About Us

“‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’” Matthew 22: 37-38

Our History

In 1984, the Eastern Pennsylvania Conference of the United Methodist Church determined that a new church was needed in the Exton-Lionville area to accommodate a rapidly growing population. A five-acre parcel land was purchased, and the Rev. Gordon E. Hendrickson was assigned the responsibility of gathering a congregation, performing worship services, and coordinating all phases of church development. Seven families met in a conference room of the Holiday Inn on route 100 for our first worship service on September 16, 1984.

 

By sheer faith and determination, our fledging congregation decided to actively pursue our dream of church building, and then suddenly we were presented with an extremely generous and most precious gift. Members of the United Methodist Church of Centralia were aware of our dream. Forced to close their own doors due to uncontrollable fires in the coal mines beneath their town and the surrounding area, they willingly donated a portion of their financial estate as well as the entire contents of their church to our new church start

 

The Centralia Memorial Chapel, today, is a living testimony to the faith that transcends history period since moving into our current building in 1986, we have had two building additions to accommodate our growth period these additions have included several classrooms, offices, storage areas, and the community life center. We praise God for this multifunction area that allows us flexibility in the use of space at Exton UMC.

Our STAFF

Pastor Meagan is a Local Licensed Pastor in the United Methodist Church. As a native of Pennsylvania, she grew up in the small town of Bangor, Pennsylvania north of the Lehigh Valley. After being baptized at Ackermanville United Methodist Church, she grew apart from the church and did not attend regularly. At nineteen, Meagan reentered this same church in her small hometown and knew God was at work, bringing her to serve the church through children’s ministries and lay leadership. From that moment on, Meagan recognized she had a calling into ministry. Upon recognizing this call, Pastor Meagan attended Moravian Theological Seminary in Bethlehem, PA to receive her Master of Divinity Degree in 2021. While there, she was able to learn more about the spiritual side of faith and how God is present in that. During her time at Moravian, she worked as a Hospital Chaplain Intern at St. Luke’s Hospital in Bethlehem. With her Associate’s and Bachelor’s Degree in Middle-Level Education (English Concentration), she believes that teaching and journeying with people where they are is integral to faith development. Being a young person herself, Meagan has a passion for children, youth, and young adult ministries – striving to find ways to get them excited about their own faith. In her free time, you can find Pastor Meagan with her fur babies, crafting, or binge-watching shows on Netflix or Discovery+. Prior to serving as pastor at Exton UMC, Meagan served as pastor at Belfast: Wesley UMC in Nazareth, PA and pastoral intern at Green Pond UMC in Easton, PA.

Meagan Ackerman, Pastor

Diana Vessells, Church Administrator

Pastor Meagan is a Local Licensed Pastor in the United Methodist Church. As a native of Pennsylvania, she grew up in the small town of Bangor, Pennsylvania north of the Lehigh Valley. After being baptized at Ackermanville United Methodist Church, she grew apart from the church and did not attend regularly. At nineteen, Meagan reentered this same church in her small hometown and knew God was at work, bringing her to serve the church through children’s ministries and lay leadership. From that moment on, Meagan recognized she had a calling into ministry. Upon recognizing this call, Pastor Meagan attended Moravian Theological Seminary in Bethlehem, PA to receive her Master of Divinity Degree in 2021. While there, she was able to learn more about the spiritual side of faith and how God is present in that. During her time at Moravian, she worked as a Hospital Chaplain Intern at St. Luke’s Hospital in Bethlehem. With her Associate’s and Bachelor’s Degree in Middle-Level Education (English Concentration), she believes that teaching and journeying with people where they are is integral to faith development. Being a young person herself, Meagan has a passion for children, youth, and young adult ministries – striving to find ways to get them excited about their own faith. In her free time, you can find Pastor Meagan with her fur babies, crafting, or binge-watching shows on Netflix or Discovery+. Prior to serving as pastor at Exton UMC, Meagan served as pastor at Belfast: Wesley UMC in Nazareth, PA and pastoral intern at Green Pond UMC in Easton, PA.

