The History of Pender United Methodist Church
More Than a Century of Faith, Community, and Service
For more than a century, Pender United Methodist Church has been part of the Fairfax community. Our story began in the rural crossroads community of Pender, grew through generations of faithful people, and continues today at our home on Alder Woods Drive.
While our buildings and surroundings have changed, our calling has remained remarkably consistent: to follow Christ, build community, serve others, and share God's love.
The Pender Community
Long before today's shopping centers, neighborhoods, and busy roads, the area around Pender was a rural crossroads community near what are now West Ox Road and Route 50.
The community took shape as families settled on smaller parcels of land around the crossroads. In 1890, a post office was established in Wilby J. French's store, and the community was given the name Pender. There was also a blacksmith shop, operated by Berkley Kidwell, whose family had purchased property in the area in 1883. (Historical Marker Database)
A small school soon became another important part of the community. The Pender School was built across from the Stewart home in 1900, with Fannie Stewart serving as its first teacher. (Historical Marker Database)
And in 1907, another important piece of the community's story took shape.
1907: A Church Is Born
In 1907, the Methodist Episcopal Church of Pender began holding worship services in a newly constructed church building. (Historical Marker Database)
This small church became a gathering place for people in the surrounding rural community—a place to worship, learn, sing, celebrate, mourn, serve, and grow together.
The church's 1907 beginnings are also reflected in historical references that continue to identify 1907 as Pender's founding year. Contemporary listings of Fairfax churches have long noted Pender as “Est. 1907.” (Connection Newspapers)
From a Rural Crossroads to a Growing Community
The Pender community was named for Confederate General William Dorsey Pender, who led troops in the area during the Civil War and the Battle of Ox Hill. Today, the name remains part of the area's history, even as the surrounding community has changed dramatically. (Historical Marker Database)
The original Pender church building stood in the area that is now associated with Fair Oaks Mall and Pender Veterinary Centre. Eventually, as Fairfax County grew and the congregation grew with it, Pender moved to its present location on Alder Woods Drive.
Pender's own history describes this journey simply and beautifully: the physical location has changed, but the dreams that began more than a century ago have not. (Pender UMC)
Today, Pender United Methodist Church is located at:
12401 Alder Woods Drive
Fairfax, VA 22033
Our present campus is just off Route 50, about a mile west of Fair Oaks Mall.
A Church With a Love of Music
Music has always been an important part of Pender's worship and community life.
There is a particularly wonderful connection between Pender's 1907 beginnings and one of the best-loved hymns in Christian worship.
In 1907, Presbyterian minister and poet Henry van Dyke wrote the words that became “Joyful, Joyful, We Adore Thee.” The hymn was written with Beethoven's “Hymn to Joy” in mind and was later published in 1911. (Hymnology Archive)
Pender has embraced this hymn as an important part of its musical heritage. The Pender music ministry has featured “Joyful, Joyful We Adore Thee” with the congregation and organ accompaniment, making the hymn a fitting musical thread connecting Pender's past with its present. (Pender UMC)
There is something especially meaningful about that coincidence: the same year our church began worshiping together, a hymn about joy, praise, community, and God's love was being written.
More Than a Building
Pender's history is not really a story about buildings.
It is a story about people.
People who gathered at a rural crossroads.
People who believed their community needed a church.
People who built a place to worship.
People who taught children, sang hymns, prayed, served their neighbors, and welcomed new generations.
People who eventually packed up and moved as the community around them changed.
And people who continue to ask the same question more than a century later:
How can we follow God's call and make a difference in the world around us?
That question continues to shape Pender today.
1907 → Today
From a small Methodist Episcopal church in a rural Virginia crossroads to a growing congregation on Alder Woods Drive, Pender has changed—and Pender has stayed the same.
Our address has changed.
Our buildings have changed.
Our community has changed.
But our desire to belong, grow, serve, and change lives continues.
Today, Pender is an open and welcoming United Methodist congregation committed to following Jesus Christ and sharing God's love with our neighbors and our community. (Pender UMC)
We are grateful for those who came before us.
We are thankful for those who are here today.
And we look forward with hope to where God is leading Pender next.
A Little More of Pender's Story
1900 — Pender School is built, becoming an important part of the growing crossroads community. (Historical Marker Database)
1907 — The Methodist Episcopal Church of Pender begins holding services in its new church building. (Historical Marker Database)
1907 — Henry van Dyke writes “Joyful, Joyful, We Adore Thee,” later becoming one of Christianity's best-known hymns. (Discipleship Ministries)
Later years — As Fairfax grows and the area around Pender changes, the congregation eventually moves from its original location near today's Fair Oaks Mall area to Alder Woods Drive. (Pender UMC)
Today — Pender United Methodist Church continues its ministry at 12401 Alder Woods Drive, welcoming people of all ages and backgrounds and serving both the congregation and the wider community. (umc.org)
The Story Continues
1907 was only the beginning.
Every Sunday, every baptism, every wedding, every funeral, every hymn, every mission project, every Sunday School class, every meal shared, every prayer prayed, and every person welcomed becomes another chapter in the story.
And you are part of that story.