First Baptist Manlius

John J. Baker was born on February 19, 1913, in Deer Valley, Pennsylvania. He graduated from Milton High School. In January 1933 he enrolled in the John Davis Practical Bible Training School in Binghamton, New York, and graduated in June 1935. He was ordained in June and married Lucy Skinner (also a graduate of the Bible School with a major in Christian Education.)

Reverend Baker was the pastor of four churches before coming to Manlius in 1945:

While serving the Madison Baptist Church, Reverend Baker attended Colgate University from which he graduated Cum Laude in February, 1945, having completed the four year course in 2 ½ years.

On December 31, 1944, after the congregation regretfully accepted Reverend Wheaton’s resignation, a Pulpit Committee was chosen to start the search for a replacement.

For the first time the members of the committee were chosen as representatives of different groups in the church.

At the February 14, 1945, meeting of the Board of Trustees, the Trustees voted to buy the departing Reverend Wheaton’s mimeograph machine for $90.00. Edith Schoonmaker and Annette Ferguson volunteered to print bulletins. (There was no church secretary at this time ant there would be none until 1956.) The Trustees, limited in time, rushed to do the usual “between pastorate” sprucing up of the parsonage. Rooms were repapered or painted, the kitchen linoleum replaced and the furnace repaired.

The Pulpit Committee made its report on Sunday morning, April 15, 1945, after Reverend Baker preached to the congregation at the morning service. The church was pleased and a unanimous call was extended to Reverend Baker, who responded with a letter of acceptance, which was read at the Sunday Morning Service on April 22, 1945.

Reverend E. O. Jessup was the supply minister during the interim between the Wheaton and Baker pastorates. The Diaconate appointed Mrs. Richburg and Mrs. Trivelpiece to ask Mr. Ransier to present a gift from the church to Reverend Jessup and to say a few words of appreciation for his interest and service. Reverend Jessup was paid $20.00/per Sunday. The cost to move the Bakers was $56.65.

May 8, 1945, was V. E. Day and the congregation was thankful and relieved that the war in Europe was over, but, of course, still greatly concerned about the war with Japan. On May 20, 1945, Reverend Baker began his pastorate and preached his first sermon as Pastor of the Manlius Baptist Church. A reception and dinner were given for Reverend and Mrs. Baker and daughter Patricia Louise in Loomis Hall on May 24, 1945. More than 150 people attended, including the pastors and wives of the Episcopal and Methodist Churches.

June 24, 1945, the three Women’s Fellowship Circles (Louise Davis, Mary Woodworth and Mary Broadfield) joined for their annual group picnic at Bingley’s on Chittenango Road out of Cazenovia. Reverend Derwood Smith and his wife came from Herkimer, New York, to visit the ladies of the church. After the war Reverend Smith was discharged from his duties as Air Force Chaplain and became the Pastor of the First Baptist Church of Herkimer, New York. On June 27, 1945, the letters of Reverend and Mrs. Baker were transferred from the Madison Baptist Church. On Sunday, July 1, 1945, the Bakers received the Right Hand of Fellowship from Deacon Emeritus William Nightingale.

On September 2, 1945, the war with Japan ended and soon members of the armed services would start coming home. One of our young men, Lt. Carl Alexander, was killed in action and memorial services were held for him on October 21, 1945. His was the only gold star out of 40 on the Service Flag.

In 1893, the youth of the church became part of the world-wide Christian Endeavor movement as were many of the youth in Baptist and other Protestant churches at that time. In 1893 there were 28 Baptist young people in the Young People’s Society of Christian Endeavor and eight leaders. Soon after the Junior Christian Endeavor was organized and in 1912 there were 25 members in Senior Christian Endeavor, 45 in Junior Christian Endeavor. In 1921, at the urging of the Onondaga Baptist Association, an effort was made to replace the Christian Endeavor with a Baptist organization called the Baptist Young People’s Union or BYPU. (It was upsetting Baptist leaders that the :Christian Endeavor World,” a magazine for youth, was in the hands of more Baptist young people than the corresponding Baptist periodicals.) The young children became members of the Crusader Society. According to pictures we have of the Crusaders, emphasis was on raising money for missionary causes. Christian Endeavor was brought back for the older youth in 1924 and Junior Christian Endeavor in 1925. The Onondaga Baptist Association admitted that the Baptist program had not been very widely accepted. (The BYPU was dropped by the denomination in 1941.) In 1945 the new Baptist Youth Fellowship program replaced Christian Endeavor in the Manlius Church and has been a part of our organization ever since. Reverend Baker reported that the newly organized Baptist Youth Fellowship “promises to be one of the most active and enthusiastic of its kind in the county.”

Reverend Baker’s first Annual Meeting with the Manlius church was on December 3, 1945, after a little more than five months of his pastorate. In a typed Annual Report, he reported on the two week Vacation Bible School and the reorganization of the Baptist Youth from a Christian Endeavor based program to the Baptist Youth Fellowship. Reverend Baker believed in visiting members and prospective members in their homes “to provide mutual understanding and cooperative effort.” He reported having visited the majority of the homes represented in the church in his first five months. (Reverend Baker remembers that he and Mrs. Baker “devoted many of their afternoons to what was called ‘drop in calling’.” The Bakers would visit home of members and prospects unannounced. There would usually be some member of the family at home Conversations usually centered around the church and the family’s participation in it.)

