A Historic Church in the Heart of Tomball
Tomball Methodist Church sits on twenty acres along Baker Drive in Tomball, Texas, between SH 249 and Quinn Road. It was the first church established in the Tomball area, and more than a century after its founding it remains a busy congregation with two Sunday services, a weekday preschool, a community garden, and mission partnerships that reach from surrounding neighborhoods to North India. The sanctuary sits beneath a large rooftop cross that is the easiest wayfinding marker on the campus, and the doors beneath it swing open to greeters every Sunday.
From a Hotel Lobby to a Sanctuary
The story of the church begins in 1908, when Tomball was a town of about one hundred fifty people, three saloons, no schools, and no churches. Mr. and Mrs. O.G. Hegar moved to town that year from Waller. They built a home for their family and operated the only hotel, just across from the train depot on a division point for the T. & B. V. Railway.
Mrs. Hegar, a devout Methodist, wanted the children of Tomball to have religious instruction. She started Sunday School in the hotel lobby, opening the class to all. Both Baptist and Methodist ministers were invited to come to town and preach. When the class outgrew the lobby it moved to the Woodmen Hall, the same building that housed Tomball's first public school and that would later become the town's old fire station.
The young church faced real hardships with a small membership and little money. There were five charter members when it organized in 1909. To qualify for financial aid from the Methodist Conference, the building had to be known as the Methodist Episcopal Church South. The Baptists shared the building with the Methodists until they could build their own.
The congregation carries that heritage into the present. It is now affiliated with the Global Methodist Church, a denomination that, in the words of its Plan Your Visit page, "believes in loving all people." Senior Pastor Bill Haygood, the son and grandson of Texas Conference Methodist pastors, has led the church through that transition since August of 2019.
Two Sunday Services, Side by Side
Each Sunday the church gathers in its main sanctuary building.
At 9:15 am a traditional service begins. The Sanctuary Choir, the Glory Ringers handbells, and organist and pianist Jean Solomon lead music in a setting that draws on the full Methodist hymn tradition. Director of Traditional Worship Lynn Brewer, a second generation Tomball Methodist choir director, has shaped this service since 2005. She holds a Bachelor of Music Education from Sam Houston State and a Master of Music in Choral Music from Arizona State, serves as choir director and AP Music Theory teacher at Tomball High School, and sings with the Texas Master Chorale.
At 10:45 am the same sanctuary fills again for a contemporary service. The Contemporary Worship Band, directed by Chris Montes, plays a mix of current songs and traditional hymns. Chris has led the contemporary service on and off for fifteen years; his wife Sherry and their two oldest children are current members of the worship team. Chris is always auditioning new musicians and vocalists with a passion for contemporary worship.
Communion is observed on the first Sunday of every month in both services. Each service runs about an hour and includes prayer, music, scripture reading, and a sermon. Visitors can watch either service live on the church's Vimeo channel and Facebook page, and a Service Library of past series is available online.
Susanna Wesley Day School
The Susanna Wesley Day School is the preschool ministry of the church and has been part of Tomball life for more than forty years. Director Priscilla Hahn, who has worked at SWDS for a total of fifteen years and lives in Tomball with her family, oversees a program that runs Monday through Friday from 6:30 am to 6:00 pm. She holds a B.S. in Criminal Justice and is certified as a Childcare Director by the State of Texas.
SWDS serves infants through pre-kindergarten, with a summer program and drop-in care available for elementary-aged students up through fourth grade. Class levels include Infant, Toddler, Two-Year-Old, Three-Year-Old, Pre-K, and a Pre-K Bridge class. The day school uses a homegrown curriculum called Growing in Grace, refined over four decades of early-childhood experience, that balances child-directed play and teacher-led preschool time. SWDS staff believe that "children learn best when they are known, loved, and encouraged to grow."
Each day begins with Morning Chapel, where children hear playful devotions, lessons, and stories led by the Tomball Methodist Children's Ministry. Specialty classes throughout the week include Soccer Shots on Wednesdays, Preschool Gymnastics on Mondays with Sherry Montes, Preschool Yoga on Thursdays, Spanish lessons for three-year-olds through Pre-K students, and Gardening on Fridays with Ms. Thelma. Spanish instruction is built into the program because, as the SWDS team notes, "more than half our population is bilingual, and students can benefit cognitively, emotionally, and creatively."
