Church History

1885-2002

By Leo S. Miller

      He further stated that the total cost of the materials for the building was $790.00, and that members and others living within the vicinity and surrounding it gave of their means so that the church did not go in debt for the building.  He went on to say that the congregation had never been in debt up to that point.  This situation likely continued until 1980 when the church moved to its present Speedway location and borrowed money to purchase the church building and the house next door.  The congregation elected James Benson, Elijah Cooper, and Wesley Davidson (Great grandfather of Helen Schmid), as its first trustees, along with William Hardy as Treasurer and Charles Golding as Clerk.  Among the early elders was Gaylon W. Davidson who served over a period of more than forty years, first as deacon and then as elder, until his death in 1928.  Orlando McKinney, father of Archie McKinney and grandfather of current member Helen Schmid, was elected elder on May 17 1914 and served with Davidson for a number of years.  On March 17, 1917 another elder J.R. Callahan, was added, and Archie went on to become an elder in the early 1930's and served in this capacity for nearly twenty years.  He was in failing health for some years, and died in 1951.

     The congregation apparently emerged from that segment of the Restoration Movement that did not believe in located preachers, instrumental music, division into classes for instruction, individual communion cups, and perhaps other practices they considered to be innovations and departures from the old paths.  In spite of these restrictions the congregation grew, and in the early 1900's found it necessary to enlarge the building to seat an additional 40 people or so.  By 1939, however, troubles had flared in the group and Brother McKinney's statement said that the congregation had withstood "several shocks by internal strife," but that it "still remains a pillar and support of the truth."  McKinney's statement, incidentally, bears a stamp showing that it had been recorded in the public records of the County, a common practice in those days.  Although frictions and irritations continued, the congregation grew and began to need more parking space as more members were driving in from outside the immediate vicinity.  This led to the purchase, in 1939, of Lot 98 next door to the church building.  This took that lot off the tax records, but due to a mix-up in the county records, the lot was sold at a tax sale several years later.  The County corrected its records and deeded the lot back to the church on June 7, 1961.

Before 1950 Potpourri By 1911 the congregation had all but stopped using the name "Christian Church"  That name, however, continued to appear on official city records, utility bills and the like for several years.  The first official recognition of the name change is found in a notarized statement on another matter, dated March 12, 1920, in which the congregation is referred to as "The Blaine Avenue Church of Christ."  This name was used until the move to Speedway in 1980.

     In the first half of the twentieth century less attention seemed to be given to the matter of regular weekly contributions.  Many congregations were made up of rural families who had income from crops and livestock only about twice a year.  During much of the year regular contributions were quite small, but they dug deep to mee the church's financial obligations as emergencies arose.  In a day when annual salaries were about the equivalent of one week's pay today, there were not many dollars to give.  There were few missions and benevolence programs among the churches, and some congregations thought it unscriptural to put its money into such programs.  Some members saw little need to increase their contributions when the congregation was not making much use of the funds already available. Only a few dollars in the treasury were deemed ample to meet needs.  One exception to this is a record of A.W. Harvey being given $4.00 for a mission in Brown County. Harvey was a well-known and respected preacher in the Bloomington area.  It is not known whether Harvey was doing the mission work or just collecting funds for the effort.

      Expenses exceeded contributions in many of the years after the turn of the century, perhaps indicating that the congregation had laid aside some funds in previous years.  In 1914 for example, annual contributions amounted to $432.48 and expenditures were $850.55.  Contributions increased slowly so that by 1927 they amounted to $755.07 but still fell short of the $804.33 in expenses for the year. IN many years the income and expenses were within a dollar or so of each other, and the largest balance noted on the records, at any one time was $268.01 in 1931, strangely during the Great Depression.

     The congregation followed the then customary practice of giving and receiving "letters of commendation" as members moved from one congregation to another.  Some letters are quite formal; others were prepared on forms specially printed for that purpose.  Some letters offered additional notes about the persons being recommended.  A 1916 letter from the Fairview Church of Christ in Lawrence County commended G.W. Murphy as "a preacher" and "able to do all the work of an evangelist."  One person wrote that he had personally baptized the couple he was commending.  Another letter commending a member from Quincy, Indiana was signed by R.R. Mannan and dated October 24 1922.  Brother Mannan preached widely in Western Indiana and elsewhere, and it is thought this letter came from him.  Still another letter was from the North Indianapolis (29th Street) church was signed by Daniel Sommer, a well-known preacher throughout the midwest.  Of special interest is a letter from Milburn, Kentucky commending Frank W. Henderson.  Henderson became active in the Blaine Avenue church and, while here, completed work on a commentary on the Revelation.  His son had the work published after Henderson's death and some copies of the book are still around.  Letters of commendation were received from at least a dozen congregations in Indiana, along with letters from such places as Long Beach, California; Bowling Green, Kentucky; and Nashville, Tennessee.

