Deltona Christian Church- Our History

The Story of Deltona Christian Church (Disciples of Christ)

Back in the early 1960’s, the Mackle brothers had a vision for a retirement community in this area. Their plan was to develop a community which would attract retirees from all over the country as well as from other countries. As they did this, they planned to give property to churches and other groups to help make it an attractive place for people to come to settle in Florida.

At that time I-4 was new and all along the highway to Orlando there were orange groves. The Mackles promoted their idea by having dinners and meetings whereby they made it known that property for churches would be made available. A couple from the First Christian Church in DeLand, Gladys and John Cannon, attended one of those meetings and First Christian Church pastor, Rev. Bernard Meece, helped secure our church site.

5.6 acres of land on Normandy Boulevard between Tivoli and Hancock was acquired for a new Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) even before the first resident moved into Deltona. This was the first property given to a church in this community by Mackle Corporation. And so the Deltona Christian Church was the first church to be organized in Deltona. There were only a little over 1,000 residents in Deltona when our sanctuary was built in 1965.

The Congregation was started by support of the Florida Region and the First Christian Church in DeLand. The first service of the new church was held in the community building on Lake Monroe on February 2, 1964. The first service in the sanctuary at 960 E. Normandy Boulevard was held on Thanksgiving Sunday in 1965. The charter opened with 64 persons as charter members.

We have sent our first Timothy, Jennifer Steele, into full-time ministry. Among the specific projects that also speak of progress are: the sanctuary has been enlarged, classrooms added, and the current fellowship hall built. Since 2018 we have been distributing food to meet the needs of those who are food insecure in our community. Currently we distribute food on the 3rd Wednesday each month as a Partner Agency of Second Harvest Food Bank.

Since the Covid pandemic, some of our classes and children’s activities have been cancelled, but there is a desire to begin these ministries again, such as Christian Education classes, Bible studies, and Vacation Bible School. Praise the Lord as we continue to serve the Lord in this community.