At the meeting, Mr. William Nightingale was honored and made a Life Honorary Trustee in recognition of his 51 uninterrupted years of service, many of them as Chairman of the Board. He is the only member to have been given this honor as well as having been made a Deacon Emeritus.

In December 1945, a custom was started that has lasted to his day. The Board of Trustees was asked to have one Trustee help the Financial Secretary and the Treasurer open the envelopes and count the collection after the Morning Service. As the collection grew so did the number of Trustees needed to help. Until recently, most Trustees gathered every Sunday around the counting table and it became a good time to talk about urgent business and the progress being made on various projects as well as to count money.

During January and February of 1946, the Christian Life Crusade Institute was the program for mid-week services. The Institute was conducted each Thursday evening for five weeks and designed to study the six major phases of church life and to re-emphasize their importance in building a strong spiritual church family (average attendance 53). An organized laymen’s calling program was conceived and called the Andrew League. The Institute was followed by four weeks of the Annual Church College (School of Missions). (Schools of Missions and Vacation Bible Schools were staples of our program during these years and will not be mentioned each time they happened.)

During World War II the church contributed to the Northern Baptist Convention’s World Emergency Fund. After the war, the denomination found a tremendous need for rehabilitation work in the Mission Fields around the world and set a goal of $15,000,000.00 for the USA toward the World Mission Crusade. The Manlius Church was given a quota of $7,500.00 and it was accepted by the church at the December 3, 1946, Annual Meeting. This was an ambitious goal for a church with an Operating Fund budget for 1946-1947 of $4,710.00. The Annual Reports for 1946-1947 and 1947-1948 indicated that the church was able to raise $4,135.88.

The Annual School of Missions was held in March and April of 1946 with an average of 65 people attending each evening. Easter of 1946 was a special time. The Church Clerk Mrs. Jessie Hefti declared Easter Sunday, April 21, 1946, “a day long to be remembered.” There were four services that Sunday with a total of 800 in attendance.

The wave of change that would later consolidate the women’s groups into the Baptist Women’s Fellowship and had already replaced the Christian Endeavor with the Baptist Youth Fellowship was also affecting the organized Sunday School classes. Organized classes had regularly scheduled social meetings in addition to the Sunday School sessions on Sunday morning. The Trojans (a women’s class organized in 1903) was able to muster 25 for a group picture in 1927 but was down to 8 members in 1948 and was not mentioned again. The Philathea Class was organized in 1907 or 1908, the Baraca Class later, and apparently at some time were combined. They posed for a group picture in 1924 with 16 men and 23 women, and in 1927 with 23 men and 35 women. In 1953 they were meeting for Sunday School in Harris Chapel (and socially as well.)

The Baraca-Philathea group was getting older and the JB Class for younger men and women was organized in 1946 or 1947. (Their teacher was John Baker.) The group had monthly fellowship meetings and were actively working on projects to improve the church. (In 1948 they sanded and refinished the gym floor, did several painting jobs, washed windows, bought supplies for the church and contributed to other groups in the church.) By 1952, the JB class members were also getting older and a new group was formed in April 1952 called the Kum Duble Klub. There were thirty active members in 1952. In December 1953, the group started the social year with a “fun-filled Folk Dance at the Odd Fellow’s Hall where the JB Class and the Kum Duble Klub “frolicked and fed until all were content.”

In November 1955, the Philathea and Baraca Class and the JB Class became on Sundays separate Men’s and Women’s Bible Classes. For fellowship meetings they called themselves temporarily the Adult Class Fellowship which was organized in November 1956. Later the Fellowship group became the Unity (Fellowship) Class. The new group voted to continue many of the projects of the late JB Class, i.e., sponsorship of the Young People’s Choir and Girl Scouts and providing transportation for children in the Westvale area to the Sunday School. The men contributed many hours of labor toward the renovation of the church parlor (to be used as Sunday School rooms.)

In 1956 the Kum-Duble Class became known as the Achaean Class (Achaean is the Greek work for builder.) The Achaean Class also met monthly for social meetings and continued the tradition of working and supporting projects to improve the church facilities. In 1957 the Unity Class was still divided on Sundays. The teachers were Esther Lamoreaux (women) and Carl Christensen (men). Ester Lamoreaux felt that she couldn’t continue teaching the women’s class. Carl taught the combined classes and that was probably the end of segregated Sunday School Classes in the Manlius Baptist Church.

The Church Sanctuary needed attention and according to the Eagle Bulletin of 8/2/46, the church was closed for the month of July during which the sanctuary was completely redecorated and the parsonage painted. The newspaper reported “this project makes a total of several thousand dollars that have been expended on property improvements during the year.” The Church School wing had been repainted during the winter months. On February 24, 1947, at a special meeting of the Board of Trustees it was reported that the church had received a check for $19,283.09 from the Louise Davis Estate. The Trustees voted to set aside $2000.00 for a memorial and to buy government bonds with the rest. At the same time the Trustees voted to rent a lock box at the Manlius Bank in which to keep their bonds and valuable papers.

At the March 17, 1947, meeting the Board, however, it was reported that the check should have read $17,783.09 and had to be replaced. On March 27, 1947, the congregation endorsed the Trustees’ plan for the inheritance. The interest from the bonds was to be used to help support the church just as Louise Davis had done for many years.

