STAFF CHANGES
Jim Day, to Broad Run Church, New Baltimore, as pastor.
John Compton, resigning as senior pastor of First Church, Alexandria, to accept a similar position in Mississippi.
Lance Yost, to Jahnke Road Church, Richmond, as bi-vocational pastor.
DEATHS
Barbara Williams Deal, a former missionary to Colombia, died Oct. 22 at the age of 81. She and her husband, Zach J. Deal of Chesapeake, were appointed by the SBC’s International Mission Board in 1947. She worked in music and evangelism in Cartagena until 1966, when the couple transferred to Medellin. They retired in 1987. She is survived by her husband; three sons, Zack J. III, John M. and Daniel S. Deal; one daughter, Rebecca Cecilia Zepeda; five grandchildren and five great-grandchildren.
Former Virginia Baptist pastor Leslie Sterling Napier died Oct. 12 at the age of 77. He had served as pastor of Alum Spring Church, Culpeper; Upperville Church, Upperville; and Calvary Church, Millboro Springs. He was a bi-vocational pastor and taught in the public schools in Culpeper and Fairfax counties for 26 years. He is survived by his wife, Della; two daughters, Rebecca Mummau and Ruth Starkey; two sons, Sammy and Danny Napier; six grandchildren and three great-grandchildren. A funeral service was held Oct. 16 at Calvary Church, Millboro Springs.
CHURCH EVENTS
Leigh Street Church, Richmond, will hold its 83rd annual Harvest Home Celebration Nov. 14. Tom Graves, president of the Baptist Theological Seminary at Richmond, will be speaker. Lunch will be served following worship.
Linden Heights Church, Staunton, will celebrate its 50th anniversary on Dec. 5. Worship will begin at 11 a.m. with lunch to follow.
Homecomings & Revivals
Calvary Church, Lynchburg; revival Nov. 14-17; Roger Roller, guest evangelist.
Ringgold Church, Ringgold; revival Nov. 7-10; James D. Newman, guest evangelist.
Round Oak Church, Corbin; revival Nov. 14-18; Joel Nelson, guest evangelist.
OTHER
Joe McKeever, a cartoonist and director of missions for the Baptist Association of Greater New Orleans, has drawn 32 cartoons for this year’s Winter Bible Study on “The Gospel of Mark.” They are free of charge and can be accessed at his website www.joemckeever.com.
MISSION MOMENTS
A mission team from Ridge Baptist Church in Richmond spent a week in Southwest Virginia in August assisting Powell River Baptist Association with several ministries. The church sent a large truck filled with furniture, clothing, bicycles, shoes and school supplies for the “God’s Gift Shop” ministry. As families came to the shop for assistance, Ridge members helped distribute items. Children from the church who went on the mission trip packed backpacks with school supplies. Several team members joined the “Carpenter’s Hammer” team installing siding and doing electrical work on a new home for a minister who is battling cancer and whose family currently resides in a trailer. Some team members dug potatoes in “God’s Potato Patch,” a field located near the association office. The potatoes were taken to the Clear Creek Baptist College in Pineville, Ky. “Operation Hope” is a clothes ministry and the team members helped distribute clothing for three days. Pictured at top left are Ridge members Meredith Kammerdiener and Tom Fernald, leader of the mission team, helping pick out clothing for families. At left is Bruce Carlton unloading boxes of items donated by the church. And pictured below is Ray Allen (front), pastor of Ridge Baptist Church, and other team members digging potatoes.
The Woman’s Missionary Union at Buckroe Baptist Church in Hampton, Va., celebrated Christmas-in-August by sending school supplies to a church in New York. Two large boxes of supplies were collected and the ladies of the WMU are pictured above with the supplies which will be distributed to the school children in New York.
CAPTIONS
10th anniversary
Old Powhatan Church, Powhatan, recently surprised its pastor with a 10th anniversary celebration. Melvin Blankenship (right) presents Pastor Tom Keehan with a plaque recognizing his 10 years of service.
International choir at New Prospect
The Children of the World International Children’s Choir recently presented a concert at New Prospect Church in Monroe. This is a choir of orphaned and disadvantaged children from five countries. The church housed and fed the choir for a community concert.