A Generous Community on East Broadway
St. Paul's United Methodist Church sits along East Broadway Boulevard on Tucson's east side, a long-serving neighborhood church whose tagline reads, "A generous community following Jesus for the good of the world." Members and staff describe the congregation with four values: belonging, compassion, faith, and helping others. The phrase appears on every page, and the building reflects the same spirit, with a Sanctuary that hosts two distinct Sunday services, a Billy and Ann Still Life Center, a Brummet Hall, an A-Frame building used for more intimate worship, and offices that are open Monday through Thursday from 9:00 am to 2:00 pm.
The church belongs to The United Methodist Church and the Desert Southwest Conference. Rev. Ron V. Bartlow, who grew up in Arizona and graduated from Northern Arizona University, is in his eighth appointment as a United Methodist pastor. He aims, as he puts it, to "educate the mind, inspire the heart, and motivate the will," and to live out the commandment to "love one another as I have loved you." Under his preaching, the Sunday pulpit has moved through summer series on the Book of Jonah, an Advent series titled "Christmas Through the Lens of Hollywood," and a fall walk through the narrative lectionary that traces the larger story of Scripture from Creation through the prophets.
Two Services, One Sanctuary
St. Paul's keeps its two Sunday services under a single Sanctuary roof so that families and friends of every preference can worship together and then meet in the pews afterward. The 9:00 am Traditional service is the older of the two. The Early Bird Choir and the Sanctuary Singers lead hymns that have been cherished for generations, alongside newer ones the choir has come to love. The 10:30 am Contemporary service is a higher-energy gathering led by the praise band Grace Multiplied, and the sanctuary fills with the sounds of children as well as adult worshippers. Both services are livestreamed on YouTube, and worship bulletins are posted online after each Sunday.
Visitors can expect a warm and unhurried welcome. Greeters will not ask anyone to stand up and be identified as a guest. Children who would rather stay with a parent than head to a classroom are welcome to do so; there is no pressure to give a name, address, or contact information on a first visit. Communion is open to any person of any age who wishes to receive it. The congregation's affirmation page is plain about this: "We strive to be a generous community. This includes being generous in our care for and inclusion of one another." Holy Communion, baptism, weddings, and funerals are all part of the life of the church.
Welcome, Open Doors, Open Arms
The "All Are Welcome" statement lists the long Methodist heritage of "the people called Methodist," quoting the three simple rules that have shaped the tradition for centuries: do good, do no harm, and stay connected with God through what John Wesley called the ordinances of God, the practices of worship, prayer, communion, fasting, and acts of mercy such as visiting the sick or providing for those in need. The statement goes on to affirm that every person is of sacred worth, whatever their age, race, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity, political persuasion, or any other identity that might be used to classify or separate.
For families with children, the church takes child protection seriously. Every employee and volunteer who works with children must pass a background clearance, and each classroom is staffed with two adults, or with one adult and a youth helper. The church teaches about the love of Jesus through object lessons, crafts, games, stories, science, drama, and cooking, using interactive learning styles suited to the way children actually absorb the Bible.
Family Ministries: Children, Youth, and Upward Sports
The Family Ministries team, led by Director of Family Ministries Heather Stein, draws together three strands: Children's Ministry, Youth Ministry, and Sports Ministry. Children from kindergarten age upward have a place in Sunday School, weekday activities, and the annual Vacation Bible School, which the church has been running in partnership with Desert Skies UMC and Christ Church United Methodist. The most recent VBS, "True North," was offered during Spring Break for preschoolers through fifth grade and walked children through the idea of Jesus as a faithful friend we can always trust, the True North who guides them.
Heather Stein has more than two decades of experience as a children's, youth, and family ministry director, and has been an invited speaker at Tucson's Ignite Children's Ministry Conference. Her background shows up in the variety of teaching tools used at St. Paul's, and in the breadth of the family calendar.
