A trio of Christian churches are reporting significant anniversaries:
• Broadway Christian Church in Lexington, Ky., celebrated her 150th anniversary Sept. 3-5, with a weekend filled with reunions and renewal.
A powerful message was delivered by former senior minister John Byard, along with a video documentary detailing Broadway’s history and connections with the Restoration Movement, the city of Lexington, and her role in winning countless numbers of people to Christ. A video of the Sunday worship service is posted on the church’s Facebook page.
• Central City Christian Church in Joplin, Mo., had a “Centennial Celebration Weekend” that included a “Mingle in the Museum” open house and “Remember When?” banquet Saturday. On Sunday morning an alumni band of musicians led worship and guest speaker Luke Proctor preached, followed by a “Something Old, Something New” picnic in the early afternoon.
The church created a number of special videos for the occasion.
• Jefferson Street Christian Church, Lincoln, Ill., will celebrate her 50th anniversary on three consecutive Sunday mornings. It starts this weekend with a “Past Celebration” to “focus on the past of JeffStreet and what God has done to get us to where we are.” A “Present Celebration” will take place Oct. 3, followed by a “Future Celebration” Oct. 10.
A 50th Anniversary Community Jubilee Celebration is planned from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 2, that will feature music, food, ice cream, and other free family fun. Learn more at jeffstreet.org.
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News Briefs
Ozark Christian College launched its “Ready to Go” campaign this past week. The Joplin, Mo., school is seeking to raise $5.9 million to renovate three of its six dormitories (a $3.8 million project), cover start-up costs for its new Master of Arts in Biblical Ministry which begins next fall ($400,000 price tag), and raise monies to help underwrite international and need-based student grants for three years due to the impact on the budget of smaller new class enrollment numbers resulting from COVID-19 ($1.7 million). Learn more at occ.edu or watch Ozark’s five-minute video.
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In response to growing humanitarian crises in Haiti and Afghanistan, Galilee Christian Church in Jefferson, Ga., has raised almost $30,000 to bless and provide relief to those refugees and communities.
GCC will be packing meals in October with Lifeline Christian Mission to help Haitians who are in dire need, senior minister Nick Vipperman said. Galilee also will donate nearly $20,000 directly to Team Expansion and their ongoing work with refugees in Afghanistan.
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Four years ago, during a Caribbean cruise, Kevin Huff and his wife witnessed a pickleball game onboard their ship. Thus began a series of events that has contributed to a pickleball craze in Anderson, Ind.
“It’s the most addicting game I’ve ever played in my life,” Huff told the Herald Bulletin.
Upon returning to Anderson, Huff asked the elders of Bethany Christian Church if he could purchase equipment to organize pickup games in the church’s gymnasium. Permission was granted. A friend said Huff “pushed a lot of us into trying it.” Interest grew.
The game—which combines elements of badminton, tennis, and Ping-Pong—has flourished during the coronavirus. And now the city has plans to add new courts in city parks; the mayor called it an “easy decision.”
Diana Jones, retired Anderson University kinesiology professor, called pickleball “social and recreational” . . . a sport people can play “regardless of their age,” according to the newspaper. She plays regularly at Bethany Christian.
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Christian Financial Resources recently announced it has surpassed $1 billion in loans originated to Christian churches and ministries. Since 1980, CFR has funded hundreds of kingdom projects that have changed countless lives. Putting CFR “over the top” was a $3 million loan to Manhattan (Kan.) Christian College so the college could reclaim some property it sold in the 1980s. (See our article from June.) To celebrate the milestone, CEO Darren Key presented a grant to Kevin Ingram, president of the college.
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Rinehart Christian Church in Richards, Mo., is offering free community gatherings centered around a corn maze for four consecutive Saturdays again this year.
“We want to offer an event that the whole family can enjoy together,” youth minister Elijah Pierson told the Fort Scott (Kan.) Biz.
In addition to the maze, there will be hayrides, yard games, a hot dog lunch, pumpkin painting, corn pits, and more from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. each Saturday. Special events, Pierson told the newspaper, will include a dog herding show (Sept. 25), a petting zoo (Oct. 2), a corn hole tournament (Oct. 9), and axe throwing (Oct. 16).
Read our feature story about the rural church’s corn maze from 2019.
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The Bridge—A Christian Church hosted its first public event under its new name over the weekend. The former First Christian Church held its annual Rallye 66 Benefit Run and Show in Carthage, Mo., on Sunday morning. Proceeds benefitted Peterson Outdoor Ministries, a nonprofit that provides recreational therapy for injured and retired veterans through outdoor activities, according to fourstateshomepage.com.
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Point University has hired Jaunelle White as its new athletic director. White has 20 years of athletic administration experience, most recently as senior associate athletic director of Indiana University—Purdue University Indianapolis.
“Jaunelle’s career as an athlete, a student, an administrator, and a person of faith is the reason that she is a perfect fit for Point University,” college president Dean Collins said.
White replaces Alan Wilson, who is retiring. Wilson has been with the school since 1996, when it was known as Atlanta Christian College. He has coached basketball (men’s and women’s), volleyball, and baseball during his time with the school. He became athletic director in 2010, about the time the school was renamed and moved its main campus to West Point, Ga.
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The Thomas Campbell Apartments, which provide low-income housing for senior citizens in Washington, Pa., will mark its 50th anniversary this weekend with a celebration Saturday. The Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) continue to sponsor the apartments, named for a Restoration Movement founder, a local newspaper reported.
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