Southern Hills United Methodist Church has stood on Harrodsburg Road in Lexington, Kentucky, since a small group of worshippers first gathered in the old Picadome Elementary School on June 14, 1959. Six and a half decades later, the congregation that grew from 118 charter members fills two Sunday services, sustains a children's ministry, a handbell choir, a vocal ensemble program, and a food backpack ministry that reaches neighborhood elementary schools. The campus is shared with a preschool and serves as a meeting place for Alcoholics Anonymous and Al-Anon. Members describe the church as "a multigenerational community, full of the presence and power of God, where all are loved."
A Church Born in a Schoolhouse
Rev. Donald R. Herren shepherded the original 118 members and, with his wife Pat, led Southern Hills for forty years. Under his guidance the congregation moved from the borrowed school building to its own grounds and expanded in stages. Herren Hall and the first floor of the Education Building went up in 1961, the Sanctuary was completed in 1966, and the Activities Building followed in 1977. The Herrens departed in August 1998, and Rev. A. Wayne Bishop was appointed in April 1999, overseeing the renovation of the Main Sanctuary.
Dr. Bill Moore arrived as senior pastor in 2006. In 2008 he and associate pastor Rev. Jill Ruhl launched The Source, a worship service aimed at young adults. The Source grew enough to spin off as a second location in 2017. Rev. Jim Nichols was appointed senior pastor in 2019 and led the congregation through the years of the Covid pandemic before moving to Florida in November 2023. Rev. LeTecia Preacely, who had succeeded Ruhl as associate, led The Source until June 2024, when that campus was chartered as its own United Methodist congregation. In November 2023, Bishop-in-Residence Reverend Al Gwinn stepped in as interim leader, and on July 1, 2024, Dr. John Hatton began his appointment as senior pastor, opening the current chapter in the life of the church.
Sunday Worship and the Streaming Schedule
Worship is held at 2356 Harrodsburg Road each Sunday at 8:45 and 10:45 a.m. The morning order includes preaching by Dr. Hatton, congregational song, and choral music. The livestream begins at 10:40 a.m. and is available on Facebook, YouTube, and the church's own site, where recordings are kept in a sermon archive organized by topic with tags such as Faith, Hope, Humility, Peace, Perseverance, and Unity. Recent sermon titles include Paul, the Pharisee, The Council of Jerusalem, A Gate Called Beautiful, and Living as a Living Sacrifice.
The church also produces a weekly podcast, The Cutting Room Floor, hosted by pastors John and Parker, where they expand on themes from the Sunday sermon and field questions submitted anonymously by listeners. Episodes are released on Spotify and Apple Podcasts.
Children's Ministry
Hannah James, Director of Children's Ministry, leads a team of parents and volunteers committed to teaching children about the love of Christ. Kids Sunday School meets at 9:30 on Sundays, and Kids Worship is offered during the 10:45 service. Nursery care is provided for infants through age four, while children ages five through eleven participate in Kids Sunday School and Kids Worship. Each week includes a Bible lesson, Scripture memory, games, and crafts. Every adult volunteer abides by the United Methodist Church's Safe Sanctuaries standards, including background checks. A summer program is offered for children who have completed first through fifth grade, running from 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. during one week in late July at a cost of $50 per child, with events and a family newsletter continuing through the fall and winter months.
The Music Ministry
Music is woven into both Sunday services. The Chancel Choir leads congregational and choral music at 10:45 and rehearses on Wednesday evenings at 7:00 p.m. The Adult Handbell Choir, called the Carillon Choir, rehearses on Sundays at 5:00 p.m. in the sanctuary and is open to anyone eighteen and older who reads music, with no prior handbell experience required. Two vocal ensembles round out the program. L.O.V.E., the Ladies Only Vocal Ensemble, rehearses Thursdays at 7:15 p.m. and presents gospel, spirituals, and traditional hymn arrangements. M.O.V.E., the Men's Only Vocal Ensemble, rehearses Thursdays at 6:15 p.m. and sings in worship about once a month. A Taizé Ensemble supports contemplative services, and instrumentalists of any kind are invited to join. Music ministry contacts flow through Joan Wooden, an ordained Deacon in the United Methodist Church who has been on staff since 2010 and holds a degree from Southern Methodist University's Perkins School of Theology.
