Marriage made in heaven as churches unite

Legacy Baptist and Hope Community Baptist merge

The growing congregation of Legacy Baptist Church formed when the youthful membership of Legacy Baptist and the aging membership of Hope Community Baptist merged in December.  Legacy Baptist Church is located on the site of the former Hope Community Baptist Church on NW 146th Avenue.

Marriage ceremonies unite a couple as one. But what happens when two churches decide to unite as one?

In Alachua, two churches have done just that as two congregations, one aging, the other youth oriented, merged to form a new church.

Over the last few months, Pastor John Jernigan has seen drastic changes in his church, Legacy Baptist Church. All of them, he said, have been overwhelmingly positive.

“You don't often hear about churches coming together. You more often hear about them coming apart,” said Jernigan.

Jernigan and his congregation at Legacy Baptist have done exactly that, joining Hope Community Baptist and becoming one congregation.

Hope Community, a Southern Baptist church with an older group of worshipers, was facing problems in November when health concerns forced their pastor, Eugene Polk, to retire.  The once thriving congregation had been meeting in its church at the corner of NW 146^th Avenue and NW 137^th Terrace since October 2001.  But Deloris Polk said that by last fall, membership numbers had dwindled.

Hope Community Steering Committee members Jimmy Burns, Jimmy Willis and Otis Porter approached Legacy and offered a compromise: Move into Hope Community's building and become one congregation. The two groups had church together in December and unanimously voted in favor of the move.

“We just fell in love with everyone. It was a miracle made in heaven,” said Burns, a former member of Hope Community.

Legacy, which had been renting space in the Alachua Women's Club since 2004, had members showing up hours before services to set up sound equipment and arrange the room.  With a healthy congregation of some 80 members, Legacy was growing and needed a more permanent place to call home. Now, they have dedicated facilities, along with space for a nursery. Wade Townsend, a Legacy member, said that they had been praying for guidance for several years about whether they should buy a building for the church.

“We meshed real well together,” added Townsend.

Hope Community, which had an older congregation, welcomed the infusion of youth into their routine.

“The future of the church is the young people,” said James Willis, a longtime member of Hope Community.

The move required some adjustment on both sides. A typical service at Legacy now includes infants alongside retirees. Older members of Hope Community had to adjust to a new set of hymns and the rhythms of a new pastor, but praise for the move is universal among members of the congregation.

“It's being done a different way,” said Jernigan, “but it’s the same message.”

The combined congregation, which has taken the name Legacy Baptist and moved into Hope Community's building on NW 146^th Avenue, has now been together for more than two months.