Brook Hill’s 175th and Weekday Preschool’s 50th Anniversary

“Breaking bread together seems so natural…Eating is better as a shared experience with friends or family, surrounded by the warmth of special moments and memories…a kind of communion.”

In 2016, Brook Hill’s Chancel Choir compiled a cookbook filled with recipes from the hearts of our congregation—“A Taste of Brook Hill.” Within its pages are the names, stories, and dishes of those who have shaped our church family over the years.

From appetizers to desserts, these recipes are distinctly Brook Hill—full of care, kindness, and community.

👉 Do you have a favorite recipe from the cookbook? Share it! Or better yet, share a photo if you’ve made it recently. We’d love to see which dishes still bring people together today.

Have you seen the GaGa Pit on our back lawn and wondered what it’s all about?

Here’s a little backstory: GaGa Ball is a fast-paced game similar to dodgeball, played in an octagonal pit. The game originated in Israel—“Ga” means “hit” or “touch,” so “Ga-Ga” literally means “hit-hit.”

Our youth group discovered the fun of GaGa Ball during a retreat at Skycroft Conference Center back in 2019 and came back inspired. Thanks to the generosity of Brook Hill member Kirk Jordan, who designated a memorial donation, we were able to build our very own GaGa Pit for the youth here at Brook Hill.

It’s more than just a game—it’s a space for fun, connection, and community!

Did you know the stained glass windows in our sanctuary have a special story?

In the late 1980s, Bonnie Provo celebrated her daughter Lisa’s confirmation by creating seven beautiful stained glass windows for Brook Hill’s sanctuary. At the same time, she wanted to honor the memory of her dear friend Gloria Ridenour, who had recently passed away from skin cancer.

Mrs. Provo shared that stained glass windows were once used to teach the Word of God to those who couldn’t read. With that inspiration, she crafted these vibrant windows to help children at Brook Hill gaze upward, spark their imagination, and wonder about God’s love.

Take a moment the next time you’re in the sanctuary to look up and reflect—what do these windows help you see?

For years, church rec sports like softball brought people together for more than just the game. They were about laughter, teamwork, and connecting with others in a relaxed, joy-filled way.

Whether you played, cheered from the sidelines, or just came for the snacks, these moments helped shape the life of our church community.

We’d love to hear your memories—did you or someone you know play on the “Brookhill United Methodist” (aka B.U.M.) softball team? Do you have a favorite game-day moment?

Take a walk down memory lane with us!

Did you know each hymnal at Brook Hill tells a story?

Throughout our church campus, you’ll find names of people who helped shape Brook Hill’s history—and our hymnals are no exception.

In the early 1990s, our congregation held a special fundraiser where members could “sponsor a hymnal” in honor or memory of a loved one. Each book includes a dedication inside the front cover—a quiet tribute to someone who made an impact.

The next time you’re in the sanctuary, take a moment to open a hymnal and see whose name is inside. You might recognize someone who left a lasting legacy here at Brook Hill.

At Brook Hill, we are committed to families. God put the wiggle in children and we enjoy their energy and voices echoing throughout the church.

Check out this picture from 1986 and all the Brookhill United Methodist (B.U.M.) babies who were born that year.

Maybe you recognize some faces?

This past Sunday, we had a special worship service celebrating Brook Hill’s 175th anniversary. We also had an opportunity to recognize the 50th anniversary of the Brook Hill Weekday Preschool!

Two plaques were dedicated and will be on display in the preschool in memory of two very special women.One plaque honors Wyndy Brake, the first director of the preschool and a teacher for many years.

The second plaque honors Linda Harbaugh who was a teacher for 30 years and helped shape the school into what it is today. A scholarship fund was also set up in Linda’s honor.

We are grateful for the many past and present teachers and families who have supported the preschool over the years and look to many more.

Brook Hill UMC is turning 175 this year! 🎉

Whether you’ve been here a few months or many decades, we’d love to hear from you—what’s your favorite memory at Brook Hill?

A special service, a mission trip, a funny moment, or a life-changing one? Share it below and help us celebrate all the ways God has moved through this community over the years.

We look forward to seeing many of you in person for our 10 am anniversary worship service. We will have some blasts from the past joining us. 😉 See you there!

Did you know Brook Hill has a preschool that is also celebrating a milestone year?

This school year marks the 50th anniversary for the Brook Hill Weekday Preschool. The school provides a loving, Christian environment where children thrive as they learn.

We believe the beginning formative years are significant in a child’s development of a positive self image and how they view people and their world.

Registration is now open for the next school year. We have openings for children ages 3 and 4. We look forward to seeing new children join us in the fall and participate in our hands on learning program.

In 2015, the students enjoyed learning about growing food.

April showers bring flowers! For Easter, many churches, including Brook Hill, are adorned with flowers—especially lilies, which symbolize purity, rebirth, and new beginnings.

The flowers at Easter remind us of Jesus’s victory over death on the cross and express our faith in the eternal life He offers us.

In addition to the flowers in the sanctuary, it’s a long-standing tradition at Brook Hill to decorate a cross outdoors with flowers and take family photos around the cross after the worship service.

Join us for worship in the fragrant sanctuary and enjoy your outdoor photo opportunity!

This week our Volunteers in Mission (VIM) team is in the Asheville, NC area helping residents recover from Hurricane Helene.