     The church seemed to keep better membership records in the first half of the century than in later years.  A sample of the figures shows a total membership of 134 in 1913, including two unnamed charter members. Sixteen members were added during the year and four were lost by death.  By 1918, membership had grown to 149 and still included two charter members; this seems to have been the highpoint in the membership.  The record of January 4, 1925 shows only one charter member left, a sister Stowman, and the next annual meeting listed her among those "lost by death" during 1925.

    In 1927 twelve members left the church and placed membership elsewhere, bearing out Brother McKinney's statement about internal strife. On December 18 of that year the congregation issued a statement "withdrawing our fellowship" from thirteen members.  Whether this list includes the twelve who had left is not known.  The record goes on to say that the names of five other members were discussed but that they did not withdraw from them because they were not present to "answer for themselves."  No mention is made of the reasons for this action.

     At the end of 1927 only 100 members were listed, with 93 of them "in good standing."  The 1928 report listed the deat of Gaylon Davidson, long time deacon and elder.  By 1931 the membership was back up to 131 and the 1934 list totaled 111.  No mention is made of a drop of 20 members in that year.

    Friction still simmered in the congregation as evidenced by a letter from another congregation, dated May 18, 1935, informing the Blaine Avenue church that eleven members had left Blaine Avenue and placed membership with that church, and stating that Blaine Avenue could remove those names from their membership list, "if you wish."  Membership seemed to decline from this point, although records for the next several years are scarce.  Available records do, however, reveal several characteristics of the congregation.  They were careful to hold annual meetings at which they elected trustees to meet legal requirements for ownership of church property in Indiana.  Quite formal in their meetings, they usually started by electing a chairman to conduct the meeting and a secretary to take notes and make a report.  Several speakers would comment on the items being considered, and a vote would be taken.  Most actions were recorded in the Marion County Recorder's office.

     The congregation maintained what they deemed a scriptural organization, with duly elected elders and deacons.  They exercised what they thought to be scriptural congregational discipline.  Minutes of annual meetings listed not only new members and members lost by death, but also names of those from whom they had "withdrawn fellowship."  Many today would not agree with some of their bases for withdrawl, nor their concept of fellowship, but they can be commended for trying to follow what they saw as scriptural mandates in these matters.  Annual meetings further produced lists of members with poor attendance records or who were otherwise lax in their Christian duties.  Such lists were headed, "People to be Visited," and the 1928 list contained 73 such names.  Presumably the elders were to do the "visiting."

      Consistent with their stance of opposing "located preachers" the church practiced the so-called "mutual edification" arrangement in their teaching services.  Several men were asked (and expected) to read and comment on a passage of scripture.  Some were well-versed i the Bible and their exhortations were timely and helpful.  Others were no doubt pressed into service where they were not capable of teaching.  This format continued for some years, gradually giving way to more frequent appointments by visiting preachers, and finally the employing of a full-time "located preacher."

      Several preachers were utilized during this period.  They included Robert Dillinger, Clarence Barr, W.F (Frank) Cline and others.  Dillinger and Barr might be considered quite conservative today, but were perhaps less so than the Blaine Avenue congregation.  Brother Cline was very conservative, but a good Bible student.  Quite at home in the Greek language, he spent a good bit of his sermon time, in later years, expounding on the wording and meaning of various passages as they appear in the original.  Some members about the brotherhood became a little critical of the "Greek lessons" and wished to a little different style of preaching.

       Brother Archie McKinney's health was failing through the 1940's and others were asked to share in the congregation's leadership, although none were officially elected as elders.  Among those who shared in the leadership during those years were Robert Haverstick, Bert Brown, Lewis Kempton, and perhaps others.  Brother McKinney's death in 1951 left the church without duly elected elders and the church has continued without elders to this time.  The congregation still looks forward to the time when they can have able men as deacons and elders.

