at 570 Klem Rd took place in February of 1955 with a dedication was held in 1956. 1957 brought about a name change for the church, and Congregational Christian Church was now to be known as the United Church of Christ because of a merger of the Congregational Church and the Evangelical and Reformed Churches

In 1970, Rev Harold Dobstaff was called to be the pastor. He remained as pastor until 1994. During his leadership, several associated pastors were called including Rev. Glenda Prins, Rev. Sandra Lemke and Rev. Clair Potter. Rev. Tom Ott served as Senior Minister from 1996- 2007. He was joined by Minister of Pastoral Care, Rev. Dr. Roger Reed. Following Rev. Ott was Rev. Carl Richter who is presently Senior Minister. Rev. Reed was Minister of Pastoral Care. Wendy Lesko led the Sunday School and youth as well as Vacation Bible School and Youth Mission Week among other things.

Two additions were added to the church. One is Fellowship Center and Sunday school rooms which also house Woodside Nursery School. The other is Congregational Hall which was erected in the early 1980’s. Other renovations have occurred over the years. The church has expanded from one Sunday service to two.

In addition to the physical changes in the building, many changes have occurred in the programming. Over the years, there have been fall festivals, dinners, some with Congregational stew [where everyone’s stew is mixed together] and various other dinners including Nonna’s dinner which was the impetus for the fundraiser summer concerts. The Youth Group has enlarged and the youth now participate in a Good Friday camp, as well as a very large Vacation Bible School and the Youth Mission week. During Mission week, the youth of the church go to neighborhoods in the city helping with meals, cleaning up property, etc. In addition they run a day program for a group of inner-city youth. Other programs exist for the youth and Sunday school students in addition to programs for members of the congregation such as women’s groups, men’s fellowship, Bible study, book studies, programs for Seniors which include seminars and Lunch Bunch which meets each month for programs and lunch.

One of the largest programs the church organizes for the community are the six Community concerts that are sponsored by the church. These are held on the church lawn with well-known musical groups. The church has fundraisers to pay for the bands and also a snack bar which has become very popular for supper on concert nights. A free-will offering is collected and given to a different Webster charity each week.

Pastor’s List

Rev. Ralph H. Winn1953-1958
Rev. William J. Cox1959-1969
Rev. Harold F. Dobstaff1970-1994
Rev. Thomas James Ott1996-2008
Rev. Carl Richter2010-
Rev. Ralph H. Winn
Rev. William J. Cox
Rev. Harold F. Dobstaff
Rev. Thomas James Ott
Rev. Carl Richter

Sources

  • Dunn, Esther, ​Webster Through the Years, ​Webster NY, Webster Town Board, 1971 pg 98-100.
  • Webster Church box, Webster Historian Office, Webster Museum
  • “Rev. Davison Leads Worship”,The Webster Herald, Webster, NY, Dec. 10, 1969, p20.
  • “Council of Churches Starts Housing Fund”, The Webster Herald, Webster, NY, Hybe 10, 1970, p 28
  • “United Church of Christ celebrates 25 Years”, The Webster Herald, Webster, NY, June 23, 1982 pg 19A.
  • “Church Begins Summer Slate”, The Webster Herald, Webster, NY, June 15, 1994, p 10.
  • “Pastor Installed Sunday, The Webster Herald, Webster, NY June 19, 1996, p 7.
  • “Potter Retiring Again”, The Webster Herald, Webster, NY, Oct 2, 1996, p 513.
  • “United Church of Christ Congregational Celebrates”, The Webster Herald, Webster, NY, Nov 5, 2003, p 15.
  • Arnold, Chelsea, “United Church of Christ Sanctuary renovations to be finished in May”, The Webster Herald, Webster, NY, p 11.
  • United Church of Christ Webster NY, 2018, ​http://www.uccwebster.org/
  • Church history, https://uccwebster.org/history-of-the-united-church-of-christ-webster-ny/
  • Murray, Sue, “ UCC HIstory Since 1970”, March, 2018