First United Methodist Church of Del Rio
Six individuals met on September 23, 1882 to create the Methodist Episcopal Church South, the forerunner of First United Methodist Church of Del Rio. These first congregants were Randolph Pafford,J. Lyman Bailey, William M. Bailey, Sarah Bailey, Rosalie Roberts and William G. Hancock. During the earliest days of the congregation’s existence, church meetings were held in the homes of members. Pafford donated a town lot and $500 to the church in 1883, and a wood-frame structure was soon erected on cemetery street (now Pecan street), on what was then the northern edge of town. Growth of the congregation was modest into the 20th century, and a stone chapel was constructed in 1903-1904.
The congregation grew to slightly greater than three hundred members by 1917, as members opened their homes to soldier trainees at Camp del Rio, later known as Camp Michie. Continued growth of the congregation created the necessity for another, larger facility, and the first service in the new building was held on may 31, 1931. The larger sanctuary was well justified, as the congregation doubled in size to over seven hundred members between the world wars. The growth of the city and the opening of laughlin air force base facilitated the enlargement of the membership to more than nine hundred during the 1960s. In 1968, the Methodist Church and Evangelical United Brethren Church merged into the United Methodist Church.
The church has promoted missions and charitable work after numerous hurricanes, as well as abroad in Mexico and Liberia, and also provides numerous outreach programs throughout the local community. (2008).