At the Annual Meeting on December 1, 1947, the Memorial Committee reported that their choice was a set of Mass Cathedral Chimes, which would be amplified through the church tower and played from the organ console. The chimes were played for the first time on Communion Sunday, January 4, 1948, and “all felt the solemnity of the occasion.” The chimes were dedicated on January 25, 1948, and Reverend Derwood Smith came from Herkimer, New York, to be the principle speaker. The chimes are still in place but seldom used.

In the spring of 1947, Mrs. Jessie Hefti gave the church a pair of floor standard candelabra and they are still used for weddings and sometimes loaned as props for spooky theatrical productions. In the summer of 1947 the Trustees reported that the church exterior had been painted. Also in the summer (July) the annual Sunday School picnic with the Methodist was held in Highland Park with 200 people in attendance. For a time this was an annual occurrence.

The major discussion in the Diaconate Board in September, 1947, was what to do about the midweek Prayer Service. Attendance for special programs was good but for an ordinary Prayer Service it was often less than ten people. The Diaconate voted to recommend converting the Prayer Service to a monthly Family Night service for evangelism, hopefully to begin in October 1947. Later Cottage Prayer Meetings were tried.

At the September 8, 1947, Trustee’s Meeting, Reverend John Baker was asked to see about having a telephone installed in the church. This must have been one of the last buildings in the town without a telephone and surely there was one in the parsonage.

At their April 19, 1948, meeting, the Board of Trustees (as recommended by the Diaconate) voted to purchase card and pencil holders to be place on the back of the church pews. (The Trustees must have forgotten about the project. The Achaean Class, in their annual report for 1956, listed as one of their completed projects the purchase and installation of card holders for the church pews.)

On February 15, 1949, the Trustees discussed the need for a stairway from the Narthex down to the Parlors. It was built and has been very useful ever since. On July 20, 1949, the Trustees reported that the Board of Education of the Manlius Public Schools had asked to use Sunday School rooms for two First Grade sections for the Fall of 1949. Apparently, the schools were becoming crowded. The church voted against the proposition. In 1949 the church entertained the “Safari,” a state-wide program for Baptist young people organized in 1936. Eighty-five attended a banquet at the church.

At the 153rd Annual Meeting on December 5, 1949, the Ministers and Missionaries (M&M) Retirement Fund was explained to the congregation by the Trustees. In the beginning 10% of the minister’s salary was to be sent to the M&M Board of the Northern Baptist Association and invested for the Pastor’s retirement. The church paid 7.5%, the minister 2.5% of the minister’s salary. For the first year, December 1948-December 1949, the cost of M&M to the church was $276.00.

In their February 13, 1950, meeting the Trustees voted to permit mothers of nursery school children to hold a day nursery at the church one day a week. On March 5, 1950, Mrs. Jressie Hefti, Church Clerk for 21 years, died.* Her notes and records and comments (and excellent penmanship) have been a great help to all those interested in the history of the church. Reverend Baker said of Mrs. Hefti: “Her contributions which serve as a memorial to a consecrated Christian life have left us stronger and richer.”

In May 1950, the Bakers had completed five years with the Manlius Baptist Church. On May 15, 1950, a special service was held in the church and it noted that 105 new members had been added in those five years. In July 1950, Reverend and Mrs. John J. Baker attended the Baptist World Congress in Cleveland, Ohio, and in October 1950, the New York State Baptist Convention in Albany, New York.

The Guild Girls, a program for the young girls of the church, was considered part of the Youth Fellowship Program. An organization especially for girls had been in existence in the Manlius Baptist Church at various times since at least 1906 when the Farther Lights Society was organized. This was followed by the Light Bearers and in 1925 by the World Wide Guild. In September 1950, the girls of the church were again organized into the World Wide Guild, an American Baptist program. The leaders were Margaret Vermilya and Helen Bays. The purpose was to bring the missionary aspect of the church’s life directly to the attention of our young girls. Reverend Baker thought the Guild “a most significant enterprise; for the church will lose its own life if it fails to possess a world-wide vision of preaching the gospel to all people.”

Four sisters transferred their membership from the Church of Christ in Pompey, New York, to the Manlius Baptist Church on May 5, 1913; Addie Dunn (Cathers), Lulu Dunn (TenEyk), Bernice Dunn (Wilcox) and Jessie Dunn (Hefti).

In his Annual Report to the congregation on December 4, 1950, reverend Baker found the Korean Conflict and economic conditions in the United States causing these to be “anxious and uncertain days for all people.” He urged the members to “plan our course carefully and be prepared for any eventuality.” He recommended that the Trustees hold the line where possible in the budget for the new year (no budget increases except where necessary for repairs and improvements to the property.) He was also concerned about ministering to the spiritual needs of the young men who were expected to be called into the military and felt we should organize a carefully planned program “at once.” At the same meeting, Charles Cathers, the last of the “elected for life” Deacons, gave up his life-time status and was elected instead for a three year term.

On March 25, 1951, Doreta Chapman resigned as organist after 14 years of service. Helen Jenks became organist as well as choir director. In April 1951, a brass altar set (cross and candlesticks) was purchased for the church by the Louise Davis Circle in memory of Jesse Hefti, a charter member of the Circle and President at the time of her death. The altar set is now kept in the chapel.

