Beginnings

 

During the first scheduled business meeting at the Davis’ home Hugh Beard was elected moderator with Jim Kerney as his assistant. The church’s treasurer was also elected (Helen Miller would serve as assistant treasurer), and Barbara Barg was chosen to be church clerk.  In an effort to name this new church, five submissions were considered with Grace Baptist Church chosen by “a great percentage of votes.”  With 22 people in attendance, it was decided that the first Sunday of each month would be reserved for observation of the Lord’s Supper; the Interim Pastor was Reverend Randy Yeager and Ed Ferlazzo served as the music director and helped to  take care of the everyday business of the church.  Peggy Barker became the first volunteer church secretary - working from her home and later at the Ferlazzo Office Building in Triangle, VA. Charter members would include all who joined Grace Baptist between July 8th, 1984 and January 8th, 1985.  The minutes of this first business meeting conclude with “After much excitement and anticipation of our first Sunday at Grace Baptist Church…!”

On August 15^th, 1984, (with church membership having already reached 54) it was agreed that a letter would be written to Director of Missions Bill Smith in Manassas, Virginia, requesting that Grace Baptist Church be considered for membership in the Potomac Baptist Association as a Cooperating Southern Baptist Church. GBC was officially welcomed into the Potomac Baptist Association on October 24, 1985. It was announced in December of 1984 that 25 hymnals would be obtained from the Potomac Baptist Association.  Also in December, Grace received a letter from the interim pastor of First Baptist Church of Woodbridge, Reverend Karl Heilman, stating that his church had voted to establish a “mother relationship” with Grace.           

Members hauled a lot of chairs, cribs, toys and books in their own vehicles as well as in an old step van that stayed on school property during the week.  The custodian at the school was a Christian and allowed Grace to store hymnals in his room.  From the start, Grace Baptist members have proven to be generous with not only their time and energy but with tangible items: Bill Lake graciously agreed to print all letterhead stationery for Grace; the Frank Stephens family, in memory of Frank Stephens, Jr., donated the Communion Set and accessories; and Hugh Beard offered up a personal loan, in 1988, of $75,000 to be repaid upon receipt of the construction loan.  Members remember their five years at Pattie Elementary as a lot of hard work but full of joy as they accepted this new task for their Lord.

In May, the church voted to purchase, from Alfred J. Ferlazzo, 24.5 acres of land on Spriggs Road for $120,000.  The year 1985 also saw Grace’s membership reach 100 for the first time.  Pastor Charlie Chilton started Discipleship Training Classes with new members. Survival I, II, Acteens and a Girls in Action missions group met in Mrs. Barker's home. The ARC Building in Triangle was used for Wednesday and Sunday Evening Prayer and Worship Services.

Based on their goal of becoming the kind of church God wanted them to be, in June of 1986, the members put in writing the Statement of Purpose for Grace Baptist Church:  “As the Grace Baptist Church Family, we unite under the lordship of Jesus Christ to be a healthy fellowship of ministers reaching out to witness to all the lost people in our community, discipling all whom the Lord places in our care, and helping evangelize the whole world.  (Matthew 28:18-20)  Our further purpose is to be a sensitive and caring family of faith, growing in mutual trust, to better carry out our ministry of encouragement to one another in a prayerful and loving manner, and in cooperation with other Christians in helping the needy.” 

This growing group of believers began to work on their future home on Spriggs Road.  In the following months they would gather on weekends to clear the trees and vegetation, eat meals together, and prepare the land for their first building.  The members remember tailgate parties every weekend with hot dogs, soup, and chili.  During the clearing process, people took turns spending the night on the property, keeping an eye on the burning piles of land debris; they went home the next morning black with soot!  All of this work done by Grace’s first members gave each person a sense of ownership; driving down the driveway, each member was able to feel the personal investment he or she had been allowed to make along with fellow workers.    

The official groundbreaking took place on  July 5th, 1987 at 7 o’clock in the evening; each member was to bring his or her own chair.  At the business meeting on September 21st, 1988, Buck Darling reported that the land was level and cleared; all the preparatory work had been completed!  Soon the members were helping pour concrete, put the rafters in place, and finish and paint the building. 

 

On September 17th, 1989 Grace Baptist Church celebrated their first service in their new building!

Building the (second) Building  

Because membership had grown to more than 300, a second Sunday morning service was added on January 3rd, 1993.  Jim Thompson was called as Grace’s Minister of Education and Youth on March 28th, 1993, becoming only the second paid staff member of this growing church.  During this time, members Edie Stephens and Jill Jones shared music ministry duties until March 13, 1994 when Jane Crawford was selected as Minister of Music.  Also in 1994, Grace helped to plant a new church, Covenant Baptist Church, which served the nearby Route 1 corridor.

