Our History

Mt. Bethel Baptist Church was founded in a “Bush Harbor” in approximately 1897 by Rev. Willie Austin Bagley and four faithful Deacons: Norman Hatchett, William Coleman, Tom Smith, and Monroe Neblett. The Bush Harbor was located near the corner of Route 40 and 652.  Around 1904, a church building was purchased from Herbert Moses for $100.00 and brought from Moses Corner, (earlier known as Goodwyn’s Corner between Kenbridge and Victoria), to its present location 102 Aiken Road.

Among those who were instrumental in the Church’s founding were deacons, Norman Hatchett, Joe Taylor, Monroe Neblett, and William Coleman. Other dedicated deacons that served through the years were David Stokes, T.H. Blakes, George Harper, Clifton White, James P. Bridgeforth, and Charlie Jones.

Deacons at that time were Deacons Willie Bagley, Willie Hayes and Percell White. Mr. Bernard Robinson was elected to serve as a Trustee on April 10, 1976, along with Mr. John Rhoades. During this period, the deacons also served as trustees. Worship Services were held each second and fourth Sundays.

Much work had been done during this period to improve the structure of this church such as bathrooms installed, remodeling of the sanctuary, purchasing new pews, construction of the Fellowship Hall, kitchen, choir room, and pastor’s study.

In May 1979, Rev. W. A. Batts resigned. In July 1979, Deacon Willie Hayes was elected as Chairman of the Deacon Board and resigned in April 1980 when Deacon Percell White was elected Chairman of the Deacon Board.

John Ragsdale was licensed to preach on March 7, 1981, and Rev. H. R. Watkins was elected pastor on June 15, 1981. Also in June of 1981, Deacon Willie Bagley was added to the deacon board.

In June 1987 Louise Chaffin was elected to serve as Church Clerk.

As of April 28, 1990, Trustees were Bernard Robinson, Percell White, Willie Bagley, John Rhoades, Joe Smithson and Willie Hayes.

On December 9, 1995, Rev. H. R. Watkins resigned as pastor due to declining health.

On June 9, 1996, Rev. C.L. Hobbs, Jr. became Pastor-Elect and was installed as Pastor on September 15, 1996. On June 7, 1997, two new trustees, Mr. James Pettus and Mr. Carl Smithson, were added to the trustee board.

In 1999 Mt. Bethel went forth with faith trusting in the Lord and made a historical decision. At our regular church meeting in September 1999, members voted to hold Worship Service each Sunday except for fifth Sundays beginning the first Sunday in January 2000.  Services would be held on the 1st and 3rd Sundays at 8:00 a.m. with 2nd and 4th Sundays remaining at 11:00 a.m.

In 2000, we entered the new millennium with new foresight and determination to be the kind of church God is coming back for.  We entered church early on the first Sunday in January 2000, with a renewed dedication of service to the Lord and Savior. We continue to work for the advancement of our church in knowledge and holiness.  Our Bible Study continues to grow, as well as our Sunday school and early morning Worship Service.  With God’s blessings, we installed a new steeple. Toward the latter part of 2000, we begin our Breakfast Ministry—serving breakfast each Sunday morning and enjoying the fellowship that this ministry provided.

On June 27, 2006, during our annual revival, the church sustained fire damage. No one was injured. We continued our revival services at the Senior Citizen Building in Victoria. The next worship service was held in the parking lot at Mt. Bethel. On July 16, 2006, Mr. Thomas Morrison was ordained as a deacon; Mr. David Beck was installed as Trustee.

On February 13, 2009, the entire church family was sadden when we loss the oldest man in our church family, Trustee Allen Lang, Jr. We sincerely miss his humorous spirit and his ability to always remember when everyone else forgot. In June 2009, the entire renovations were completed just in time to celebrate Friend & Family Day, Homecoming and Revival. We thank God for all His blessings and the dedication of the memberships as we stayed together in our “Little Back Room of Praise.”

Many of our patriots, Mrs. Louise Hatchett, Mrs. Albertha Hayes, Mrs. Henrietta Bridgeforth, Mrs. Hattie Smithson, have gone home to be with the Lord, and we still feel their presence and gained knowledge from their many years of devoted service.

