THE METHODIST

An annual award, “The Local Church Heritage Award,” was established in 1988 to be given to the church most diligent in preserving its heritage during the year. The award is given at the annual conference session for the preceding calendar year. At the 2008 annual conference session the 2007 Local Church Heritage Award was given to the Skipperville United Methodist Church. During 2007 they celebrated their 125th Anniversary.

Following is a copy of the guidelines. You may get a copy of the application form from the Methodist Archives Center or from your district superintendent's office:

GUIDELINES FOR RECEIVING THE

LOCAL CHURCH HERITAGE AWARD

1. During the calendar year _______ the church celebrated in a special way its anniversary, marked the graves of Methodist ministers in the church cemetery, was placed on a state or national historic register, or celebrated some other significant historical event related to the local church or general Methodism.

2. The church has a copy of the form “Historical Information on Churches” on file in the Conference Depository. Contact the Archivist, (e-mail--archives@huntingdon.edu, phone— 334-833-4413) to see if there is a copy in the Archives Center. If not, she will send you a form to fill out.

3. The church has submitted the “Local Church Update” form for the calendar year to its annual Charge Conference. If your church did not receive this form, contact the Archivist, (e-mail: <archives@huntingdon.edu> or phone: 334-833-4413) to get one.

4. The church has an Historian and a Committee on Records. In small churches the Committee on Records may be a committee of only one or two.

5. The church has a written history or has updated its church it, has submitted annual “Local Church Update” forms to its charge conference, has written annual supplements to its church history, or has kept a scrapbook.

6.The church has a designated place for storing its archives and artifacts. Ideally this should be a room or large closet meeting archival standards that can be locked for security reasons. In some cases it may be necessary to find a place away from the church which is designated as an official depository where the records can be stored safely and be accessible. The plaque presented to the church reads:

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The ______ Local Church Heritage Award