Our History

     THE BEGINNING: September 6, 1953, the first meeting of a group of persons interested in forming a new congregation was held in the Masonic Building on Dorchester Avenue.  This meeting was under the sponsorship and the leadership of the Cherokee Place Methodist Church , seeking to expand its ministry through helping a new church to start.  
     On September 12, 1954, an official service of chartering was held for the Dorchester Avenue Methodist Church . The names of sixty-six persons were read as charter members of this new church. 
     Services continued to be held in the Masonic Temple until October 16, 1955, when property was purchased on the corner of Dorchester and Bonds Avenues. This original building consisted of a sanctuary, restrooms and two ten feet by sixteen feet Sunday School rooms with a six foot vestibule.  By February 21, 1956 the membership had grown to 117 members. 
     The church building located at the corner of Dorchester and  Bonds Avenue soon proved to be inadequate. During the pastorate of the Reverend Ross Pickett, the Quarterly Conference voted unanimously to sell the property and relocate the church. 
     New property was sought and a lot containing three acres was purchased near the corner of Dorchester Road and Goodrich Road (currently called Montague Avenue ).  A sign was erected on the property on this site. After the old property was sold there was a period of seven months when the church met in the Dorchester Terrace Elementary School auditorium. The Reverend Michael Cox arrived during this interim period and the only evidence of having a church was the sign on the property at Dorchester and Goodrich. North Charleston Methodist gave the church lovely pews and pulpit furniture.  Relocation of the church involved not only buildings, but also a name change.  Reverend George W. Whitaker, then the pastor of Aldersgate Methodist Church , suggested the name of COKESBURY METHODIST CHURCH , naming the church for two great leaders of American Methodists, Thomas Coke and Francis Asbury. 
     Ground was broken for the new church on September 24, 1961.
     Saturday, December 30, 1961 found several men moving furnishings into the new building. It was reported that the pastor, the Reverend Michael Cox, played the piano and sang for joy as the truck moved down Dorchester Road heading toward the new building. The first service in the new building was December 31, 1961. 
     The formal opening of the building was held on January 21, 1962. 
     During the pastorate of the Reverend Andrew Gray construction began on an all purpose building at the back of the church building. This building would be used for Sunday School classes, Scout meetings, Youth meetings, and fellowship. 
     On June 26, 1968, the Reverend Stanley A. LaTorre arrived to assume the role of pastor for Cokesbury.  A new Adult Sunday School class was also organized under the leadership of the pastor. This class, known as the Adult Discussion Class, took on several projects, among them being the securing of a bus for use by church groups and the starting of an addition to the church connecting the two buildings. On June 23, 1971, the Administrative Board approved the securing of a loan of $5,000.00 to begin construction on the building. The grounds around the church were beautified, and the all-purpose building constructed during the pastorate of Rev. Gray was completed with the addition of kitchen facilities. 
     The Reverend Henry M. Thomson became pastor on June 21, 1973. When he arrived the walls of the new building connecting the church with the all purpose building were up, but no roof was on the structure. Volunteer help working on Saturdays and nights completed the roof, and work continued on the completion of this building. 
     Reverend J. Arthur Graham came in June of 1977 and stayed at Cokesbury until June of 1982. During the time of his pastorate, Cokesbury installed a sign in front of the church and paved part of our driveway. 
     Reverend Roger Gramling became our pastor in June of 1982. Improvements, such as additional paving, installing vinyl siding, and upgrading the general appearance of the church, were made on the physical property of our church. The gallery of former pastors’ pictures was also placed in the hall of the educational building.  
     Reverend Robert J. Norris came to Cokesbury in January 1986.  The sanctuary was remodeled and an active children’s program was begun.  In 1987, a new storage building was built to house our food pantry and storage.  
     Hurrican Hugo hit on Thursday, September 20, 1989.  It blew our church sign down, damaged the windows over the main door of the church, and a transformer fell through the Fellowship Hall.  Cokesbury also lost ninety (90) pine trees.  Cleanup efforts began immediately. 
     Due to the generosity of the Evelyn Gardner Memorial Fund, the window over the front door was replaced with a stain glass overlay featuring the United Methodist symbol, the cross and flame in 1990.  Our new sign was installed in front of the church in October and the planter around the sign was filled with dirt.        
     After serving Cokesbury for six years, Reverend Robert Norris left in 1992 and we welcomed Reverend Joe N. Long, Jr. 
     In January 1995, plans began for a new Family Life Center consisting of a large gym, fellowship hall, kitchen, and a bathroom.  A groundbreaking ceremony was held on February 26, 1995 for the new Family Life Center.  By August, the new Family Life Center was beginning to take shape as Welbuilt Construction Company began putting up the walls.  Our own church volunteers provided much of the painting and finishing work.  As finishing touches were added to the new Family Life Center , the old fellowship hall began to be converted into five new classrooms.  Cokesbury celebrated the Consecration Ceremony for our new Family Life Center on October 20, 1996. 
     In January 1999, the Church Council began making plans for a new sanctuary.  In August 1999, the Church Council formed a New Sanctuary Building Committee to begin work on the plans for our new sanctuary.  Since that time the church has held numerous fundraisers for the new sanctuary and has worked with area architects to choose just the right plan.  
     We welcomed Pastor A. Robert Nix, Ph.D. in June 2004.  The groundbreaking of our New Sanctuary was held on June 26, 2005, and the New Sanctuary opened it's doors on September 9, 2006 with a Ribbon Cutting.  The Inaugural Service was held on September 10, 2006 with approximately 500 people in attendance, including former pastors, District Superintendent, Gene Curry, and Christian recording star, Peggy Sineath.
     In preparation for the opening of our New Sanctuary, a courtyard was constructed between the Sanctuary and Education Buildings.  The Long Range Action Committee, headed by Russell Keller, began renovation plans for the existing buildings.  Renovation of the Education Building began in March 2007, beginning with the back wing.  This back wing is now the new Children and Youth Education Wing, which opened on April 1, 2007.  It is the first phase of a five phase renovation plan to improve our existing facilities.
     In June 2007, we welcomed Pastor Charles Phillips and his family to Cokesbury.  Currently, the second phase of the LRAC renovation project of our Education Building is near completion.