Trinity United Methodist Church sits on Western Avenue in northwest Knoxville, just minutes from the I-640 bypass that loops around the city. From that single mid-century building, a congregation that traces its roots to a downtown Knoxville Sunday School in 1889 now runs a licensed child care program, a weekly food pantry, a scouting heritage, and a full week of worship, study, and music on the same campus.
From a Downtown Sunday School to Western Avenue
Trinity's story begins on October 12, 1889, when a group from Knoxville's First Methodist Church started a new congregation as the North Knoxville Methodist Episcopal Church, gathering in an old school building. By 1890 the church had moved into its own building on Luttrell Street; the congregation took the name Trinity Methodist Church in 1906.
As Knoxville's population shifted toward the suburbs in the 1950s, a new Cumberland Methodist congregation formed, meeting first in homes and neighborhood recreation centers. In 1960 Trinity and Cumberland voted to merge. Two years later, in 1962, the combined congregation opened a new building on what was then Oak Ridge Highway, the present Western Avenue campus. St. James Methodist joined Trinity in June 1979, and in 1982 the church added the Family Life Center, a high-walled gym that now anchors classrooms, restrooms, and a stage. In 1986, a custom pipe organ replaced the previous Hammond electric organ and speakers, and by August 2020 a 6,000-square-foot expansion added new classrooms and common areas.
Sunday Mornings at Trinity
Worship is central to Trinity, and Sunday morning follows a steady rhythm. Sunday School meets at 9:00 AM and again at 11:00 AM, with the Crossfire Youth class gathering at 11:00 AM in Room 47 upstairs in the gym. At 10:00 AM the congregation moves into the sanctuary for the weekly worship service.
The order of service follows a familiar United Methodist pattern: a call to worship, a warm greeting, a time of prayer and the Lord's Prayer, Scripture reading, the sermon, an offering, and the benediction. Holy Communion and Baptism are celebrated as part of the church's sacramental life. Music is woven through the service by the Chancel Choir and the Praise Team, blending traditional hymns with contemporary Christian songs under the direction of Music Director Sheryl Howard.
The service is livestreamed on YouTube and Facebook, and recordings of past services are available on the church's YouTube channel for anyone who wants to follow along or catch up during the week. ASL interpretation is offered during Sunday Morning Worship and most other special services for members of the deaf community.
Salt and Light Wednesdays
Wednesday nights are the social heartbeat of the church week. Pastor Joe leads a Bible study at 4:30 PM, and the same study is offered again at 6:30 PM for those whose afternoons run later. Between the two, at 5:45 PM, volunteers from the congregation serve a home-cooked dinner in the fellowship area: casseroles, soups, Tex-Mex, Italian, and southern classics with dessert. There is no set fee, only a donation basket, and the menu always includes kid-friendly options.
After dinner, the building fills again at 6:30 PM. Music in Motion, the children's choir for kindergarten through fifth grade, rehearses with Sheryl Howard. The youth group, led by Don Balcom, meets for sixth through twelfth graders. At 7:30 PM the adult Chancel Choir rehearses for the coming Sunday. The Wednesday schedule loosely follows the Knox County Schools calendar, with breaks during summers and year-end holidays.
Feeding the Neighborhood
Two food ministries run out of the Western Avenue campus. The Food Pantry distributes groceries every Wednesday from 10:00 AM to noon at the front entrance of the church. There are no qualifying requirements: anyone in need of groceries can come by, first come first served.
Volunteers keep the pantry stocked through weekly inventory, grocery runs, packing, and distribution. A collection bin at the sanctuary entrance holds the staples the pantry needs most. The Wednesday Night Dinners, open to members and neighbors alike, give the same food ministry a community face: a sit-down meal in the middle of the week with donations supporting the cooks.
Trinity Child Development Center
The largest mission of Trinity United Methodist Church is the Trinity Child Development Center (TCDC), a Tennessee 3-star-rated child care program that operates on the same campus. TCDC serves children from six weeks old through pre-kindergarten in its all-day program, with care from 7:00 AM to 6:00 PM. An after-school program serves kindergarten through fifth graders, picking children up from school and keeping the building open until 6:00 PM. During summers, TCDC offers an all-day program for ages six weeks through fifth grade and provides care on most in-service days and school holidays.
TCDC uses a hands-on Christian curriculum organized around activity centers for blocks, dramatic play, music, art, writing and language, science, and reading. Children eat lunch and snacks on site and spend time outdoors on the playgrounds and in the indoor gymnasium. Director Beth Williamson, who started at TCDC as a college student in 2002 and joined the administrative team in 2014, leads the program alongside Carol Williamson.