After 1950  It should be noted that, about 1950, some members began to express a desire to begin using individual cups in the communion service.  The congregation was already using multiple cups, but not individual cups.  Some felt this posed a health risk.  After much discussion, small group discussion in homes, and in prayer, the congregation decided to change to individual containers.  No really serious objection was made.

Attendance continued to decline in the early 50's and by 1957 average attendance was 57.  The congregation began to have visiting preachers on a more regular basis with such men as Lon McClary, Robert Hamm, and others filling monthly appointments.  Late in the fifties Brother Leo Miller preached a Sunday or two each month and asked the group to consider employing a full-time minister.  This required a change in thinking for some of the members.  After some time it was decided to make a serious effort to employ a minister, and brother Tommy Williams agreed to come in October 1962 to hold a gospel meeting and discuss the possibility of moving to Indianapolis.  Tommy, Lucy, and Alan were greeted by a severe October snow storm but still they agreed to begin work with the congregation when it could be worked out.  They moved to Indianapolis the following summer and Tommy began his work July 1, 1963.  Brother Williams and the congregation agreed to continue looking for another church location. 

Attendance had fallen off even further and weekly contributions were discouraging.  The general spirit was at a low ebb, but Brother Williams brought an enthusiasm and sense of purpose that helped the group to re-focus and plan for the future.  On at least two occasions the church canvassed the neighborhood, knocking on the doors of 1,100 homes to get acquainted and distribute literature.  Unfortunately, these visits brought little response from the area.

Attendance and contributions grew, however, and the treasurer reported that contributions in 1964 had more than doubled those of 1963, but that the church was still operating at a deficit.  Average attendance was up to 70 within a couple of years, and contributions began to exceed expenditures. 

Activities in 1964 included an area wide singing on sunday October 4.  More than 100 attended the morning services and 63 persons took part in the singing.  During the year a food pantry was established and members were asked to bring non-perishable foods to the church building.  Clothing was gathered to be sent to the African mission, and two large boxes of cloths were shipped to Houston, the central collection point for shipment.

In nearly every business meeting the matter of finding a new location was discussed, although funds were in short supply and it was not clear just how a move could be financed.  The congregation looked at a Quaker Meeting House in Carmel, but decided against the purchase.  In a February 3 business meeting it was reported that $3,000 had been received from the estate of Jennie Carleton.  She was not a member of the congregation, but had been befriended by some of the members.  It was agreed that this surprise bequest would be used to start a building fund.

During 1965 a new teaching service was added at 6:00 p.m. on Sundays, and the regular services were moved to 6:45 p.m.  This arrangement continued for a couple of years, and then it was decided to use this extra time on Sunday evenings for singing and music instruction.  In December of that year a friend of Cletis Ellett's gave him hundreds of bulletin covers with Bible pictures or passages on fronts.  Cletis passed these covers on to the Blaine Avenue church and they provided bulletins for several weeks.

In March 1965 it was agreed to begin putting the fifth Sunday contributions into the building fund.  On November of that year it was reported that 82 persons attended the morning service, the largest regular attendance in recent years.  On May 6, 1966, the Lena congregation made a substantial contribution to the church in memory of Carol Sue Miller, daughter of Leo and Alberta Miller, who had died March 4.  Again it was decided to add this money to the building fund.  In October of that year, Brother Herbert Hallett, father of current member Ron Hallett, showed color slides of his visit to the Holy land and made comments as he showed pictures of the area where Jesus walked and taught.

In 1967 the group looked at a Methodist Church buildinig at Hanna and Madison Avenues in south Indianapolis.  It was decided that this building, like the Quaker Meeting House, was so old and in such bad repair that it would be unwise to consider purchase.

In 1969 Brother Williams had an opportunity to go back to Texas to help set up a training program for the Farmers Branch Church of Chirst in Dallas.  All agreed that this would allow Brother Williams to do more good for a larger number of people, but it was a sad group of people that bade the Williamses goodbye in July.  Tommy left for a more forward-looking group and one more focused on possibilities for the future, but which had not yet been able to move to a better location.  After Tommy left, the congregation engaged Brethren Don Christy, Ron Hallett, and Howard Coe to preach on monthly appointments.  Brother Christy was a builder, teacher, architect, philosopher and astute Bible scholar.  Brother Hallett was a pulpit minister for the Lena congregation and had attended the Amarillo Bible Training Work (Now SHBI), while Brother Coe was a veteran gospel preacher for various congregations in several states.  All were able preachers and helped ease the loss of Brother Williams.  Brother Leo Miller preached on Sundays when others were not available.  For some time attendance remained about the same, with an average of 71 in 1971.  In the May business meeting it was reported that the building fund had grown to more than $12,000, and the church continued to think about a new location.

