By Colleen Nelson
It’s a beautiful Sunday morning in Waynesburg but I only see one person leaving the First Baptist Church after services. I wave to Jordan Brooks as he’s about to get in his car, guitar case in hand. He waves back. It’s March 22 and I’m here to get a photo of the new Community Center that is being planned for the building that used to house Belkos Market at the corner of Richhill Street. When that last market in Waynesburg closed in 2019, locals with no transportation were saved from a food desert by the basic staples of living available at Family Dollar two doors down on High Street. But Waynesburg was left with another empty building. Then First Baptist, just two parking lots away, took it as its mission to open a community center. I noticed the new signage when it appeared above the front doors and decided to shine the light on a worthy spiritual mission. I contacted Youth Director Mandi Pascarella and she invited me to meet her after church.
Now I will learn how First Baptist parishioners are keeping the faith as they forgo going to church and self sequester at home to protect themselves and their loved ones from possible pandemic on a Sunday morning.
So how did the first streaming service go? I ask Jordan and Mandi. We’re standing in front of the locked glass doors of the center-to-be, keeping a social distance, sometimes shouting to be heard over the crush of big wheels as the Marcellus trucks roll by on their way to and from the many well sites in the western end of Greene County. Keeping the energy chain operating is a necessity in times like these. So is keeping people connected, through faith, hope and charity. First Baptist, like other churches around the county, is using the Internet, the telephone and church volunteers to help where help is needed.
“We only had one sound glitch but it’s our first time,” Mandi tells me with a 100 watt smile. Jordan, 27, a Central Greene graduate, lives in town and usually plays drums in the Praise Team. Today he brought his guitar and played backup when choir director Dr. Michelle Smith sang her solo. Reverend Dr. Ed Pierce “kept the focus of his sermon on current events.” Parishioners listened live and “we’ll keep it up on Facebook so they can listen later. In addition to our technological resources, younger families have been making phone calls and making grocery runs, and picking up medication for our older, more at-risk congregation members. We are all trying to do our part in this hard time.”
Mandi graduated from Waynesburg University in 2019 with a degree in Biblical Ministry Studies with a focus in Children and Youth as well as minors in Music and Psychology. “I have been with First Baptist for 4 going on 5 years- first part-time as their interim children’s director, Sunday School teacher, and now I am serving full-time as their Director of Youth and Technology.”
I take the photo, we wave our goodbyes and I hurry home to open the email that Mandi sent me with its list of what her parish is doing to keep the faith. Here it is, edited for space.
1. News, Updates, Reminders, and a Live Stream of the church service can be found on our Facebook page.
2. Online Bible Study – Robin Salosky (our bible study teacher) has provided a link to an online study to take the place of Wednesday morning class. Find that at http://bible-classes.com/.
4. Blog! Find this at http://fbcwaynesburg.org/blog.
5. Jennifer (our children’s director) plans to release pre recorded videos via Facebook and our website.
6. There is a bible study online through the Youversion bible app with my youth aged students.
7. Sunday school will continue as normal through “Zoom” online meetings.
First Baptist is still in the beginning stages of planning what the Community Center building will look like in the end. They formed a committee tasked with coming up with the “vision” for the building and want to see a gymnasium, preschool classrooms, a coffee shop/cafe, space for meetings/bible studies/prayer groups, outdoor play area and a green space.
