The Community Baptist Church of North Pole, Alaska began as a Home Mission Church under the direction of the Conservative Baptist Home Mission Society head quartered in Wheaton, Illinois.
The first services were held in October of 1983 with the congregation consisting of approximately 16 families who were members of Bethel Baptist Church located at 5.6 Mile Farmers Loop Road in Fairbanks. These 16 families formed the nucleus of the new church which is actually a daughter church of Bethel Baptist.
We began meeting in the Fire Hall in North Pole but soon grew out of that facility and moved into the Freedom in Christ building utilizing it on Sunday afternoons between their two services. Pastor Wayne Eames, Missionary Pastor with SEND International was our interim pastor.
In July of 1984 with an adult member ship totaling 29 and approximately 56 in attendance our first full time pastor arrived with his family from Salem, OR. Pastor Dave Manitsas was commission ed by the Conservative Baptist Home Mission Society as a Church Planter under the New Churches Now program. This program is financially supported by Conservative Baptist Churches nationwide and initiates a program whereby a church under mission status slowly takes on the full financial support of the pastor on a three year descending scale.
The church began to grow and in January of 1985 we purchased 2.9 acres of land at a cost of $35,000.00 cash. In June of 1985, (one and one-half years early),we accepted full financial support of our pastor and resigned from the NCN Program and Mission Status.
Blessed with continued growth , we began to feel the need of building a facility of our own and in January 1986 the church voted to begin a building project in the coming Spring and Summer.
At present, our membership stands at 51 and our average attendance is 98. We are a member church of the Conservative Baptist Association of America and of the Conservative Baptist Association of Alaska.
Last updated 06/11/2003, Maintained
by kesterke@ptialaska.net