A power failure July 20 may have doused the lights at Belk Baptist Church, but it didn’t quell the joy of the 100th anniversary celebration.
“It wasn’t what we expected, but it was a good day,” Jerry Porter, a 38-year deacon and lifelong church member, said of the power outage’s effect on the service.
Lights or no lights, just being in the building of the Fayette Baptist Association church was enough to bring back fond memories for James Crowley, who was a church member in the 1970s.
“The church was unified and had a great spirit,” Crowley recalled of his time at Belk Baptist, attending with his wife and daughter and teaching Sunday School.
Other former members — along with some of the 29 former pastors — returned to join the 25 current members for the celebration, making for a crowd of about 60 people. Testimonies were given and stories of the past were shared.
Melanie Metz, administrative assistant at the Alabama Baptist Historical Commission, presented the church with a plaque commemorating its 100 years of serving God.
The celebration kicked off a week of revival, led by Billy Williams, of Enterprise. He was ordained at Belk Baptist 40 years ago and has been in the ministry ever since.
The church was founded July 20, 1908, by W.K. Pennington and B.E. Cunningham and became part of what was then Yellow Creek Baptist Association.
“It was just the love of God in their hearts,” Porter said of the founders’ desire to establish a Baptist church in the community.
And the community still has a place in the hearts of Belk Baptist members, according to Porter’s wife, Martha, a lifelong church member.
She said the church has been a great help to the community through the years, preparing fruit baskets for the elderly during Christmastime and meals for those who have lost a loved one. And, of course, it has reached out to share the gospel with whoever will listen.
“We’re just a small country church trying to show God’s love,” she said.
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