Pastor Lee Boleyn and the First Baptist Church of Elgin congregation held a celebratory groundbreaking ceremony on Sunday for the new church to be built on the west end of the community. The footings for the new 15,000-sq.-ft. structure are expected to be poured yet this fall. (Mike Van Sickle photo)

Elgin First Baptist: Together we build

By Brian Smith
bsmith@thefayettecountyunion.com         

 In 2010 the First Baptist Church of Elgin began seriously discussing the idea of bidding on some property west of Elgin that was scheduled to be auctioned off in February. The church had been discussing the possibility of purchasing property in order to increase available ministry space for some time. The congregation voted to put in a bid and it was a successful one. The church closed on the property by the end of March that year. The journey toward establishing a new place for First Baptist to worship and conduct its ministries had begun. The groundbreaking that occurred on Sunday, Nov. 2, signified a first step in the actual building process.