Middle and high school students (grades 6 through 12) are part of a shared youth ministry that St. Paul's runs with Christ Church United Methodist and Desert Skies UMC, three congregations pooling their resources so that students have a larger peer group to grow with. Luis Ortiz Erazo serves as Director of Youth Ministries. Youth Group meets on Sunday afternoons from 4:00 to 5:30 pm, with locations that rotate between the three churches. The three priorities of the program are belonging, faith formation, and service. Students register through the church's online form and then join in for fellowship, connection, prayer, and mission projects.
Sports Ministry is led by Director of Sports Ministries Jim Plumb and centers on the Upward Basketball and Cheerleading league. Upward is designed for kindergarten through sixth grade boys and girls, with a ten-game season that includes a basketball jersey top or cheer uniform. Registration is $130 per child. The goal, in the program's own language, is to teach the Word of Jesus Christ through youth sports and to help children learn how to play with purpose, building character and self-esteem through basketball and cheer.
Adult Ministries: Stretch, Pray, Read, Show Up
Adult life at St. Paul's is busy in a quiet way. The Billy and Ann Still Life Center, named and dedicated as such, is the home base for Sam's Stretching and Strengthening Class, which meets Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays from 9:00 to 10:15 am. The class focuses on mobility, balance, strength, and a healthier lifestyle, and participants are asked to wear comfortable clothing and bring drinking water. Sam Freeman Jr. leads the class and handles registration by phone.
On Tuesday evenings, Brummet Hall becomes the practice space for Tai Chi for Health, a Sun-style program developed by Dr. Paul Lam and the Tai Chi for Health Institute. Classes run from 5:15 to 6:00 pm and cover basic forms and principles for stress reduction, gentle stretching, exercise, improved balance, and enjoyment. The fee is $5 per lesson, and registration goes through Robert Armstrong. The same Tuesday evening slot opens into the Show Up group, which meets at 6:00 pm in the Life Center Shalom Room for games, discussion, movies, and snacks.
For knitters and crocheters, the Prayer Shawl group meets on Thursdays from 2:00 to 3:00 pm in the Life Center Serendipity Room. Readers gather around the Fiction Book Club, which meets on the first Monday of each month from 6:30 to 8:00 pm via Zoom. The Zoom format is intentional: it lets winter visitors and travelers stay connected to the group. Two adult Sunday School classes also meet on Sunday mornings at 10:30 am in the Life Center for Bible and book study.
Music: Early Birds and Grace Multiplied
Music is woven through both Sunday services. Pianist Brent Burmeister has been part of St. Paul's since 2006, when he was brought in by the late Dr. Carrol McLaughlin, and he plays at all three Sunday services (with the Christmas Eve A-Frame service adding a third slot). Because he accompanies most of the church's musicians, both volunteer and staff, he has the joy of greeting nearly everyone who walks through the door.
Shirley Maddox directs the Early Bird Choir that sings at the first service and leads the St. Paul's Welcome Team. She is a fan of square dancing and volleyball outside of church life. Crystal Stark directs Grace Multiplied, the contemporary praise band that anchors the 10:30 am service. Grace Multiplied is open to new members, and Crystal regularly invites musicians who are interested in joining to come up and say hello after the service. The same musicians also lead the contemporary Christmas Eve service, with the Sanctuary Singers taking the candlelight A-Frame gathering later in the evening.
Going Into the Community: Food Pantry and Mission Partnerships
St. Paul's describes itself as a generous community, and the missions page makes that visible. A community food pantry, operated as a partner of the Community Food Bank of Southern Arizona, is open Monday through Friday from 9:00 am to 11:30 am. People who need additional help are encouraged to call the pantry line at 520-296-1927. The church also points neighbors to foodpantries.org as a broader directory of food assistance in the Tucson area.
Beyond Tucson, the congregation has long-standing ties to two international partners. The John Dean Town relationship supports a school and medical clinic in Liberia, while the Jim Calfee Africa Project works with the citizens of Kijabe, Kenya, and surrounding areas to promote the welfare and education of children so they can lead their communities forward.