Pastor Meagan is a Local Licensed Pastor in the United Methodist Church. As a native of Pennsylvania, she grew up in the small town of Bangor, Pennsylvania north of the Lehigh Valley. After being baptized at Ackermanville United Methodist Church, she grew apart from the church and did not attend regularly. At nineteen, Meagan reentered this same church in her small hometown and knew God was at work, bringing her to serve the church through children’s ministries and lay leadership. From that moment on, Meagan recognized she had a calling into ministry. Upon recognizing this call, Pastor Meagan attended Moravian Theological Seminary in Bethlehem, PA to receive her Master of Divinity Degree in 2021. While there, she was able to learn more about the spiritual side of faith and how God is present in that. During her time at Moravian, she worked as a Hospital Chaplain Intern at St. Luke’s Hospital in Bethlehem. With her Associate’s and Bachelor’s Degree in Middle-Level Education (English Concentration), she believes that teaching and journeying with people where they are is integral to faith development. Being a young person herself, Meagan has a passion for children, youth, and young adult ministries – striving to find ways to get them excited about their own faith. In her free time, you can find Pastor Meagan with her fur babies, crafting, or binge-watching shows on Netflix or Discovery+. Prior to serving as pastor at Exton UMC, Meagan served as pastor at Belfast: Wesley UMC in Nazareth, PA and pastoral intern at Green Pond UMC in Easton, PA.

Joe Gehring, Director of Traditional Worship

Jeff Beideman, Director of Contemporary Worship

Pastor Meagan is a Local Licensed Pastor in the United Methodist Church. As a native of Pennsylvania, she grew up in the small town of Bangor, Pennsylvania north of the Lehigh Valley. After being baptized at Ackermanville United Methodist Church, she grew apart from the church and did not attend regularly. At nineteen, Meagan reentered this same church in her small hometown and knew God was at work, bringing her to serve the church through children’s ministries and lay leadership. From that moment on, Meagan recognized she had a calling into ministry. Upon recognizing this call, Pastor Meagan attended Moravian Theological Seminary in Bethlehem, PA to receive her Master of Divinity Degree in 2021. While there, she was able to learn more about the spiritual side of faith and how God is present in that. During her time at Moravian, she worked as a Hospital Chaplain Intern at St. Luke’s Hospital in Bethlehem. With her Associate’s and Bachelor’s Degree in Middle-Level Education (English Concentration), she believes that teaching and journeying with people where they are is integral to faith development. Being a young person herself, Meagan has a passion for children, youth, and young adult ministries – striving to find ways to get them excited about their own faith. In her free time, you can find Pastor Meagan with her fur babies, crafting, or binge-watching shows on Netflix or Discovery+. Prior to serving as pastor at Exton UMC, Meagan served as pastor at Belfast: Wesley UMC in Nazareth, PA and pastoral intern at Green Pond UMC in Easton, PA.

Libby started as Director of Great Beginnings in June 2022. Her first encounter with this awesome church was back in 2011 when she was the Youth Group Coordinator. Libby began her career in education by teaching public school Kindergarten and middle school English in Coatesville and Harrisburg. She has a passion for theatre and directed all her school’s musicals! She made the transition to ministry work after feeling a strong call to Christian Education. Libby was previously Director of Discovery Corner Preschool at First UMC of Lancaster and worked in Children’s Ministries at various other churches in the conference. Libby, her husband Richard, their two daughters (Poppy and Bellamy) and baby on the way all live in Downingtown.

Libby Barringer, Director of Great Beginnings Christian Preschool & Kindergarten

Our BELIEFS AND MISSION

As a United Method Church, we are part of the second largest Protestant denomination in America. As part of that we uphold our heritage by pursuing ministry in with this tradition in mind. We seek to be generous in spirit, broadminded in welcoming others, devoted to Jesus Christ as servants to the world, and wholly surrendered to God with our lives.

We strive for personal holiness by inviting all people into a life-transforming personal relationship with Jesus Christ, by addressing key issues of our time so that our world will look more like the Kingdom of God.

At Exton UMC, we live by and uphold our mission statement in all that we do. As followers of Jesus Christ, we live out our mission to Love God, Love Others, Serve in our community and in the world. Through our service, we show our love and care for those around us. The work that we do is rooted in our love for God. We recognize God’s love for us through the sacrifice of his son, Jesus Christ, and through his promises to us in scripture.

For more information on the United Methodist Church’s beliefs and values, please visit www.umc.org.