In the 1960's and 1970's a number of excellent preachers visited the congregation for gospel meetings.  Among them were G.B. Shelburne, Jr., long time editor of Gospel Tidings and Director of the Kerreville Bible Training Work; Gene Shelburne, Senior Editor of the Christian Appeal; Herbert Gipson, pulpit minister for the West Amarillo Church for more than thirty years; Billy Joe Leach, Marcus McCormick and others.  Without exception, each man urged the group to find a new meeting place.

The September 1972 bulletin reported the death of Rosie McKinney Fox, daughter of Arvil and Elaine McKinney, and her husband, Mark, in a boating accident in Alaska.  The bodies were brought back here for burial, and brother Leo Miller officiated in a double funeral service.  This was but one of several tragedies to befall the McKinney family.  Forest, brother of Arvil and Helen, had been killed in an auto accident on July 4, 1954.  Later, Jerry Lynch, son of Arvila and Elaine's daughter Janie, died in a bicycle accident on July 12, 1977.  The year 1972 also saw the death of Brother Howard Coe who, as mentioned previously, had preached a number of times for the congregation.

During the summer of 1976 the "Touring Texans" met with the church in a Saturday evening service on June 12.  This bus load of members and friends of the Farmers Branch church was returning from a trip to visit historical sites in the east.  Eddie Ketchersid and Roland Hayes spoke breifly, bringing greetings from Texas and describing the training work for Christian workers done at Farmers Branch. Everyone enjoyed ice cream and cake at Garfield Park after the services.

The February 15, 1977 bulletin told of the death of brother Paul Douglas at Gallatin, Tennessee.  Paul and his wife Sue, former members of the local congregation, had moved to Gallatin to be near their aging parents.  In August of that year we learned of the death of Brother James F. Thomas, former member and part-time preacher for the congregation, who had retired in Celina, Tennessee.  Still another death during that year was that of sister Emma McKinney, widow of Archie and mother of Arvil, Forest and Helen.  She was a faithful member for more than sixty years and it was hard to get used to seeing her place unoccupied.

In February of 1978, David and Mary Stewart came from  Texas, with their baby, to discuss the possibility of moving here to work with the Blaine Avenue church.  David was to preach in a week-end meeting but a severe winter storm wiped out all but the Sunday AM service.  The Stewarts decided not to accept an offer from the congregation; it is not known just how much the weather might have had to do with their decision!

On January 2, 1979 Bro. Don H. Christy was called by death.  He had preached for a number of years for the church at the Blaine Avenue location, and was much loved for his sermons relating nature and science to spiritual concepts.  His widow, Rachel, still lives near Bloomington, and, among here various activities, as written a number of children's books.

Time went on and church attendance continued to fall.  Some moved away, there were several deaths, and some just lost interest.  The congregation, however, continued to look for a suitable place of worship.  The considered making an offer on a United Church of Christ building on 38th Street, and a Lutheran building on South Fleming, but no action was taken on either building.

The Speedway Years   As the church continued to search for a suitable location it was learned that the Speedway Church of Christ building was for sale. Several members looked at this building, and negotiations were begun for its purchase.  Both the church building and the house next door, 4956 and 4952 W. Tenth Street, respectively were purchased for a total of $120,000 with the help of a $40,000 loan.  

     On January1, 1981 Bro. Tommy Williams returned as an interim minister.  Within three years the church paid off the loan, and with the permission of the previous congregation changed their name to the Speedway Church of Christ.

     On March 15, 1981 Jerry and Shirley Vincent were the first persons baptized at the Speedway location, and several others followed in the next year or so.  Alberta Miller prepared a new church directory, and Amy Thomas did the art work for the front cover.  In October of that year Wendell Davis visited the church to tell of the work being done at the Berean Family Home.  The congregation has supported this work in a modest way since that time. The church also began a monthly Sunday service at Rolands’s Living Center, a home for the aged and infirm.  This continued until the home needed the space for other uses. 

