Edmond library/YMCA project's progress is progress for Henderson Hills Baptist Church
Progress for a major Edmond project resulted in progress for a local Southern Baptist congregation, as well.
As Henderson Hills Baptist Church prepares to celebrate its 60th anniversary, leaders said the congregation's sale of land to the city of Edmond resulted in the church being able to pay off debt incurred with the construction of Henderson Hills' sprawling complex at 1200 N Interstate 35 Frontage Road.
A much-anticipated project to build a second Edmond Library and another YMCA branch is moving forward later this year on the roughly 10 acres of land Henderson Hills sold to the city for $3.8 million, Andy Conyers, Edmond assistant city manager, said.
Conyers said the new library and YMCA will be built along 15th Street, just east of Interstate 35 through a three-way partnership between the city of Edmond, the Metropolitan Library System and the YMCA of Greater Oklahoma City. He said construction on the project is expected to begin in late summer 2024.
The Rev. John Wohlgemuth, Henderson Hills' lead teaching pastor, said the church was excited to host a mortgage-burning ceremony earlier this year. He said the money from the land sale also helped the church pay for major renovations to the church in time for its 60th anniversary celebration on April 27 and April 28.
The church will celebrate with a Night of Worship at 7 p.m. Saturday, which will be followed by a dessert reception. Anniversary Celebration Services will be at 9 a.m. and 10:30 a.m. Sunday, with former Henderson Hills pastors, including the Rev. Dennis Newkirk, as special guests.
Wohlgemuth said the church's founders had a heart for surrounding community 60 years ago when Henderson Hills was started as a church plant by First Baptist Church of Edmond. Wohlgemuth said First Baptist-Edmond members at that time recognized a need for a new church in a growing area of Edmond near the Henderson Hills residential area.
He said Henderson Hills had its first church service in May 3,1964. It is currently one of the largest Southern Baptist churches in Oklahoma with about 1,500 people attending weekend services and it is has become known over the years for its outreach and community partnerships, among other things.
Krystal Harlow, the church's communication's director, said throughout the weekend, church members and visitors will be treated to video messages, music and fellowship with former pastors, worship pastors and staff. She said a church elder Allen Rice wrote a book on the history of the church and it will be available for purchase.
God's story
Wohlgemuth said Henderson Hills' story is really God's story, about church members being faithful to the Lord and the Lord being faithful to the church.
"The story is really God's faithfulness through the whole 60 years because the story is about his work," the minister said.
"It's about that first group of people 60 years ago willing to move their church home to a new location, the willingness to move locations and willingness to adapt to a modern world. It's been about the willingness to just be open to God's conviction and spirit at various times with sin. That was just a willingness to say, 'God, do whatever you want to do with our lives.'''
Over the years, the church has made headlines particularly around its moves to different areas of Edmond. Along those lines, one of the congregation's biggest announcements was its decision to purchase the large parcel of property on the Interstate 35 corridor at 15th Street, where the church is currently located. In 1998, the congregation sold the Henderson Hills church building at 2300 S Boulevard to a Methodist congregation and began preparing for a $23 million project to build a church on a 127-acre stretch of land off the interstate. The new church building was dedicated in 2004, with a sanctuary that included seating for more than 2,100.
In 2007, the church made news when it sold 24. 5 acres of land off I-35 to Integris Health which planned to build a new hospital on the site.
Wohlgemuth, 42, who has been the church's lead teaching pastor since 2018, said the church's "DNA" has always been to lead, feed, care for and protect God's people and oversee the mission of God's church. So much of the church's outreach was begun with this in mind, such as Ministries of Jesus, a Henderson Hills affiliate ministry offering holistic care. The ministry began in 2001 as a medical clinic but eventually evolved to include Christian counseling, a dental clinic and a recovery ministry.
Wohlgemuth said several outreach initiatives had their beginnings at Henderson Hills, such as Wings Special Needs Community. Wings began in 2002 with several families gathered in a Henderson Hills Sunday School class. The nonprofit's mission is to enhance the lives of adults with developmental disabilities.
Some outreach activities offered over the years were fueled by community needs that arose from temporary circumstances. These outreach programs included a free day camp for children out of school due to a 2018 teachers' strike. For a time during the COVID pandemic, the church offered free activities such as tutoring, meals and group games for students in families juggling in-person and virtual school schedules. adapting to online classes.
Wohlgemuth said the church also purchased a house near the University of Central Oklahoma where church members continue to offer help to students, particularly international students.
He said church members over the years have found God's mission "so compelling, because of his love for them, they were willing to go love others."
"That's been the DNA of our church for 60 years, in various iterations and forms," he said. "We've always seen that our God is worthy of every person hearing about who he is, and His glory shining through that.".
More: Amazing space and room to grow Long-awaited move reunites Henderson Hills congregation
More on library/YMCA project
Conyers with the city of Edmond, said there is a need for the second Edmond library because the Edmond library is the busiest branch in the Metropolitan Library System. Also, the YMCA is seeking to fill more needs in the community by operating a facility that is closer in size to the Mitch Park YMCA in west Edmond.
He said the project's proximity to Henderson Hills Baptist has resulted in a partnership with the church that will allow library/YMCA patrons to use one of the church's parking lots.
Henderson Hills 60th anniversary
When: Night of Worship, 7 p.m. Saturday, April 27; Anniversary worship service, 9 and 10 a.m. Sunday, April 28.
Where: 1200 N Interstate 35 Frontage Road, Edmond.
Information: https://www.hhbc.com/; http://hhbc.com/our-story.
This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Henderson Hills Baptist Church is celebrating 60 years, Edmond progress