Sunday Morning Classes
Adult education runs from 9:30 to 9:55 a.m. and includes several classes open to new attendees. Bible Diggers, led by Rick Shaw, Beth Miller, and Ed Pavlik, has met since 2002 in the Fireside Room and offers an inductive study of books of the Bible, with a Zoom option for those out of town. Bible Apps: Foundations of Our Faith meets in the Prayer Chapel under Dr. Bob Durborow and applies biblical concepts to daily life. Raising Disciples, led by Loretta Barnes in Room 210, focuses on spiritual disciplines and how to introduce them to children and young people in one's life.
Fellowship and Women's Circles
United Methodist Men gather on the second Monday of each month at 6:00 p.m. in the Courtyard Room for dinner and a speaker, with special dinners at Christmas and Valentine's Day and an annual Toy Project that delivers gifts and coats to Big Creek in Clay County, Kentucky. The United Women in Faith umbrella at Southern Hills oversees four circles that meet monthly. The Meade Shotwell Circle meets the second Monday at 6:30 p.m. and offers a Zoom option for those traveling. Mosaic Circle, geared toward women in their mid-twenties to forties, meets the second Wednesday at 6:00 p.m. in the Fireside Room. Sarah Bagby Circle gathers at noon on the second Wednesday, also in the Fireside Room. New Life Circle meets at 1:00 p.m. on the second Thursday, with a particular emphasis on visiting "Hug Buddies," members in assisted living, nursing facilities, or recovering at home. The circles support local and global missions and follow the United Methodist Reading Program together.
Outreach: The Backpack Ministry and Beyond
The Backpack Ministry, coordinated by Judy Blakeman, assembles weekly food bags for Arlington Elementary and Picadome Elementary, plus pantry and snack items for Ashland, Maxwell, and Millcreek. Packing takes place once a month during the school year, with volunteer slots for pickup, setup, packing, delivery, and cleanup. Beyond the campus, Southern Hills supports The Nathaniel Mission, a Lexington organization that has worked for more than seventy-five years to restore dignity to people who are marginalized in urban Lexington, and Common Good, an inclusive North Lexington community dedicated to thriving students, strong families, and flourishing neighborhoods.
Recovery and Prayer Support
Three recovery meetings use the church's Activity Room each week. Alcoholics Anonymous meets Tuesdays at 7:00 p.m. Al-Anon meets Wednesdays at 7:30 p.m., Fridays at noon, and Saturdays at 11:00 a.m. The HUGS Prayer Shawl Ministry offers handmade prayer garments (shawls, blankets, scarves, and the occasional washcloth or burp cloth) for celebrations, life challenges, graduations, baptisms, or loss. Anyone can make a referral, and the shawls may be requested for neighbors and relatives, not only members.
Getting Connected, Giving, and the Foundation
Visitors can fill out a Connect Card online to ask about membership, small groups, volunteer opportunities, kids ministry, or disability accommodations. Online giving is accepted through the church's giving page. The Southern Hills Permanent Endowment Fund, a separately administered foundation, accepts gifts toward Mission and Outreach, Children and Youth Ministries, and Property and Facility Improvements. The principal is invested and only a percentage of earnings is distributed each year. The campus at 2356 Harrodsburg Road is shared with a preschool, and the church office can be reached at 859-277-6176 or adminassistant@southernhillsumc.org for inquiries about weddings, funerals, or facility use.
Pastors and Staff
Dr. John Hatton, senior pastor, is a native Kentuckian with a Doctor of Ministry from Asbury Theological Seminary whose research interests include theology of preaching, Ambrose of Milan and Augustine, Charles Wesley, theological aesthetics, and the bridge between science and religion. He previously worked as an occupational therapist for nearly a decade and has taught preaching at the graduate level. His wife Julie and their children Emory and Elise live in Lexington with their Golden Retriever, Arwen.
Rev. Parker Outman, associate pastor, holds a Bachelor of Arts in Philosophy, Theology, and Biblical Literature from Indiana Wesleyan University and both a Master of Divinity and a Master of Theology in Biblical Studies from Asbury Theological Seminary. He also serves as Adjunct Professor of Biblical Literature for the School of Theology and Ministry at Indiana Wesleyan University. He and his wife Emily, a high school sweetheart from Cape Girardeau, Missouri, have a young daughter, Nora.
Jenna McKinley serves as Music Minister with degrees in Vocal Performance from Eastern Kentucky University and a Master of Arts in Vocal Pedagogy from Belmont University. Joan Wooden, an ordained Deacon, coordinates the music and worship program and has served on staff since 2010. Hannah James directs Children's Ministry; she is an Asbury Seminary graduate with a Master of Arts in Christian Education and a special interest in children's music and missions.