[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 145 (1999), Part 6]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 8945]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




     FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH OF SHEEPSHEAD BAY CELEBRATES CENTENNIAL 
                              ANNIVERSARY

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. ANTHONY D. WEINER

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                         Thursday, May 6, 1999

  Mr. WEINER. I rise today to invite my colleagues to pay tribute to 
the First Baptist Church of Sheepshead Bay on the occasion of its 
Centennial Anniversary.
  The members of the First Baptist Church of Sheepshead Bay have long 
been known for their commitment to community service and to enhancing 
the quality of life for all New York City residents.
  This is not only a festive happening, it is a chance for all of us to 
celebrate and pay tribute to a group of individuals who have dedicated 
their lives to spreading the word of God and to providing spiritual 
comfort to their friends and neighbors.
  Knowing that the men of the Sheepshead Bay Race Track and their 
families needed a place to worship, Mother Maria J. Fisher held prayer 
meetings either in her parlor or in the front rooms of charitable 
community residents. The First Baptist Church of Sheepshead Bay, which 
was formally incorporated by the State of New York in 1901, was 
organized on May 21, 1899 by Mother Fisher and the Reverend George O. 
Dixon of Alexandria, Virginia. Members who attended the Church's 
organizational session included: Messrs. Joseph Braxton, Tom Greene, 
William Jackson and Mesdames Edna Adams, Jessie Bogart, Bertha Greene, 
Anne Johnson, Ida Shaw, Susie Tucker, and Mary Woods. Members who were 
not already Christians were converted and baptized in the Concord 
Baptist Church of Brooklyn, New York.
  Upon their return to Sheepshead Bay, they joined forces with Mother 
Fisher to create the First Mission. The site of the Mission was on the 
corner of Avenue X and East 15th Streets. An old ice box was used for 
the Pulpit and the members donated lamps and chairs for the Church to 
use. When it was difficult to meet at the Church, members would convene 
at the home of Mother Fisher, who lived at 2362 East 15th Street.
  Mrs. Lena McMillian served as the Mission's first organist while 
Mesdames Sarah Lowe, Alice Robinson, Fannie Winston, Bertha Greene, 
Fannie Brown and William Forehand raised their voices to the Lord in 
the Mission's first choir. While serving as the Church's first Sunday 
School Superintendent, Mrs. Fannie Winston started the tradition of 
providing area youngsters with the moral precepts that they would need 
to grow into law-abiding adults.
  The members of the First Baptist Church of Sheepshead Bay have long 
been known as innovators and beacons of good will to all those with 
whom they come into contact. Through their dedicated efforts, they have 
each helped to improve my constituents' quality of life. In recognition 
of their many accomplishments on behalf of my constituents, I offer my 
congratulations to the First Baptist Church of Sheepshead Bay on the 
occasion of its Centennial Anniversary.

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