International Friends of Gethsemane United Methodist Church records

The Garden at Gethsemane United Methodist Church is currently located at 1201 W. McGalliard Road in Muncie, Indiana. The church's history dates back to 1895, when it was known as the "Whitely Methodist Episcopal Church" and was located on Muncie's south side. On January 2, 1921, the church burned down and the congregation had to build a temporary building large enough to house its members. Reverend Mont C. Oliver designed the plans for a new building that would look much like the original but include updated features. In February of 1922, construction on the new building was complete and services resumed.

In 1939, the name was changed to Whitely Methodist Church after the church merged with the Methodist Protestant Church. In July of 1953, the church changed its name to "Gethsemane United Methodist Church." Within the same year, church officials decided to build a new church on the corner of Virginia Avenue and McGalliard Road because many families had relocated to that part of town. The new building was completed in December of 1954.

Because the church has grown significantly in recent decades, it was decided in 2012 that the building would be torn down and rebuilt. The multi-million dollar project was completed in 2014 and the name of the church was changed to "The Garden at Gethsemane United Methodist Church." In an effort to give back to the community and help other churches, Gethsemane adopted Main Street United Methodist Church because its members could no longer afford to keep it open. The two campuses now serve the community by providing hot meals to the public, meeting areas for addiction counseling, and temporary shelter for the homeless.

The International Friends of Gethsemane program began in the 1990s and allows church members to create relationships with people from other countries and experience different cultures. Some of their outreach efforts include providing host families for foreign exchange students, having dinners, and fundraising for the missions program in the church.