The History of Mount Anna Missionary Baptist Church The Beginning - A Step of Faith

Mount Anna Missionary Baptist Church is an anchor of the Christian community in the Central Savannah River Area (CSRA). It only takes a glimpse at the excited and diverse members of the bustling congregation to see the evidence of the dedication to the service of Jesus Christ. But where did it all begin?

When Jesus walked the Earth he called 12 men to follow him and gave them the authority and power to spread the Gospel, to cast out unclean spirits, and to heal all kinds of sickness and all kinds of disease. (Matthew 10:1 - 4) The faith and diligence of these 12 disciples set off the spread of the Gospel through many nations and generations and is still being manifested to this very moment. Centuries after Jesus appointed these men, died on the cross for the sins of the world, and ascended to Heaven. Reverend C. Williams received a divine vision from God. This vision was to organize a body of dedicated believers who would honor the principles of God's Word and spread the Gospel of Jesus Christ throughout the Aiken community and the world. Rev. William's Vision came to pass on August 4, 1885 with the formation of the Mount Anna Missionary Baptist Church.

Mount Anna began with 12 members. Rev. Williams searched among these original members to appoint servants who would assist in leading the newly formed congregation. He ordained as deacons, Bro. Harry Marion, Bro. S.R. Roberson, and Bro. George Davis. Rev. Williams led the congregation for 4 years and was then succeeded by Rev. Martin. Bro. A. Sullivan was licensed to preach during this time.

The 1900’s - Diligence and Perseverance

The preached Word has been an important element of the ministry of Mount Anna. Many great leaders have served as pastor and the fruit of their labor can be seen today. Rev. J. Roberson served as pastor after Rev. Martin received the call to shepherd a different congregation. In 1905, Rev. A. Palmer was called as pastor and served 3 years. He ordained Bro. F. Minis as a Deacon to serve the congregation. Rev. J.R Spell was called to pastor Mount Anna in 1908. Though he served for only 8 months he ordained Bro. Lewis Williams to serve as a deacon. The next year, Rev. R.C. Callaham was called to serve as pastor. He ensured that the needs of the congregation were met by ordaining three Deacons. They were Bro. S.K. Hicks, Bro. W.H. Vaughns, Jr., and Bro. W.H. Vaughns, Sr. Subsequently, Dea. W.H. Vaughns, Sr. was ordained to preach the Gospel. Following in the footsteps of his father, Dea. W.H. Vaughns Jr. was or­dained to preach by Rev. J.M. Miles who succeeded Rev. Callaham. Rev. Miles served as pas­tor from 1918 - 1921.

Rev. W. H. Vaughns, Jr. would walk into the destiny that God had prepared for him by becoming the pastor of Mount Anna in 1921. He ordained the following 5 deacons: Bro. J.H. Jones, Bro. M.C. Corley, Bro. Gyles Harrison, Bro. John Vaughns, and Bro. M. Marion. He also installed one deacon, Bro F. Mims. In order to meet the various needs of the congregation, Rev. W.H. Vaughns appointed Sis. Martha Winn as the first Mother of the Church.

Rev. M. G. Moseley was called to lead the Mount Anna Baptist Church in 1929. Rev. Moseley baptized 68 members. Under his influential ministry, Rev. Moseley ordained eight deacons, Bro. Robert Evans, Bro. Wilson Harrison, Bro. Lonnie Vaughns, Bro. Roosevelt Glover, Bro. John H. Harrison, Bro. Albert Coleman, Bro. George Vaughns, and Bro. Amos Dickerson. He licensed four ministers, Bro W. M. Butler, Dea. Roosevelt Glover, Bro. Finley Marion, and Bro. Henry Harrison. He also ordained four ministers, Rev. W.M. Har­rison, Rev. Shelton Lee, Rev. Henry Harrison, and Rev. W. M. Butler. During this time of tremendous growth Rev. Moseley organized the first Senior Choir. He also appointed Sis. Missouri H. Wimberly as Mother of the Church. Sis. Wimberly served in this role until her death on July 20, 1976.

Reverend H.L. Harrison was called to succeed Reverend Moseley in 1956. The church continued to rapidly grow. In the years that he served as pastor the membership grew by 53 members. Rev. Harrison licensed and ordained Rev. Joseph Harrison, Sr. and Rev. Joseph Vaughns to preach. He also ordained the following three deacons: Bro. Charlie F. Dickerson, Bro. Sylvester Key, and Bro. Monroe Harrison. During his tenure the church was remodeled.

Rev. Simon O'Neal was called to pastor Mount Anna in April 1957. For the next 21 years Mount Anna experienced incredible growth. Under his administration, Bro. Charlie Vaughn, Sr. was ordained and Sis. Bertha Chavous was appointed as Mother of the Church. In 1964, the church was moved from what had been historically referred to as "The Hill" to its present site on land donated by Dea. Lonnie Vaughn. The church was bricked, four Sunday school rooms were added, and central heating and air conditioning was installed. To further beautify the house of worship the Ushers Ministry donated an awning in memory of Dea. Wilson Harrison. Rev. O'Neal's leadership was not only a time of physical growth but was one of tremendous spiritual growth. Rev. O'Neal baptized 75 members. Fifteen people transferred their membership to Mount Anna by letter and 10 by Christian Experi­ence. In April 1978, Rev. O'Neal resigned as the pastor due to declining health.