After having met with Grace students and parents during the summer of 1998, David Kizzia was called as Minister to Youth and Students, where he served until March 31, 2000.  Misty Gordon then became Grace’s Minister to Youth and Students until her resignation effective at the end of August 2003.  In March of 2000, church members witnessed “D-Now” weekend, the first of what has become an annual event meant to help our students grow in Christ.  Through the years, this event has evolved from the initial “D-Now” with 69 students in attendance to “Journey” with 130 students involved in 2009!  In addition to “Journey,” our students have participated in many other programs.  In October of 2000, S.N.A.C. (Sunday Night After Church) head team was established as was the Youth Ministry Council, made up of students and parents who helped to coordinate youth ministry events and programs.  In February of 2001, two youth events held  were “True Love Waits” (held again in 2004) and “World Hunger 30-Hour Fast”.  Pastor Kevin Britton was called on July 11th, 2004 as Grace’s Minister of Youth and Students.

 In the “Driven Student Ministry of Grace Baptist Church”, students grow in Christ through activities such as “The Station” on Wednesday nights when they meet for a time of worship and celebration.  They also have had the opportunity to serve communities in Jesus’ name through programs such as “World Changers,” “Centrifuge,” and “Youth Creative Ministries.”

In 1999, Grace membership grew to over 500 for the first time.  Ray Farrow was called to Grace as Minister of Education, where he served until leaving in early 2003 to plant a church, New Horizons Family Church in Fredericksburg, Virginia.  Loren Smith and Joe Long shared the duties of Music Minister following the departure of music director Jane Crawford.  On October 1st, 2000, George Yurich was called to replace Joe Long as Interim music minister as Joe was being led elsewhere.  In further evidence of God’s leading Grace members to serve elsewhere David Young left Grace to plant Living Waters Church in Montclair in July 2005. 

Pastor Charlie served as pastor until his retirement on August 31^st, 2000. After preaching his last sermons as pastor and celebrating with a luncheon on the grounds of Grace, Charlie Chilton became Grace’s “Pastor Emeritus.”  Joe Long was called as Interim Pastor while the church continued its search for a new senior pastor.

On January 14, 2001, Pastor Harold (Tim) Perrin was called to serve as Grace Baptist’s Senior Pastor; his service of installation was held on the evening of Sunday March 18th, 2001.  In his letter to visitors of Grace Baptist’s website Pastor Tim Perrin writes:

Throughout Grace’s history, many people have stepped up to lead the children’s ministry. We are grateful to them for the eternal difference they have made in the lives of our children and their families.  In December 2006 Jeannie Beidler became Grace Baptist Church’s first full-time Children’s Ministry Director.  Nancy Turner was called to serve as Director of Children’s Ministry in 2008, following Jeannie’s relocation to another area.   

A 24-hour Prayer Room was opened in the original building on May 8^th, 1994.  A remodeled Prayer Room was opened and dedicated in 2002.

 

In 1996, Grace Baptist began to share its Education Building space with the Reconciliation Community Church (RCC).  Believing that God provided these resources to be used in ministry to others, the Grace body has continued to share its buildings with other churches, local schools, and many community organizations.

 After feeling led by God to start a new church in the Woodbridge area, twenty adults and six children were commissioned and dedicated to Grace Filipino Baptist Church (GFC) on December 5, 1999.  With Pastor Charlie as their Interim Pastor, they began worshiping at Grace Baptist on January 2, 2000 with 52 people in attendance. 

Grace’s heritage as a “sending” church was evident in the middle 1980’s and 1990’s as it affirmed missionaries such as Cara Bohannon, Carl Knight and the Favazza Family to spread the gospel around the world. Between January 1995 and May 1999, six men were ordained or licensed to preach: John Hill, Danny Quirin (now serving as youth minister at Bonsack Baptist Church, Roanoke, VA), John Reale (currently at Foothill Community Church, Marble Hill, GA), Joel Reynolds (Minister to High School Students at First Baptist Church in Clarksville, TN), Jack Rickman (Pastor at Broadway Baptist Church, Escondido, CA), Tom Roltsch (currently serving as a Chaplain for the Army troops in Baghdad, Iraq), Alan Stanley (serving in North Carolina), and Edmundo Vallejo.  In more recent years, Grace has seen the ordinations of Allen McConnell (now serving as pastor at Lael Baptist, Lignum, VA), Bob Gordon (Pastor, Bealeton Baptist Church, Bealeton, VA), and Kirk Horton (Grace’s current Executive Pastor).  Many, many others, including the Fojtasek and Barnett families, have been sent from Grace to follow where God has called.   

A committee was established on October 21, 2001 to oversee the stewardship program for design and construction of a new waterline.  The purpose of this Waterline Project was to provide adequate water pressure for the current level of use and to make possible the future growth of Grace facilities.  On March 6, 2009 city water poured from Grace Baptist Church’s faucets for the first time!    

As Grace continues to grow, its members continue to seek God’s will for the future.  In 2008, the church body began a stewardship and leadership campaign to allow for growth and outreach as led by God. The result was “Imagine A Place … All Aboard for the Journey”. This campaign is about more than simply raising funds and building buildings, it is about strengthening our faith and continuing to grow God’s Kingdom.  The church sees this as an opportunity to: make a difference with our resources; leave a legacy for our children and future generations; and see more lives changed by the power of Christ.  In culmination, On March 9, 2008, Grace combined all services for “Celebration and First Fruits Sunday” where more than $1,600,000 was pledged!  The congregation met at Hylton High School to celebrate the goodness of our God and commitment to fulfilling His purposes.