Ritch Grimes joined the Milk River Churches as new co-pastor on February 12

Ritch Grimes, former solo pastor of the Chinook Alliance Church, is the new co-pastor of the Milk River Churches (MRC). Rev. Grimes joins Theresa Danley, Certified Lay Pastor, who has been pastor to the four congregations since March of 2023.

Grimes will be officially installed at a joint worship of the MRC congregations on March 3 at the United Methodist Church in Chinook. The four congregations of the MRC include the Chinook and Havre Presbyterian Churches and the American Lutheran and United Methodist Churches, both located in Chinook. The first joint worship of the MRC churches was held Christmas Eve of 2021.

The MRC congregations have been working collectively since the end of 2021. Like most rural churches across the country, the local congregations were finding it difficult to attract ordained ministers. By sharing ministers the churches are able to serve their congregations as well as the communities where they are located. Rev. James Johnson, a former pastor for the American Lutheran and Chinook Presbyterian churches before he left Chinook to become a Navy chaplain, returned for a time last year as the MRC churches first began their new journey.

Grimes grew up Maryland near Washington, DC. He earned a bachelor's degree in Bible and Theology at Toccoa Falls College in north Georgia and completed a Masters in Divinity from the Alliance Theological Seminary in Nyack, New York-just outside New York City. He served a number of churches from Iowa to Oklahoma.

His father was in construction. Ritch said, "I spent most summers working construction jobs from general laborer to carpenter." Over the years, often between church assignments, he had his own home improvement business and at times worked for other building contractors. Musically talented, for nearly two years he was the lead singer in a Christian band based in Germantown, Maryland. He also was a youth pastor and for a time worked with children with emotional and behavioral challenges. Put simply, Ritch has a lot of varied experience to draw on in this new position with the MRC.

Ritch Grimes feels "God called me for this purpose"

Before his call to the Alliance Church in Chinook Grimes and his wife, Judy, were living in Stillwater, Oklahoma where he was an assistant manager at the CM Asian Market. The family, with a son in high school and daughter in middle school, moved to Stillwater where Ritch was a solo pastor at an Alliance church for two years.

While in Stillwater he made a commitment to his two children to stay there until they could finish their degrees at Oklahoma State University. A new opportunity made that stay doable. Over the years he had worked many different types of jobs in construction. In Stillwater he served as the general contractor overseeing the remodeling of the Asian grocery store. Then was asked by the owner to stay on as the assistant manager. He did that job for nine years before beginning a search for a position to reenter the ministry.

He said of that search, "Being from the Washington, DC area I was looking for a position back on the east coast. I got a call from the Alliance district superintendent in Billings and we came to Chinook." Looking back, Ritch said, "Now I see that God called us here, not to minister to just one church but to minister to the entire community of Chinook."

As he's learning about this new position with the MRC churches he explained, "I'm seeing new parts of these four congregations and how they work and how the religious cultures of three denominations are coming together. I'm learning to be reshaped and remolded."

During his first month in the new position as Ritch has been preaching each Sunday in the Chinook and Havre Presbyterian Churches. In March he and co-pastor Theresa will switch where they are preaching and he will be at the American Lutheran and United Methodist Churches in Chinook. Every first Sunday of the month the four churches hold a joint worship, they rotate where that service is held each month.

Of Ritch Grimes' joining the MRC pastoral team, Theresa Danley wrote, "I look forward to working alongside Ritch as we minister not only to the congregations of the Milk River Churches, but also to the communities that these churches call home. It's about supporting the spiritual health of the local people and I am thankful to have a partner in that endeavor."

Looking ahead Ritch said, "God is going to surprise us all and accomplish things that boggle our minds and will give glory to God. God was giving me a heart for an opportunity to serve Chinook in this way." He added his wife, Judy, and their adult daughter who also lives in Chinook, are looking forward to new ways to help serve the local community.