In June of 1951, some of the young mothers of the church formed a Mother’s Club. Their purpose was to promote religious training in their homes. They met bi-monthly to discuss ways to answer children’s religious questions and promote the use of religious literature. In addition, they provided baby-sitting for Family Night Suppers. The last report of the Mother’s Club was to the December 6, 1954, Annual Meeting.

Reverend Paul Conrad was the son of Reverend Elbert Henry Conrad, Pastor of the Manlius Baptist Church from 1907-1909. The Conrad family lived in the new parsonage which was then situated across the street from Mrs. Harris. At that time, Paul was old enough to have been a church member.

On July 27, 1951, Yettie Harris died. She was 96 years old on July 20, 1951. The church also lost Fannie Nightingale and John S. Burt the same year. During Reverend Baker’s pastorate, Mrs. Harris was physically unable to attend church services and activities but was still very interested in the work of the church. She lived in part of what is now (1997) the Newell-Fay Funeral Home on Pleasant Street across from the church. (Dorothy Benor helped to take care of her in her later ears.) Her generous contribution to the building of the new church has been noted as well as her service as Church Clerk, Sunday School teacher, organist, keeper of the Fellowship Fund and leader of women’s groups. It also appeared that Mrs. Harris was responsible for a large portion of both the Current and Mission budgets each year, and when she died there was a concern about making up for her lost contributions. Reverend Baker reported that in addition to Mrs. Harris’ support of Missions through the local church, she also gave a direct gift to the Foreign Mission Board of the American Baptist Denomination each year. She would annually summon Reverend Paul Conrad*, who was associated with the American Baptist’s main headquarters in Valley Forge, to visit her at her home. She would reward him with a sizable check for the Foreign Missions Board. (It had to be Reverend Paul Conrad because she knew and trusted him.)

The Diaconate reinstituted the regular Thursday Night Prayer Services. Attendance was low and they decided not to continue the program in the fall of 1951. Instead the second Thursday of the month would be a Church Family Night with a fellowship supper followed by a program of interest to families. The fourth Thursday was to be more like the regular Prayer Meeting with a 7:30 service in the Harris Memorial Chapel.

The Diaconate became concerned about the benevolent contributions of the church. As reported earlier, Mrs. Harris; contributions were a significant part of the total. It was noted that of all recorded church givers only 35 gave to missions. Part of the problem was that there was no Mission Board at this time, but instead a Missionary Committee. Its members were not eligible to be part of the Official Board (only the Chairman) and had to be elected annually.. In some years the Committee was not active. Because of their concern the Diaconate Board established an internal committee to keep abreast of missionary activities within the church and report back to Diaconate Meetings.

The church in 1951 was heated with coal, but coal was on its way out as a source of fuel for heating homes and buildings. It was getting hard to get, it was dirty, ashes were a problem, and keeping the fire going required a lot of attention. At their May 14, 1951, meeting, the Trustees started to investigate the conversion to gas heat. They found that the present boiler was designed for soft coal and was in poor condition. On June 14, 1951, they accepted a bid from the John Fraser Co. of $3,408.98 for the installation of an automatic gas furnace and agreed to pay within ten days for a 2% discount. At their August 13, 1951, meeting Chairman Robert Parslow reported there would be a $20.00 charge for dismantling the old boiler. J. Meachem of the Cheney Foundry was interested in buying the 7000 estimated pounds of scrap iron and steel and it was sold to him for $189.20. The Trustees cleaned out a wood shed near the parlors and cleaned and painted the coal bin (the room south of the kitchen which became a crib room but now contains the boiler used to heat the educational annex.)

The last annual Harvest Dinner and Sale under the auspices of the Ladies Aid Society was held on November 8, 1951. Margaret Vermilya was the General Chairman. The group earned $607.28.

At the October 22, 1951, Official Board Meeting, George Reeves was made a Deacon Emeritus because poor health kept him from attending Diaconate meetings. He was the second Deacon to be honored in this way. At the Annual Meeting on December 3, 1951, the By-Laws were changed to allow the Trustees to increase their membership from 6 to 9.

In his report to the church on December 3, 1951, Reverend Baker told the congregation that it was almost impossible to transmit his work into facts and figures for a published report. But, he noted, a recent survey revealed that the average minister spent sixty hours weekly in activities directly related to his work, plus additional hours on indirectly related activities. Rev. Baker wrote “your minister has never made such a strict accounting of his efforts, but we are safe in saying that most of us like to be considered at least average in our field of endeavor.” He went on to pay tribute to the hours spent by his unofficial assistant, his wife, Lucy. Although she was “essentially a housewife with the same responsibilities and demands on her time that belong to every conscientious mother and home-maker, she often needed to accompany her husband in pastoral calling and engaged in the activities of all the women’s groups and organizations in the church.”

Also at the December 3, 19512, meeting, the Guild Girls reported having expanded into two groups, the Ann Ransier Guild (named for Mrs. Ransier out of respect to her as our own church missionary and her work among the Hopi Indians) and the Barbara Galaska Guild named after a Japanese missionary who was a friend of leader Mrs. Ada Phelps.

