About us
We Live, We Learn, We Serve
We are a diverse church with people from over 17 different countries who come to worship and serve together as sisters and brothers in Christ.
Pleasant Hill United Methodist Church has been a witness to the love of Jesus Christ in the community for over 180 years. Our life together began in a log cabin in 1837 moving to a wooden building in 1850 and to a brick sanctuary dedicated as the Morrow Chapel in 1871. In 1926 our education building was added. Additional changes to the structure were made in 1960 and in the 1970's.
The United Methodist Church has many doors through which people share in serving God and others. Whether you visit in person or online, we hope you discover something here to encourage you in your spiritual journey.
Together we can open hearts, open minds and open doors. The people of The United Methodist Church.
What We Believe
All people are welcome!
We believe that all people are invited to come and build their personal relationship with God.
We strive to be community minded and provide an open environment in which all members of our community can come together.
We embrace partnerships with schools, businesses, and associations in the community.
We strive to meet people where they are and not where others expect them to be.
We invite you to join with us on your personal faith journey.
Church can happen anywhere.
It happens when we create learning opportunities that transform lives.
It happens when we create safe environments where children can play and learn. It happens when education makes the path to citizenship a little easier. And when our sacrifices help nourish students’ minds and bodies. That’s putting beliefs into action.
Meet our Pastor
Pastor Michael Reese Ritt was born and raised in Owings Mills, Maryland and began attending Pleasant Hill United Methodist Church at the age of 8. He was an active member of Pleasant Hill Church and was confirmed there in May of 2002. Pastor Michael was appointed the Director of Music Ministries at Pleasant Hill Church in January of 2015 and stayed in that role until he moved to St. Petersburg, Florida in 2020. In his childhood, he ministered in music with the Maryland State Boychoir, where he was the Head Chorister and travelled to over 7 countries and 22 states. He studied Music Education at Frostburg State University and Business Management at the Community College of Baltimore County. Pastor Michael answered his call to pastoral ministry at the age of 35. He enrolled in the Baltimore-Washington Conference's License to Preach School in 2021. Pastor Michael has lived in Maryland, Pennsylvania, and Florida. He was appointed by Bishop Latrelle Easterling to Pleasant Hill Church on July 1, 2021.
Meet our
Director of Music Ministries
Shannon K. Harmon is an accomplished pianist, she received her Master of Piano Performance and a minor in ethnomusicology from Indiana University, where she held a piano graduate teaching assistantship. She earned her Bachelor of Music in Piano Performance from Bowling Green State University. Among her many accolades, Ms. Harmon won the Toledo Symphony Orchestra's Women's League Young Artist Competition, has performed concertos with the Toledo and Perrysburg Symphony Orchestras, and recorded on America's Finest Singing Machine, B.G.S.U. Men's Chorus Twentieth Anniversary recording. She currently teaches piano at the McDonogh School and at Music for the Young Child in the Baltimore area. She is also in demand as an adjudicator for regional festivals and the National Piano Playing Auditions. Ms. Harmon joined Pleasant Hill Church in October of 2015 as our Head Organist and Pianist and was promoted to our Director of Music Ministries in June of 2021.