First Baptist Church and Academy holds special service on June 28

Letter to the Editor

First Baptist Church and Academy has been a vital part of Mount Pearl, Newfoundland for 40 years. The church purchased property on Wyatt Boulevard in 1984, and by the spring of 1986 a parsonage, gymnasium (used for worship as well) and school facility were completed and occupied. In 1988 the men of the church began construction of the church sanctuary and classrooms. The first service was held on Good Friday in 1991. There were many men who invested their lives in those years for the building of the physical buildings. They also invested in building the lives of the people of First Baptist Church.

One of those men was Eldred Stansford. His tireless efforts helped to assure the quality and success of the construction projects. His youngest son Boyd was born in 1973 and worked as a teenager with his dad and the other men in the construction.

After graduating from First Baptist Academy, Boyd attended FaithWay Baptist College of Canada in Ajax, Ontario. After graduation he served on staff in the Christian school there. In the years following, Boyd and his young wife, Sarah, moved to Vancouver, British Colombia and served for number of years as assistant pastor at the Greater Vancouver Baptist Church.

The Lord laid on Boyd’s heart the need back here in Newfoundland. So, in 2002, he began raising support to come back to his home province and start a new church in Marystown.  He was devastated when his father, Eldred, passed away suddenly that year. However, he continued in God’s plan and went on to establish the Heritage Baptist Church in Marystown. After years of successful ministry, the Lord has called him back to First Baptist Church to serve as senior pastor in the place of his father-in-law, Allen Homan.

The building and ministry that Eldred helped to build will now be led by his son Boyd, the first true Newfoundlander to become senior pastor in its 71-year history.  I am sure that no one, but the Lord, could have seen this plan in 1984 when the building began here.

Pastor Stansford began his full-time ministry at First Baptist Church on June 28.

The church meet at 11:00 a.m., at which time Pastor Homan preached his last message as senior pastor.

The church hosted a BBQ lunch following that service.

There was an afternoon service following the lunch where Pastor Stansford preached his first message as senior pastor.

Pastor Allen Homan