On December 10, 1951, at the Trustees meeting, the members discussed a request from the Fireman’s Association to borrow the church dining room tables for a Fireman’s Dinner. We don’t know what actually happened but Lloyd Slentz moved that the tables borrowed by the Rod and Gun Club and not returned to the church be loaned to the Fireman’s Association.

When the Diaconate Board met in January 1952, they elected officers for the coming year. Mr. F. D. Richburg made a motion that the chairman of the Diaconate could be either a Deacon or a Deaconess, and that he or she automatically would become chairman of either the Deacons or Deaconesses. The motion was seconded by Charles Cathers and carried. As a result, Mrs. Lynn (Emma) Mapstone became the first woman chairman of the Diaconate. The second and last for many years was Mrs. F. Dennison Richburg, who wads elected chairman in 1954.

On May 9, 1952, the 71st Annual Meeting of the Onondaga Baptist Women’s Missionary Society was held in the church. One hundred forty women attended. It was not mentioned but this may have been the last meeting for the Society since Baptist Women’s groups were about to be consolidated into the Baptist Women’s Fellowship.

On May 18, 1952, the congregation honored Reverend and Mrs. Baker for seven years of faithful service to the church. Reverend Baker was presented a pulpit robe and roses and Mrs. Baker an orchid corsage. On June 15, 9152, a committee was chosen to the official Board to select new pulpit furniture, a gift from the Cleveland family in memory of Thomas and Hadassah Cleveland.

In 1952, the Trustees decided to install gas heat in the parsonage. The Ladies Aid Society, in one of their last good deeds before consolidation into the Baptist Women’s Fellowship, donated $200.00 to pay for the conversion. At their August 11, 1952, meeting the Trustees and Reverend Baker moved outdoors to fill in the trench for the gas line from the church to the parsonage. By September 8, 1952, the parsonage gas furnace was fully installed and ready for chilly fall weather.

At the September 8, 1952, Trustee meeting, Reverend Baker reported that he had been approached by the Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Chittenango Baptist Church in regard to a loan of $7,000.00 to be used for an addition to their church. On October 13, 1952, the Trustees agreed to consult with Reverend Baker and if the Chittenango Baptists were still interested, a committee of Reverend Baker, Fred Hartman, Kenneth Jones, Comstock Lincoln and Robert Parslow was to meet with them and present their recommendation to our Official Board. No further action was reported.

In September 1952, to reflect what was happening at the State and National levels of the American Baptist Churches, the women’s organizations of the church (exclusive of the Sunday School) were consolidated. The Women’s Missionary Society (77 years in existence), the Ladies Aid Society (probably in existence in some form since the early days of the church) and the three United Fellowship Circles (The Louise Davis, Mary Broadfield and Mary Woodworth Circles, formed in 1939 under the leadership of the Deaconesses to support the Ladies Aid and to provide close Christian fellowship between the ladies of the church by meeting together and calling on one another) were combined to form a new Baptist Women’s Fellowship. An opening Banquet was held on September 16, 1952. Reverend Baker installed the following new officers:

• President - Mrs. Robert Vermilya
• Service - Mrs. Charles Potter
• Projects - Mrs. Robert Parslow
• Literary Chairman -  Mrs. Lynn Mapstone
• Secretary - Treasurer Mrs. Comstock Lincoln

The Circles were re-organized at this time and were named after important women of the Bible: Naomi, Miriam, Lois, Deborah and Martha. Although the changes were great with long standing institutions of the church discontinued, they were accepted with very little resentment or resistance, according to Reverend Baker.

The Ladies Aid Society was no longer in existence but the Baptist Women’s Fellowship carried on the harvest Dinner Tradition and on November 16, 1952, served 583 suppers for a total profit of $756.32 from the supper and sale.

On October 15, 1952, a third choir (the Cherub choir) was started for children from ages 7-10. Mrs. Shirley Radley was director. The church now had an Adult Choir directed by Mrs. Helen Jenks (also the organist,) a Youth Choir directed by Gertrude Mawson and the Cherub Choir. On December 18, 1952, television was first mentioned in the records of the church. Station WHEN in Syracuse televised a program of Christian music sung by our Youth Choir.

On December 27, 1952, the church made headlines in the Eagle Bulletin. They read:

In 1949 the Trustees had purchased fire extinguishers and these may have helped control the fire.

Vandals Start Fire in Manlius Church, Explosion Averted

Vandals entered the church late on Monday afternoon and started a fire in the rear hall which was discovered by Mrs. Helen Jenks before it could do extensive damage. They also turned on the electric stove and several jets on the gas stove but fortunately the main gas valve had been shut off. Mrs. Jenks and Reverend Baker extinguished the fire before it had done much damage.

In their January 12, 1953, meeting the Trustees took an early position against smoking in the church. The Girl Scouts had asked permission to use the kitchen and Loomis Hall for a banquet in March. The Board approved the request but subject to an announcement that smoking would be allowed in the Boiler Room only. By January 23, 1953, the new pulpit furnishings had been installed and were dedicated in memory of Mr. and Mrs. Cleveland.

