By Deidra Manary

The Montrose United Methodist Church (MUMC) has a multigenerational appeal, best demonstrated by families whose oldest and youngest members attend side by side.

Several MUMC families represent three generations of members. Among these are Marva, Marsha and Maddy Pittman, three women who have given many volunteer hours to the church over the years.

Marva grew up in the Methodist church in Minnesota. She came to Montrose in 1972 and joined the church. She began teaching Sunday School and became a youth leader and a member of the United Methodist Women’s Group, the Mary Olive Circle and the Congregational Care Committee, to name just a few. Now retired, she volunteers for HopeWest and is a mother and grandmother.

Her daughter Marsha was born into MUMC, and baptized and confirmed in the church as well. Both women have always found time to be a vital part of the congregation despite their busy personal lives.

An MRI Technologist at Montrose Memorial Hospital, Marsha has also held a long list of positions at the church. Marsha has been a lay reader and Sunday school teacher. She’s worked with the youth program, the support group, the Worship Committee and the Staff Parish Relations Committee.

Maddy is the youngest of Marsha’s two daughters. She, too, has attended MUMC since birth. A junior at Montrose High School, she plays on the women’s soccer team and has hopes of entering a pre-medicine program after graduation.

Despite her busy schedule, Maddy has also been heavily involved at MUMC. She has taught Sunday school, assisted with Vacation Bible School and has joined the youth group on mission trips to San Diego, San Francisco and Belize. She’ll travel to Seattle with the group this summer.

The MUMC has been blessed to have this family as a part of its congregation. The Pittmans, and other families like them, are what has made the church community so strong throughout the years.