     In May 1982 Bro. Williams accepted a position with the church at Weatherford, Texas.  This freed the house at 4952 W. Tenth for bible studies, church dinners, and over-night accommodations.  Wednesday evening studies were called enrichment studies that attempted to broaden the membership’s interest in church history and other subjects. Bro David Bobo, principle founder of the Fountain Square church agreed to present a series of lessons on the Restoration Movement, How we got the Bible, and other topics.  Bro. Bobo also spoke several times at Sunday services until his health failed.  His kind spirit, deep biblical knowledge, and insight into a wide range of subjects made him a favorite.  To promote free discussions, the Wednesday group often met in homes.  Bro. Lloyd Boyll also spoke for the church during this period. 

      In the 1980’s the congregation hosted a number of Gospel Meetings featuring Lyndon Latham, Gene Shelburne, Larry Branum, Jerry Rogers and others.  In 1987 it was learned that Roger Reinoehl was leaving Sweetwater, TX where he had served as a minister for several years.  Roger agreed to move to the Speedway church and took up residence in the parsonage on June 7, 1987.  The Reinoehl family was a welcome addition to the Speedway church, and a boost to a congregation that had very few young people.  Roger and Gayle regularly invited the youngsters into their home on Sundays for pizza, movies, games and bible study.  His preaching was sincere, and his lessons bible based and always worthwhile.  Since the house was no longer available for church activities, the congregation needed more space. It was learned that the home adjoining the Reinoehl residence (4950) could be bought and, after considerable discussion and prayer the church purchased this house from Diane L Kegg for $41,500.

      In 1992 Bro Reinoehl indicated a desire to take some time out from ministry and seek secular employment.  The congregation had heard that Kent Ellett, who was teaching high school in Pasedena, Texas had completed his work at SHBI and was thinking of returning to his home state of Indiana.  He agreed to come to work with the Speedway church, and began his work on September 1, 1992.  Kent is a graduate of Indiana University and SHBI.  He was working on an interim basis with the West Amarillo church before his move.  After a couple of years here, Kent expressed a desire to take some courses at Christian Theological Seminary and the congregation gave its approval.  He has continued that work and expects to receive his Master of Divinity degree in the spring of 2001.  

For some years the congregation had been cultivating friendships with surrounding congregations, and readily accepted those who differed on minor points of doctrine and practice, somewhat of a change in stance over previous years.  Some congregations and preachers were somewhat standoffish, however, not knowing what to make of a small congregation still holding to a non-Sunday School format in its teaching services.  The Speedway church did not think that such differences between congregations would be a barrier to working together in any ways possible.  This attitude culminated, under Kent ‘s leadership, in the formulation of a “unity letter” which the Speedway congregation sent to surrounding congregations of the Church of Christ on July 10, 1994.  Patterned somewhat after a letter sent by the Quaker Avenue church to a sister congregation, the letter lamented the fractured condition of the church.  Several congregations responded in a positive manner and the Speedway congregation has had more interaction with other congregations, and tries to foster such cooperation.

In 1994 Bro Jerry Reeves, pulpit minister of the South Houston Church of Christ was invited to preach and lead a youth meeting August 17-20.   Young people from several congregations attended the meeting, with some spending the night with local members.  A highlight of the meeting was a “fun night” on Saturday evening, including a roast of he Speedway preacher, Kent Ellett.

Members talked carefully about purchasing the deteriorating Dairy Queen property, and in a complex deal involving several heirs the church bought the property for $175,000.   It seemed a lot of money but outside appraisers indicated that this was a good price.  On July 14, 1995, the church sold the house at 4950 West Tenth since the Reinoehl family was moving to Brazil, Indiana, borrowed $50,000 from two individuals and completed the purchase.  Two years were spent in renovating the building at considerable cost in time and money.  The building is now used for Family Bible study, youth groups, church dinners, wedding receptions, and other church functions.  Several other community groups are using the facilities.

In 1995 Barry Curtis, minister at South Houston was invited to hold a weekend meeting June 16-18 and conduct a seminar on the subject of small group ministry.  He explained the purposes of such a program and outlined the possible benefits that might be expected.  After much discussion and study the congregation embarked on a small group program.  These small groups meet weekly at an agreed upon evening in homes of various members, the community center or elsewhere for bible study and discussion.  This “non-church atmosphere helps to make these sessions less threatening to some, nd everyone is invited to speak his or her own thoughts about the topic at hand.  It has developed that more persons are attending the group meetings than had been attending the regular mid-week services.  Those not part of the Speedway church family seem to feel more comfortable in a small group setting, and after some time, a number of them have started attending the regular services as well.  Several baptisms have resulted.

