Peters Creek Baptist Church celebrates 250th anniversary
Paul Paterra/Observer-Reporter
Peters Creek Baptist Church celebrates its 250th anniversary this year.
Paul Paterra/Observer-Reporter
Alan Ciechanowski, Peters Creek Baptist Church’s office/business manager and historian, shows off some of the artifacts at the church’s museum.
Photos: Paul Paterra/Observer-Reporter
Some of the artifacts on display at Peters Creek Baptist Church’s museum, including an original pew
Paul Paterra/Observer-Reporter
The original covenant upon which Peters Creek Baptist Church was founded and established
Paul Paterra/Observer-Reporter
A community outreach performed by Peters Creek Baptist Church is the diaper ministry, which served 135 families in the past month.
Paul Paterra/Observer-Reporter
Peters Creek Baptist Church has been designated as a historic landmark.
Paul Paterra/Observer-Reporter
Peters Creek Baptist Church still sits on land given to it by one of its first pastors.
Peters Creek Baptist Church can make a claim not many churches can make: It’s older than the nation.
The church at 6300 Library Road in South Park celebrates its 250th anniversary Nov. 10. The oldest Baptist church west of the Alleghenies still sits on land given to it by one of its first pastors, and parishioners currently worship in the fifth building to be constructed on the property.
The anniversary will be marked Nov. 19 with a celebration between the 8:15 a.m. and 10:45 a.m. Sunday services. The milestone was also a big part of the church’s recent community picnic.
While the past was, and will be, celebrated, those involved with the church of about 800 members want to look ahead.
“For our 225th anniversary, we did a gala and a lot of things looking at our history and had people dressed in clothes from the 1700s,” said Alan Ciechanowski, office/business manager. “This year, we’re going to look more toward the future. That’s where the focus is going to be.”
Ciechanowski, the church historian, wrote a book in 1998 for that 225th anniversary celebration, “A Heritage of Faith, The History of Peters Creek Baptist Church.” He recently updated the book with pictures from the church’s archives, as well as information covering the years 1998-2017.
Part of the look to the future will be the creation of a magazine, detailing what is going on at Peters Creek Baptist Church, and what is to come.
“That’s going to be a major piece that we’re going to be sharing with people, where we’re at today and where we hope to go,” Ciechanowski said.
A covenant written into an ordinary register book in 1773 became the foundation upon which the Peters Creek Baptist Church was established. That covenant, and many other artifacts from the church’s history such as an original pew and meeting minutes from the early days, are still at the church site in its museum.
“It was a brave and courageous step in what were certainly troubled times,” reads Ciechanowski’s book. “As Settlers and Indians battled and fought in the area all around them, nine people, faithful to the Lord and His Word, began a voyage of faith and fellowship, a journey that has lasted more than two centuries, and God willing, will endure through many more.”
One of those nine people was the Rev. John Whitaker, the church’s first pastor. He was followed by the Rev. David Phillips, the longest serving pastor in the church’s history, holding the position for 43 years (1781-1824). Phillips actually owned the property on which the church stands and deeded 11 acres to the church in the 1790s.
Descendants of Phillips are members of the church today, and Ciechanowski’s predecessor as historian was a Phillips family descendant.
The current pastor is the Rev. Gregory Adkins, the second longest in the church’s history, with 28 years in the position. His son, Dusty, is the teaching pastor.
“It’s been a joy,”Adkins said. “These people have embraced me. I just love it here. We felt God was calling us here. It’s been a good marriage for all of us.”
Peters Creek also is known for its community outreach, including its diaper ministry, a vision of two female church members who knew how expensive diapers can be. Diapers and baby wipes are available for babies and adults, along with other supplies and clothing for children. Anyone who needs the items can come to the church and get what they need.
“It started out with 20 or 30 families,” Ciechanowski said. “This past month, there were 135 families that came through.”
Peters Creek Baptist Church also hosts a car cruise every Thursday from May through October.
“Sometimes our entire parking lot is filled with classic cars, and it’s just so neat to be able to use that lot for the community,” Ciechanowski said.
The church also hosts “The Way,” an annual reenactment of the last week of Jesus Christ on Holy Thursday and Good Friday. The outreach provides the opportunity to travel through the scenes depicting the final days/hours of Jesus’ life.
For two-and-a-half centuries, Peters Creek Baptist Church and its congregation have continued to worship and serve Christ and plan to do it for many years into the future. As it states on a plaque that indicated the church’s designation as a historic landmark, its motto has been “Older than the nation, but we’ve only just begun.”
“We’ve been steadfastly preaching Christ and being faithful to that, and I think that God has blessed our ministry for so many years,” Ciechanowski said.