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The Second Baptist Church of La Grange first met in October, 1985 when approximately 40 people worshiped together at the Learning Tree, a child care center, at the invitation of owners, Buddy and Elois Mach. In November of 1985, the facility formerly owned by the New Testament Baptist Church was purchased. It consisted of a church with a seating capacity of about 200 with a parsonage located on 2.7 acres of land at 1010 North Von Minden, in La Grange. The church, given the name Second Baptist Church, was constituted in a ceremony conducted on January 2nd 1986. It was at this ceremony the Second Baptist Church committed our support of the Southern Baptist Convention, the Baptist General Convention of Texas, and the Gonzales Baptist Association. Brother John Karcher became the church's first Interim Pastor. To alleviate the critical need for classroom space, a portable building providing rooms for eight classes was purchased in March of 1986. In 1988, to provide more needed educational space, the original worship center was enlarged by adding 40 feet to its length. This addition provided nursery rooms, bathrooms and five classrooms. The design and construction labor was provided primarily by church members. In August, 1986, the Rev. Woody Farrar was called as the church's first full-time pastor. Brother Farrar had been licensed to preach on May 4th, 1983. Brother Farrar was a graduate of the University of Houston with a B.A. in sociology. Brother Farrar resigned as pastor of Second Baptist in June of 1991. Brother Wayne Williams served as Interim Pastor until Brother Ellis McKinzie accepted the call to become the pastor in October of 1991, the position he currently holds. Brother McKinzie had served as Youth Minister and Associate Pastor of the Second Baptist Church of Abilene, Texas. Before coming to Second Baptist he was pastor of Avoca Baptist Church near Abilene. He holds a B.A. in Religious Education and an M.A. in Religion with a minor in family counseling. In 1991, having outgrown the capacity of the original worship center and desiring a larger fellowship area, the members of Second Baptist Church voted to construct a new 300 seat worship center and office wing connected to the existing building. Construction began in January of 1992 and was completed for use in August of 1992. Church members and the Texas Baptist Men Retiree Builders provided most of the labor during construction of the building. In 1996, the church voted to replace the mobile home which was being used as a parsonage with a new home to be built on the same site. Again the members of the church provided most of the construction labor, and the parsonage was completed in July of 1996. The home was completely paid for within eight months after its completion. In 1998 the church voted to purchase a second home for an additional staff member. A house was located and purchased, and it also was soon paid for in full. That same year the church recognized the need for additional parking space, so a vacant lot was purchased which connects the existing property with Madison Street. Also in 1998, once again having outgrown existing facilities, the church voted to add on to the building to provide additional educational space and office space as well as enlarge the worship center. Construction began in December of 1998 on a three-story, 12,000 square foot building located on the site which originally was the front lawn. This building also has been constructed in part by the members of Second Baptist Church with the help of the Texas Baptist Men Retiree Builders. In September of 1998, Brian Hawkins came on staff as full-time Minister of Music and Youth. In 2003, because of the wonderful growth of Youth Ministry, we hired Dennis Germenis as part-time Music Minister, which allowed Brian to devote full time to the Youth Ministry As one can easily see, in the short history of Second Baptist Church of La Grange, God has blessed in numerous ways. Although much of our history has been occupied with building projects, the true essence of Second Baptist Church is its people. We believe that the greatest blessing God has given us is the loving people which he has brought into our fellowship. Our prayer is that the people of La Grange will not think of a building when they think of Second Baptist Church, but that they will think of people who love the Lord, who love each other, and who love those around them. When the church was in its infancy, we took the motto, "The Church of Excitement," and we still desire to have that excitement. However, we have since taken on another motto, which is "People Who Care." When visitors come into our church, we want them to feel that they have come into a group of people who truly care for them. We thank God, and we thank La Grange for making Second Baptist Church what it is and what it is to become.
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