HR0721LRB099 14025 GRL 38048 r

1
HOUSE RESOLUTION

 
2    WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of
3Representatives wish to congratulate the congregation of
4Baileyville Baptist Church on the occasion of the church's
5150th anniversary on September 3, 2015; and
 
6    WHEREAS, In 1856, the families of Christopher Wilhelms and
7Jodokus Bohen, both German Baptists, arrived in Silver Creek
8Township; soon, there were enough East Frisian families in the
9area that religious meetings were held in the home of Mr.
10Wilhelms and later in the home of Harm Eckhoff; the growing
11desire among these immigrants to establish a church resulted in
12a meeting on September 3, 1865, at which a decision was made to
13form a new congregation named "Die Erste Ostfriesische
14Baptisten Gemeinde of Silver Creek, Illinois"; a church council
15consisting of Harm Eckhoff, Inderk Bonn, and Fokke Zimmerman
16was elected and 36 people were charter members of the church;
17almost all of the charter members were former members of the
18Baptist Church in Inhren, Ostfriesland; and
 
19    WHEREAS, Church meetings continued in various homes until
20the spring of 1868, when permission was obtained to use the
21Diddens schoolhouse, situated in the country about halfway
22between what are now Freeport and German Valley; in 1869, the
23growing congregation called upon its first pastor, J. G.

 

 

HR0721- 2 -LRB099 14025 GRL 38048 r

1Vanloh; in 1874, the construction of a church building was
2started on a tract of land at the north edge of Baileyville;
3the new church was dedicated on August 30, 1874; and
 
4    WHEREAS, In 1914, the official name of the congregation was
5changed to "Die Erste Deutsche Baptisten Gemeinde,
6Baileyville, Illinois"; on the night of February 4, 1920,
7tragedy struck when the church and all its contents were
8destroyed by fire; construction of a new, large brick building
9was begun almost immediately, and this new church building was
10dedicated on March 20, 1921; in later years, the official name
11of the church was changed to First Baptist Church of
12Baileyville; the church is also known as Baileyville Baptist
13Church; and
 
14    WHEREAS, Over the church's history, the Baileyville
15Baptist Church has ministered to local people and has been
16involved in spreading the gospel throughout the United States,
17with church plants in Iowa, South Dakota, Montana, and
18throughout the State; its foreign missions program has seen
19ones sent out to Nigeria, Sudan, Japan, the Philippines,
20Canada, and India; the church also supports missionaries in
21Germany, South Africa, Kenya, Ghana, Mexico, Argentina,
22Israel, and Nepal; and
 
23    WHEREAS, Baileyville Baptist Church has had 34 pastors

 

 

HR0721- 3 -LRB099 14025 GRL 38048 r

1serve as shepherd of the flock since the church's founding;
2former Pastor Delbert Rogers, who served the congregation from
31980 to 1982, will be the guest speaker during the church's
4Anniversary Celebration; other pastors who have served in the
5past 25 years are Rev. Nelson Hadley (1984 - 1993), Rev. John
6Erenz (1995 - 2007), Rev. Alan Cassel (2007 - June 2015), and
7the church's current pastor, Rev. Gary Branam; and
 
8    WHEREAS, The congregation and pastorate of Baileyville
9Baptist Church serve as models of hard work, integrity, and
10dedication for the people of the State of Illinois; therefore,
11be it
 
12    RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE
13NINETY-NINTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we
14congratulate the congregation of Baileyville Baptist Church on
15the occasion of the church's 150th anniversary and wish them
16continued success and happiness in the future; and be it
17further
 
18    RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be
19presented to Baileyville Baptist Church as a symbol of our
20esteem and respect.