First Baptist is in the beginning of an extended fund raising campaign to raise funds to repair the steeple and the Town Clock. Currently, we are selling tickets for a Chicken Dinner from Lapps Dutch Market for $10. We are grateful for all who have already contributed to preserving the clock and tower. A little more than $9,000 has already been received. For the last 163 years it has been a joint effort between the congregation and the city that installed the clock, maintained it, and replaced it when needed.
We wish to thank Mr. David Kershner for taking his spare time and working with us to write and host the code for our new RSS feed for our sermon mp3 files. You can point your browser, or other RSS reader,
here to subscribe to the feed and be notified when new sermons are posted.
A new Baptism/New Members' class is being organized. The class will meet during the Sunday School time and will be taught by Pastor Jon. It will last about six weeks. We are looking to begin the class in the middle of February with the goal of being done by April. If you are interested in baptism or membership in this community of faith, or you just want to know more, please let us know. All are welcome to attend!
Tower and Clock in the Paper
We are pleased to announce that the local newspaper, Today's Sunbeam, has already taken an interest in the capital campaign and the needed repairs to the steeple and clock. Our thanks go out to reporter Tracy Wiggins for the wonderful story she wrote introducing the community to the challenges facing us as we seek to maintain the city's clock. If you did not see the article, try to get a copy of Sunday's paper before it is too late!
We are gearing up for our first Family Promise guests!
First Baptist Church has partered with Walnut Street Bible to host families in conjunction with Family Promise of Salem County. We will be receiving our first guests on Sunday afternoon, November 15 and we will be hosting them through Wednesday morning, November 25. During their stay, the families will be sleeping in the parsonage of the Walnut Street Bible church on Johnson St. We can always use more volunteers for positions. We need people to drive the Family Promise van in the mornings and evenings, cook dinner for the guests, spend the evening with them, and a couple of people to spend the night each night. Training is both provided free, and is mandatory for anyone wanting to help who will be interacting with the guests. There are a couple of training events coming up soon. They are informative and fun. Please don't miss this opportunity to serve in a much needed area here in Salem County!
Welcome New Members!
We welcomed into our family several new members over the last month. Joining the church are Jean Sharp, Megan Sharp, Abigail Sharp, Sarah Sharp, Martha White, Jenny McLane, and Paul Waddington. Most of these have been connected with our congregation all of their lives, but we have some new faces as well. Along with four others, these were baptized in the Delaware river on September 20, and the congregation has since voted them into membership. They have been involved in our ministries for some time now, and we look forward to walking and growing with them in the years to come. May God continue to guide and grow us as we follow Jesus together.
Capital Campaign Getting Started
As the meeting house was being built in the mid 1800s, the congregation gave the city permission to install a clock in the tower. The clock served the community, and the church, faithfully until 1903 when it stopped working. At that time funds were raised from the congregation and the community to replace the broken clock works. The new clock served about 44 years until the tower and clock were completely destroyed by fire on January 22, 1947. Again, money was raised from the city residents to support the rebuilding of the tower and clock. That tower and clock have stood atop the building ever since adding to the skyline of Salem City and serving as one of the community's landmarks.
Due to the deteriorating condition of the clock tower, the church has decided to begin a capital campaign to provide funding for necessary repairs and maintenance work. It is obvious from the street level that the tower is in dire need of new paint. What is less obvious is the condition of the wood behind that paint. While most of the damage is cosmetic thus far, we are starting to experience water damage and it will only worsen until the problems are solved. Also, repair work is needed to the clock mechanism, especially the gearing that controls the ringing of the bell. Many members of the church, and community residents, have noticed that the bell seems to have taken on a mind of it's own. While this is at worst annoying, and at times amusing, we hope to raise enough money to include adjustments to, or even replacement of, the clock works to solve this problem. Donations are always welcome to our Building Fund to help preserve this piece of Salem City history. If you would like to give, please send your donation to First Baptist Church, P.O. Box 75, Salem, NJ 08079 and mark it for the "Captial Campaign."
