Local Church and Ministry Partners Events
If you want to share your church's event, please email the announcement directly to RobinBarge@vaumc.org or use the form HERE to submit the information. Your event may be shared on the Valley Ridge District webpage, newsletter, and social media.
2024
November 28: McKinley UMC Community Thanksgiving Service at 10:00 AM on Thanksgiving Day. Rev. Dr. Dale White will our guest speaker. All are welcome. View flier here.
November 30 at 8:00 am Mount Olivet UMC, located at 26310 Lee Highway in Buchanan will hold its Christmas Bazaar. Serving Breakfast and lunch. Buy your Christmas gifts made by the Mt. Olivet Quilters. Start your day with us and enjoy the fellowship and food. For information call 540-254-1353 or 540-798-8192.
December 7 and 8: Rockingham Court United Methodist Church (located at 4615 Bryan Road, just off Yellow Mountain Road in Roanoke) invites you to its annual live, outdoor, drive-by Nativity Scene. This free, beautiful event will be held the evenings of Saturday December 7 and Sunday December 8 from 6:00 – 8:00 pm (weather permitting). We’re excited to share this event with you again this year.
December 7th at 7PM: St. Mark's UMC in Daleville, located at 19 Cedar Ridge Drive, presents a Celtic Christmas Concert. Get ready for an unforgettable Celtic Christmas celebration! Local Celtic duo Kinnfolk will be joined by their friends The Mackenzies and Appalachian Piping Academy to bring you an evening of lively holiday music guaranteed to get your foot tapping and hands clapping. This concert is the perfect way to ring in the season with Celtic cheer as these fantastic bands will fill the hall with festive tunes that evoke the spirit of Christmas! As they say in Irish Gaelic, “NOLLAIG SHONA DHAOÍBH!”
O'Holy Bright: Drive Thru Christmas Lights at St. Mark's UMC in Daleville, located at 19 Cedar Ridge Drive. See the lights on: December 13, 14, 15, 20, 21, 22, and 24th from 6 - 9PM: These are free drive-through Christmas lights!
December 14 Greenville UMC located at 126 Main Street in Greenville, VA, will host Breakfast with Santa from 8 am to 10:30 am. From 8 am to 10 am, we will serve a breakfast of sausage, pancakes, fruit cups and beverage of your choice. Breakfast is free though donations are welcomed. Santa arrives at 9 a.m. We will also have silent auction and bake sale. Our Discount Warehouse will be open from 8 am to 10:00 am. View event page here.
December 14 at 2:30 pm South Roanoke UMC will host Home for the Holidays, featuring Akemi Takayama on violin, Philip Bouknight on bass, and David Stewart Wiley on piano. Complimentary admission, with a love offering to support the Concert Series. There will be a drawing for a CD. All ages welcome. The program features traditional Christmas music, including a Christmas carol singalong, and selections showcasing the church’s fine Steinway piano.
December 15, at 3:00 pm, Schola Cantorum, Community Christmas Concert in Waynesboro, held at First Baptist Church, 301 S. Wayne Avenue, Waynesboro. It will be an afternoon of wonderful music from our re-energized 50-voice choir, all volunteers, an excellent pianist/organist and soloists, directed by Adam Phillips. View flier here.
December 21st at 7PM St. Mark's UMC in Daleville, located at 19 Cedar Ridge Drive, is offering: The Longest Night: A Blue Christmas Service. Join us for an evening of scripture, song, and fellowship during the longest night of the year.
Sunday, December 22nd at 10AM St. Mark's UMC in Daleville, located at 19 Cedar Ridge Drive, is offering Stars of Glory: A Christmas Cantata. Join us to celebrate the Christmas season with a cantata performed by our choir! The performance, Stars of Glory, is inspired by traditional Celtic carols.
Tuesday, December 24th at 5PM St. Mark's UMC in Daleville, located at 19 Cedar Ridge Drive, is offering Family Christmas Eve: A Candlelight Nativity. A retelling of the Christmas Story using scripture, song, and candles! While this service has live candles, we also have battery operated candles so all ages can be involved.
Tuesday, December 24th at 11PM St. Mark's UMC in Daleville, located at 19 Cedar Ridge Drive, is offering Traditional Christmas Eve Lessons and Carols. Celebrate the story of Jesus' birth with a traditional Lessons and Carols service, originally started in 1880. While this service has live candles, we also have battery operated candles so all ages can be involved, and will end with Holy Communion.
December 24 at 6:00 pm St. Paul UMC located at 502 Gilmer Ave NW in Roanoke will host Christmas Eve Lessons and Carols by Candlelight, with special guests: Dr. James Abbington, Associate Professor of Church Music and Worship at Candler School of Theology and editor of numerous musical publications including, The African American Heritage Hymnal; Rev. Dr. Cynthia Hale, member of the Board of Trustees of Hollins University, and recipient of numerous honors including being inducted into the African-American Biographies Hall of Fame; and Ms. Shawn Spencer, a Roanoke jazz and blues vocalist. Join us for the holy mystery of the Christ child as told through song and scripture. View the flier here.
December 24 at 7:00 pm Newport-Mt. Olivet UMC located at 311 Blue Grass Trail in Newport will host a family friendly Christmas Eve Service. Join us at 7:00 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 24 for a service of Carols and Scripture as we celebrate the birth of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. This year’s presentation, The First Christmas, will be told by those who were there to greet and worship the Newborn King.View the flier here.
2025
January 11 Go Training Event with the Northern Virginia Conference
The Valley Ridge District is excited to partner with the Northern Virginia District for this year’s Training Day. NoVa District Training Day is an annual event designed to equip, encourage, and empower clergy and laity in their ministry. This year’s theme is Go! Make Disciples! Transform the World! and features keynotes from Bishop Sue Haupert-Johnson, Bishop Kenneth H. Carter, Jr., and Michael Beck. We will host satellite locations at Calvary UMC (Stuarts Draft), edges (a campus of Blacksburg UMC), and South Roanoke UMC. Satellite participants will gather at those locations and experience Training Day together. Lunch is provided. View the flier here. We encourage you to bring a team from your church so that together you can listen, learn, and prepare to equip your church for disciple-making alongside others from across the Valley Ridge District. The cost to attend a satellite location is $45/person and includes three keynote presentations, fellowship and conversation, and lunch. To register, use this link: https://2025.novatrainingday.com. For questions or assistance registering, please contact Robin Barge robinbarge@vaumc.org or 540-989-3335.
February 1 Blacksburg UMC located at 111 Church St. in Blacksburg is hosting a Rise Against Hunger event from 10 am to 12 pm in their Whisner building. Rise Against Hunger is growing a global movement to end hunger by empowering communities, nourishing lives and responding to emergencies. In 2022, 67.6 million meals were distributed worldwide! Sign up as a volunteer to assist with setting up prior to the event, packing the meals, and cleanup afterward. Sign up link here.
February 8 Valley Ridge District Safer Sanctuaries Training 10am-12 pm at Main Street UMC in Waynesboro, located at 601 West Main Street.
