[Congressional Record Volume 161, Number 87 (Tuesday, June 2, 2015)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E816-E817]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




              HONORING GREENHILL MISSIONARY BAPTIST CHURCH

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. BENNIE G. THOMPSON

                             of mississippi

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, June 2, 2015

  Mr. THOMPSON of Mississippi. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor a 
remarkable historical church Greenhill Missionary Baptist of Marks, 
Mississippi and the great leadership it is under, Rev. Alvis Pryor, Jr.
  Greenhill M. B. Church was organized in 1909. The original building 
was a small one room wood frame building located across Highway #6 
between the towns of Belen and Marks, MS in the county of Quitman. This 
building was destroyed by a storm.
  A man by the name of Jessie D. Andrews heard about the loss of the 
church and sold them two (2) acres of land for the sum of One Dollar. 
The land was deeded to Sam Jones, Pleas Thomas and John Henry, who were 
Deacons and Trustees of the church. This land was sold with the 
understanding that it was to be used for church purposes or burial 
grounds or both and should it cease to be used for the before mentioned 
purposes, the land would be reverted to Jessie D. Andrews.
  After acquiring the new land (present site) with only a few members 
remaining, another single room wood frame building was constructed. The 
new church was built by Alexander Gates, George James, David M. Gates, 
Epsie Morgan, Sr. and other men within the community. The church was 
built through donations made by church members and others under the 
leadership of the first pastor, Rev. M. O. Jude.
  During the 106 years of Greenhill's history there have been a total 
of 11 pastors; some with short tenures and some with long tenures. Some 
made a great impact on the church and community and others kept the 
church moving forward.
  Under the leadership of Rev. C. J. Carson, (5th) pastor an annex was 
added which included, pastor's study, kitchen/dining room, deacon's/
secretary room and bathrooms.
  Rev. Luster C. Tyler served as the (8th) pastor. During his tenure 
the church was again remodeled. He served a total of 25 years the 
longest serving pastor so far. He was often referred to as ``the 
Mississippi Hooper''.
  In 2007, Rev. Curlie Relliford was elected as (10th) pastor. Even 
though his tenure was less than two years the annex was torn down and 
rebuilt into a beautiful modern structure.
  Greenhill has always served as a beaconing light in its rural 
community setting. The church takes pride in ministering to the whole 
person. Special attention is given to the needs of the youth, aged, and 
underprivileged. Considering the fact that Greenhill is a small church 
we are proud of the fact that traditionally many of its

[[Page E817]]

members have gone to college and became public school teachers. 
Presently about 50% of the members are less than 21 years old. So with 
God the future of Greenhill is bright.
  Rev. Alvis Pryor, Jr. was elected as eleventh pastor of Greenhill M. 
B. Church in May 2009. Under his leadership, the church has continued 
to grow spiritually due to the continuation of weekly prayer meetings, 
Bible Study, Sunday School and the visitation of the sick and shut-in. 
Pastor Pryor has been very instrumental in the growth of this church 
through the guidance of the Holy Spirit, and some of his most notable 
accomplishments are: Instituting a plan to liquidate the mortgage on 
the church, the beautiful church sign (which was purchased by the first 
family), additional Sunday school teachers and assistants have been 
added, he is responsible for instituting an Annual Youth and Youth 
Coordinators Retreat in July, annual fellowship dinners sponsored by 
first family, fifteen passenger van and hired a full time musician.
  Unfortunately, when there's life; death too will come. Throughout the 
past 106 years, as you can imagine, there's been many warriors to make 
the transition of life. As history reveals, Greenhill has steered 
through an array of obstacles. Whether great or mediocre, God's word 
continues to prevail. So today, they are humbly thankful for 106 years 
of existence and service unto the Lord.
  Mr. Speaker, I ask my colleagues to join me in recognizing Greenhill 
Missionary Baptist Church for its dedication for serving our great 
people.

                          ____________________