Oct. 30 was a special day for Thomaston Baptist Church — they gathered to celebrate their 82nd homecoming. But it was an even more special day for Wayne Sharpe, their guest preacher for the day.
“It was on the last Sunday of July 1972 that I was ordained to preach right there at Thomaston Baptist Church,” he said.
That made this year his 50th anniversary in the ministry — something Thomaston Baptist had no idea about until Sharpe’s sister called him to tell him how excited she was that he would be preaching for her church’s homecoming.
But once she found out, she passed it on. Her son-in-law, Jeff Laduron — chairman of the deacons at Thomaston Baptist — proposed they honor Sharpe’s ordination anniversary, and the church presented him with a crystal plaque on homecoming Sunday to commemorate his 50th anniversary in ministry.
Sharpe’s ministry over the years has had a wide impact — he served 10 years as pastor of Forest Hill Baptist Church in Linden, then 17 years at First Baptist Church Gantt before retiring. Since then, he has served 23 years in revival ministry and interim pastor roles.
He and his wife, Willene, are members of Opp First Baptist Church.
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