The year 1995 also brought the death of Bro Arvil McKinney on August 27.  He had been the principle song leader for the congregation for many years, particularly before the move to Speedway.  After Arvil’s death his widow, Elaine, purchased new song books for the church, Songs of Faith and Praise, which are still being used at this writing.

In keeping with the so-called unity letter, the Speedway congregation planned and carried out the 1995 Liberty Lectures on August 12, 1995.  Four speakers presented papers on some aspect of Christian liberty.  Allen Ketchersid spoke about the Freedom of the Spirit. Rick Thomas spoke of the freedom of a grace covenant.  Jerry Reeves spoke on the “Liberating Ministry of Christ” and Leo Miller spoke on the subject of “The Freedom of a Congregation.”

Attendance grew modestly in the 1990’s.  The influx of new members both from baptism and from a number of members from the Cornerstone congregation in Avon had not affected total attendance as much as might be expected.  Quite a number of Speedway members either moved away or passed away.  Average attendance moved from around 45 in 1992 to 53 in the year 2000.  Contributions have increased during the same period from an annual budget of $44,000 to $68,000.

In February 1996 Dr Thomas Langford was invited to conduct a seminar on the theme “Forward to Toward the Bible.”  Dr. Langford is a long-time church leader and writer, distinguished professor at Texas Tech in Lubbock, and a much sought after speaker. In this two day meeting at McCormick’s Creek State Park Dr Langford made three presentations which were followed by questions and discussion.  Members from several congregations attended the seminar in spite of wintry weather.  In 1997 another retreat featured Carson Reed, pulpit minister of the Westlake Church of Christ.

Still another more ambitious seminar was conducted in 1997. IN an all day meeting at the church building on August 9, four outstanding speakers spoke on the general topic of “The Stone Campbell Movement—Two Centuries of Diversity.”  The four men shared their thoughts on the movement from their varying perspectives.  Guests from many of the area churches and from as far away as Michigan enjoyed the lectures by Dr. Leroy Garrett, long time editor of the Restoration Review, and author of the Stone Campbell Movement as well as other books and articles; Dr. James North, Interim Dean of the Cincinnati Bible Seminary; David Langford, pulpit minister at the Quaker Avenue congregation in Lubbock, TX; and Dr Carson Reed, veteran preacher for the Westlake congregation in Indianapolis. 

On December 12, 1997 members of the congregation who could do so met at McCormick’s Creek park to discuss the values of the Speedway congregations they relate to a proposed mission statement.  This was the first serious work on a mission statement which Kent had proposed some time earlier.  The mission statement was not intended to be a pattern for others, but simply statements about the qualities, characteristics and aims the congregation felt it should be pursuing.

A history of the church is hardly complete without mention of the many occasions the church has met at the home of Dave and Betty Cooney at the “Little Valley.”  This was originally the summer home of Bro and Sister Archie McKinney just west of Traders Point.  Another tradition of the Speedway years has been the weiner roast and hay ride at the home of Dan and Betty Thomas north of Brownsburg.

In recent years the church has had an influx of youngsters.  Some were attracted by Bro. Kent’s vacation Bible schools or other activities, while some were influenced by by young families already attending.  These children usually fill the front two rows as Bro. Kent or some of the young fathers takes turns teaching a bible lesson as part of the regular Sunday morning services.   This group of youngsters, ranging in age from infancy to 12 years, brightens the prospects for the congregation in future years.

And so the Speedway church faces the new millennium a much different church than in earlier times.  Changes through the years have given it a different character than when it first began.  Some of these changes have brought tension while others have been accomplished with little notice.  As the rate of change picks up, the congregation strives to keep within the bounds of Scriptural precepts and concepts, while it tries to be an more open community and one focused more on the Lord Jesus Christ than on formality and structure.  More than in the past it tries to meet some of the needs and support in a modest way the missionary and benevolent efforts across the country and abroad.  Thankful for the efforts of others nearly one hundred and twenty-five years, the church hopes to move forward in service to God and man.