Rev. Alfred Holmes was called to pastor Mount Anna in June of 1978. Pastor Holmes had a deep desire to meet the needs of all of people. To meet this need he organized a Bible Class and implemented Vacation Bible School, both of which are important components in the ministry of Mount Anna. Pastor Holmes continued the beautification project of Mount Anna by overseeing the addition of a dining area which contained a complete kitchen and facilities for other educational activities. Dea. Sylvester Key donated a water heater for the annex in memory of his mother, Sis. Pet Key. Central air conditioning was installed. An indoor baptismal pool was built by Jimmy Baldwin. A wheelchair ramp was built in memory of Bro. Jimmy Baldwin.   Sis. Ophelia Vaughns was appointed as Mother of the Church.   In 1984, Bro. Isaac Lewis and Bro. Louis Key were ordained as deacons.

The ministry of Mount Anna continued to exponentially grow under the leadership of Pastor Holmes. In 1993 a new sanctuary was built. Pastor Holmes ordained Bro. James Hankinson and Bro. Abraham Sanders as deacons in order to serve the continually growing congrega­tion. Two years later in December 1995, dedication services for the Family Life Center were held. The Center is equipped with a Gymnatorium, a fully equipped kitchen, office spaces and classrooms. In 1996, the previous sanctuary was torn down in order to accommodate the need for parking. An 8:OOAM Sunday Worship Service was added in August 1997. Pastor Holmes ordained the following deacons: Bro. George Corley, Bro. Larry Jackson, Bro. Leroy Lee, Bro. Albert O'Neal, Bro. Bro. Ralph Parker, Bro. Jasper Brown, Bro. Daniel Hightower, and Bro. Alonzo Mood. The following ministers were ordained to preach the Gospel by Pastor Holmes: Sis. Sharon Gilmore, Sis. Gladiola D. Jessie, Sis. Nancy Parker, Bro. Curtis J. Blocker, and Bro. David Williams. The ministry expansion of Mount Anna made it necessary to hire its first full time secretary, Barbara Hightower, in 1999.

2000 - The Possibilities are endless with Christ

The beginning of the 21st century marked continued growth for Mount Anna in ways that its founder Rev. Williams and the original 12 members probably did not even imagine. Mount Anna's ministry would not only affect the Aiken Community but would extend across oceans. A new branch of Mount Anna was established in Kenya, Africa - Baricana Mount Anna. The following deacons were ordained: Bro. Keith Holland, Bro. Herman Collins, and Bro. Willie B. Williams, Bro. Phillip Price, Bro. Robert Williamson, and Bro. MacArthur Glover. Dea. Eugene Cullum, Dea. Robert Morgan and Dea. James Addison and Dea. John Gantt joined the Deacons Ministry. The following were licensed to preach: Sis. Nancy Parker, Sis. Adrian Jones, Sis. Glenda Burch, Bro. Anthony Frazier, Bro. Herman Collins and Bro. Isaac Lewis. Rev. Robert Bryant, Rev. Gary Allen, Rev. Bill Liggons and Minister Sonya Andrews joined the Mount Anna Associates Ministers Staff. Sis. Carolyn Ross and Bro. Isaac Lewis were ordained to preach the Gospel.

Many diverse ministries were formed to meet the spiritual needs of the congregation. Some of these ministries included: The Athletic Ministry, Youth Outreach, Nursery, Evangelism, Mission, Hospitality, M.A.S.T.E.R. Program, After School Program, Pastor's Aide Ministry, College Ministry, Adult Daycare Ministry, Prison Ministry, Family Enrichment Ministry, Transportation Ministry, Clerical Staff, Health Ministry, Drama Ministry, In Reach/Out Reach Ministry and the Pulpit Associates Ministry. Because of the hunger of the parishioners of Mount Anna for the Word of God a Thursday Noonday Bible Study was implemented.

Under the divine leadership of Pastor Holmes, Mount Anna grew to be a Christ-centered, Bible-based Church seeking to minister to the hurts and needs of the community and bedient in teaching the people of God to obey the commands of God. By the grace of God Mount Anna will continue to be a light to the world in the 21st century and beyond. On March 10, 2002 at 2:OOPM dedication services were held to consecrate 60 acres of land on two tracts that will house the various ministries that will facilitate the vision for Mount Anna Missionary Baptist Church. The property which is located on Toolebeck Road will provide land for a new state of the art Worship Center and Educational Facilities. The heart of the property will be the Mercy Center, a center of restoration that will serve to meet the spiritual and material voids of those in need.

In 2007 several changes took place for Mt. Anna. On February 7, of that year, our shepherd went home to be with the Lord. This was a great lost to our church family as well as the community and state. The secretary at that time, Barbara Hightower, resigned and in March of 2007 Mary L. Elam became the church's secretary. In June 2007, a "Pastor's Search Committee" was formed to begin the search for a new shepherd for Mt. Anna's flock. This was a two part process, per our church constitution. The application committee for this search was formed first, which consisted of Members: Barbara Hightower, Dea. Robert Morgan, Mary J. Vinson, Christine Gordon, Benny Pope, Deloris Chavous, Joann Lamkin, and Dea. Abraham Sanders.

After the application committee completed their duty of pastor guideline requirements, the second part of the search committee was formed to seek candidates for pastorage of Mt. Anna Baptist Church. This committee consisted of Thelma Robinson, Eric Hamilton, Frances Dob-son, Edward Brown, Andre' Baskett, Dea. Eugene Cullum, Dea. Leroy Lee and Dea. Abraham Sanders. after the dedicated work of these two groups, on April 6, 2008 Rev. Michael V. Norris became the 13th pastor of Mt. Anna Baptist Church. His installation ceremony was on Saturday and Sunday, July 19th and 20th , 2008.

The faith of Reverend C. Williams and the 12 founding members of Mount Anna Missionary Baptist Church have led to the salvation and edifying of many generations of believers in the CSRA, across the nation, and even internationally. The diligence of the many patriarchs and matriarchs has kept the congregation of Mount Anna vibrant and alive. To God be the Glory for the things that He has done!