Sanford
Church
of
Christ
History
E.S. Steakley and his family first moved to
Sanford
in 1919. Finding no established
congregation in
Sanford
, they met in private homes for six months.
When the small group failed to make any progress, the Steakleys moved
back to
Tennessee
. They returned to the Paola
community in December 1937, and the following month a small group began regular
worship services. It was the first
Church
of
Christ
in
Seminole
County
.
They met across from the Steakleys' store in a meeting
house that he built. Those included
were Mr. and Mrs. E. S. Steakley, Mr. and Mrs. Dalton Bumbalow, and Mr. and Mrs.
Tiner. The Tiners lived on the other
side of
Sanford
from this community. When the war
came and gas was rationed, they established a congregation in
Sanford
.
In February of 1944 brother E.S. Steakley was instrumental
in gathering a group from the Paola congregation and those in
Sorrento
and
Mount
Plymouth
to worship in
Sanford
. Services in these early years were
held in the Woman's Club House on
Oak Avenue
. Many different men did the
preaching for about two months, until David E. Harrell came.
Thirteen brethren would meet together on Sunday morning to study the
Bible, sing praises and partake of the Lord's Supper.
Brother Harrell remained until March 1945.
The original 13 members were Mr. and Mrs. E. S. Steakley,
their daughter Edith, Mr. and Mrs. M. E. Shelby, Mr. and Mrs. Richard Muse, Mr.
and Mrs. A. G. Clause, Mrs. Rose Phillips, her son Creston, and two daughters,
Mrs. Madge Neiswander and Mrs. Lorraine Flowers.
In May of 1944, a lot on
West First Street
was purchased for a building. It
was sold and two lots were purchased on the corner of
Second Street
and
Elm Avenue
.
Arthur L. Butler started work with the congregation in
March 1945 and stayed until September 1947.
After an increase in the rent at the Womans Club, arrangements were
made and worship services changed from the Woman's Club to the Court House.
A building on the property at 201 Elm was started in October 1945.
The members donated the labor and it was near ready to move into by the
spring of 1946. Furniture in the
building was either home made or donated, most of it by the West End Church of
Christ in
Montgomery
,
Alabama
, which supported Brother Butler during his tenure with
Sanford
. Actively engaged in teaching and
preaching, the congregation conducted services at the county jail and at a
nearby retirement home. His labors
were successful, and membership had grown from thirteen to sixty prior to his
departure. The
church had a full-time preacher almost from its beginning.
During the early 40s the war dominated most people's
thinking. There was hardly a family
that did not have a son away in the service. Some families had nearly all their
male members away at war. These
loved ones were mentioned in every prayer offered by the church.
The elders serving at this time
were E. S. Steakley, C. A. Kelly, and Spruell Beall.
They led the church in a very aggressive way.
A very beautiful building was completed in 1947 and valued at $15,000.
J. P. Lowery, a retired school teacher-preacher started
preaching in September of 1947 and left to begin a congregation in Geneva, Florida,
in July of 1949.
In 1950 J. C.
Nicholson began work and stayed until March of 1953.
An addition of two classrooms across the front of the building took place
in 1952. Sam Binkley began work in
August of 1953 until December 1954. Ralph
P. Brewer, Jr. came and worked from January 1955 until June 1958.
George Yates came in October 1958 and stayed two years, leaving in
September of 1960.
The 50s were a turning point for the church in
Sanford
, in more ways than one. The
community experienced a decline in population as many younger couples moved into
Orlando
to seek employment. Worship attendance, which had increased in the late 40s and
early 50s, reflected the community's population change and the attendance
dropped. In the early 60s many of
the ladies of the church would also meet once a week to sew quilts and make
curtains for the renovated Dormitories at the Mount Dora Children's Home, a
ministry of love still being offered to this day.
During the time a
few years earlier a building fund had been set up because the congregation had
outgrown its facilities and in August of 1956, property was purchased at
1512 Park Avenue
. The congregation felt richly
blessed in getting this beautiful park-like setting for its new home.
