Northside Indpndnt Methodist Church

What used to be the thriving, vibrant and beautiful Independent Northside Methodist Church pastored by Mark Leuthold is now the theater ministry location of the First Baptist Church of Sandy Springs across the street. The eight lovely stained glass windows, whose acquisition Pastor Leuthold spearheaded, are thankfully still in place. In 1978, my husband Warren, then a graduate student in music who was serving as the church’s worship pastor, brought the Women’s Choir from Bob Jones University in Greenville, South Carolina, to sing the dedication concert after the installation of the windows. A very old cemetery on the church property is identified as part of the first Baptist Church of Sandy Springs, so the church must have leased or lent their old sanctuary to the Methodists. A memorial marker for Congressman Larry McDonald, who was associated with Northside Independent Methodist Church, is still in front of the church. He was a passenger on the Korean Airlines flight 007 that was shot down by the Russians in 1983.