Bethany Men Plan Trail Ride

The inaugural Bethany Men's Trail Ride will take place Saturday, May 10 at Bossy Hardison Farms on Hwy 306. A registration fee of $20 will include lunch. Proceeds will benefit the church's re-building effort. A negative Coggins is required for equine entrants. More details will follow, but for now, to learn more, contact Bossy Hardison at 252-249-0187, james.hardison@ncmail.net, or Jeanette & Mark Lee, 252-249-0226, painthorse@pamlico.net.

Help Julia Peterson in the Capital Campaign

Julia Peterson is working on a project to collect all the names and addresses of Bethany's extended family so they can be contacted during the Capital Campaign. If you know of family members or friends of Bethany who live elsewhere and who would appreciate having the opportunity to participate in the rebuilding of the church and the life of the church, please contact Julia Peterson or Mac Harris, communications@bethanyarapahoe.org.

After an intensive evaluation of the needs of the church and how those needs can be explained, material is now being prepared to send to the Bethany family for the Capital Campaign. Please be in prayer for the success of the campaign, not just how it relates to resurrecting our church buildings, but also how being involved in this effort can resurrect our faith.

Nettie C. Banks

Bethany member Nettie C. Banks, 96, died Monday, Feb. 4, at Britthaven of Pamlico. Graveside services will be held at 2 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 6, at the Lakeside Chapel at Greenleaf Memorial Park. The Reverend Roger Bennett will officiate. At 1 p.m., prior to the graveside service, the family will receive friends at the cemetery. Flowers are welcome, but memorial donations may be made to Bethany Christian Church rebuilding fund, P.O. Box 156, Arapahoe, NC 28510, or Eastern Star Chapter 189, P.O. Box 146, Grantsboro, NC 28529.

The Bethany church family expresses its deepest sympathy and condolences to Mrs. Banks' family in its time of grief.

Capital Campaign Plans Are Being Finalized

A plan for a Capital Campaign to finish and furnish the new church was presented to both the Elders and the Church Board, Sunday, February 3.

The Church Board approved a campaign goal of $300,000.00. Donors may make one contribution or pledge an amount to be contributed over a three-year period. The campaign should end the last Sunday in March with a celebration planned for the Groundbreaking on Sunday, April, 6. The cost of the church and its furnishings is well over four times the goal of $300,000.00. With insurance and donations already made, the church board is confident that $300,000.00 will adequately complete the re-building of Bethany Christian Church.

Significant is the fact that both Elders and Board Members have pledged 100% participation in the re-building effort.

Conceptual Plans for New Church Unveiled

Prior to the unveiling of plans for a new sanctuary for Bethany Christian Church, members were reminded of the rich history of this congregation. Below is a photo of the structure built in 1912 that burned before it was moved from the east to the west side of Hwy 306 in the 1950's. Photo courtesy James "Bossy" Hardison.



Below is the architect's rendering of the concept for a new and larger structure for a sanctuary with a narthex, classrooms, a nursery, fellowship hall and kitchen. While there were some questions about details, the architect explained that many specifics would be hammered out before the actual mechanical drawings were prepared. Speaking for the Re-building Committee, John Beeman reported to the congregation that the expressed wishes of the membership had been reviewed by the architect before this concept was rendered. Most agreed the new steeple is a very close replica to the one lost in the fire.



More details will be forthcoming in later posts to the website this week. The congregation is scheduled to vote on this concept on Sunday, January 27. The Capital Campaign Committee will have a plan to raise the remaining funds needed to furnish this church to present to the church board for approval the first of February.

REBUILDING COMMITTEE WILL PRESENT NEW CHURCH BUILDING PLAN TO CONGREGATION JAN. 20

Last night the Bethany board approved the rebuilding committee's proposal to present the plan for the new church building to the congregation at a meeting following the worship service and a catered New Member lunch Sunday, Jan. 20. The contractor, Tony Lewis of C.A. Lewis Construction, and the architect, Michael Dunn, will lead the presentation. They will provide a copy of the plan to each member of the congregation to take home and review. The congregation then will vote to approve or disapprove the plan at a congregational meeting after the worship service the following week, Jan. 27.

The rebuilding committee has been working on the plan for several months following extensive research on the needs of the congregation and selection of the construction company and architect. They were guided by suggestions from the congregation in response to a questionnaire. After deciding on a general plan, the committee has in the last two months been working to refine the plan that will be presented.

The committee is sure that everyone will be exceptionally pleased with the plan and excited about the prospect of beginning construction soon. They urge everyone to attend both the presentation meeting Jan. 20, and the meeting Jan. 27.

RetroRockets Bring "Sock-Hop" to Bayboro

The RetroRockets will bring their live "Golden Oldies Rock & Roll Revue" to B&B Junction in Bayboro Jan. 11. It will be an evening of "Sock-Hop" memories from the fifties and sixties, with some newer songs as well. The cover charge is $7.00.

B&B Junction is a non-alcohol, no-smoking club on NC Highway 55 between Wachovia Bank and First Citizens Bank. For further information, contact Simon Spalding at 636-1256.