A $50,000 bond issue was floated and building began in 1960.
Again, members provided the majority of the labor.
Holloway Materials Corporation supplied the blocks, and Gator Lumber Co.,
furnished the lumber, building materials and interior paints.
Jones Electrical Supply Company furnished all electrical fixtures and
equipment and Roy Burns did all the electrical wiring.
Wall Plumbing and Heating installed the Westinghouse Air Conditioning and
Central Heating as well as furnished and installed the plumbing fixtures.
Seminole Terrazzo installed the terrazzo floors.
The Western Auto Associate Store, owned by Spruell Beall furnished Wizard
Exterior Paints. On July 2, 1961,
the first worship service was held in the new building with Morris Ruby doing
the preaching. In September of 1961,
after Brother Ruby left, Bill Beck began work with the church and stayed until
September 1962. His departure was to
plant a congregation in
Thailand
.
Sanford
supported brother Beck, his wife Betty and their four children in this mission
effort from 1962 to 1963. While
serving in the mission field, a fifth child, Anita, was born in
Thailand
. The work continued to grow, and
eventually became self-supportive in 1965.
The 60s proved to be a brighter time for the
Sanford
congregation. Many of the couples
who had earlier moved away began to return to the community.
Additionally, many families stationed at Sanford Naval Air Station became
active with the
Sanford
congregation. During several
successful gospel meetings, many were baptized.
An addition of two
classrooms was annexed to the building in 1964.
An estimate from an insurance company evaluated the property,
establishing its value at approximately $100,000.
In January 1963,
Bert Brown came to work and stayed until December 1966.
He went back to school, got his degree and began working with the
Christian
Home
and
Bible
School
in
Mt. Dora
,
Florida
, which the church supports financially, especially from the Wednesday Ladies
Class. Emerson J. Estes began
working with the congregation in January of 1967.
He left in April 1973, to begin evangelistic work, and holding meetings
all over the Southeast.
With the best
wishes of the elders and the congregation, seven families: (Lou Helms &
Family, John & Vicki McGough and family, Gene & Jeanne Mayhew &
family, Sylvia Cromartie, Cecil & Alice Lindsley & boys, Ernest &
Ora Vance, and Geneva Lewis & son) of the regular members who lived in the
southern part of the county left to help form a new sister congregation of the
Lord's Church in September 1970, meeting in the American Legion Hall on Hwy
17-92. They have grown and
prospered, having built a beautiful building, and now have elders, a regular
minister, and are known as the South Seminole Church of Christ.
Over the years,
faithful men have served as shepherds and deacons.
In the early years, E. S. Steakley and Spruell Beall served as shepherds.
After the death of Brother Steakley, Brother Beall requested that he not
be an elder alone. There were none
until Nestle Lines came to
Sanford
and then he and Brother Spruell Beall and James M. Steakley served as elders.
Brother Lines moved away and Harvey Covington was appointed in 1967.
The early 70s were a replay of the problems of the 50s as
the church attendance reflected the declining population of the community.
The "Gas Crisis" of 1973 caused many who had been commuting to
work in
Orlando
to seek homes nearer their jobs. The
church was also saddened by the deaths of many of its original members.
Gene Newton was recognized as an elder in 1977 as well as the appointment
of Delma Willis, and Buddy Gaines as deacons to serve the congregation.
Sadly, the Sanford Naval Air Station closed and most of the families were
moved to
Marietta
,
Georgia
.
In the later 70s the church remained fairly stable.
The liberality of the members allowed financial support to be sent to
Thailand
and to the Queens Church of Christ, in
New York
. Many meetings and special seminars
were offered to our community. Cletus
Stutsman, Morris Ruby, and many other faithful Gospel preachers proclaimed the
truth to our community. Additionally,
L.O. Sanderson, well-known song writer was a frequent guest song leader.
