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Because we Methodists on the corner of Doswell & Kelly Streets did not favor preaching in a tent, our forefathers built our sanctuary in 1896. They built not only to the glory of our God, but also to the permanence of our church's beliefs.  They anticipated that in the year 2000 we would honor their dream with a dream of our own.

In 1997 we had a church population of 304.  Our youth program was growing and needed a place of its own.  Once a year Misty Hicks, the youth and children's director, and the Methodist Youth Fellowship served an Italian dinner and presented a talent show.  The preparations for the dinner challenged everyone, but the parents, the youth, and Misty prevailed by using the porch and all of the Sunday school rooms in addition to the social hall to serve everyone before the talent show was presented in the sanctuary.  Each year a stage had to be erected over the altar to accomodate all of the players; this was a monumental task and some members thought this an invasion of the church's sanctity.  All of this was a small problem when compared to the task of having to serve more than 200 people a complete dinner from the confines of our small and rather ill equipped kitchen.

In addition to the dinner and talent show, once a year Misty and the children presented a musical complete with lights, costumes and props!  Once again out came the lumber for the stage to be built over the altar so that the talent of our children could be properly showcased.  Afterwards the children hosted an autograph signing party in the social hall that was happily packed with cast, staff and guests. 

We also had an active program for our older adults called the Greater Years.  Mrs. Spencer Chappell (Lillian Hardwick) organized the group in 1977 as an outreach to our cherished older members. Guests were treated to lunch and entertainment.  Once again we crowded into our social hall.

Our choir, under the direction of Mrs. Bill (Lucky Crawford) Armstrong was growing and a little weary of having no room for their sheet music and robe storage.  They had no rehearsal space, so used the social hall and sanctuary for practice.

We were experiencing glorius growing pains! Many prayers were offered and God answered our most pressing need --- land upon which to build our dream building. On June 25, 1997, Mayor and Mrs. James Francis (Jo Smith) Crawford signed the deed giving us the property adjacent to our north side. This site, known as the old Farmers' Quick Freeze building, had been abandoned since it was gutted by fire. There was some discussion about the renovation of this building because it was something of a landmark. The facility was built for a meat processing plant in 1946. Many of us fondly remember, before the easy accessibility of home freezers, our families renting frozen meat lockers from Farmers' Quick Freeze. But after consultation with architects and engineers, it was agreed that it would be cost prohibitive to save the building.

We had been given the impetus we needed to expand our church facilities to encourage our burgeoning programs, but we needed the consensus of all our members. Reverend Ray Kelly convened a Charge Conference January 30, 2000, for the purpose of taking a vote. The trustees, Mr. Max Mobley, Mrs. Lester Howard, (Catherine Vickrey) Killebrew, Mrs. James Franklin (Peggy Murphy) Carter III, Mr. Dale Ezzell, Dr. Mark Morelock, Mr. Don Skipper, Mr. David Money, and Mr. Jimmy Rane, gave ballots to all members age 16 or older. The results showed eighty-five members voted "yes" and two members voted "no".

Now money to build the building --- one as timeless as our sanctuary and as beautiful --- had to be raised. Under the leadership of our trustees a fund-raising campaign was begun with the help of a professional fund raising company. The following are the names that appeared on our promotional brochure, which was published to promote our fund raising efforts.

   Campaign Directors ------------------- Kevin and Ashley Savoy
   Promotions Director ------------------- Stormy Miller
   Spiritual Emphasis Director ---------- Matt Mobley
   Prayer Emphasis Director ----------- Misty Hicks
   Leadership Director ------------------- Kevin Savoy
   Commitment Visitation Director ---- Maribeth Herndon
   Banquet Director ---------------------- Lucky Crawford
   Campaign Director -------------------- Jan Allen
   Follow-up Director -------------------- Woodie Allen

The campaign slogan was Ecclesiastes 3:3:
       "There is a time for everything, and a season for everything under heaven."
                                    Our "time to build" is now.

This campaign brochure was specific in stating our needs:

• A Christian Life Center with a seating capacity of two hundred and fifty and architectural and landscaping designs that compliment  and maintain the integrity of our existing building.
• A stage, complete with changing areas, control booth, lighting, audio and visual equipment, and acoustical soundess.
• A kitchen, complete with industrial stove and oven, dish-washing area, freezer and refrigerator, dry storage space and serving line.
• Two new bathrooms to accomodate the larger audiences using the sanctuary and the Christian Life Center.
• A large classroom for our youth and storage area for their game equipment and instruments.
• A beautifully landscaped courtyard area for quiet prayer and meditation.
• A larger choir room with chairs for rehearsals and areas for storage of robes, music, book-stands, hymnals and banners.

(cont'd.)