The children of Cavins Baptist Church, Woodruff, raised more than $200 for the Annie Armstrong Easter Offering. They presented their church banks to pastor Charles Foster on April 5 during the morning worship service.
On March 19, Summerton Baptist Church hosted its seventh annual men’s wild game supper at Bell-View Farms. Nearly 2,000 men attended. Richard Blackaby was guest speaker, and CrossAnchor Quartet provided music. Eight men accepted Christ and another 195 rededicated their lives. The event was held on the farm of Buck Bell, a longtime member at Summerton. The church also celebrated its 150th anniversary with a special service led by Blackaby on March 22. Revival services continued with guest speakers Tom Swilley, Chris Wells and Chad Rickenbaker, all of whom were raised at Summerton Baptist. “We had two men accept Christ during the revival and many more folks who are Christians get their lives right with God,” said Rob Pierce, senior pastor.
Squire Parsons appeared in concert at Cavins Baptist Church, Woodruff, on March 28. From left: pastor Charles Foster, Stephen Foster, Squire Parsons and Samuel Parsons.
President of Prison Fellowship Ministries Mark Early challenged the Charleston Southern campus during convocation March 25. “I dare you to fall in love with God and with your neighbor,” Early said. “Take love to the most unlovely people in the toughest places. Be willing to love people no one else will love.” Prison Fellowship Ministries was founded by Charles Colson in 1976 and is the world’s largest outreach to prisoners and their families, with ministries in 114 countries.
Doris Hellams (front, right), pictured with family members, was honored April 19 at Davidson Street Baptist Church, Clinton. She is the wife of the late M. Floyd Hellams, who served as pastor of Davidson Street for many years. She was a longtime school teacher in Clinton. Brett Williams, who is married to Hellams’ granddaughter, preached at the special service.
The youth group of Faith Baptist Church, Ridgeland, participated in a mission project at the Orangeburg campus of Connie Maxwell Children’s Home on March 14. Fifteen participants moved rocks to needed areas on the campus, weeded garden beds for spring planting, and removed grass from designated areas so that sand could be brought in for a new playground. The group also brought a number of items for the campus pantry.
Westwood Baptist Church burned a $560,000 mortgage note on March 29. The church borrowed the money in 1995 in order to build a new worship center in the face of overflow attendance. The church has baptized 398 believers in the last 14 years. Participating in the mortgage-burning ceremony are pastor Greg Thornhill and the church’s deacons.
Ladell Humphries, right, was recently honored by North Hartsville Baptist Church, Welsh Neck Baptist Association, on his 10th anniversary as pastor. Deacon chairman Ricky Hodges presented a love offering as well as a plaque on behalf of the church.
On April 10, Good Friday, 31 members of Faith Baptist Church, Ridgeland, participated in the church’s annual “Cross Walk.” The youth group and participating adults carried crosses through the streets of downtown Ridgeland to demonstrate to the community the importance and meaning of Easter.
Clarification: Calvary Baptist Church, Clinton, recently recognized Ted Ward and Jimmy Revis for 50 years of service as deacons. Mary Ellen Graham (previously identified as Mary Ellen Ward) was recognized for 50 years of service as instrumentalist for the church.
Lakelands Baptist Association’s Bible Drill was held at North Side Baptist Church, Greenwood, on April 5. Pictured at left are children who participated in the drill: Evan Hughes, Wes Haddon, Madeline Johnson, Noel Johnson, Brooke Meredith, Jonathan Meredith, Grant Vickery, Emily Harris, Madeline Hubbard, Ben Pettit, Luke Roberts, Davis Edwards, Emily Seymour and Bradford Russ. Suzanna Edwards (shown at right) participated in the youth division.
A group of 25 youth and adults from Garden City Baptist Church recently spent a day working on the grounds at Bethea Baptist Retirement Community in Darlington. They spread 250 bales of pine straw (pictured at left: Gene King, Roger Turner), cleaned windows, painted a large storage shed (pictured at right: Danny Miller, Richard Grice), and handed out plastic Easter eggs filled with candy and a Bible verse to residents. Richard McLawhorn, former president of South Carolina Baptist Ministries for the Aging and current pastor of Garden City Baptist, said, “I’ve received extremely positive reports about Bethea from church members of all ages who spent a day there working. This further confirms to me the wisdom of the Cooperative Program and other efforts to support our Baptist institutions.”