A bus was purchased
from the
Christian
Home
and
Bible
School
in 1972, and the bus ministry was in the making.
In June of 1973 Charles N. Crump from
Florence
,
Alabama
, came to work with the congregation and three more buses were purchased.
Sanford
s bus ministry was very active with two buses on routes every Sunday morning,
evening, and Wednesday night. Many
children were blessed with hearing the Gospel message of Jesus through this
effort.
At the time Brother
Crump came, the congregation purchased a residence for the minister.
It was located at
471 Rosalia Drive
. Many members completed the
necessary renovations prior to brother Crump and his family moving in.
The church in
Sanford
has always been generous in its work of helping others.
Two young men were helped in their completion of studies through the
school of preaching in
Lakeland
,
Florida
. Wirt Cook and Victor Jarrell have
made fine gospel preachers. Deborah
Brown was supported to some degree while in
Cameroon
,
West Africa
, as well as Ronda Galloway who worked primarily with medical missions.
Douglas Gunselman's work in the
Philippines
was supported and
Sanford
was in charge of that work until the
Concord
Street
Church
in
Orlando
,
Florida
assumed the oversight. Of course,
the work Bill Beck did in
Thailand
was supported in a large way also. The
work in
Jamaica
where brother Palmer and his family labored and the work in
Guam
were a regular part of the budget for many years as well as support of the
Herald of Truth Radio program. At
other times funds were sent to the church at
Port Orange
, where Harvey Covington served as interim preacher, which has now moved and
become the Derbyshire Road Congregation in
Daytona
,
Florida
. The World's Fair work of the
Queens
Church
in
New York
was supported as well as the
17th Street
Church here in
Sanford
, which is a congregation ministering to our black brothers and sisters in
Christ. Also in Leesburg and Apopka
the black congregations were helped. The congregations in
Rhode Island
;
Oceana
,
Virginia
;
Bunnell
,
Florida
were supported for many years during their initial planting.
The Otter Creek congregation, which had oversight of a Korean work; and
the congregation in charge of the
Viet Nam
work were helped for several years. Funds
were also sent to support the Asian Bible Chair in
Guam
.
Charles Crump was
minister until he moved to a new work in the spring of 1975.
Fred A. Baker came to work with
Sanford
in June 1975 of that year and began a 13-year stay.
During those years
with brother Baker,
Sanford
was instrumental in planting a new work in
Deltona
,
Florida
in 1978. With the blessing of the
shepherds and the support of the congregation several of our members moved their
membership to Deltona, making up the nucleus of this new congregation.
Those that formed this initial nucleus included: Betty Beall &
Family, Spruell Doc and Bertha Beall, Louis and Lola Wenner, Nelson &
Mila Crawford, Bobbi Fletcher, Luther & Nora Walker, Arbutus Beall &
Family, Pearl Welch, Kenneth & Elma Weems & Family, Roy and Jewell Head,
and Jeanne Harris. Tom Leavins
served the congregation as minister until starting a new work in
Altamonte Springs
.
Sanford
continued with financial assistance until they became self-supporting.
Responding to our own blessing we added onto the existing facility, a
fellowship hall, classrooms, and an office suite.
Faithful in our
support since 1966,
Sanford
supports the children's home in
Mt. Dora
,
Florida
, the Central Florida Bible Camp in
Eustis
,
Florida
, and the
Accept
Crisis
Pregnancy
Center
in
Orlando
,
Florida
. Now preaching in established
congregations, we consider ourselves blessed to have supported the training of
David Myers, Richard Lyles, and Stephen Rosenzweig as Gospel preachers.
As with all
congregations, many of our Forever Family, have been called from this life
to that eternal home in heaven. Likewise,
our youth have grown to be adults; started their own families, and several have
moved to other parts of
Florida
, and the country. For those that
stayed, we rejoiced that a "baby boom" occurred in 1986-87.
