BY SPEAKIN’ OUT NEWS
HUNTSVILLE, Ala. — First Missionary Baptist Church celebrated 146 years of worship, fellowship and community ministry with an anniversary weekend connecting several generations.
The celebration began Saturday, Aug. 22, with a church picnic. Children enjoyed inflatable moon bouncers, while Zone Mobile Entertainment supplied a climate-controlled video-game theater with seven gaming stations, virtual reality, and online gaming. The unit accommodates as many as 28 players simultaneously.
A LifeSouth blood-donation bus was also stationed onsite, adding a potentially lifesaving act of service to the family gathering.
The anniversary culminated Sunday, Aug. 23, with a 9:30 a.m. worship service at 3509 Blue Spring Road. The theme, “A Church Experiencing God’s Continued Faithfulness,” drew from Psalm 100:5, which declares that God’s goodness, mercy and truth endure through every generation.
The Rev. Dr. Charles F. Lomax Jr., senior pastor of St. John Missionary Baptist Church in Alcoa, Tennessee, delivered the anniversary message. Scripture, congregational reflections and selections from the FMBC Mass Choir were also featured. Senior Pastor Dr. Carlos D. Williams offered pastoral remarks.
First Missionary Baptist was organized in 1880 by Christian families who had migrated from Aberdeen, Mississippi. Under the Rev. Robert Green, they initially worshiped in an old house on West Clinton Street. The Rev. Pope Jones became pastor in 1881, when services were held in the United States Court Building. With assistance from the Muscle Shoals Missionary Baptist Association, the congregation purchased property on Steele Street and began constructing a church in 1886.
Williams began his pastorate on Oct. 5, 2025, advancing a G.R.O.W. vision—Growth, Reconciliation, Organization, and Worship. The anniversary honored FMBC’s history while demonstrating how worship, recreation, and service continue strengthening families and connecting generations.