This month, read about anniversaries — churches celebrating decades of God’s faithfulness through struggles and victories. Churches are also celebrating baptisms, awards, and more. And, of course, there are transitions as pastors leave, are called to Maryland/Delaware, or go home to be with Him. But through it all, God remains faithful and true!

“Give thanks to the God of heaven, for his steadfast love endures forever.” (Psalm 136:26)

SonRise Church Baptisms on the Beach and Upcoming Happenings
Our feature photo shows a recent beach baptism service by SonRise Church, Berlin. Forty-two people publicly declared their faith in Jesus. The church’s Facebook post read, “The atmosphere was electric, the community was full of joy, and God’s presence was undeniable. THIS is what it’s all about. We’re celebrating every story, every step of faith, and the incredible work God is doing in our church. Let’s keep the fire burning!” The photo is courtesy of donajungphotography, used with permission. Dona Jung serves as a media assistant for Sonrise Church. The next baptism is scheduled for September.

The church is gearing up for Proclaim 25. It’s a free, four-hour gathering of students from the Eastern Shore and beyond. The event includes carnival games, inflatables, food, and a concert led by JJ Weeks and The Austin Miller Band.

Anniversary Celebrations

Colonial Baptist Church, Randallstown, celebrated its 80th anniversary on July 20th. To put that in perspective, as part of Colonial’s “Down Memory Lane” featured in the church’s anniversary bulletin, you could buy a gallon of milk for 62 cents, a loaf of bread for 9 cents, and a new car for about $1,000. World War II was ongoing.

The church started in 1943 as a Sunday school mission sponsored by Pimlico Baptist Church (PBC). Raymond Brooks, a former PBC pastor, initiated the work in a small, rented cinder block building in Colonial Village, Pikesville. The new church, with 25 members, was constituted on July 15, 1945, as Colonial Baptist Church.

Over the years, Colonial has had an impressive missions and outreach ministry, including a Good News Club in partnership with local schools, Inspire Special Needs Ministry, Camp Colonial, various youth and children’s programs, health and wellness initiatives, performing arts, music, prison ministry, culinary ministry, deaf ministry, AWANA Clubs, Women On Mission, men’s ministries, and more. They have a committee dedicated to keeping missions vibrant. The church supports missionaries worldwide, nationwide, and locally; has conducted short-term missions; and hosts a mission fair each year.

Colonial has also been a multiplying church, sponsoring Gamber Mission, Emmanuel Baptist Church, Liberty Lake Baptist Mission, Owings Mills Baptist Church, Covenant Baptist Chapel, Forest Park Church, New Vision Bible Fellowship Church, Foundation for the Christian Faith Mission, B’Nai Avraham Messianic Mission, and Crossway International Community Church.

The anniversary theme was Anchored in Christ: ”A Firm Foundation,” based on Hebrews 6:18-19. The guest speaker was the Rev. Dr. Robert Young, senior pastor of Wayland Baptist Church, Baltimore.

Referencing the experience of Job and using the song, “Through It All,” by Andrae Crouch, Young encouraged the church to press on and continue to thank and praise God.

Young said, “My singular proposition today for you is this. You can make it through anything, but without God, you can do nothing. Without God, you will fail. Without Him, your life will be …like a ship without a sail, like a Bentley without gas, a mansion without a roof…You will not go anywhere or get through anything. Sickness will shake you. Bad news will break you, and heartbreak will hurt you.

There are seasons in life that only God can bring you through, Young told the congregations. “God and God alone will take you through whatever difficult season you find yourself in, church — through all the fires and the floods and the failures.”

Has he been good to you, Colonial? Has he kept you through the years? Somebody say, ‘He’s a keeper!’

BCM/D Executive Director Tom Stolle congratulated Colonial on their anniversary. He thanked them for their partnership and encouraged them as they press on.