Many faces changed, and with those changes the fellowship itself saw
fluctuation in number, as the nation and the congregation felt the changes of
inflation and the tripling of the annual budget.
In March 1987, Gene Newton resigned his responsibilities as an elder, do
to demands that were keeping him from shepherding.
In May of 1988 Gene
Newton and George Stiffey joined Harvey Covington and James Steakley as
shepherds of
Sanford
. With their addition to the work of
Sanford
, the shepherds were faced with the health problems that began to plague brother
Baker, who decided to retire in June 1988. He
and Ruby resided in
Sanford
until they too were called from this life.
The Sanford Forever Family, with abounding love and appreciation,
is grateful for all the years of service they gave to the Lord's vineyard.
Tony Black, from
Statesboro
,
Georgia
, came to labor with us in June 1988. Blessed
once again with growth, we expanded the building and renovated the exterior in
1991. Now grown, married, and many
with children of their own, the congregation joyfully sponsored four of our
young men into full-time ministry training: Glenn Newton, Mark Newton, David
Dominessy and David Black. Each of
these men and their families continue to be faithful to the Lord's Kingdom.
February 1994 marked the fiftieth year of the
Church
of
Christ
in
Sanford
at
1500 South Park and Fifteenth Street
. The church continued under the oversight of shepherds George Stiffey, Harvey
Covington, and Gene Newton. The
deacons then were John Cullum, Mark Newton, Gary Scott, Tommy Stiffey, David
Wenner, Randy Powell, Blake Dill, Dale Newton and
Terry
Wilcox. Tony Black has been
preaching for the congregation since December 1988.
In July 1994, after serving
Sanford
for thirty years, James M. Steakly resigned for health reasons.
Adjusting to the twenty-first century, E.Y. Fry was added to the
eldership in January 1997. Following
several years of spiritual prosperity, Sanford once again faced the adjustment
of seeing the Black family, move to Pensacola, Florida and a new work in that
city in May 2000. We consider
ourselves blessed by the Black family, growing up with them during their years
of labor for the Lords kingdom.
Jon Overcash, from
Crossett
Arkansas
, now residing in
Sanford
,
Florida
came to labor with us in June 2000. Grateful
for thirty-three years of oversight, Harvey Covington resigned as an elder due
to health complications in August 2000. Remaining
stable and focused on edification, benevolence, and evangelism,
Allen Baker
was recognized as an elder in December 2000, joining Gene Newton, George
Stiffey and E.Y. Fry. Once again,
the decision to plant another congregation of the
Lords
Church
was started in Christmas,
Florida
, with Daniel Carswell serving as minister. During
the transition from brother Black to brother Overcash, several families
relocated to other areas. Though our
adult numbers decreased, our youth remained about the same.
Therefore, the shepherds addressed our youth ministry needs in 2002,
welcoming Lonnie Johnson as part of
Sanford
s ministry staff, as Youth Minister. Additional
transition challenges faced
Sanford
when Jon Overcash left the work at
Sanford
in June 2002. Consequently, Lonnie
was asked to fill-in until a minister could be found to work with the
congregation.
Walter Person, from
McKinney
,
Texas
, came to labor with us in June 2003. Walt
came to us with considerable experience, having labored both in foreign and
domestic mission work. He
ministered for five years in the Federal Republic of Germany and twelve years
with congregations in
New Mexico
,
Kansas
,
North Dakota
and
Virginia
before accepting the pulpit responsibilities with
Sanford
. Growth once again brought
additional ministry needs for
Sanford
, and three additional deacons were added in 2002.
Due to the moving relocation of two of our elders, Brother George Stiffey
resigned since there were no other elders to serve with at the time.
For the first time in over fifty years,
Sanford
was operating with mens business meetings.
