Viewmont Baptist Church

Viewmont Baptist Church is located at 1246 Second Street Northeast in Hickory, North Carolina. Known mostly for a dedicated and aggressive social ministry, the congregation is committed to the needs of the wider community, and opens wide it's doors to those who suffer in body, mind, or spirit.

Addressing many controversial issues which face the nation and the Church, Viewmont supports the separation of Church and State, but emphasizes a need to strive for justice and peace, and to respect the dignity and freedom of every individual. The congregation celebrates the gift of diversity among individuals, as well as the gift of unity in mission and shared commitments. Included among the membership are the poor and homeless, the weak and oppressed, the sick and those suffering from addiction, and the lonely and ostracized. A high emphasis is placed on social justice as well as global and environmental responsibility, which is understood as an example of discipleship and stewardship.

The church hosts a soup kitchen for the community on the third Sunday of each month. In addition to a warm and hearty meal, the guests are offered clothing, toiletries, and access to assistance from social and employment services. This ministry has been expanded to include other area churches and non-religious organizations so that a meal is offered every weekend in addition to those served at the city soup kitchen. The church also runs a dental van which provides free dental care to school-aged children, whose families are not able to offer such services. Smaller groups within the congregation regularly organize mission-oriented trips to areas of natural disaster.

Viewmont is passionate about establishing meaningful ecumenical partnerships and interfaith dialogue. The liturgical early Sunday morning service is patterned after "The Book of Common Prayer" (1979) of the Episcopal Church, while the later service follows the traditional Reformed worship format. The clergy have participated and preached in services at nearby Lenoir-Rhyne College, a school of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, in addition to other interdenominational and interfaith venues. The people of Viewmont also participate regularly in services held in connection with other neighborhood churches representing the United Church of Christ, United Methodist, and Roman Catholic denominations.

History

On Sunday, April 24, 1932, a group of twenty-eight Baptists from the Hickory-metro area met in the Brown Hosiery Mill to organize a mission known as the Windy City Sunday School. Three years later, a group of 63 individuals organized a mission congregation in the Windy City village. The Reverend W.R. Bradshaw was called to be the first pastor. In 1935, the membership agreed to change the name to Brown Memorial Baptist Church, named for the donor of the land and building materials, and erected a worship facility on the corner of 13th Avenue.

In 1959, the church left the building at 13th Avenue and moved to the present location at Second Street Northeast. After forty-seven years, the interior of the worship space deteriorated due to building standards of the late 1950s in addition to neglect. The worship space is now being extensively renovated, a project which is due completion in August 2008.

Viewmont began a television and radio ministry in the early 1990's, an expansion of the video ministry begun in 1983, and now broadcasts the late-morning service over live airways to the Greater Unifour area.

Clergy

The Reverend Layne E. Smith has been the senior pastor of the church since August 1, 1998. He is a graduate of Oklahoma Baptist University and holds the Master of Divinity Degree and the Doctor of Ministry Degree from Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Kansas City, Missouri. He received two significant awards while at Midwestern; the Word Books Award in Preaching and the Canning Memorial Award given to the graduating Doctor of Ministry candidate who has demonstrated excellence in Doctoral Studies and Practice of Ministry. He has served on the Coordinating Council of the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship and the Board of Directors of "Baptist Today".

The Reverend Sandi Hood is has been employed as the Pastor of Youth and Family Ministries in two terms; the first beginning in 1998 and running through 2002, the second from 2005 to the present. A graduate of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, she holds the Master of Divinity Degree, with an emphasis in Pastoral Care and Counseling, from the School of Divinity at Gardner-Webb University.

Kathy Naish, Pastor of Spiritual Formation since 2006, holds the Master of Divinity Degree, with an emphasis in Christian Education, from Gardner-Webb University.

The Reverend Allen York began his ministry as the Pastor of Music and Worship at Viewmont in 2004. A graduate of Southwest Baptist University in Bolivar, Missouri, he holds the Master of Church Music Degree from Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Kentucky.

External Links

* [http://www.viewmontbaptist.org Official Website of Viewmont Baptist Church]
* [http://www.cbfnc.org Official Website of the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship of North Carolina]