About Us

Rock Falls United Methodist Church has a very long and rich history in serving the city of Rock Falls and surrounding community.

During the winter of 1868 and 1869, Rev. Alhing and Rev. Denning, ministers from two Methodist churches in Sterling, held a revival meeting in an unfinished store. The series of services was met with such awakening and enthusiasm that a Methodist class was at once formed and the little society began its independent existence. The need of a church building was very urgent, and during the spring of 1869, a petition was circulated to raise money, and ground was broken on a lot purchased from Abner L. Merrily.

Founded in 1869, the original church building at our current location held its first service on December 12, 1869. The dedication of the church took place in April of 1871.

The late 1870s and 1880s were years of growth for the community and for the church. At a meeting of the church held on October 11, 1871, plans were discussed and formulated for the procuring of a lot and building of a parsonage. The parsonage was completed and turned over to the committee on October 15, 1872.

On Sunday, January 22, 1922, there was a church fire and the building was burnt down. While construction was going on, Services were temporarily relocated to the newly constructed Rock Falls High School. During September 2-7, 1923, there was a week-long celebration of dedication.

Another milestone for RFUMC was the addition of the Education Wing, which was dedicated in October 1961.

Jumping to today, we now provide and minister to several families in our community through our outreach ministries – such as Bear Necessities, Feed the Children Summer Program, etc.

On August 11, 2019, we celebrated our 150th Anniversary with Bishop Sally Dyck, DS Rev. Brian Gilbert and several ministers, plus the Rock Falls city mayor. Stop by for a visit!

Our Pastors

Rev. John A Stayt (1870-1872)
Rev. Thomas Chipperfield (1872-1874)
Rev. Lewis E. Curtis (1874-1875)
Rev. Cornelius R. Ford (1875-1876)
Rev. Amos H. Miller (1876-1879)
Rev. M. H. Trigap (1879-1880)
Rev. A. A. Cross (1880-1881)
Rev. J. C. Stoughton (1881-1882)
Rev. Amos H. Miller (1882-1885)
Rev. C.A. Bunker (1885-1888)
Rev. M. M. Bales (1888-1891)
Rev. George H. Wells (1891-1893)
Rev. Frank H. Gardner (1893-1898)
Rev. W. H. Pierce (1898-1901)
Rev. John N. Dingle (1901-1903)

Rev. Chas A. Gage (1903-1906)
Rev. F. W. Nazarene (1906-1908)
Rev. J. F. Clancy (1908-1911)
Rev. James Potter (1911-1914)
Rev. L. B. Lott (1914-1916)
Rev. A. E. Simester (1916-1922)
Rev. J. J. Hichens (1923-1926)
Rev. S.H. Wirsching (1926-1928)
Rev. J.O. Crawford (1928-1930)
Rev. A.W. Mohns & F.H. Knight (1930-1931)
Rev. F.H. Knight (1931-1933)
Rev. R. M. Furnish (1933-1937)
Rev. J. R. Uhlinger (1937-1943)
Rev. I. Wayne Leighty (1943-1947)
Rev. Albert E. Blomberg (1947-1949)

Rev. Fred E. Frankson (1949-1949)
Rev. Paul M. Gilbert (1950-1953)
Rev. Norman C. Miller (1953-1957)
Rev. Ivan J. Obenshain (1957-1967)
Rev. Frederick D. Anderson (1967-1971)
Rev. Lowell D. Allen (1971-1979)
Rev. Carl J. Zager (1979-1989)
Rev. Thomas L. Howard (1989-1994)
Rev. David Page Kell (1994-2001)
Rev. Larry Thomson (2001-2007)
Rev. Thomas Moe (2007-2011)
Pastor Rich Fassig (2011-2016)
Rev. Dr. Solomon Sudhakar (2016-2020)
Rev. Jin-Hee Kang (2020-2022)
Rev. Siegfried Schwirblat (2022-Present)

Rock Falls United Methodist Church

Open Hearts. Open Minds. Open Doors.

About Us

Our Pastors

Rock Falls United Methodist Church