History

1958 - 1969: BEGINNINGS

During the year 1958, the Strategy Committee of Philadelphia Presbytery, aware of the potential growth of the suburbs, encouraged purchase of several tracts of land in a circle around the City. One of those sites was six acres of land on Route 202 in New Britain Borough.

During the summer of 1960, the Doylestown Presbyterian Church with Dr. Thomas S. Goslin as Pastor, encouraged all who lived in the Chalfont-New Britain area to consider being a part of this exiting new venture.

In the fall of 1961, the Rev. Jack Heinsohn was called as organizing pastor. With a rich background in the circus, Jack brought the charisma and enthusiasm that was needed for such a task. He went door-to-door inviting people to participate. Many responded to initial meetings in what was then The Chalfont Grange. Soon outgrowing these facilities the congregation moved to the former Albert Wick V.F.W. Building on Route 152 South. On March 25, 1962 the congregation of Lenape Valley Presbyterian Church was formally organized with one hundred twenty members.

Appreciative of the financial assistance made possible through grants and funds from Presbytery, the original Session presented a workable budget based on ‘Dollar for Dollar’ giving. This concept was proposed as an act of faith in recognition of the generous support Lenape Valley had received from Presbytery and our neighboring congregations.

When the Chalfont Methodist Church moved from North Main Street to its current site, Lenape Valley moved in, remaining there until our present Christian Education facility was constructed in 1965. Feeling he had completed his task, Jack left in November of 1969. After pastorates in New Castle, PA and Los Angeles, CA, he is presently serving the congregation of the Presbyterian Church of Norcross, GA.

1970 - 1975: TRANSITION

Lenape Valley was without a pastor for fifteen months. At the beginning of that period the Rev. George Ames, then Pastor of the Ambler Church moderated until he became ill. However even with the resultant discontinuity, it is significant that new members still came to Lenape Valley Presbyterian Church.

After an extensive search, Lenape Valley called as their second pastor the Rev. Daniel W. Reid, who began serving in February, 1971. Dan , a Philadelphia native, came to us after spending thirteen years in rural Minnesota.

In 1975 three things occurred which provided both stability and direction for the future:

1. Our involvement as a Pilot Church in Synod's RISK Evangelism Program, which brought us together as a congregation;
2. The winds of the charismatic movement, which deepened our prayer life and instilled in us a new joy and love;
3. The deaths, each emotional in its own way of six members in the first seven months of the year (after there had been only eight in the previous twelve years), which forced us to mature.

1975 also saw the completion of the sanctuary where we currently worship. Funding was a real source of concern as construction costs ran higher than anticipated. At just the time there was fear of not having enough money to furnish the sanctuary, God provided pews, a pulpit and lectern, a communion table base, and leaded glass doors from a church in Philadelphia when it was dissolved.

1980 - 1987: REACHING OUT

A job description for a part-time director of Christian Education developed in the spring of 1982 by our Christian Education Committee, led to the hiring of Karen Kuehne, one of our members, to fill this position. Owing to her pregnancy, Karen resigned shortly thereafter.

Meanwhile our longtime Parish Associate, the Rev. Harvey Miracle, suffered a heart attack. After a second such attack, he died shortly after Christmas that same year. In February of 1983 the Rev. Thomas Wray was hired to replace both Karen and Harvey. Tom served on a part-time basis through the spring of 1986.

As it became apparent that full-time pastoral assistance was needed, a Search Committee was formed in the autumn of 1985. After many months of diligent and prayerful searching, the Rev. Douglas C. Hoglund became our first full-time Associate Pastor. Doug began his duties on July 1, 1986.

As we completed the first twenty-five years of our ministry and outreach in the New Britain-Chalfont and greater Doylestown and Lansdale areas, we looked to the rapidly expanding community with excitement and enthusiasm, exceedingly grateful to God for His blessings the first quarter century.

1988 - 1997: COMING OF AGE

The excitement and enthusiasm soon became grounded in reality as Sunday Church School and youth groups grew. It was during this period that the annual Senior High Mission trip was instituted; Vacation Church School continued to attract non-members from the community; and the 9:15 Worship Service eclipsed the 11:00 in attendance as more and more young parents brought their children to Sunday Church School and remained to worship.

Before long it became apparent that we had outgrown the Christian Education facilities (as well as those for other program areas); and as the decade of the 90’s dawned discussions were held about yet another building expansion. These culminated in the dedication, in June of 1993, of a new, air-conditioned fellowship hall; six additional classrooms; the renovation of the original sanctuary into four more classrooms; and an expanded narthex. As a result of the additional classroom space, we were then able to institute our own Christian Nursery School, directed by one of our members, Kathy Stone.

Doug left to become Pastor of the Woodside Presbyterian Church in Yardley, PA, in January of 1994; and, after an interim period under the Rev. Martha Bowman, the Rev. Steven M. Gribble was called to be our second Associate, beginning his work in May of 1995 after serving as solo pastor for 6 1/2 years in southern Ohio. With the continued effectiveness of several dozen of our men at Promise Keepers Conferences, the foundation continues to be laid for effective ministry and service for many years to come.

In May of 1997, the dreams of many became a reality as the newly installed Aeolian Pipe organ was dedicated to the glory of God and serves as another reminder of God's faithfulness and perfect timing. The organ, which was a part of the Academy of Music in Philadelphia, was held in storage for three years until it was acquired and installed in a chamber of the sanctuary which was originally designed "in the hopes that someday we will have a pipe organ".

1998 : VISIONING FOR THE FUTURE

On Easter Sunday of 1998 Rev. Reid; Senior Pastor retired after serving an effective ministry at Lenape Valley for over 27 years. As the congregation discerns the direction the Holy Spirit is leading into the next century, the Small Group Ministry continues to grow and nurture many individuals who seek to live out a life of faith as they reach out to the surrounding community and world with the good news of the gospel of Christ.

2000 - Present: MISSIONAL CHURCH ENDEAVOR

In March of 2000, W. Douglas Hood, Jr. began his tenure as Head of Staff.  A graduate of Eckerd College and Columbia Theological Seminary, Doug has centered the church focus on the strong delivery of Jesus' message and the importance of discipleship.  The church mission was reshaped to concentrate on efforts of make followers, multiply disciples, and transform lives and has evolved into a missional church directive where Lenape Valley is to become an outward focused church.

 In conjunction with a missional transformation, a capital campaign to renovate the church structure was launched in 2008 and construction began in the spring of 2009. The new enhancements to the building structure include the remodeling of the  sanctuary with improved lighting, quieter and more efficient HVAC, and a state of the art sound system to support audio and video enhancements to worship.  Other noteable structural improvements are a completely remodeled basement to support the strategic goal of expanding our youth outreach, and enhancements to our parlor and fellowship hall to support church and community activities.