Beech Grove United Methodist Church stands on Driver Lane in the Driver community of Suffolk, Virginia. Founded in 1871 on Bennett's Pasture Road, it is known for Sunday worship that blends familiar hymns with contemporary music, ministries that reach beyond its sanctuary, and an annual homemade Easter Egg Factory. Its vision is to be "a visible church without walls," strengthening the community by connecting resources to need through partnerships.
A Suffolk Church Rooted Since 1871
Since its beginning on Bennett's Pasture Road, Beech Grove has served the Driver community for more than a century. Its present home at 4251 Driver Lane combines a small church building with a wide range of activities, including Bible study, music, youth and family gatherings, Scouting, a community garden, mission work and Easter Egg Factory volunteers. Its ministry extends well beyond the limits of its physical building.
Beech Grove describes itself as a community of believers reaching out to people in Suffolk and welcoming all persons regardless of who they are or where they are in their faith journey. Its mission is expressed through the Great Commission in Matthew 28:19-20: "Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you." The church also emphasizes Scripture, teaching and service to God in Suffolk and "across creation."
Hospitality is central to the church's identity. Beech Grove welcomes people from varied work, financial and educational backgrounds because it loves people "no matter how they dress, act, or live." That welcome is tied to a promise of acceptance: the congregation wants people to become who they are meant to be. Its members also point to a well of wisdom born from experience, shared without judgment or pretenses.
This combination of welcome and service shapes the church's understanding of community. People gathered for worship and people in the surrounding neighborhood are both part of its focus. Its staff and committees work to foster a warm, inclusive environment, while spiritual growth, fellowship, prayer and generosity are named as central strands of life together. Beech Grove presents worship, family events and acts of service as connected ways of participating in mission.
Pastor Andrew Ware has served since July 2020, beginning his ministry in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. He hopes the church will shine as a beacon for the community. Ware lives with his wife and two children and spends time away from the office running, watching sports and drinking coffee, often on trails and roads around Hampton Roads.
Sunday Worship at 10:30
Sunday worship begins at 10:30 a.m. every week at Beech Grove on Driver Lane and is offered both in person and virtually. The praise choir sings a blended repertoire of many familiar hymns alongside newer contemporary music, and the choir also performs cantatas for holidays. Virtual participants have access to sermon notes and weekly worship resources, including the bulletin, and can give online.
At 10:30, children join the congregation in the sanctuary. After the children's message, children in grades K through 5 go to a special Sunday school experience, while the nursery remains available for the entire service. Beech Grove welcomes visitors for worship, fellowship or outreach.
Learning, Music and Fellowship
Children and Youth
Family events throughout the year include Trunk or Treat, an Easter Egg Hunt and Breakfast with Santa. In cooperation with other churches in Driver, Beech Grove holds Vacation Bible School each summer. Children explore faith through music, crafts, games and science. Middle school and high school youth groups are also part of the church's ministry.
Adult Study and Worship Music
Adult Sunday School meets every Sunday at 9:00 a.m. in the Annex, the brick building next to the church. Each week participants dive deeper into Scripture and discuss what it teaches.
The open Praise Choir practices at 6:00 p.m. every Thursday, sings at the 10:30 Sunday service and performs at several musical programs through the year. Music Director Patty Yandle welcomes people who enjoy singing and fellowship to join.
Groups for Fellowship
- Singles Group: Single and widowed adults meet on the third Saturday of each month for fellowship, with some meetings taking the form of an outing.
- Foodie Group: The group meets on the third Wednesday of each month around a different theme or cuisine. Members prepare and share a meal and may bring a dish or simply their enthusiasm.
- Women in Faith: Open to all women, including nonmembers, this group meets at 11:00 a.m. on the second Monday of each month and sponsors church and community benefit activities and fundraisers.
- United Methodist Men: This informal group meets occasionally to plan service to church and community. Its activities include breakfast for Driver Days, a communitywide Pancake Supper on Shrove Tuesday, grilled chicken or hot dogs at a church luncheon and cleanups of the church grounds.