Given an opportunity to go back to school, Lonnie, relocated with his
family in May 2004, to be the Youth Minister with the Orange Avenue Congregation
in
Eustis
,
Florida
while attending the Accelerated Christian Education (ACE) program with
Heritage
Christian
University
. Through the transition without
shepherds, classes, sermons and individual study, were combined with prayer to
recognize once again men in the
Sanford
congregation to serve as shepherds. August
2004, saw the appointment of George Stiffey, J.J. Redmon, and
Terry
Summerlott to serve as the spiritual leaders of
Sanford
. A year of rejoicing we celebrated
our sixtieth year serving the
Sanford
community with past members in a tribute fellowship gathering that same month.
In the middle 1990s the surge of interest in New Testament
Christianity brought many faithful Christians to Sanford who lived and worked in
the
Orlando
area. They wanted to worship with a
congregation who taught and practiced Bible truths.
We have learned when we work together we can accomplish great and good
things. So we must be busy seeking
and saving the lost, as well as restoring those who have fallen away from their
first love so that on that last day our Lord can say, "'Well
done, good and faithful servant... Enter
into the joy of your lord " (Matthew 25:21).
The "far greater weight of glory" keeps all
Christians richly supplied with hope. The brethren in
Sanford
have this and a bright future to keep their spirits high.
As we continue to depend upon the will of God, we pray ... have
confidence ... and believe that our faithful obedience will help spread the
borders of Christ's kingdom in our community.
Resources:
Interview with E. S.
Steakley, July 6, 1947.
Interview with
Harvey
& Armillda Covington, January 2006
PREACHERS
David E. Harrell April 1944 to March 1945
Arthur L. Butler April 1945 September 1947
J. P. Lowery April 1947 July 1949
J. C. Nicholson August 1950 March 1953
Sam Binkley August 1953 December 1954
Ralph P. Brewer Jr. January 1955 June 1958
George Yates October 1958 September 1960
Morris Ruby September 1960 September 1961
Bill Beck September 1961 September 1962
Bert Brown January 1963 December 1966
Emerson J. Estes January 1967 April 1973
Charles N. Crump June 1973 June 1975
Fred Baker June 1975 to January 1988 - retired
Tony Black June 1988 to July 2000 moved to new work
Jon Overcash August 2000 to June 2002
Lonnie Johnson June 2002 to June 2003
Walter Person June 2003 to present
ELDERS
E.S. Steakley 1945, Death
C.A.
Kelly 1945, Death
Spruell Beall
1944, resigned when E.S. Steakly died
Spruell Beall
1963 to 1978, resigned when he moved to Deltona to start a new work
Nestle Lines
1963, resigned when he moved in 1967
James Steakley 1963, resigned due to health July 1994
Harvey Covington 1967, resigned due to health August
2000
Gene Newton 1977 March 1987
Gene Newton May 1988, resigned September 2002
George Stiffey May 88, resigned December 2003
E.Y. Fry January 1997, resigned December 2003
Allen Baker
December 2000, resigned February 2003
George Stiffey August 2004 to present
J.J. Redmon August 2004 to present
Terry
Summerlott August 2004 to present
DEACONS
Paul Flowers 1970 1978
George Stiffey July 1968 May 1988
Delma Willis 1971 December 77
Buddy Gaines 1978 October 1987
David Galloway, Sr., October 1983, resigned 2002
John Cullum October 1983 to present
David Galloway, Jr., May 1988, resigned 2004
Mark Newton May 1988 July 1994
Douglas Phillips May 1988 1993
Gary Scott November 1990, resigned in May 2006
David Wenner November 1990 September 2002
Tommy Stiffey October 1994 to present
Blake Dill October 1994 2002
Dale Newton October 1994 December 2000
Randy Powell October 1994 July 1997
Terry
Wilcox October 1994 1998
Hank Lindwall December 2000 to present
Jeffrey Newton December 2000 October 2002
Danny Galloway, Sr., May 2002, resigned July 2005
Joe Hunt May 2002 to present
Bill Schmidt 2002 to present
Tim OKeefe - 2002 to present
Craig Shadrix - 2004 to present
History
