by Sandra Kupsky - Church Historian

When people gathered to worship outside at the farm of Henry Livengood in 1848, there were two babbling springs on the property between the rocks and under the roots of a large maple tree.  This water furnished an ample supply for all church occasions that included camp meetings and they were a place of respite.  Thus, the founding of Maple Springs United Methodist Church.  Our church name reminds us that Jesus is truly the living water for all who follow him. 

You can still see the springs – there is path at the southwest corner of the parking lot, near Craven Hall.  There is an outdoor worship area with benches, a podium and a cross beside the springs.

Maple Springs first land title was a five acre property dated May 7, 1850.  The first structure on the property was a modest log structure, built very close to the current church location.  A new frame church was built in 1892, a few feet from the log church.  Members of the building committee performed much of the carpentry on the building.  

As the church grew and needs of the congregation changed, it was decided to move the existing church building to a new location on the property in 1927.  Many upgrades were made to the building and a basement was added. The decorative glass windows from that building are in the current sanctuary lobby.  The cornerstone was laid October 16, 1927.  A list with 114 members was placed in the cornerstone.

By 1948, there were 239 members and additional space for meetings and education were needed.  An education building was constructed – having 18 classrooms, a kitchen and 8 auxiliary rooms.  This building is still in use today for Sunday School, the traditional music choir, a library and staff offices.  

By 1954, the church’s continued growth created the need for a new sanctuary.  Ground breaking was September 18, 1955 and the cornerstone was laid September 16, 1956.  The new building had a large sanctuary, Pastor’s study, Parlor, large fellowship hall and kitchen, the church office and additional classrooms.  All of these facilities are still in use today.

In the early 1990s, the church determined that it needed new facilities to attract young families.   After much dedicated work by the building committee and a commitment to financing the project by the church, Craven Hall was completed in 1996. This facility serves as a contemporary worship space and a recreation space and includes a stage, a basketball court and professional kitchen.  The Cokesbury room is used for many church functions and meetings and on Sundays is home to our Chinese congregation. 

Another important part of the Craven Hall project was to add classroom space.  On the first floor, the Maple Springs Preschool operates during the week and on Sundays there are Sunday School classes and Nursery care.  There are beautiful classrooms and two playgrounds.  The second-floor houses Sunday School classes, a space for our Youth Group and several offices. 

Upgrades were made to the sanctuary and Craven Hall in 2012.  New flooring was installed, the paint refreshed, better lighting was added, the sanctuary pulpit and altar area were redesigned and a new organ and grand piano were purchased.  The sound systems were also enhanced.    

In 2022, the Craven Lobby was upgraded with a fresh new look.  The Craven Lobby is the heart of the church during the week and is where you will find a wonderful group of volunteers that greet guests and answer the phones.   

Maple Springs is blessed to have wonderful facilities that have a long history (since 1850!) of being a platform for our ministries.  Maple Springs Life is alive and well in our mission to become Rooted in Christ, Grow in Christ and Bear Fruit for Christ.  

The Maple Springs UMC Food Pantry has been open for over 20 years and continues to provide food to our neighbors in need.  So, what makes this pantry so special?  In my opinion, there are three things we do well.  We are a client choice pantry, we have great volunteers, and our church congregation supports us when the need is there.

A client choice pantry is one that allows the family needing the food to select the items they need and want versus being handed bags of pre-selected food.  When one of our neighbors enters our pantry, they are greeted with shelves holding cans of fruit or vegetables, canned meat, pasta, desserts, crackers, soup, and much more.  They can choose what they like and even sometimes the brand they prefer.  Imagine for a moment how you would feel if you went to the grocery store to get your food for the week and you were given 4 bags of food without being able to select what is in the bags.  Your first action when leaving the store would be to look in the bag to see what is in there and then taking out what you don’t want.  While pre-bagging the food allows a pantry to serve more folks in a certain amount of time, there is the potential of much wasted food.  If you give me a can of chickpeas and I don’t eat them, what happens to that can of food?  By choosing to be a client choice pantry, we provide our neighbors the opportunity to choose those items they need or want and, in the process, they are able to maintain some dignity.

Our amazing volunteers…what can I say!  There have been many volunteers over the years that have touched our pantry and each one of them has left their mark on what we do today.  Whether a person has volunteered once per month or numerous times each month, they have done so primarily to help others.  What is really cool is that it’s not just 4-5 people doing it week after week but over 50 different volunteers have assisted the pantry in some manner over the last year.  Each volunteer has been important in their own way but there are a few that have been extra special over the years.  Walt Moore has been helping to unload the trucks every month if not every week for at least 10 years.  Stephanie Norman works on the computer every Tuesday afternoon and since she has done it for so long, she is our “unofficial trainer” for all new persons wanting to learn the computer software.  Peter Venable has been helping us for years in many different capacities and today helps take the cardboard out to the van every Tuesday morning.  Mike Young is in a race with Stephanie Norman to see who has logged the most volunteer hours over the years and today he helps to restock our shelves each week.  And of course, SueEllen Thomas has been involved for years and today works at the counter on Wednesdays, sends out reminder emails, and chairs our Food Pantry Committee.    If the space allowed, I could mention so many more wonderful volunteers but it’s important that each of them knows the impact they have on our neighbors when they visit.  Our neighbors constantly speak of how welcome they feel here and how kind we are in their time of need.

And last of all, our church congregation.  When we need soup and crackers, we ask, and you deliver.  When we have a condiment food drive, the condiments come in by the hundreds.  When we needed to purchase a new van a couple of years ago, the financial donations allowed us to make the purchase.  We’ve asked for food bags, we’ve had Sunday School class contests, we’ve asked for volunteer help, and it seems that no matter what we ask for, our church and the community are always there to help.  When one of our neighbors needs food, what you do to support the pantry ultimately helps to feed our neighbors.  

In closing, there are dozens of food pantries in Forsyth County and each one of them is special in their own way.  I believe ours is extra special though because of who we are.  We care about our neighbors, we show respect for them when they visit, and we love each other while we are serving.  In the end, our neighbors in need will visit us one time to get food but they will visit us multiple times if we show we care.  Thanks to everyone for all you do to make our pantry so special.  May God bless each person reading this!