60TH ANNIVERSARY
CELEBRATION
Invitations went out to previous members, pastors and staff members to join the Ellendale Baptist Church’s congregation in their 60th anniversary celebration on May 17. The morning worship service will be from 10 a.m. until about 11:45 a.m., including:
- A sermon delivered by former pastor Dr. Glen Putman
- A joint choir of current and past choir members, led by the Rev. Jon Medlock, minister of music and missions
- Testimonies from different people, talking about their relationships with the church and what it means to them.
Afterward, everyone is invited to walk across the street to Shepherd’s Field, the church’s property, for dinner on the grounds. It will include catering by Leonard’s Pit Barbecue of Memphis, a stage for musical performances and jumpers and games for children.
The church is at 3861 Broadway Road in Bartlett. For more information, see the website at ebcbartlett.org or call the church office at (901) 386-4676.
Six decades have embedded Ellendale Baptist Church deeply into the hearts and lives of Bartlett-area residents. On Sunday, May 17, the big church with a rural feel will celebrate those 60 years of fellowship with a special service, music, visitors, dinner on the ground and activities for the children.
Inspiration, fun and good memories, in other words.
Senior pastor Dr. Fred Shackelford said, “The timing is good, I think, just to let folks who have been a part of us in the past kind of know what we’re about now and where we’re headed in terms of ministry and what our focus is.”
The church today is focusing strongly on three goals that are rooted in its long history: Loving God, loving others, and making disciples, he said.
“That’s sort of the bottom line. We have a real missional focus. We really believe that our calling is to lead people to Christ, certainly in this community but also throughout the world.”
The philosophy is to be a part of the community — not apart from it — and to get people connected to a place of worship and the Gospel.
There’s an old motto no longer regularly used by the church, but it occasionally appears and still captures Ellendale Baptist’s personality, he said: “Feels like home.”
He has seen great strides in the congregation extending that welcoming and homey atmosphere outside the walls of the church — from a fall festival and a public Easter egg hunt to the athletic ministry that has taken off.
He estimates that the church has encouraged more non-members than members to participation in its faith-based Upward Sports programs in soccer and basketball.
“We see that as a good thing,” Shackelford said. “We want to serve the community. We don’t want this to be sort of like a club that’s disassociated from the community.”
In the sanctuary, a world map shows where Ellendale has had mission trips. On the wall it says, “Neighborhoods to Nations.” That’s one of the church’s catchphrases.
“I say often our calling is to take the gospel of Jesus Christ from the neighborhoods of Bartlett to the nations of the world,” Shackelford said.
Then and now
EBC began small in 1953 as a mission of First Baptist Church in Memphis. It served the rural Ellendale community, which was named for the nearby railroad line. The Louisville & Nashville Railroad Line, also known as the L&N, sparked the idea for Ellendale (“L-N-Dale”).
By 1955, the congregation was ready to move from being a mission to having their own independent church. An early photo shows about 30 charter members gathered to worship at what is now the Singleton Recreation Center.
Today, this Southern Baptist church is home to about 1,000 active members, with about 500 attending typical Sunday services.
“It feels like a much smaller church than it is — the friendliness and the feeling just like you belong here,” Shackelford said.
The church has a thriving senior adult ministry and is growing its numbers of young adults, children and students, according to Shackelford, who has been with Ellendale since December 2013.
“I’m grateful for the history we do have,” he said. “I’m grateful for the leadership we’ve had in our past. I look back on a number of those leaders, and everyone’s brought something to the table in terms of how they’ve led the congregation and what they’ve emphasized in their leadership.”
He continued, “I think it’s important to recognize and celebrate our history because our history really is the foundation for our future.”
Ellendale is part of the story of what God is doing in the world, Shackelford said.
EBC milestones
- 1953: Church began as a mission of First Baptist Church, Memphis, in the home of Ben Justice, later Ellendale Elementary School (now Singleton Community Center)
- 1955: Church officially constituted as a Southern Baptist congregation
- 1956: Moved into first building
- 1978: Jim Witherington called as senior pastor
- 1979: Second auditorium built
- 1983: Tommy Webster called as minister of music and senior adults, later administration/senior adults
- 1987: Kim Wiggins called as director of preschool and children’s ministries
- 1992: Glen Putman called as senior pastor
- 1993: Kevin Carroll called as minister of youth and recreation
- 1994: Jon Medlock called as minister of education/administration, later music/missions
- 1999: Dale Ellenburg called as senior pastor
- 2000: Danny Spurlock called as minister of missions
- 2001: Current auditorium built
- 2003: Nathan Pallegra called as minister of youth/recreation, later youth/missions
- 2004: Jerry Tidwell called as senior pastor
- 2007: Jerry Harmon called as senior pastor
- 2011: David Johnson called as minister of children/recreation
- 2012: Lynn Butler called as minister of education/outreach
- 2013: Fred Shackelford called as senior pastor
- 2015: Joshua Escue called as associate pastor, family ministries
Click to view a PDF showing a more detailed church history.
Written by Carolyn Bahm, Express editor. Contact her at (901) 433-9138 or via email to bartlett.editor@journalinc.com.
