Know God. Love God. Serve God.
Micah 6:8 offers a basic tenet in serving and loving God. The Church & Society Committee of First United Methodist Church – Brighton & Whitmore Lake offers for sale a t-shirt (many styles to choose from) that captures this inspiration. $1 from each purchase will go toward the work of the Church & Society Committee. Optional tagline: First United Methodist Church – Brighton & Whitmore Lake
Order online and either pay for shipping to your home or choose pick up from store (Spirit of Livingston). Order by Dec. 1 for free pick up at the church on Dec. 13.
He has told you, O mortal, what is good,
and what does the Lord require of you
but to do justice and to love kindness
and to walk humbly with your God?
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
Blanket Sunday
These church members can help you connect:
Bring nonperishable food items to the church anytime and it will be delivered that week to local food banks. November/December focus: holiday meal items (canned vegetables, pie filling, stuffing mix, gravy, etc.).
Whitmore Lake Area Human Services
New member classes are for anyone interested in learning more about what it means to be a United Methodist. Learn more, then decide for yourself if membership is for you. Pastor Lindsey leads New Member Classes twice a year (typically spring and fall). Learn more about the United Methodist Church and how you can be part of its mission to make disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world. Contact Pastor Lindsey.
Next Class: 12:30-2 pm Sundays, Oct. 25 and Nov. 1, 2026
For the past five years we have been blessed with Jennifer Lapa as our Preschool Director. She has provided outstanding leadership, direction and teaching, while caring deeply for each child and their family. Jennifer has been a tremendous gift to our community.
With a heavy heart we share that Jennifer has decided to resign from her position as the First Steps Preschool Director. This was a difficult decision for Jennifer, one that she took very seriously.
The First Steps Preschool Advisory Committee, alongside the Staff Management Team of First United Methodist Church shares with great joy that Hilary Bott has been hired as the new Preschool Director for First Steps Preschool. Hilary has been a part of First Steps Preschool for many years, as a teacher in the three-year-old classroom, and as a member of the Preschool Advisory Committee when her children attended First Steps Preschool. Hilary has a tremendous love for the children and families of First Steps Preschool, and will step into this new role with great experience and knowledge of our preschool community. Hilary and her family are also members of the congregation at First United Methodist Church.
As Hilary steps into the Preschool Director role, a new teacher assistant will be hired for the 2026-2027 school year.
FUMC Brighton & Whitmore Lake Friends,
We are excited to share six areas of focus that emerged from our strategic planning process since the beginning of this year. Over the past months, our leadership team, staff, and committed members have worked diligently on a strategic plan that will guide us into a season of growth, connection, and mission. This plan reflects our dedication to our mission to Know God, Love God, and Serve God together in ways that meet the needs of all ages and stages of life. With prayerful discernment, we have identified six key priorities that will shape our ministry in the coming years.
As we embark on this exciting journey, we invite you to join us in prayer, participation, and support. We are a congregation filled with gifted, dedicated individuals, and together, there is so much we can accomplish. May God guide us as we take these steps toward a future that brings us closer to God’s vision for our church.
With faith and gratitude,
Rev. Jon Reynolds & Rev. Lindsey Hall
See Strategic Plan
For generations, people encounter God’s love at First United Methodist Church-Brighton and Whitmore Lake. It’s here that children take their first steps in faith. Voices unite in worship. Hands and hearts come together in service. These sacred spaces shape the community. As faithful stewards we must care for them so they can continue to be places of welcome, growth and grace for years to come.
The leadership board voted to affirm Rev. Lindsey Hall as the lead clergy person for children and student ministries. This has been a passion area for her throughout her calling, and she has been enthusiastically doing the work in an “interim” capacity since April. In addition to her leadership in this area, Pastor Lindsey will continue as Co-Pastor, including preaching, adult discipleship, pastoral care and other clergy responsibilities. Administrative Assistant Karen Wagg will support the work of Children & Student Ministry with increased administrative assistant hours, making permanent the interim position she began April 1. These decisions come after an eight-month hiring search for children and student ministries.
As a result of this reorganization of responsibilities, Rev. Jon Reynolds will coordinate worship planning, previously done by Pastor Lindsey, and the church will seek to fill a new Director of Mission and Justice Engagement position. “We believe these decisions will provide continuity and energy to our children and student ministry areas along with opportunities for our church to continue to grow its mission and outreach initiatives,” said Board President Mike Kelly.
Additionally, Linda Barach, the afternoon Brighton campus custodian, will retire at the end of the year. Please join us in expressing our gratitude to Linda. Michelle Lucas will expand her custodial position to include afternoons. If you have any questions about these staffing changes, please reach out to Mike Kelly or any members of the Leadership Board, board@brightonfumc.org.
Greetings in the name of Jesus Christ! We have been praying for you and our church from the moment we learned that the Bishop appointed us to be Co-Senior Pastors of Brighton and Whitmore Lake. We are so excited to move to Brighton in a little less than a week. We have been inspired by your faithfulness, generosity, commitment to mission and your hospitality. Our children, Joshua (4) and Lydia (2), were so excited to see inside the beautiful parsonage and they are excited to make new friends in our community.
As you read this letter, perhaps you are curious to know a little more about us. Lindsey grew up in Nebraska and Jon grew up in Michigan. We met nearly halfway in between in the northern suburbs of Chicago in Evanston, IL. We met the first day of orientation at Garrett-Evangelical Theological Seminary and the rest is history. We got married shortly after our third year of school there and quickly moved to Michigan to start new ministry positions at Birmingham First United Methodist Church and Rochester St. Paul’s United Methodist Church. Lindsey loves to walk, tap dance, camp, and enjoys coffee and chocolate. Jon is an avid Tigers fan, and in his spare time he loves to ride his bicycle.
We could not be more honored to be your pastors and look forward to worshipping with you, growing disciples in small groups, serving together in mission, challenging each other in our faith and helping each other to develop a deeper relationship with Jesus Christ. God is up to wonderful things in our church!
On Sunday, July 1, 2018, the congregations of Brighton First and Wesley United Methodist Church of Whitmore Lake became one congregation worshiping and serving in two locations. Congregation members from both churches voted to merge our ministries on Sunday, April 15, 2018.
Rev. Bob Fuchs is the Whitmore Lake Campus Pastor. If you have questions, please contact Pastor Bob at bob@ brightonfumc.org.
This is a blessed time for our congregations. Together, we will strengthen compassionate outreach and make disciples for Jesus Christ in our communities. If you have questions, please contact Pastor Bob at bob@ brightonfumc.org.