The SWDS phone number is (281) 255-9301.
Kids, Youth, and Young Adults
Kids Ministry walks with children from newborns through sixth grade. KidsMin Director Miranda Robertson, who grew up in the church's youth group and has served at Tomball Methodist since 2021, oversees the program. Her calling to teach kids dates back to high school, and she holds an Associate's Degree in Education through Lone Star College.
On Sunday mornings children join WoW, a high-energy Christ-centered experience that combines all ages for worship, Bible lessons, fun activities, and prayer. The goal is to equip children to worship wholeheartedly, serve others joyfully, and share the Gospel boldly. On Wednesday evenings they gather for The Gathering, a time of music, lessons, and discussion with peers.
Youth Ministry serves seventh through twelfth graders. Director of Youth and Young Adult Ministries Randi Lanum, who has been in youth ministry since 2018 and holds a Foundations in Youth Ministry certification from SMU Perkins, leads the program along with a team of volunteers. Youth Sunday School meets at 9:15 am in Faith Building Rooms 16 and 17, walking through the Bible character by character through the Old and New Testaments.
Young Adults BYOB, where the second B is for Bible, brings together single adults aged eighteen to thirty during the school year. The group gathers, grows through the Word, and seeks to live it out together. Members also keep the church updated with college student addresses so care packages and prayer can follow students to campus.
Adults and Connect Groups
Adults at Tomball Methodist have several ways to connect on Sunday mornings, during the week, and in the evenings. Senior Associate Pastor Rebecca Jones, an ordained elder with the Global Methodist Church and a member of Tomball Methodist since 1992, oversees Discipleship, Missions and Outreach, and Caring Ministry. Before ministry she built a long career in social services and the nonprofit sector.
Sunday morning Connect Groups meet between the worship services. At the Kitchen Table, at 10:45 am in Faith Building Room 4, uses accessible lessons with no Bible knowledge required. The Cannon Class, at 10:45 am in the Library of the Sanctuary Building, features videos, discussion, and guest teachers. Journeys, at 9:15 am in Faith Building Room 5, serves laid-back thirty- to fifty-somethings with video lessons and casual discussion. Live Wires, at 10:45 am in Faith Building Room 7/9, relates current topics to scripture. Saints Alive Always and Saints Alive Forever meet at 9:15 and 10:45 am respectively in Faith Building Rooms 6 and 8. Seekers of the Word, at 10:45 am in Faith Building Room 7/9, focuses on the Old and New Testaments.
Weekday groups include Chair Yoga on Tuesdays from 1:00 to 2:00 pm in the Chapel, led by Sherry Montes, a gentle practice aimed at increasing flexibility, balance, and clarity. Heartfelt Stitchers meets the first Wednesday of the month from 9:00 am to noon in Faith Building Rooms 7 and 9 to make blankets for people in crisis; no sewing skills are required. Joyful Helping Hands, a fellowship of mature women, gathers the first Monday of each month at 10:00 am in Faith Building Rooms 6 and 8. Prayer Yoga meets Wednesdays at 6:30 pm in the Chapel, uniting mind, body, and spirit with the Lord. Wellness Ministry also coordinates Grief Share, a thirteen-week support group for those who have lost a loved one, and partners with Shield Bearer for individual, family, and couple counseling.
Men's TNT, the Thursday Night Thing, is a casual group that meets weekly at a different restaurant for food, fellowship, and what the group calls a "foamy beverage." Members are always on the lookout for new eateries to try.
Missions Across the Tomball Area and Around the World
The church's mission footprint is one of its defining features. On the domestic side, Adopt-A-School supports Tomball Elementary, a Title 1 school around the corner from the church, where volunteers tutor, mentor, and serve as lunchroom pals. An After School Program in the Faith Building helps students referred by teachers and counselors on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 4:00 to 6:00 pm, using a computer lab with school approved software.
The Backpack Ministry works through Tomball Elementary, Decker Prairie Elementary, and Rosehill Elementary counselors to send home enough food each weekend for a family of four to have two meals. Manna Bags, assembled by the Saints Alive Sunday School class as needed, are backpacks filled with food, water, toiletries, and scriptural guidance that members can grab from the library to hand out to the homeless. Moving Waters, a partner organization, brings hot showers to the unhoused in the community.