On April 19, 2013, we were saddened at the loss of one of our deacons, Mr. Carl Smithson.

In 2014, two trustees were installed and added to the Trustee Ministry, Mrs. Pauline White and Mrs. Wanda Morrison.

On September 6, 2015, one of our beloved members and devoted worker went home to be with the Lord, Deaconess Sandra Ann Beck. She will always be very fondly remembered by this church family for her unwavering love of and commitment to this church, pastor, members and community.

In January 2017, another trustee was installed and added to the Trustee Ministry, Mr. Edwin Hayes, and Ms. Mabel Cruse was consecrated as a Deaconess.

In 2018, we begin holding Children’s Church where children up to age 6, are taught church etiquette, doctrines and Bible Study. We also initiated a community service project where we prepared a meal and held a religious service for anyone in the community. The meal and service are held in downtown Kenbridge.

We were saddened this year, February 2019, to lose a dedicated and dearly loved trustee, Mr. David Beck, Sr. He will long be remembered for his dedication, hard work and love for this church.

The year 2020 brought us and the entire world new and mysterious challenges as we experienced a Pandemic. The doors of the church were closed in March 2020 and remained closed for over two years. We reopened briefly in April 2022, closed again due to the rise in Covid 19, and reopen again in September 2022. But God in His infinite wisdom continued to bring us through. We were blessed to continue worship services, bible study, Sunday school, Joint Board and ministry meetings via Zoom and conference calls. Also, during this period God called from labor to reward several members: Deaconess Frances White, Trustee James Pettus and Trustee Edwin Hayes. They will always be remembered and loved by this church family.

As we enter 2023 with a new outlook and hope eternal, God has blessed us to have several members to join this Fellowship. On the second Sunday, October 8, six young people were baptized in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Ghost. On the fourth Sunday, October 22, 2023, two deacons were ordained, Deacon Charlie Watts and Deacon Sam Edmonds; two Trustees were installed, Trustee Charie Jones and Trustee Demetrice Jones; and three Deaconesses were consecrated, Deaconess Louise Chaffin, Deaconess Cynthia Hayes and Deaconess Kristin Jones. To God Be the Glory for His abundant blessings.

This year, 2024, brings new opportunities to serve our Lord and Savior in spirit and truth, for He has done great things for us.  In our September church meeting, it was unanimously voted for Rev. Charles Lee to become Associate Pastor.

We were truly blessed this year, 2025, as we launched our new Media Center with an amazing Media Team who has worked tirelessly to make this Media Center enhance our worship service with News from the Pews, announcements, backup music for the choirs, and so much more. We truly thank God for this blessing.

As this year is nearing to a close, Mt. Bethel continues to try to be a light in this community.  Our Worship Service, Bible Study, and Sunday School are still well attended and a true blessing to each one who actively participates.  Our Friend & Family fundraiser has been truly blessed with many families giving generous donations in memory of their loved ones who labored and loved this church.

Other ministries include the Scholarship Ministry, chaired by Tiara Crawley, the Helping Hands Ministry, chaired by Ms. Charie Jones and Mr. Demetrice Jones and Teen Perspectives: Mrs. Cynthia Hayes & Mr. Kendall Lee, In Charge.

We have Sunday School each Sunday and Bible Study each Wednesday night except for the Wednesday before the second Sunday, which is Prayer & Praise Service.

As you can see, God has blessed Mt. Bethel in many, many ways over many years.   Our Main Focus is to give God all the praises, glory, and honor. Our Mission is to seek those who are lost as we were, give hope to the poor and at all times glorify God through Jesus Christ, our hope and strength. Our Purpose is to be a beacon of light in this community, salt of the earth among his people and be that Church of believers Christ will come back for. Our Vision is to exalt the Lord through worship; to edify the saints of God through discipleship; to evangelize to the lost through outreach and to extend the church through mission. The Mt. Bethel Church family gives thanks to God for instilling into our ancestors the foresight to build, dedicate, and forever commit their lives to the service of this community and to Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior.