[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 163 (2017), Part 7]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages 9818-9819]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




          HONORING GREATER FAIRVIEW MISSIONARY BAPTIST CHURCH

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. BENNIE G. THOMPSON

                             of mississippi

                    in the house of representatives

                         Friday, June 23, 2017

  Mr. THOMPSON of Mississippi. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the 
congregation of the Fairview M.B. Church which was organized in 1918, 
under the leadership of the late Rev. Mark Burns; in an old store-front 
building on the corner of Amite and Jefferson Streets.
  Following the lead of the Holy Spirit and with bare necessities such 
as wooden apple boxes and planks for seating, Rev. Burns moved forward 
with (2) deacons, Bro. Jeff Mason and Bro. John Camel; a church clerk, 
Sis. Ella Patton, and following her death Sis. Olive Patton. After 6 
years of hard work and self-sacrifice by the faithful few, enough 
monies were raised to purchase a lot on Mississippi Street from M.A. 
Lewis. By 1924, the membership had grown to about 25 members and the 
church was officially built.
  Rev. Burns was called to another assignment, and the late Rev. Willie 
Pickens, was called to carry on many unfinished task. He was a very 
good orator and the church grew mightily under his leadership. 
Following Rev. Pickens, the late Rev. N. Trouvillion, was called to 
service for a short time, and then came a Rev. Jackson. In 1930, the 
Rev. F. W. Coleman was called as pastor. He was a young dynamic man 
just beginning in the ministry. During his 14 years of service, much 
was accomplished; different auxiliaries were organized, and many more 
souls were added to the church. Directly following Rev. Coleman, the 
Rev. R. L. Varnado former pastor of Ridley Hill Baptist Church of 
Madison County was elected and served 8 years of which the church 
continued to grow in souls and finances.
  In 1953, the Rev. R. H. Walls, former pastor of Pilgrim's Rest 
Baptist Church of Madison, succeeded Rev. Varnado. During his tenure, 
the church roofing was updated, the siding painted, a walk-way was 
installed, and an organ and piano were purchased. The Deacons Ministry 
grew under the beginning administration as followed: Brothers Jess 
Moss, John Camel, Sam Patton, Hemphill, Alforna Lewis, Charlie Spencer, 
Harvey Miles, Buster Jones, Joseph Walker, Vertis Kersh, Cleveland 
Jorner, and Albert Smith.
  On April 27, 1962 by the Spirit of God leading, the Fairview church 
called Rev. S.L. Spann, Sr. as pastor. Through the mighty hand of God 
he led the church from the building on Mississippi Street to 2545 
Newport Street. Just a little over a year later that building was 
upgraded and the original 65 members that came from Mississippi Street 
were now 300 strong.
  After settlement on Newport Street, Fairview Church began to really 
grow and the name was changed to Greater Fairview Missionary Baptist 
Church. Through the leadership and teachings of Pastor Spann, the Word 
of God was being planted deeply in the hearts of men and they were 
being urged not to just congregate but to participate; to use the 
talents God had bestowed upon them in love and with purpose. Many new 
ministries were established to accommodate and involve everyone in this 
newly growing fellowship. The needs were met through the establishment 
of Matron's and Junior Matron's League, Juniors Usher Board, Laymen's 
and Jr. Laymen's Association, Missionary Society and the YWA 
Association, all training tools for the young people. The Sunday school 
grew to 10 individual teaching classrooms. Rev. Spann understood the 
importance of proper training and in order to reap a productive harvest 
someone had to plant the ``Right(eous) Seeds''.
  To aid in priming the soil for planting of the Word, soul stirring 
music was needed, so several choirs were established: The Senior Choir, 
under the direction of the late Sis. Rebecca Jordan; the Youth and 
Junior Choirs were led by Sis. Lannie Spann; and Sis. Mary Davis was 
pianist for the Male Chorus and Chancel Choir, which later became the 
Inspirational Choir. The church also in-acted an After-School Tutorial 
Program, led by the late Bro. George Coleman, then by Sis. Velma Spann, 
and finally by Deacon Charles Smith. The students were not only taught 
the 3R's but also offered a holistic approach to their student studies.
  Greater Fairview became a true source of spiritual revitalization for 
the Shady Oaks community and the people that were being drawn through 
her doors by the pure God-given preaching of Pastor Spann, and the 
strong spiritual messages through songs sung by the choirs, and all the 
teachings through love were aids in growing this congregation. The 
Young Adult Choir was a great draw to the community and church alike; 
recording its' first album in 1973 and touring the country representing 
Christ and the church respectively.
  Greater Fairview continued to grow in leaps and bounds and the 
unadulterated word of God continued to come forth encouraging, 
admonishing, and changing the lives of many. Under Spann's leadership 
many Sons were

[[Page 9819]]

called, nurtured, and equipped for service using Godly precepts, 
fatherly teachings. and examples, they are as follows: the late Rev. 
Annia Collier, the late Rev. John Hunter, Rev. S.L. Jamison, Rev. 
Timothy Taylor, the late Rev. Ray Bowman, Rev. H. L. Sylvester, Rev. 
Robert Clark, Rev. Lonnie Wesley, the late Rev. Keith Brooks, Rev. 
Christopher Golden, Rev. Kenneth Whitten, Rev. Charlie Jackson, Rev. 
Johnny Smith, Rev. Bobby Burks, Rev. Willie McDowell, Rev. Dr. John 
McCarty, Rev. Larry Davidson, Rev. Matthew R. Spann, Rev. Charles Bell, 
Rev. Charles H. Spann, Rev. Fredrick Green, and Rev. Frederick 
Hanskins.
  In 1992, Dr. Spann was led by the Holy Ghost to build a new 
sanctuary, and the project began with total support from the church and 
its leaders. The building was dedicated the 3rd Sunday in October 1995. 
Many said that Dr. Spann was too old for such a great undertaking, and 
that he probably wouldn't see it come to fruition. But, to the dismay 
of many he did see it and led the congregation into the new church on 
that rainy October day in 1995, and brought many stirring messages for 
another 4 years, until retirement in 1999.
  During the period of Dr. Spann's; honorable position as Pastor 
Emeritus, Rev. Charles H. Spann served as Interim pastor of the church 
for approximately fifteen (15) months. Following the formation of a 
Search Committee by the church; who was charged with the responsibility 
of selecting a new pastor. Rev. Charles Bell and Rev. Bobby Burks 
served together as Pulpit Facilitators. Amazingly, these temporal 
positions for these three (3) Sons of the House provided them with 
leadership experience and ultimately prepared them; for they were soon 
called to serve at churches of their own. The words, ``A Church Where 
Love Prevails over Hate.'' became more prevalent in the process to find 
a new leader.
  As in life when assigmnents are complete they must all move on, and 
Pastor Spann's assignments were completed on November 9, 2001 after 38 
years of service to Greater Fairview Church, the Shady Oaks Community, 
and the State of Mississippi. He was called home to a just reward, 
leaving the church sadden yet rejoicing in the fact that they had been 
taught how to love each other to an un-measurable magnitude, and in the 
midst of sorrow his teachings could be accessed to help them through 
the dark hour. But feeling the disconnect, just 9 months later in 
August 2002, God called Mother Spann home too, leaving the church with 
a legacy of memories of a hallmark of quiet, gracious, and humble 
characters in the midst of servitude.
  After an arduous process of fasting, praying, and listening to 
several candidates for pastor, it was decided by a vote that Rev. Danny 
R. Hollins, a native of Pocahontas, MS and the tenured pastor of Cedar 
Grove Baptist Church, become the next leader, the majority conceded and 
he was elected.
  Rev. Danny R. Hollins preached his first sermon on the 5th Sunday of 
July 2001 and was installed as pastor on the third Sunday in October of 
that same year. Greater Fairview grew over the next few years as the 
word continued to go forth. They never lost our vision and zeal for 
ministry and many other ministries were added.
  In 2004 the church purchased 34 acres of land on Boling Street for 
future development. During the 2005 Hurricane Katrina aftermath, the 
church became a refuge center, and provided shelter for 60 members of 
one family from Slidell, La. and later to a Hispanic family, from 
Houston, Texas, when Hurricane Rita hit in September of that same year. 
The creed of ``Meeting people where they are.'' was truly tested and 
taken to the limits while helping neighbors.
  The Church adopted in 2006 Johnson Elementary School, Morrison 
Academic Advancement Center in 2007, Dawson Elementary and Northwest 
Middle Schools in 2010, and also became a satellite program with the 
Continuing Adult Education Program, of Jackson State University, where 
many of the members obtained a college degree. Finally, in October of 
2010, ground was broken for the long anticipated development. The 
Fairview Learning Academy, along with the Recreational Outreach Center, 
was built.
  Mr. Speaker, I ask my colleagues to join me in recognizing Greater 
Fairview Missionary Baptist Church.

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