Nehemiah House — Petersville Baptist Church
The Nehemiah House Reaches New Canton
(Article from the Farmville Herald)
Petersville Baptist Seeks To Serve The Community
TJMIII W photos
The Weekender
By JORDAN MILES
NEW CANTON — It’s very appropriate that 2014 has been termed as the year of breakthrough at Petersville Baptist Church, located in a secluded corner of Buckingham County. The church has broken barriers of doubt, potential debt, and economic turbulence to fill a need in their community: the construction of the Nehemiah House.
“It means the Lord’s house of comfort. That’s what Nehemiah means…It’s taken from the Bible…” shared first lady and church co-pastor Cynthia Bolden. “In the book of Nehemiah, it talks about the work that Nehemiah did on the building that he was constructing. He concentrated on getting the work done…”.
And that’s precisely what church leaders have done to construct a state-of-the-art multipurpose facility for both the community and the church congregation.
“She came up with that (building) title, because that’s what we are planning on doing is to help the people that are in distress and bring comfort to them,” noted church pastor Ollie Bolden, Cynthia’s husband.
Construction of the over 3,300 square-foot structure, connected to the existing church sanctuary and fellowship hall, started in June of 2012, and was completed in November 2013. The church dedicated the building in mid-April, according to Ollie.
“The Lord spoke to me. And, we were seeing the needs of God’s people, and like I said, the community as a whole, we wanted to help the community. So, God laid it on my heart to build him a house where we could help those that are in need, especially when the power goes out and things of that nature…” the pastor noted, adding that funds to construct the facility, which includes a large meeting room and a large commercial kitchen, came from fundraisers, commitments, tithes, offerings, and donations from outside sources.
“We paid cash for all that,” he proudly added when discussing the finances of the building.
“And keep in mind the condition of the economy,” the first lady shared. “When God gives a vision, he also makes provision. We’re in living proof of that.”
Ollie noted that when he brought the idea to the congregation, deacons and trustees, they quickly jumped on board.
“God gave us the right contractors…Both of them were sent by God,” Ollie stated, alluding to the quality of work done in constructing the structure by David Prince of Prince Construction Company of Powhatan and carpenter Raymond Taylor, who installed and built the custom cabinets.
The primary purpose of the multi-purpose building is to assist in serving the needs of Petersville Baptist Church and the community. Church leaders want to see church social events, retreats, weddings, conferences, and movie viewings held within the walls of the Nehemiah House.
But, fulfilling the mission of the church, they also want to make the building a place where the community can come when the power fails, or when a natural disaster hits.
The construction of the Nehemiah House is phase one of a larger plan to make the church a location for people to come to shower and eat a hot meal when the power goes out in the area.
“When the electricity goes off, everything shuts down…I can recall times when it was like a week at a time when people didn’t have electricity, water, or heat…” Cynthia noted, adding that the next phases of the project will be to renovate the original kitchen and install showers, along with building classrooms and purchasing generators.
“And they don’t have to worry about paying anything…The vision is greater than what I first thought it was going to be,” the church pastor shared.
“There’s no where around here in these immediate communities where you can have a nice banquet, where you can have a nice wedding reception, things of that nature,” Cynthia noted. The first-lady is planning on having the American Red Cross visit the church and train several of the parishioners in how to treat disaster victims and how to operate as a shelter.
“It’s exciting. It’s exciting, because it inspires our faith…We depend on Him wholeheartedly to provide, and He’s doing just that,” she added.
The handicapped-accessible building was first used by the congregation during Easter sunrise service a few weeks ago, giving the building a symbolic introduction of resurrection and rebirth for both the church family and the community.
“We have a great congregation, a congregation that really believes in the leadership of this church…” Ollie commented, adding that he was very proud of them and the church leadership.
He notes that the turn-key-job was also aided in the work that the planning and design and dedication committees committed.
“We’re cognizant of that fact that this is God’s house,” the first lady told The Herald. “They understood the vision,” she said of the contractors that labored on the project.
Pastor and first lady Bolden say the church is planning a June event so the community can visit and tour the building. By the fall, it should be available for public use, they noted, with plans to begin phase two by the end of this year.
“Hopefully, it will inspire other churches to do the same thing….It’s a dream come true,” Ollie shared.
The church, located at 3330 Petersville Church Road in New Canton, offers wellness programs, computer classes and a book club, and assists needy families in the community in paying electric and other bills, donating clothes, shoes, and food to many families. The church also participates in the backpack program in Buckingham County Public Schools. For more information on the Nehemiah House or the church, visit www.pbc-ministries.org or call 434-581-3660.
