ADDRESS: 52 Tuttle Road

DENOMINATION/AFFILIATION: United Methodist

HISTORY: Erected in 1882, the original church was built by those who would later sit in its pews, using timbers from their own wood lots.

The idea of building a church on Tuttle Road arose when the Cumberland segment of the congregation of the Methodist Church on the Cumberland-Falmouth town line felt the need for a center of worship in their own community.

The plot on Tuttle Road was centrally located across from the schoolhouse and near the neighborhood center of Poland Corners. The building was called “the chapel” to distinguish it from the mother church. It cost $1,500 and was dedicated free of debt. The first pastor was Eliazar Hutchinson.

In 1886, the Cumberland Methodist Episcopal Church was dedicated, and a series of revival meetings were held that increased membership and firmly established the church’s ministry in the community. The original building and a parish house added in the 1920s facilitated the church’s ministry through most of the 20th century.

Growth in the church and the community led to the construction of a large, multipurpose worship space and a new kitchen, completed and dedicated in 1994. A third building phase connected the original church building to the new one, adding a narthex, classrooms and office space in 2002. In 2005, a formal memorial garden was created on the grounds, and a parsonage was built in a wooded area behind the church.

Tuttle Road UMC continues a tradition of active and diverse outreach locally through Habitat for Humanity of Greater Portland, Friendship House, the Wayside Soup Kitchen and the local Food Pantry, and globally through the ministries of the United Methodist denomination that include disaster relief, volunteers in mission trips and initiatives such as the “Imagine No Malaria” campaign to combat malaria in Africa.

Alcoholics Anonymous meets twice weekly at the church, and various groups in the area use the multipurpose space for concerts.
Spiritual growth at Tuttle Road UMC is nurtured through an active small group ministry: Bible studies, spiritual formation groups and retreats, lay speaking courses, a cancer support group, an active prayer shawl ministry, a book club, fellowship opportunities and occasional evening worship services in the style of Taize.

The pastor at Tuttle Road UMC is the Rev. Meg Queior, who has served since July 2005.

WORSHIP SERVICES: September through May services include an informal contemporary service at 9 a.m. Sundays and traditional worship and Sunday school at 10:30 a.m. Child care is available, and the buildings are accessible to everyone. Summer worship, Memorial Day through Labor Day, is at 9 a.m. Sunday.

CONTACT: 829-3766; www.tuttleroadumc.org; www.10thousanddoors.org. The church also has a Facebook page.