Elders Baptist Church celebrated 60 years of faithfulness, service, and community impact at a church service on August 3. Jim Edmonson, who has been pastor of the church since 1998, led the congregation in reflecting on the church’s rich history and looking ahead to their mission in the years to come. Edmonson began saying, “The title of this sermon is ‘Sixty years done. Sixty years still to go.’ We celebrate today what God has done in and through Elders Baptist Church.”

Like Colonial Baptist Church, Elders Baptist Church began as a vision of Pimlico Baptist Church, and as Edmonson said, was “birthed in prayer and obedience.” In January 1962, PBC bought four acres of land and established Elders Baptist Chapel. Before a church could become a church, it had to be a chapel, according to Baptist tradition at that time, Edmonson explained. The first service was led by Reverend Paul Tharp, pastor of PBC, who preached the first sermon. He eventually left PBC to become the first pastor of Elders. In 1965, Elders Baptist Chapel became Elders Baptist Church.

Citing the many ministries at the church, Edmonson said Elders has been deeply involved in missions both locally and globally, including Prague, Czechoslovakia; Los Guidos in Costa Rica, and across the U.S. through Builders for Christ. Youth ministries have engaged students in Toronto, Canada, and served children at local events, including at Camp WoMeTo. Locally, they’ve had Vacation Bible Schools each summer, Christmas and Easter musicals, egg hunts, and church picnics. “Through it all, we’ve had the singular goal of sharing the good news of Jesus Christ to a lost and dying world,” Edmonson said.

Looking ahead, he said, “We serve a big God who has big plans still to come.” He encouraged members to continue mission work, grow spiritually, and serve together.

The church enjoyed an outdoor meal after the service.

Watersedge Baptist Church in Dundalk will host a “Chalk the Walk” family night on September 19 to celebrate the church’s 80th anniversary. “We have a family fun night most months during the school year,” said Pastor Ken Ledwell.

The idea for the upcoming chalk event is to use the sidewalk outside the church as a canvas for decoration, maybe by writing “Congratulations,” drawing pictures, or simply making it festive and fun.

The anniversary celebration service will be held on September 21. Afterward, there will be a block party-style event with pit beef, turkey, hot dogs, and sides provided by members. Ledwell mentioned there will be a memorabilia table, and past members have been invited.

Ledwell said, “It’s not about the church surviving for 80 years. It’s not about the saints’ faithfulness. It’s about God’s faithfulness. For a church to last 80 years and now be in this revitalization process for the past few years, is great. God is doing wonderful things and has done so over the many years.”

He was especially thrilled at the success of their recent Vacation Bible School. “We had about 50 children, double what we usually have. It was just tremendous.” Ledwell noted that some attendees come from families that attend other churches, and the church was happy to have them. Others are unchurched from the community, and they hope to have the opportunity through follow-up to minister to those families.

Cresthill at Baysox Games
Cresthill Church in Bowie has a strong and meaningful partnership with the Chesapeake Baysox organization, and Cresthill members attend many games. The church has two tables in what Cresthill Pastor Jimmy Painter calls “prime real estate” along the first baseline. They greet and talk with fans, give away Bibles and Christian literature, and host games with prizes. They also use this opportunity to promote Tim Tebow’s Night to Shine and raise money for the annual prom for people with disabilities. Cresthill hosts a Night to Shine event every year.

Earlier this month, the church, in partnership with the Baysox, sponsored a “Daddy/Daughter Date Night” at the game. The Baysox officially recognized the church, and Cresthill had its name printed on the Daddy/Daughter Date Night t-shirts. Fans could buy a package that included the shirt, pictures, and bracelets to take children to the stadium’s park area for rides. Earlier this summer, the church also sponsored Mother/Son Day with similar activities.

On Aug. 23, the church staffed their tables for Special Olympics Night. Jimmy’s wife, Margot, who coordinates the church’s annual Night to Shine, said they often meet NTS families at the game each year, and Margot has recruited attendees and volunteers for the prom. They held a silent auction featuring valuable Orioles and Baysox items, as well as other sports memorabilia, to raise funds for their 2026 NTS.