On February 1, 1953, forty-two church members cooperated with other churches in Manlius in taking a census of the entire community to determine the number in each family and their church affiliation. Also in February the Baptist Churches of Onondaga County were participating in a “Spiritual Life Crusade” for which Reverend John Baker was the general chairman. A rally was held in the First Baptist Church of Syracuse. On February 9, 10 and 12 the local Baptist churches were to do their part by calling on prospective members in their own neighborhoods. Reverend John Baker, in his 1953 annual message to the church, reported that forty-two calling teams from our church visited 132 persons and invited them into the fellowship of Christ and the membership of the church. The teams were fortified each evening with a dinner served by one of the women’s circles. According to Reverend Baker, he had already made contact at some time with each family.  "Assignments were given with some assurance that the callers would be cordially received and that there would be some commonality for easy conversation."

That calling ministry proved to be what Reverend Baker described as “most fruitful.” On February 15, 1953, Declaration Sunday, our new church clerk, Helen Ives, reported that as a result of the “crusade” 44 persons came forward in the morning service to signify their intention of becoming active members of our church. She said “it was gratifying indeed.” There were eight more that wished to join the church but could not attend Declaration Sunday.

On March 1, 1953, at a candlelight Baptism Service, 15 of the 52 were baptized. Another 33 joined through membership transfer. On March 8, 1953, 46 men and women were given the Right hand of Fellowship and were received into the church. Reverend Baker called this “an inspiring experience not to be forgotten.” Reverend Baker gave much of the credit to Diaconate members who were working for this day as the climax of several months of organized calling. On the first two Tuesday evenings of the month, twelve laymen made friendship calls on behalf of the church, thereby cultivating the confidence and interest of the prospects.

The Diaconate made an important decision at their September 19653 meeting. They found it clear that for the spiritual welfare of the church “we must return to the weekly prayer service” and established the Thursday evening “Hour of Power,” a theme developed by the first Baptist Church of Syracuse and used in Manlius with their permission. The “Hour of Power” helped to revive the spirit of the mid-week prayer service. Reverend Baker reported “we come together and pray for very definite things and each other. Some speak of this as the most helpful and inspiring service of the church.”

The choirs were thriving. Helen Jenks reported 30 members in the adult choir, 28 members in the youth choir, 29 members in the Cherub Choir (and 20 men in a Men’s Choir, organized especially for Laymen’s Sunday). She was pleased that almost ¼ of the membership sang in a choir.

At the December 7, 1953, Annual Meeting the church discussed changing the fiscal year of the church from December 1-November30 to coincide with the calendar year, but didn’t come to a conclusion. The Treasurer reported that part of the balance for 1953 included a $5,000.00 legacy from the Yettie R. Harris Estate.

The Northern Baptist Convention launched a new financial campaign, their third, called the Churches for New Frontiers. The purpose of the fund was to raise money to assist in the building of new Baptist churches in growing areas (the suburbs) where there were none before. The program was discussed at the 1953 Annual Meeting and the decision to participate was left to the Diaconate and the Official Board.

The Trustees reported that the Seneca Street property had been sold on a quit-claim deed to the Community Council (of Manlius) for $3,000.00 and that $1,000.00 was donated to the Community Council and the remaining $2,000.00 was to be paid to the church in cash. The sale took an incredible 23 years to accomplish and is a story in itself which will be found in the appendix.

In 1953 the Trustees started the Manlius Baptist Church Improvement Fund to cover the cost of the larger improvements or repairs to the church and parsonage. (We now call it the Capital Fund.) The Trustees also established the boundary lines of the church. Cull-Smith Associates made a survey and necessary maps of the property and attorney H. Bendixen secured signed agreements from adjoining property holders giving us definite boundary lines.

In his annual report for 1953, Reverend John Baker felt that “God had smiled on us and blessed us in the year 1953 making it one of the most memorable in the hundred and fifty-six year history of our wonderful church. Certainly each of us must be proud to claim it as his own.” It wasn’t just the numerical growth, but “the effectiveness of the service” that counted. He wanted “growing in grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ to be the motivating force back of our every effort” and for us to “strive to foster the moral integrity, mental health, spiritual and social well-being of everyone associated with us.” He felt we had learned that “more things are wrought by prayer than this world dreams of” and that we have been more of a praying church during 1953 than in any year of his eight year pastorate. Reverend Baker gave credit for this memorable year to the coordinated teamwork of a consecrated church family.

On November 30, 1953, at the end of the 1952-1953 fiscal year, the balances in the Church Treasury were as follows:

* $ 5,000.00 was from the Yettie Harris Estate
**$15,000.00 was from the Louise Davis Estate

Gone were the days when the Treasurer had to visit the bank after Trustee Meetings to borrow money to pay bills. Now the question was how to better invest some of the extra Money. On February 8, 1954, the Trustees discussed the alternatives and voted to take $6,000.00 from the Savings Bank Account and invest $2,000.00 each in common stocks of American Telephone and Telegraph, Boston Edison and Standard Oil of New Jersey. For some unrecorded reason the Board reversed its decision. The money in the Savings Account was still unspent according to the Treasurer’s Report of November 30, 1954.

At the first quarterly meeting of the Official Board on March 2, 1954, the Sunday School issued a report which must have started the church thinking about a future expansion of the Sunday School facilities. They reported a very good attendance and a need for more classrooms, chairs and clothes racks.

A discussion led by the Trustees concerning repair projects (new gym floor, new sidewalks, interior decorating, etc.) led to the fact that the $2,000.00 from the sale of the old church had not yet been put to use. The need for funds for “Churches for New Frontiers” was also discussed. The Board voted (10 yes, 8 no) to use $1,500.00 of the $2,000.00 for needed repairs and $500.00 for the “Churches for New Frontiers” campaign.