- Scrapbooking: The group usually meets twice a quarter, depending on holidays and the church schedule. No experience is needed. Participants explore safe ways to keep traditional or digital photos and work with photo storage, memory keeping and photo gifts.
Scouting, Driver Days and the Community Garden
Beech Grove is home to Girl Scout, Boy Scout, Cub Scout and Sea Scout ministries, and several troops meet at the church. Its facilities are also available for community use. Scouting, shared space and community events extend the church's life beyond Sunday worship.
Beech Grove supports Driver Days, the primary fundraising event for the Driver Volunteer Fire Department. Its community garden provides raised beds that individuals rent and manage, making room for vegetables, favorite plants and neighborhood cooperation.
The Driver Lane property functions throughout the week, not only on Sunday. Scouts use the church, other community groups use the facilities, food is prepared there for Salvation Army meals, and the Blessing Box remains available outside on Driver Lane. That regular use gives physical expression to the phrase "church without walls" and keeps the building connected to relationships beyond the congregation.
Meals, Resources and Partnerships
The church places ministry at the intersection of outreach and discipleship. Its partnerships turn concern for neighbors into food, shelter support, global relief and hands-on service.
The Blessing Box stands on Driver Lane in front of the church. People can take a food box they need and leave what they are able to give. A separate food pantry is maintained for neighbors, and outreach collections add school supplies, children's items and seasonal goods to the support offered throughout the year.
- Salvation Army: Beech Grove helps prepare and serve a meal there. Food is prepared at the church one day, then finalized and served the next.
- Coalition Against Poverty in Suffolk: The coalition assists poor and homeless people in Suffolk with rent or bill relief and winter shelter; Beech Grove supports its work.
- UMCOR: Beech Grove supports the United Methodist Committee on Relief, which responds to disasters nationally and internationally. The church collects donations throughout the year, especially after natural disasters, as well as supplies for relief kits. One hundred percent of donations go directly to relief.
- Rise Against Hunger: The international nonprofit works to end world hunger through education and meal packing. Beech Grove has partnered with it for several years and holds a yearly packing drive.
- Camp Rainbow Connection: Beech Grove supports an annual week-long stay for adults with intellectual disabilities. Campers take part in fun and challenging events that express Christian community and values, with opportunities for staff volunteers.
Recurring outreach collections include Soup-er Bowl Sunday, Seats and Feet for Kids, school supplies, kits for Annual Conference, Thanksgiving baskets and Christmas stockings. Through its Missions Committee and community partnerships, the church provides supplies to local elementary schools, Thanksgiving dinners with Suffolk Social Services and Christmas gifts for children through the Salvation Army. Beech Grove also sends mission teams worldwide.
The Annual Easter Egg Factory
Beech Grove is known for an annual Easter Egg Factory held during the weeks before Easter. Volunteers make homemade chocolate-covered eggs in four flavors. Most proceeds support mission work and other outreach programs, making the factory a direct link between a neighborhood tradition and the church's wider service. Neighborhood volunteers join in the work and fellowship of producing the eggs.
Acceptance, Service and God-Directed Growth
Beech Grove names wisdom, hospitality, service, ministry and direction as defining qualities. Wisdom is experience offered without judgment. Hospitality remains the center. Service is expressed through Scouting, community facilities and local partnerships. Its wider ministry includes Bible study, the Praise Choir, Praise Band, youth groups and men's and women's fellowships. Direction means bringing the best of the church's past into the present and letting God direct its future.
The church's life in Suffolk joins worship and spiritual growth to fellowship, service and sustained attention to the needs of people. Its story stretches from a Driver community congregation founded in 1871 to relationships with organizations serving Suffolk, people experiencing homelessness and communities reached through relief and mission work. Beech Grove remains intentionally a visible church without walls, connecting resources to need and making room for every person.