Selma’s Elkdale Church dedicates renovated building

“Renovations started just after I arrived. It was neat to come in and be a part of it,” said Cory Horton, pastor of Elkdale Baptist Church, Selma.

Last summer, the Selma Baptist Association church broke ground on a renovation project involving the fellowship hall, kitchen, bathrooms, nursery and preschool department. Members had decided it was time to update their building, which was constructed in 1953.

This was just phase one of the church’s remodeling plan. Renovations to the choir suite and administrative offices are planned for the future.

On Feb. 6, Elkdale Baptist celebrated the completion of renovations and dedicated the building. Six charter members shared the history of the church and personal stories of when the building was originally erected. Maude Ellen Brown, one of the charter members, recalled seeing only a pine forest where Elkdale now stands and how a friend asked her, “Can you see it? Can you see the church?” Brown replied, “All I see is a bunch of trees.” She laughed as she told the story to the congregation.

Horton’s message encouraged Elkdale to remember, “The church has never been a building, but it is the people of God.”