Closer to home, St. Paul's supports three partner schools, Dietz K-8, Henry Elementary, and Robles Elementary, through an annual school supply drive that has run for twenty-five years, with collection bins in the Sanctuary each summer. The church also joins other faith communities in the Interfaith Community Services Peanut Butter Party Food Drive and organizes group outings into the community, including Tucson Meet Yourself, the Willcox Wine Country Fall Festival, a Tucson Roadrunners ice hockey game, Trunk or Treat, and the Winterhaven Festival of Lights.
The Preschool, the A-Frame, and the Campuses of Care
St. Paul's United Methodist Preschool is a non-profit weekday program serving children ages 3 to 5. The school runs from mid-August through mid-May and provides a warm, nurturing environment with a high-quality early education program that lays the foundation for learning success. Registration and tuition questions go through the preschool's own line at 520-260-1350.
The Sanctuary remains the heart of Sunday worship, but two other spaces carry their own ministries. The Billy and Ann Still Life Center, a generous room that can be set up with chairs and tables, hosts exercise classes, prayer shawl gatherings, and small group meetings during the week. Brummet Hall, named for a family in the church's history, is where tai chi practitioners practice their Sun-style forms on Tuesday evenings.
The A-Frame building, a smaller and more intimate worship space, hosts the 9:00 pm Christmas Eve service, "A Cozy Christmas of Songs & Stories," an updated version of the ancient tradition of Lessons and Carols. Two earlier Christmas Eve services fill the Sanctuary: an 11:00 am traditional "Tidings of Comfort and Joy" led by the Early Bird Choir, and a 5:00 pm contemporary "Tidings of Comfort and Joy" led by Grace Multiplied and shared by Rev. Ron Bartlow and Rev. Beth Rambikur of Christ Church.
Leadership and Staff
The pastoral team is led by Rev. Ron V. Bartlow, Senior Pastor, who has served United Methodist churches across the Desert Southwest Conference for more than two decades. His wife, Lynn, also pastors, serving at St. Mark's United Methodist Church on the northwest side of Tucson, and they have two teenage children at home. Heather Stein directs Family Ministries, Luis Ortiz Erazo directs Youth Ministries, and Jim Plumb directs Sports Ministries.
On the music side, Brent Burmeister is the church's pianist; Shirley Maddox directs the Early Bird Choir at the traditional service; and Crystal Stark directs Grace Multiplied, the contemporary praise band. The administrative and facilities teams, including bookkeeper Barbara Baitzer, administrative assistant Megan Swanson, and facilities manager Whitney Molina, keep the building running, the database current, and the welcome warm for every newcomer and long-time member alike.
Other United Methodist pastors who preach during the summer pulpit supply include Rev. Joel Bullock, who preached on 3 John 1-15 in a sermon titled "And Let It Begin With Me," and Rev. Bob Holliday, who preached on Matthew 13:24-30, 36-43 in "Living in the In Between."
Giving, Office, and Weekly Rhythm
Online giving is offered through a secure Breeze application that accepts debit and credit cards or direct withdrawals from a checking account. The church also participates in Fry's Community Rewards, so members can link their VIP cards to St. Paul's and direct a portion of their grocery spending to the congregation at no extra cost. The Epistle, the church's newsletter, is published every other month and posted online, with back issues stretching back to early 2025.
On a typical week, the Sanctuary sees worship on Sunday morning, the Life Center fills with stretching classes on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday mornings, and Brummet Hall hosts tai chi on Tuesday evening. The Show Up group gathers on Tuesday nights, prayer shawl knitters meet on Thursday afternoons, and a Zoom-based fiction book club opens its meeting on the first Monday of every month. A shared youth ministry with two sister congregations gathers middle and high schoolers on Sunday afternoons. Through it all, the food pantry quietly serves the neighborhood Monday through Friday, and a preschool fills the weekday mornings with the laughter of three-, four-, and five-year-olds.