St. Paul and McMurry connections
Dr. J.W Hunt, founder and first president of McMurry College, now a university, was appointed pastor of St. Paul on June 29, 1914, after serving several smaller churches. Two years later, in the summer of 1916, Dr. Hunt was named president of Stamford College, a school started by area Methodists and supported by Methodists from all over the Northwest Texas Conference. Declining enrollment, economic downturns, and a fire that burned the administration building to the ground on April 10, 1918, coupled with the strains of World War I, forced closure of Stamford College. Dr. Hunt was sent back to St. Paul. One of his early sermons was titled, “Methodism’s Opportunity in West Texas.” The “opportunity” was a college in Abilene, with the congregation of St. Paul leading the campaign. Methodists were successful when McMurry College opened in September 1923. 

Click here to read St. Paul history.

Click here to learn more about Abilene Classical Academy.

By Loretta Fulton

St. Paul United Methodist Church will sell its building to Abilene Classical Academy effective Oct. 1, but members will continue to worship in the sanctuary through Dec. 31, 2028.

The proposal to sell the church, which was founded in 1909, was approved Sunday, Sept. 27, by 77 percent of the members who were present, which was a requirement for voting. Total number of people casting votes was 97, said Rev. Benji Van Fleet, pastor. 

The congregation will spend the next two years deciding St. Paul’s future. Rather than focusing on the building, Van Fleet said, members can concentrate on being “the hands and feet of Jesus” in the community. 

“It takes courage to be proactive,” he said

Sunday’s vote came after months of study, written communications, and two informational sessions that were held on Sunday, Sept. 20. The sale was recommended by the strategic planning committee, led by Dani Ramsay, chair.

“We’ve got to look up and quit worrying about our building, Ramsay said. “Right now, it’s our dominant worry.” 

St. Paul United Methodist Church

The sale price was set at $1,150,000, which will be in cash. St. Paul members will pay $10,000 a month to the academy to rent the sanctuary and other spaces through Dec. 31, 2028. St. Paul will retain personal property as outlined in the contract. 

Van Fleet was appointed pastor of St. Paul on July 1, 2022. When he first arrived at St. Paul, Lisa Barela was the secretary. She has been a member of St. Paul for 40 years and had been the secretary for 35 years before retiring in January 2026. She said that although smaller, the congregation of St. Paul remains a close knit family. 

“I feel like we have a very strong bond with one another,” she said. 

Despite her many years as a member, Barela said she was pleased with the upcoming sale. She was hired by former pastor Rev. David Hamblin, who served at St. Paul from 1986 to 1995. Hamblin died in 2014. When he hired Barela, the church held two worship services on Sundays, with 200 present for the early service and 500 attending the late service. But, Barela said, those days are in the past, and it’s time for a change.

“I feel like there is a bright future for St. Paul,” Barela said.

Left to right, St. Paul under construction in 1909, cornerstone, St Paul in the 1940s. Historic photos courtesy Jay Moore

When Van Fleet arrived at St. Paul in 2022, the church was still recovering from the COVID pandemic of 2020. And, like most, it still hasn’t reached its pre-COVID attendance numbers. 

The United Methodist Church also went through a split with the launch of the Global Methodist Church on May 1, 2022, which affected enrollment at many United Methodist churches. The majority of congregations in the former Northwest Texas Annual Conference chose to disaffiliate from the United Methodist Church and join the Global Methodist Church over disagreements, primarily based on sexuality issues. St. Paul and St. James are the only two remaining United Methodist Churches in Abilene. St. Paul members must decide whether to use proceeds from the sale to purchase an existing property or buy land on which to build.

“We are going somewhere together,” Van Fleet promised. 

One of the presenters at an informational session on Sept. 20 was Tucker Bridwell, a longtime member of St. Paul who served on the strategic planning committee. He said that in the 1950s, St. Paul had 2,700 members on its rolls. Now, it has 425 members on record, with about 150 attending on services.

“It’s no surprise to you that we’ve shrunk,” Bridwell said. 

St. Paul members will continue to worship in the sanctuary through Dec. 31, 2028. Abilene Classical Academy will occupy the rest of the 72,000 square-foot building, including 27 of the approximately 30 classrooms for educational purposes. For special occasions, St. Paul and the academy will share spaces. The academy also will install security fencing and gates, and repaint and add new carpeting to the classrooms. 

Presenters at the Sept. 20 informational session said St. Paul currently is paying $300,000 a year in expenses, including $10,000 monthly in utility costs. With the $10,000 monthly rent to the Abilene Classical Academy, St. Paul will eliminate those expenses. 

Abilene Classical Academy was founded in the fall of 2021 at Southside Baptist Church, where it currently is located. Founder was Blake White, pastor of Southside Baptist. The academy began with grades K-5 and now houses pre-K through 11th grade. Head of School is Jackson Boen.

A senior class will be added next year. Classes are held three days a week, with the students being home-schooled two days. Currently, the academy has 210 students and will increase that number steadily, capping at 360 students–the main reason to purchase St. Paul.

“They’re out of space,” White said. 

Loretta Fulton is creator and editor of Spirit of Abilene