Enrollment priority goes to members of Trinity UMC, TCDC staff, and siblings of currently enrolled children, with remaining openings filled on a first-come, first-served basis. Rates are published by age group, and a non-refundable registration fee is due before a child begins.
Music From Kindergarten Through Seniors
Music has been an integral part of Trinity's worship and community for more than two and a half decades under Sheryl Howard. The Chancel Choir sings at the 10:00 AM worship service and rehearses Wednesday nights at 7:30 PM, with no music reading required to join. The Praise Team, a smaller group of singers and musicians, leads worship many Sundays and practices at 9:15 AM Sunday. Music in Motion gives kindergarteners through fifth graders a chance to perform through music-only programs and plays with music.
Trinity also supports an Adult Bell Choir that rehearses in the weeks leading up to special services, and small ensembles that play for church and community events. Concerts and special recitals, including the Music for Seniors daytime concert series hosted on the Western Avenue campus, round out a year that has earned the music program its reputation as one of the most distinctive parts of Trinity's ministry.
Trinity Youth and Crossfire
Trinity's youth ministry, known as Crossfire, is built around the idea that young people should be able to question their world and seek answers through Christian learning. Sunday School for high schoolers meets at 11:00 AM in Room 47 upstairs in the gym. Wednesday nights bring the group together again at 6:30 PM for conversation, activities, and team-building in the gym and outside.
Beyond the weekly schedule, Crossfire offers an annual summer mission trip, regular retreats, and trips to Resurrection, a three-day winter retreat in Pigeon Forge where youth from across the conference gather for worship, music, drama, and games. Camp Wesley Woods in the summer gives middle and high school students a week of music, drama, ropes courses, caving, archery, swimming, and rappelling. In May the youth lead the Bridge Worship service, ushering, singing, praying, reading scripture, and preaching, while seniors graduating that year are honored. Updates for the youth ministry are shared through Facebook, Instagram, and the text alert system by texting @tricroumc to 81010.
Sunday School and Small Groups
Trinity's adult formation is organized around a deep bench of small groups. On Sunday mornings at 9:00 and 11:00 AM, classes gather for Bible study, book studies, and video-based series. Covenant-Seekers, made up of middle-aged and older adults, mixes Bible and book studies under rotating teachers. Faith Seekers focuses on devotional materials and prayer for church families. The Disciples class, led by Rick Nodell, studies Christian living and Bible-based books through discussion. New Beginnings, a class of middle-aged couples, is in transition.
Beyond Sunday morning, Sojourners is a small group of young to middle-aged adults that meets Thursdays in a rotating set of member homes, sharing a meal before study and prayer. Tuesday Soul Squad is a women's group that meets Tuesdays for study and prayer and packs grocery bags for the food pantry each week. The Abigail Circle, part of United Women of Faith, brings adult women of all ages together for fellowship, devotions, and small projects.
Scouting Heritage
Trinity sponsors Boy Scout Troop 448 from the Mt. Cammerer District of the Great Smoky Mountains BSA, with a history that goes back generations. Boys from fifth grade through age 18 take part in campouts, fundraisers, and meetings that the troop itself plans, sets up, and tears down. Service hours are a major part of the program on both the group and individual level, and many of the troop's alumni have gone on to earn the rank of Eagle Scout.
The church also welcomes Cub Scouts and Girl Scouts through its scouting ministry.
Beliefs and Mission
Trinity United Methodist Church belongs to the Holston Conference of the United Methodist Church. The congregation describes itself as embracing Scripture, tradition, and Wesleyan theology, and it celebrates the United Methodist tradition as a place where people across the theological spectrum can worship together. The mission statement centers on three phrases: Reflecting God's Love, Rooted in the Love of God, and Loving People Boldly. The vision statement is built around the call to Grow Upward, Grow Inward, and Grow Outward with Christ.
Pastor Joe Phillips has served in pastoral ministry for eighteen years, first as a student pastor at Asbury Theological Seminary, then as a Provisional Elder in the Holston Conference, and as an Elder in Full Connection since 2012. He and his wife Alana have two children, Luke and Tillery. He is supported by Music Director Sheryl Howard, TCDC Director Beth Williamson, custodian Mike Ooten, and a broad team of volunteers.
Getting to Trinity
Trinity United Methodist Church is located at 5613 Western Avenue, Knoxville, Tennessee 37921. The phone number is (865) 588-5763 and the email address is Contact@knoxtrinity.org. Sunday worship begins at 10:00 AM, with Sunday School offered at 9:00 and 11:00 AM and a Wednesday schedule that runs from 4:30 PM Bible study through 7:30 PM choir rehearsal, broken up by the 5:45 PM community dinner. The Western Avenue campus is minutes from I-640.