Tomball Methodist is a founding church of T.E.A.M., the Tomball Emergency Assistance Ministries, which provides short-term help with food, clothing, shelter, rent, utilities, medical, dental, and prescription needs. The Tomball Community Garden sits on the church's twenty acres just east of the buildings and grows fresh produce for T.E.A.M. Garden hours are Tuesdays and Thursdays from 8:30 to 9:30 am in summer and 9:00 to 10:00 am in winter. Volunteers of all ages are welcome; children should be closely supervised by a parent.
Military ministry honors veterans throughout the year and supports Wreaths Across America, Camp Hope in Houston, and Operation Gratitude. Joshua Ministry sends approved curriculum into the prison system, and Kairos Ministry works with incarcerated men, women, and youth through the international Kairos Inside program.
International mission partnerships connect the church to North India, where Dustin and Mallary lead Ziyada, a fair-wage artisan business that trains women in hand-spinning yarn, embroidery, and sewing; to Thailand, where Graysen runs SYNG, a tutoring and mentoring program for children along busy streets, and Josh and Joanna Cook serve with Cru on university campuses; to the Balkans, where the Fischer family works among youth and young adults in a restricted Muslim area through a program called Elevate Outdoor Adventure and Leadership; and to Tanzania, where Kirsten and Lemsanye Tisho direct a children's home for infants whose mothers have died, training a female family member alongside each baby for two to three years.
Music and Prayer
Music Ministry is anchored by three groups. The Sanctuary Choir leads worship at the 9:15 traditional service and rehearses Wednesday evenings at 7:00 pm. There is no audition, members do not need to read music, and childcare is available. The Glory Ringers, a three-and-a-half octave handbell choir, plays once a month during traditional services from September through May and rehearses Wednesdays from 6:00 to 7:00 pm. The Contemporary Worship Band rounds out the program.
Prayer Ministry runs through every part of the church. A Prayer Ministry Team meets weekly to pray over concerns submitted online and to pray over the campus. The Prayer Trail offers a printed guide that uses unique sights on the property to help walkers remember God's presence and power in their lives. The Prayer Garden, built in 2002 next to the Sanctuary building with entrances from both the parking lot and inside the building, is a quiet place to step away from the day. Heartfelt Stitchers produces prayer blankets, each tied to the prayers of the makers, and the blankets are kept in a cabinet in the library for anyone to take to someone in need.
Staff and Leadership
Bill Haygood has served as Senior Pastor since August 2019. The son and grandson of Texas Conference Methodist pastors, he graduated from Southwestern University in Georgetown in 1983 and Perkins School of Theology at SMU in 1987, and he has traveled across five continents on mission and vacation. Rebecca Jones, Senior Associate Pastor, oversees Discipleship, Missions and Outreach, and Caring Ministry.
Miranda Robertson directs Kids Ministry and has been on staff since 2021. Randi Lanum leads Youth and Young Adult Ministries. Priscilla Hahn directs Susanna Wesley Day School. Lynn Brewer directs traditional worship, handbells, and choir. Chris Montes directs contemporary worship. Regan Frazier serves as Technical Director, having built up the live-stream ministry at the start of the Covid shutdowns and joining the staff in 2021. Jean Solomon, who taught math in local schools for twenty-nine years, has been the church's pianist and organist for twenty-seven years. Pam McKinney serves as Business Manager, and Brent Saathoff serves as Facilities Manager.
Planning a Visit
First-time guests should enter through the doors under the large cross on top of the sanctuary building. Greeters at the entrance are ready to answer questions and help find the right room. The church sits on Baker Drive off SH 249 headed toward Magnolia; visitors coming from Main Street (FM 2920) can follow Baker Drive for about a mile and a half to the campus.
Come as you are. Worshipers wear everything from jeans and shorts to suits and dresses. The congregation is affiliated with the Global Methodist Church but welcomes everyone, regardless of denominational background. Communion is celebrated on the first Sunday of each month.
The church office is open Monday through Thursday from 8:30 am to 5:00 pm, and the phone number is (281) 351-1249. Services are livestreamed online, and a Service Library of past series such as On the Road Again: Paul's Missionary Journeys, Same God Never Changing, and The Path of Resurrection is available for catching up or sharing with others. Members also have free access to RightNow Media, a streaming library of Bible studies and faith-based video content.