Who we are

The Shenandoah church of Christ first met on February 15, 1970 with its 23 original members. Under the direction of Frank Dunn, the goal of this group was the same as every other church of Christ -- to establish and maintain a congregation of the Lord's body, a truly scriptural New Testament Church, as is described in the Bible (holding fast in doctrine, practice, and spirit). Under the stewardship of the current elders, Wayne Holmes and Elwyn Hipp, this continues to be the goal of the present membership.

The group initially met in the Shenandoah Elementary School building until August 22, 1971, when they moved to the present location at 11026 Wurzbach Road. The evangelists who have served this congregation are: Frank Dunn (1970 - 1977), Larry Mitchell (1977 - 1979), Larry Arnold (1979 - 1984), Jerry Moffit (1984 - 1988), and Terry Hightower (1988 - 1995). Don Walker began his work with the congregation in 1995, and presently serves as the preacher.

As the New Testament commands, a church is to have qualified men to oversee the work as elders of the congregation. On January 11, 1976, the first elders of the Shenandoah church of Christ, Earl Geest and Lou Miller, accepted the challenge to serve in this capacity. Under their direction, Buddy Adams, Bob Carroll, Odell Dial, Elwyn Hipp, Wayne Holmes, and Arland Storm became the first deacons to work with the Shenandoah congregation. Later Jerry Hayes, Wayne Holmes and Jim Potts were added as elders to serve with Mr. Geest and Mr. Miller. Other elders that have served at Shenandoah are Harold Hughes, Bob Fox, and John Trimm. Today our elders are Wayne Holmes and Elwyn Hipp.

Shenandoah has undertaken many good works during its existence. One of the major events sponsored by this congregation is the Annual Shenandoah Lectures which are held every February. The lectures began in 1986 under the direction of Jerry Moffit. Succeeding Mr. Moffit as director was Terry Hightower, followed by Don Walker. A book, containing the manuscripts of all the lectures, plus a few additional manuscripts, is published each year and made available to all who wish to obtain one.

Over the years, Shenandoah has provided assistance to many men who desire to become preachers of the Word. In addition to those men we have supported from outside our congregation, we have supported and produced three preachers from our own numbers. We currently support several men who are studying at the Southwest School of Biblical Studies in Austin, Texas. We have also provided assistance to many mission works in India, Africa, and Mexico, as well as various mission areas throughout the United States. Another work of this congregation is to offer a free Bible correspondence course to anyone who is interested in studying the Bible.

During its 34 years of existence, Shenandoah has strived, and continues to strive, to do the will of the Father by following the teachings of the Bible in doctrine and practice.