Leah Stark remembers that before there was an official church group, Francis and Sylvia Davison ( on Wednesday afternoons when the Barbershop was closed) with the help of church women would serve lunch to the “old folks” in the annex of the Seneca Street Church. The “Golden Age Group” grew rapidly and became the Christian Fellowship Society. Membership was extended to the Methodists and Episcopal Churches. Then the group became a non-sectarian community project sponsored by the Village of Manlius, and has been a huge success ever since.

At the second quarterly meeting of the Official Board on June 3, 1954, the Christian Education Committee, Esther Lamoreaux, chairman, reported on plans for the upcoming Vacation Church School and the “Golden Age Group,” established in 1953 “and already having proven its worth by the attendance of our old folks.” They also expressed the need for a Christian Education director and the responsibility for finding one was given to the Christian Education Committee.

The Missionary Committee reported that $1,000.00 had been sent to the American Baptist Association (the Northern Baptist Association had changed its name) for the Churches for New Frontiers campaign and that our church was listed on the Honor Roll for its contribution.

At the Fall Official Board meeting, September 6, 1954, the Trustees recommended that a committee be appointed to carry out the every member canvass and if possible “to run the canvass in conjunction with the other Protestant churches in the village in so far as a united appeal for Christian Stewardship can be made effective in this manner.” The Official Board approved and a committee with representatives from most of the major boards and committees of the church was appointed:

• Trustees: Ray Heller
• Diaconate: Robert Vermilya
• Women’s Fellowship: Addie Potter
• Young People: Martha Ives
• Kum-Duble Willis Postma
• Sunday School: Jean Clausen

At the same fall meeting, the Religious Education Committee recommended that “release time from school be given to Baptist Sunday School children from grades 1-6 each Monday at 2:00 P.M. to attend religious teaching at the church.” The Board voted to accept the recommendation. The enrollment for fall 1954 was fifty children. Five women taught the classes.

The Missionary Committee reported that the New Frontier quota had been paid. Our goal was $3,200. In 1954 the church paid $2,187.32 and in 1955 $1,024.62, so that the goal was oversubscribed.

The church voted to pay a gym leader to be in charge of youth recreation in the gym on Saturdays (John Baker had been supervising and found that most of the children were not from the church.) The Annual Meeting for 12954 was held on December 6, 1954. The recommendations for a change to the calendar year (and with it a necessary change in the Annual Meeting date from December to January) was voted on favorably and would be implemented as soon as the Association changed its Fiscal Year. (This was done in 1955 and as a result there was no annual meeting in 1955 and officers whose terms would ordinarily expire on December 1, 1955, were asked to hold office until December 31, 1955, an extra month.)

1955 was designated by the American Baptist Association as the “Year of Baptist Achievement” to YBA. All phases of church life were given standards to meet and points were given for achieving goals. According to Sunday School Superintendent Jean Clausen, it was “a plan to help us accomplish what we should have been doing all the time.” Reverend Baker described the YBA as an organized program for deepening the roots of our faith. He wrote that “decisions for Christ, personal spiritual enrichment, more effective leadership, wider use of the Bible and a great community witness were a few of the pronounced overtones of the YBA program.” The Diaconate Board was reported as having been greatly overjoyed at the success of our YBA program.

Part of the emphasis was for churches to organize themselves so that every church organization contributed to the nurture of the people affected by it. Denominational leaders were concerned that organizations such as the Philathea and Baraca Sunday School classes and the Christian Endeavor and even Boy and Girl Scout Troops (groups part of a nationwide organization) would develop a loyalty to their parent organizations rather than to the church. None of the above organizations, except the Scout Troops, were part of the church after 1956.

In February of 1955, Reverend John Baker was honored at a party celebrating his 42nd birthday. The theme was “This is Your Life, John Baker.” Mrs. Robert Vermilya was in charge of the arrangements and was Master of Ceremonies. She followed Ralph Edwards’ Television Sow format in revealing Reverend Baker’s life story before 60 guest and church members in the Church Parlors.

Just as was done in the television program, all arrangements were kept a secret from Reverend Baker and he was hopefully completely surprised. Reverend Baker remembers being taken ice-fishing on the day of the party to divert his attention. His parents, Mr. and Mrs. Jacob Baker of Allenwood, Pennsylvania; his brother and sister-in-law , Mr. and Mrs. Arthur Baker, also from Allenwood; Mrs. Baker’s mother, Mrs. Marie Skinner from Trumansburg, New York; and special friends from New York and Pennsylvania were brought into town secretly and housed in various church members; homes.

According to Reverend Baker “On the night of the program the surprise guests appeared one by one to reveal some secret (and some not so secret) happenings in my past.” Margaret Vermilya concluded the program by presenting the Bakers with the keys to a new set of luggage. Then she “recommended” that the Bakers “get out of town” for a winter vacation. The Bakers did what they were told and had their first family visit to Florida. After the presentations the guests were served a smorgasbord supper in Loomis Hall.

