This past year led our church through many ups & downs and trials and blessings. At the end of the year I can still truly say, “Praise God for His manifold Blessings.” The wedding of our daughter Elizabeth to Eric Shamansky on February 19th marked the start of 2005 with a very joyous occasion. Although I could barely walk due to a trial with tendonitis in my ankle, it was truly a blessing to officiate the ceremony of my last child to be wed. I was also honored to conduct a wedding service for Monica & Tony Kalacinsky on September 17th at Sunnymede Farm in Hartland, Vermont.
March 19th was a sad day for our church family as we said goodbye to a beloved sister in Christ. That Saturday, we packed over 90 people in our small church for the Funeral Service of our dear friend Ellen Marquay. “Mom” (as we affectionately called her) would have been very happy to know that the celebration of her entrance into Glory brought more people than ever to Olivet Baptist Church.
Hanover Terrace still remains my main focus of community outreach as I visit to encourage our senior friends in the Lord each week. Although too often friends pass on, it is always a blessing to have given them the Gospel. I would like to thank our people who minister with me at the services there. We also started a monthly service at the Westboro House in West Lebanon, NH. We thank God for this opportunity and the pleasure to see “Gram” (Beverly Potwin) each time we go.
Our annual Missions Revival was held on May 19-22. Bro Don Davis brought Arnold & Wanda Worley, Transporters for Christ, and the Mark Hill Family, missionaries to Ireland. It was a wonderful conference and both missionaries were supported by our church. Our Faith Promise Missions Giving was over $40K for the third year in a row.
The Rolands came again this November and treated us to our yearly dose of Southern Gospel Music. It is always exciting to have the Rolands sing at our church and quite uplifting.
Although the church was already too full on Sunday Mornings, the Lord brought in new people and some souls were saved at the end of the year. It is so encouraging to see God’s hand at work in our ministry.
The end of the year was also marked with the calling of Bro. Joe Poissant to the Pastorate of Green Mountain Baptist Church in Rutland, Vermont. Joe & Belinda faithfully and sacrificially served the Savior in our church and we were most delighted to see God lead them to a ministry of their own.
Our annual Christmas Gathering and Pageant was a smashing success. The children did a great job with the program as many relatives and visitors attended. The meal was fantastic as usual. We had record attendance in excess of 120 people at the Senior Center in Lebanon.
The year was most remembered by a lengthy endeavor to expand our ministry through the purchase of the Parish Center of the former Holy Redeemer Catholic Church on Maple Street. In April, we agreed to a purchase price with a development firm under contract with the Catholic Church. The developers were to subdivide the property, sell us the Parish Center and tear down the church building to construct a handful of new homes. Later in August, we began the second phase of this endeavor by requesting approval from the City of Lebanon Zoning Board. After 3 months and three times going before the board we were unable to gain approval. This nullified our contract with the developers and their contract with the church. In November, the property was purchased by a local investment firm and we began negotiating with them, leading us to our present situation. I praise God that our people did not give up faith and hope in the power of our God to provide in a miraculous way. I would like to thank all of our people for their service to Olivet Baptist Church as well as the opportunity and privilege to worship with each one of you. You make our church the special place that it is. I Corinthians 15:58.
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