Folly Beach Baptist Church embraces the spirit of the season
By Geno Lawrenzi Jr. | Special to The Current
Every Monday at noon, a group of smiling volunteers meet at the Folly Beach Baptist Church, 77 Center St., and pour out a bowl of love to all comers.
It’s free soup day at the church. The soup is accompanied by pastries, bread, coffee tea and Christian goodwill. Hey, isn’t that what a church is supposed to do?
The church is located next door to the Folly Beach Library. Richard Summey is the pastor and his wife, Deborah, teaches an adult Sunday School class.
Asked to describe his ministry, the pastor handed me his card. On the back of it is the ‘Roman Road Plan of Salvation,’ which consists of four Biblical verses. Summed up it states, ‘God loves all people, all people are sinners, sin must be paid for, Jesus paid for our sins, and trust Jesus as your Savior.’
That basically is what the native- born South Carolina minister has been preaching for the past eight years. Before taking over as pastor, he served as music director and was a pastoral counselor for two years.
The church has several special programs that make the pastor and his wife proud. The Girlfriends Bible Study, made up of 30 to 40 women, meets every Tuesday at 9:30 a.m. and 6:30 p.m. and on Thursdays at 6:30 p.m. The Men’s Bible Study gathers on Mondays at 7 p.m. The Soup Ministry is held every Monday at noon in the Fellowship Hall. And the fourth Sunday of every month at 5 p.m., the church sponsors Family Movie Night, a favorite of many of the church’s 200 members.
According to Summey, he was 8 years old when he walked to the altar and accepted Christ. At the age of 19, his life was thrown into turmoil when his sister and her husband were killed in a car crash.
That nearly devastated him. He began drinking. Drinking led to drugs and he began using cocaine as a crutch to sooth his inner pain. It lasted for 20 years.
Asked if he believed in miracles, the pastor says, “I do. You’re looking at one.”
His sermons are written to meet people where they are and they are built on life’s applications, he said. Thirteen years ago the church started a recovery program for people addicted to alcohol or drugs.
“People come to the church to get cleaned,” says Summey.
As a child he listened to a pastor named Mike Dawson. He was in the seventh grade when he began hearing the pastor’s sermons.
“He was probably the most impressive pastor I have ever heard, says Rev. Summey. “He taught me the meaning of grace.”
The church is a community church and welcomes people of all ages. The congregation has a good balance of people who are alone, widows, widowers, divorcees, as well as young people.
Each Wednesday at 5:45 p.m., a dinner is served in the Fellowship Hall. The food is paid for by a love offering but if someone comes in without money, they will be served, said the pastor.
Three volunteers who prepared the soup luncheon served Monday were asked what they liked about their church.
“It’s very community-oriented,” says City Counclmember Teresa Marshall.
The mayor’s wife Charlotte Goodwin adds, “It’s all about love. It’s about God.”
Asked who decides what kind of soup to serve, they laugh and reply, “Whoever is in charge for that week.” Marshall’s favorite soup is cheese potato, Goodwin’s is Navy bean, and fellow volunteer Shelby Grimes says her favorite is tortellini.
While the church has a small budget for the soup program, the volunteers often pay for the ingredients on their own.
With the holidays upon us, Folly Beach Baptist Church is also a drop-off site for Operation Christmas Child 2019, an international project to provide Christmas shoe boxes to people around the world. Shoeboxes are available in a container in the front of the information marquee. Inside the box are directions on how to fill a box and where and when to return the box as well as a contact in case you have any questions.
