An Easley pastor is the first announced candidate for president of the South Carolina Baptist Convention.
AtkinsBrad Atkins, pastor of Powdersville First Church in Easley, will be nominated by Broadus Moody, director of missions for Piedmont Association, at the Nov. 16 closing session of the annual meeting in Columbia.
Atkins, who has led the Powdersville congregation since 2006, served as the SCBC’s second vice president in 2010 and currently is first vice president. In 2010 he was named to the South Carolina Great Commission Resurgence Task Force.
During his pastorate, First Church has gained 189 members and baptized 54 new believers. The church contributes 6 percent of its offerings to the Cooperative Program. Atkins has led Powdersville to set a 2012 goal of 13 percent of budget gifts going to missions, with 7 percent of that through the Cooperative Program.
Atkins and his wife Haley met at North Greenville University and have two children. Her father, Mitch Brooks, is pastor of Second Church, Belton.