[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 147 (2001), Part 12]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 16610]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



IN RECOGNITION OF THE 50TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE COMMUNITY BAPTIST CHURCH 
                           OF SANTA ROSA, CA

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. MIKE THOMPSON

                             of california

                          HON. LYNN C. WOOLSEY

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, September 6, 2001

  Mr. THOMPSON of California. Mr. Speaker, along with my colleague from 
California, Ms. Lynn Woolsey, I wish today to recognize Community 
Baptist Church of Santa Rosa as this congregation celebrates the 50th 
anniversary of its founding.
  A few African American families formed the hub of the church 50 years 
ago, which has since grown into a fully integrated congregation of 650 
people, with three choirs, two youth groups, an on-site day care 
center, and a charter high school.
  The congregation's first pastor was The Reverend Washington E. Boyce, 
who was serving as the assistant pastor at the First Missionary Baptist 
Church in the neighboring County of Marin when he traveled north to 
Sonoma County to enlist the support of local residents in building a 
spiritual community.
  Community Baptist became an official congregation in 1951, and the 
first deacon, Curtis Wyatt, Jr., was ordained in 1952.
  The first church services were held in members' homes and in 
community buildings in Santa Rosa. The first church building officially 
opened in 1956.
  The Reverend James E. Coffee became the minister at Community Baptist 
Church in 1965 and has served the congregation for the past 36 years.
  Over the course of the past 50 years, the church has played a vital 
spiritual and cultural role in Sonoma County and has enriched the lives 
of thousands of people.
  The church is an active participant in the Hate-Free cities movement; 
has provided a home for self-help programs such as Alcoholics Anonymous 
and Narcotics Anonymous; has initiated and maintains a four day annual 
Martin Luther King, Jr. celebration; has established and supports a 
community garden; has established and maintains a ministry of outreach 
to Lytton Ministries, a transition program for people trying to free 
themselves from addictions; and has established and supports the Second 
Sunday Morning Breakfasts, a forum for discussing, strategizing, and 
taking action on issues of civic, social and political importance.
  The church also has an active youth program. It founded and runs the 
Village Project, which helps forge positive adult child relationships 
and the Rites of Passage program to help adolescents transition into 
adulthood. The church has also established a Martin Luther King, Jr. 
Scholarship program and actively supports the 100 Black Men Mentoring 
program.
  Mr. Speaker, in honor of its vibrant history and traditions and its 
many contributions to Sonoma County, it is appropriate that we 
acknowledge today this pioneering congregation.

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