VIM is a grassroots effort in the United Methodist Church to deploy volunteers to offer their time and talent on short-term assignments. Brook Hill’s VIM team deploys to disaster areas twice a year in the U.S.

In 2009, our VIM team went to Columbus, IN to help with the flood relief. The work comes in all shapes and sizes from carpentry, painting, and roofing, to emotional support and prayer time.

Please keep our VIM team in your prayers as they help with the hurricane recovery relief. Please continue to pray for the Asheville residents working to put their lives back together.

Anyone is welcome to participate in VIM. If you’re interested in participating in our fall service project, please comment below or call the church office at 301-662-1727.

There’s something so powerful about the energy and passion of praise bands. The way music is blended with worship creates an atmosphere where you can feel God’s presence in every note.

Whether you’re singing along or just soaking in the sound, it’s a reminder that worship isn’t just in words, it’s also in the melody and rhythm that bring us closer to Him.

We sing contemporary songs you most likely have heard on the local Christian radio station @WGTS919. Our informal worship used to be held in the Life Activity Center as seen in this picture from 2015.

Today, both the informal and traditional worship services are held in the sanctuary.

Music is amazing. It can help us relax, improve memory when studying, and motivate us for a workout.

Music during worship has been a tradition for centuries in the Christian faith. Worship music is one way we praise God and connect with Him on a deeper level.

The Brook Hill Chancel Choir is one of our music ministries who lead us in song during Sunday worship.

Our current choir has about 30 members. This group sure has grown since the 1960s and 1970s, which is when these photos were taken.

Photo directories are a great way for the church family to connect with other people in the church. In our digital age, our directory is now online.

Many of us have kept the older directories and reminisce about our younger days.

Check out these beauties we found from the 1970s!

This week we celebrated Ash Wednesday.

Fun Fact: The ashes that are used to mark crosses on foreheads are palms from the previous year’s Palm Sunday service that have been burned and blessed. This ritual reminds us of our humanity and need for God.

This is a long-standing ritual in the Christian church dating back hundreds of years yet the use of ashes was first recognized in the United Methodist Church Book of Worship in 1992.

Today’s photo is from the 1960s!

Did you know the word “kinkling” is unique to Frederick?

Kinklings are a German doughnut tradition for Shrove Tuesday that was intended to use up ingredients before Lent. The traditional German name for them is fastnachts. Kinklings are deep fried doughnuts sprinkled with confectioner sugar and best enjoyed warm. They are so yummy!

The kinklings we used to make at Brook Hill were so popular, they made the local news. Check out this 1967 newspaper article and read all about it.

The oldest church membership record we could find in our archives is from 1914. Over the years, we’ve had hundreds of new members call Brook Hill their home church.

Today, we are blessed with 456 Brook Hill members ranging from ages 0 to 99. Each Sunday we are excited to welcome first time visitors and regular guests at worship.

On average, 182 people attend in-person worship and 100 people join on our livestream from all over the world.

It’s amazing how technology has opened doors for us to continue to serve the Frederick community, including those who are home-bound, and reach people in different states and continents.

God is good!

Do you remember when the Fellowship Hall was the sanctuary?

Today, the Fellowship Hall serves as a place of many gatherings in the life of our church, including God Talk on Sunday mornings, Upward basketball team huddles, committee meetings, prayer stations, Wise Owl luncheons, and more.

We are grateful for the memories of many worship services in the Fellowship Hall and how it continues to be a place for large group gatherings today.

Have you ever thought about the story behind a name? Well, there is a story behind Brook Hill’s name.

The story begins in the 1800s with George Brooke who was a circuit rider, aka a clergyman who traveled by horseback, sharing the Good News of Jesus to multiple churches. The ‘Brook’ part of our name is in honor of our founding pastor, George Brooke.

In 1990, Rev. Tom Connor reenacted George Brooke’s vital role in our church history, mounted a horse, and rode around!

We are grateful for our small beginning.

Bells are an iconic sound for churches. When the bell rings, everyone knows worship, a wedding, or other special event is about to begin.

Our bell can still ring yet it no longer resides in the steeple. This is the oldest picture we could find of our bell housed in the steeple in the early 1900s.

Fun Fact: In June 1851, Brook Hill UMC began “Sabbath School,” what we call today as Sunday School.

Sunday School has certainly evolved over the years with different activities (and we’d like to think we’ve gotten better with our graphic abilities too 😉).

The Bible stories and lessons discussed in our children and adult Sunday Schools are still just as important today as they were more than a century ago.

A church building is more than a place of worship and gathering place to study God’s Word, it’s also a place where life events and memories are made.

From baptisms, marriages, and memorial services to Vacation Bible School, Easter and Christmas festivities, and basketball games. So much has happened over the years at Brook Hill church. Countless smiles, laughs and some tears…wow if these walls could talk!

The people are the church. As the church grows, so does the building. Our current facility was built in 1962 and has undergone two major expansions since then. We look forward to seeing what God has in store for us and the community over the next 175 years.

This year marks the 175th anniversary of Brook Hill United Methodist Church and the 50th anniversary of the Brook Hill Weekday Preschool.

Fun fact, Brook Hill worship services began outdoors in 1850 and eventually moved indoors.

This is a picture of the oldest building in our church’s history.