Cemetery Gate

To search this site, click here.

The Manchester United Methodist Church Cemetery, John Wesley Ward Memorial Wall, and the Manchester UMC Columbarium were established for the purpose of providing an appropriate and dignified final resting place for members or those having a relationship with Manchester UMC or any other United Methodist Church. This includes parents, siblings or children of the deceased. They are not open to the public.

The property for the cemetery was deeded to the Methodist Episcopal Church of Manchester, Missouri in 1880. However, the first recorded burial was that of Joseph Harrison, August 9, 1852.

All of the plantings in the Cemetery and the Memorial Garden have been given in memory of loved ones. No additional plantings are accepted without the approval of the Cemetery Committee. Memorial services are to be scheduled and planned by the family with the Manchester UMC clergy.

Cemetery Endowment Fund

The Cemetery, John Wesley Ward Meditation & Memorial Wall, and the Manchester UMC Columbarium operate independently of the church.  The cost of maintaining the grounds comes from proceeds of the sale of burial plots, Columbarium niches, and Memory Wall inscriptions. The obligation to maintain the grounds, Columbarium, and wall extends into perpetuity. The sale of plots, niches, and inscriptions will someday not provide income needed for maintenance.

A Manchester UMC Cemetery Endowment Fund was established in 1993. The fund is a custodial account with the Missouri United Methodist Foundation. The Manchester UMC Endowment Committee has oversight of the financial aspects of the fund while the Cemetery Committee is responsible for decisions regarding the use of the fund. Currently, the Endowment Fund has assets of approximately $100,000. Based on current maintenance costs, the Endowment and the Cemetery Committee believe it will take a fund of at least $200,000 to provide enough returns to cover maintenance costs when proceeds from new sales no longer cover costs.

Information on making gifts to the Endowment Fund directed to the Cemetery Fund can be found on this page.

More
articles

Pastor's Note

The Missouri Annual Conference

Every year, United Methodists from all across the Missouri Conference gather together for our annual meeting. This year, the meeting will be Friday June 9 through Sunday June 11 in St. Charles. Manchester UMC will be represented there by Revs. Andy Bryan, Phil Estes, Winter Hamilton, and Jim Peich. Our

Learn More »
Sermons

My Chains Fell Off

Conversion is a key idea in Wesleyan theology, and was a central part of the faith stories of both John and Charles. And conversion isn’t about going from “non-Christian” to “Christian.” Conversion can happen in the lives of believers, also. Conversion is a change that is worked in the lives

Learn More »
Pastor's Note

Charles in Charge

Charles Wesley was the poet of the birth of Methodism. In his lifetime, he composed thousands of hymns! His beautiful words captured the theology, the spirit, and the energy of the Methodist movement with vivid elegance. Charles was one of the children of Susannah Wesley, who was a profound spiritual

Learn More »