Our Church History
Brown’s Chapel Missionary Baptist Church was built on land donated by Julius Brown. Reverend Mac Mullen became the first pastor, followed by Reverend J. B. Ellis. The following were pastors that served through the years: Reverend Yancey Turner, Reverend Dave Price, Reverend S. L. Badgett, Reverend S. E. Griffith, and Reverend W. J. Beard. Then the congregation elected Reverend Hildreth G. McGee as pastor.
In June 1966, the present cornerstone was laid, representing the remodeling of the church structure. On November 10, 1974, Deacon Thurman Pinnix, Sr., after professing a call into the ministry, delivered his initial sermon and was licensed to preach the gospel. He served the church as an associate minister.
Upon the resignation of Dr. H. G. McGhee in 1976, Reverend T. L. Pinnix, Sr., was elected as pastor. As the years passed, the membership grew, and the following ministries were created: the Junior Usher Board and the Male Chorus, and the fellowship hall was constructed.
During the years that followed, tithing was initiated, and the church grew in membership, financial affairs, and well as, Spirituality. Because of his vision for the church, several acres of land joining our church’s property were purchased on Rev. Pinnix’s recommendation, and our recreation park was established.
In 1987, the main auditorium was extended, increasing seating capacity and including a large vestibule and two dressing rooms. A large stained-glass window adorns the front of the building. A modern steeple replaced the old one. A Mass Choir was organized, and Deacon Bobby Murray professed a calling into the ministry. He was licensed to preach and is presently serving as an associate minister of the church and director of our Prison Ministries. Reverend Edgar Sheppard joined our church family, thus becoming an associate minister.
Our Church Continues to Grow With Each Passing Year
To meet the needs and pleasure of our members and community, we began to develop our recreation park. A softball field was installed a building was built that housed a kitchen and bathroom facilities. Other amenities included a picnic shelter and a miniature golf course, a swimming pool, and a tennis court. Other churches and organizations often use our park for their recreation purposes.
The Browns Chapel Women’s Ministry was organized. During the fiscal years 2004-05, three members professed their calling into the ministry and were licensed to preach the gospel of Jesus Christ. They were Sister Renee Jones, Deacon Reginald Coleman, and Deaconess Savannah Mims. Our church has recently undergone renovation with the addition of two classrooms, enlargement of the pastor’s study and the secretary’s office and an enclosed walkway between the church building and fellowship hall. Rev. Pinnix recommended a scholarship program for our church members to help students who strive for academic excellence.
In the year 2013, Pastor Pinnix announced his retirement from being our pastor. Dr. Frankie T. Jones, Sr., was unanimously elected and was installed the first Sunday of November 2013. Dr. Jones brought a new area to our church operations. We started with updating our technology. After the installation of Dr. Jones as pastor, he sat down with the deacon board to plan the future path of the church. Pastor Jones developed a strategic plan, and we developed a mission statement. The strategic plan was the formation of different ministries to reach out to the surrounding community. Our tagline became “A Community Church.” With the formation of the outreach ministries, work started to set goals for each ministry. We joined neighboring associations and started attending state conventions. As the years have passed, Pastor Jones has been elected to the office of Chairman of Disaster Relief of the Progressive National Convention and the Virginia Baptist State Convention, and while attending the World Baptist Convention in Switzerland was put on the World Council of Christian Ethics.
Pastor Jones is a world traveler who loves the Lord, his church family, and humanity. He teaches the church that “We Are Our Brothers Keeper!” We work to show the love of Jesus Christ to each other and the world.
