Community Corner
Salem Missionary Baptist Church Rich in History, Service
Lilburn honors congregation at Arbor Day event.
During last weekend’s Arbor Day Celebration in Lilburn, Mayor Diana Preston, dedicated the newly planted lacebark elm tree to the Salem Missionary Baptist Church for its powerfully positive impact on the Lilburn community over the past 175 years.
Congratulations to Reverend Dr. Richard B. Haynes and the dozens of members of the congregation who were on hand to acknowledge and accept the City’s recognition and join in the morning’s festivities.
The church prides itself on being “The Church With Zeal According to Knowledge” as well as being one of the oldest churches in the Lilburn area.
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In the early 1800’s, a Mr. Thomas Carroll owned one of the settlements in this region.
He directed his slaves to build a small wood frame building on his property for the purposes of worship, and many of the slaves from the surrounding settlements would use the structure as their common meeting place.
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Then in 1862, Carroll’s son donated the small parcel of land to the church to serve the newly freed slaves in the area.
Over the years, the congregation has grown significantly and continues to serve as a stabilizing force in the community in terms of providing guidance to church members regarding relationships, youth counseling, anti-violence directives and marriage counseling to name just a few.
In addition to their numerous local ministries such as Angel Food Ministries and aiding the Lilburn Co-op, the members of Salem Missionary Baptist Church continually reach out beyond city limits to provide clothing and food to Atlanta’s homeless, provide classroom instruction for under-educated adults, offer secular educational programs to youth and children and have even constructed the “Salem House” dormitory at a residential school in Kenya.
The Salem Missionary Baptist Church is located at 4700 Church Street off of Main Street and Reverend Haynes invites everyone to visit their Heritage Center to learn more about their rich history as well as all the current services that they provide.
