Hyrum church moves into new building
Five months, missionaries from all over the United States, and a desire to serve God have brought a new chapel to Hyrum.
Pastor Jim Herod of the Emmanuel Baptist Church said the project really began six years ago when the congregation started meeting in Hyrum.
He had been serving as the Pastor for the first Baptist Church in Brigham City when several members who traveled from Cache Valley began asking about the possibility of starting a fellowship in the south end of the valley.
In November 1995, Herod said the group had their first meeting and have grown from there. He took the position of pastor in June 1996 and has been serving in the capacity since.
The Emmanuel Baptist Church has met in the Hilltop Manor in Hyrum while preparing to build their permanent home now at 310 N. 800 East in Hyrum.
“I have dreaded building a church,” Herod said. “I know what a challenge it is.”
But it was a challenge that the members of his congregation and nation wide have met.
The work began in May when men in the congregation did the foundation work for the building. Herod said this alone saved more than $25,000. From there, 11 teams of missionaries from around the nation came to complete the work on the new structure. He said the first team of 63 came mainly from Alabama to frame the building. In just four days, the team built the walls and frame work.
Each of the teams stayed for a one-week period. Herod said some of the individuals stayed longer to do the more specialized work. The tile floors were laid by a man from Mississippi while all of the electrical was done by a retired member from Arizona.
“They came at their own expense and all we provided was food for them,” Herod said.
In order to do this, they completed the storage garage near the back of the property first and turned it into a “field kitchen” he said. In all, Herod estimated 270 members came to work on the construction of the building.
“It’s really unusual to get a church built this fast - especially with volunteers,” he said.
In addition to building the church, the mission teams also held three Vacation Bible Schools while they were in Utah, he said.
The support has not come entirely from the members of the church, much help has come from the community as well.
“I tell you, everybody has been just wonderful,” Herod said. “All of the paint was donated by Ponderosa Paint in Roy.”
Not all of the support has been that visible.
“Everyone in the south end of the valley drives by and knows what we are doing,” Herod said. “We’ve had a lot of encouragement and support.”
The building is only the first part of a three-phase project. The second phase will be additional education rooms at the back of the current structure, while the third phase will add offices and a worship center to the front of the building, Herod said.
“It’s had a galvanizing effect on the congregation,” he said.
The current building was built to hold a congregation of 210 people, though Herod said the fellowship currently has an average attendance of 90 to 110 members.
The congregation met for the first time in the new building last Sunday. Following the meeting, Herod said six new members were baptized into the fellowship.
Before the meeting, the members held a procession from the old chapel to the new church. Herod said the mayor of Hyrum joined for the occasion. They also had the scouts of the congregation carry the colors at the head of the procession. Topping off the event was a bag piper playing Amazing Grace.
Herod sees this as a positive move for his congregation. Now, they can focus on bringing faith to others. Herod said, the youth of the church go each summer on missions with a group called World Changers. The focus of the group is to help build homes for those who are in need.
The congregation will also get a chance to serve others by participating in the building of a chapel next summer in either Kansas or Alabama.
For now, Herod is focusing on the open house Oct. 14. The public is invited to attend between 4 and 5:30 p.m. Following the open house, Herod said the building will be dedicated.
He said he was excited to bring a group from Boise Idaho in October. The quartet, Liberty, will be staging a free concert at 7 p.m. The group sings Southern Baptist music and the concert is open to the public, Herod said.