Historical Events

Historical Events September, 2001 – August 2002 Spencer Baptist Church

In September, Super Buddies, our after-school tutoring ministry began it’s 3rd year with 1st – 3rd graders from Spindale Elementary School. Lori Benton is the coordinator for this ministry, which serves 12-15 children. Also in September, our church participated at the Spindale Correctional Facility – providing chapel services each Tuesday night of the month to the inmates.

The children of our church were “treated” to a special “Trunk or Treat” on October 31st. This was a wonderful alternative to trick or treating and our members enjoyed a special time of passing out treats from the trunks of their cars!

November was an exciting month for Spencer Baptist Church. We celebrated our 75th Anniversary with a special service on November 11th! Former member, Rev. Art Herron was our guest preacher, and former Minister of Music, Malone Thomason, was our special music guest. A dinner on the grounds followed the service of worship.

Spencer partnered once again with the Dept. Of Social Services during the month of December to provide Christmas gifts for children in our community in need of toys and clothes. Also in December, we joined forces with some of the Spindale Area churches for our 2nd Annual Tree Lighting! Children of Spindale made decorations for the tree, and we gathered on the corner of N. Oak and Main St. for a service of worship. The rest of the Advent season was full of activity around our church. Our children’s choirs and Adult Choir joined together to present “The Wonder of Christmas” during a special Sunday worship service. Our church family also gathered to go caroling to our Homebound Members during this month.

January was a time for our deacons and their spouses to participate in our Deacon Retreat at the Hollifield Leadership Center at Lake Hickory.

In February, Spencer members participated in the “Souper Bowl of Caring” project to help feed the hungry/homeless in our area. We also partnered again with the Spindale Correctional Facility to provide chapel services to the inmates during the month. In mid-February, 45 of our youth and chaperones headed on their annual Winter Youth Retreat to Boone, NC. The 2nd week of February was WMU Focus Week. Our WMU hosted a special missions breakfast, and our puppet team “The SonShine Bunch,” entertained. Guest speaker for the breakfast was John Ward from Adaville Baptist Church.

Spencer hosted and participated once again in the Weekly Lenten Services sponsored by Spindale Area Churches. Area churches took turns providing the Worship Time and the Lunch Meal. These services were held each Tuesday at noon throughout Lent.

In April, our church was host to the Rutherford County Caregiver Fair. We also held our Annual Easter Egg Hunt for children. Easter Sunday, the community was invited to our Sunrise Service, which was held this year at Isothermal.

In May, our church initiated and helped to lead the community of Spindale and surrounding churches in a Community Fundraising BBQ for the children in our community. Enough funds were raised to keep the Spindale Pool Open, the Spindale House fully functioning, and the library open.

Vacation Bible School was held the first week of June. We enrolled 222 participants this year, with an average attendance of 180! Also in June, our youth spent a week at Caswell.

July was a busy month! In place of our “Terrific Tuesdays’ ministry, we offered “Kids Kamp” this year to children in grades 1–5. This week long camp was a huge success, with over 100 children participating! The mornings were spent at the church in Bible Study, Music, and Crafts, and the afternoons were spent on a variety of field trips. The week ended with a Celebration Service for the kids and their families. Following Kids Kamp, 25 of our youth and young adults left for a mission trip to the Outer Banks, where they were involved in beach ministries for a week.

In August, our WMU sponsored “Christmas in August.” The evening began with a traditional Christmas dinner, with turkey, dressing, and desserts! Our children and puppets presented excerpts from the musical “Operation Christmas Child” which was the kick off for our mission project with Samaritan’s Purse. We will be preparing shoe boxes of goodies through November to send to the Operation Christmas Child ministry around the world.