how ida spence mission began

     In 1957, the Ida Spence Community Methodist Church was established in the Ida Spence Public Housing complex (later called City Heights) in the Peaselburg Neighborhood of Covington. Originally, the area was the site of a Benedictine monastery and vineyard. This hilltop also served as the base for Fort Henry during the American Civil War. The founding pastor was the Rev. Oyer C. Morgan. Eventually, the congregation constructed a church building on the hill on property that was purchased from the City of Covington.
     In 1993, the Methodist congregations in Northern Kentucky in cooperation with the Ida Spence Methodist Church began a fundraising drive to establish a clinic at City Heights. The clinic was a project conceived by the pastor of the Ida Spence Methodist Church, the Rev. Annie Allen. Plans called for a 52’ x 40’ addition to the church to house the clinic. The fund drive raised $83,000 from 41 United Methodist Churches in the region. The clinic officially opened in April 1995 and was staffed by volunteer doctors and a dentist.
     The Ida Spence Mission is part of the Northern Kentucky District of the United Methodist Church (Kentucky Conference). Today, it continues to change the lives of children and families in the City Heights community. 

(Historical information is from the Kenton County Public Library, the Covington Housing Authority, and the Kentucky Conference United Methodist Church Archives.)