Stars & Stripes Award

Severna Park Baptist Church member Alethia Brown earned her American Heritage Girls (AHG) Stars & Stripes award earlier this month. According to the AHG website, the award is the organization’s highest honor, emphasizing leadership, faith, and personal growth, with strict requirements. Girls must earn a total of 16 advanced badges and serve as a troop leader for at least six months. They are also required to plan and lead a service project of over 100 hours, write a “spiritual walk” essay, gather three letters of reference, and successfully pass a review board.

In partnership with the church, where her father, Dave Brown, pastors, and her troop meets, Alethia led in creating “blessing bags.” The church supports Serving People Across Neighborhoods (S.P.A.N.), a multi-church county food distribution, but Alethia said some individuals need additional assistance to get by. There are three types of bags: food, hygiene, and infant. The food bags include bottled water and non-perishable items such as peanut butter and jelly, crackers, and other easy-to-eat snacks to help stretch a limited budget. Hygiene bags provide washcloths, toothpaste, shampoo, nail clippers, and similar items. Infant bags contain diapers, formula, and small snacks for babies and toddlers.

Alethia, who graduated from high school in June, organized the project and supervised volunteers in collecting food items and assembling 30 bags. She also oversaw the construction of a cabinet to store the bags and supplies. “There was a lot of extra because the church was just so generous with their food donations, as well as monetary gifts,” she said.

The Severna Park AHG Troop MD0152, in partnership with the church, will continue supporting the project through fundraising events like craft fairs and yard sales to keep the new cabinet stocked.

Transitions

Lake Shore Baptist Church in Pasadena is going through two transitions. Ed Blizzard, who served as the church’s executive pastor for 17 years, will retire at the end of August. The church held a dinner in Blizzard’s honor on August 17.

Another change is welcoming their new Associate Pastor Dominic Matranga, his wife, Katie, and their little girl, Karis. The family is from Charlotte, North Carolina, and will be relocating to the area soon. Pastor Cory Atkinson said, “God is doing great things,” even in the midst of transition. New small groups will be starting soon, including a marriage-focused group and one for young adults.

Obituary: Keith Hammer
Keith Hammer, who served as executive pastor of SonRise Church in Berlin, passed away on July 1 at the age of 67. He was called to ministry at Riva Trace Baptist Church, Davidsonville, in 2000, after years in a successful business career. His love for Jesus Christ and his business background made him an excellent candidate for the role of executive pastor. Keith loved serving his local church and community. He was always dedicated to mentoring men and women interested in growing in their faith and encouraging others to do the same.

He also served as a consultant for several years with the BCM/D, where he connected with and supported many churches in Maryland and Delaware.
In 2016, God led Keith to Sonrise Church in Berlin, MD. He embraced the role of executive pastor and enjoyed working alongside Pastor Daryl McCready to expand God’s Kingdom.

Jeremy Dickson, BCM/D director of church strengthening, said, “Keith was a great man of God, and I know he will be missed by many.”

John Gauger, the executive director of the Susquehanna Baptist Association, said, “Keith was a brother who lived like Jesus and had a humble, enduring impact!”

Keith is survived by his loving wife of 46 years, Janice Hammer; two sons, Dan Hammer and his wife Ann of Gambrills, MD, and Mark Hammer of Salisbury, MD. He was also preceded in death by his daughter, Sarah Hammer, who passed away in 2024. His six grandchildren are Amanda, Caroline, Isaiah, and Ethan of Gambrills, and Logan and Arya Hammer of Salisbury.

Keith’s Celebration of Life was held on August 23 at Sonrise Church. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to THE REFUGE YOUTH GROUP at Sonrise Church.

(Adapted from Legacy, visit their website to read the entire obituary)

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BCM/D News Highlights is curated by BCM/D News Editor Sharon Mager.