In 1955 the Pfohl property, a house and lot located directly south of the church on North Street in what is now the church parking lot, became available for purchase. The Trustees called for a special meeting of the Official Board on March 20, 1955. They hope to get a vote of approval to proceed with negotiations to purchase the property. The Official Board gave the Trustees their blessing and appointed Dennison Richburg and Howard Eckerlin to work with them in acquiring the property.

On April 21, 1955, the Official Board met again and authorized the Trustees to purchase the Pfohl property for $12,000.00. The money came partially from the Savings Account ($6,000.00, of which $5,000.00 was from the Harris Legacy) and the remainder from the Savings Bonds ($5,000 from the Davis Legacy and $1,000.00 from the White and Moore Funds.) Thirty-one of the thirty-five members present approved of the acquisition. No mention was made of a congregational vote. The extra property made it possible to expand the parking lot and to provide an exit on North Street, but gave the Trustees one more building to keep repaired, rents to collect, and tenants to keep satisfied. In the summer of 1955, the Trustees sold the old parsonage garage (for $250.00), and built a new one.

At the September 14, 1955, Official Board Meeting, a committee was appointed to “inquire and get information in regard to an Assistant Pastor.” Charles Cathers (Chairman) and Esther Lamoreaux and Charles Allen were chosen. The Official Board voted that the second Monday in January would be the date for the Annual Meeting.

The Annual Meeting was held on January 9,1956, ad voted. (The change to the second Monday in January was made official by a constitutional amendment.) Robert Parslow (Sunday School Superintendent) spoke about the increasing membership of our fast growing church and the need for thought about the enlargement of our facilities and the possibility of establishing a found for that purpose,. No action was taken. The church voted to accept the Official Board’s recommendation to purchase 200 new hymnals (Christian Worship, A Hymnal) at $1.75 reach to be paid for by personal solicitation.

A budget of $17,221.20 was accepted. In those days it was customary for the Trustees to present a budget to the Congregation at the Annual Meeting, where it could be approved if desired, and then accepted by vote. Then the financial campaign would start with budget sand pledge cards sent to the congregation. (The 1956 letter is reproduced in the appendix.) There were usuallly no budget adjustments made to fit the pledges.

On February 5, 1956, Reverend Russell Raker Jr., Mrs. Russell Raker (Elmina), Russell Raker III and Gilbert Raker were received by letter into the membership of the church. (Their daughter Margaret Elmina was received into the church by baptism on April 14, 1957.)

At the Official Board meeting of April 20, 1956, the head usher reported an average attendance of 273.7 for the first three months of 1956. The Church Clerk reported on another unusual period in the growth of the church. Twenty-eight people were received by letter, seventeen by baptism, a total of 45 new members.

A Future Planning Committee was proposed by the Diaconate to look into the future growth of the Community as well as into the expansion of the facilities of the church. Appointed were:

• Reverend Russell Raker
• Carl Christensen
• Robert Parslow
• June Allen
• Jean Clausen

The Diaconate also announced that there would be two services on Sunday morning during May for a period of two weeks, one at 8:30 for 45 minutes followed by Sunday School, and then the regular 10:30 service. Because a number of people had expressed a desire for an early service, this would give the Diaconate an opportunity to observe how great the need was. There was no report on the experiment. They also reported that money had been received for 160 hymnals.

Reverend Baker spoke concerning the hiring of an assistant. The Committee appointed to look into hiring an assistant had not been able to find one. Reverend Baker felt that a full time janitor and secretary would relieve him of many responsibilities and would be more helpful at present than an Assistant Pastor. Robert Vermilya and Gordon Jackson were appointed a committee to look into Reverend Baker’s suggestions.

The church couldn’t have found a better person to explain the Sector Plan than Rev.Raker. He was a Field Counselor assigned by the American Baptist Convention to promote the raising of money for Missionary Programs in NYS Baptist Churches. He worked directly with the NYS Baptist Convention, whose headquarters were in Syracuse. In the 1940s there had been a growing insistence on the part of Baptist lay people as well as pastors for the Baptist denomination to come up with a financial program that would assist the churches in raising their own as well as benevolent budgets. The Convention came up with the Sector Plan, an eight-step Every Member Canvass. According to Rev. John Baker, the influencing factor that led the Manlius Church to accept the plan at this time was that the statewide director of the plan, Rev. Russell Raker, was a member of the Manlius Baptist Church. Before Reverend Raker joined the church, the Trustees rejected the Sector Plan. They voted on May 10, 1954, to purchase a Sector Plan workbook and after a discussion of the plan’s merits, voted unanimously to return the Sector Plan material.)

At the July 5, 1956, meeting of the Official Board, the Trustees reported that Workman’s Compensation had been taken out on all salaried employees of the church, and a special meeting of the Official Board was called August 16, 1956, to hear Reverend Raker* present the new Sector Plan, an eight step every-member canvass, designed by the American Baptist Convention to meet the financial needs of growing churches and expanding mission fields.

Except for the intense (and extremely successful) campaign led by Reverend Divine and Reverend Macpherson to raise money for building the new Pleasant Street Church,. The attitude of the congregation and pastors toward raising money was expressed the booklet The Manlius Baptist Church.

This Church has become noted for the absence of direct public financial appeals. Finance is seldom mentioned or discussed from the pulpit. Such discretion in these matters is highly appreciated by the worshippers who respond all the more generously and sacrificially. In fact the personally assumed obligations of all members of the church family is the thing that makes possible the continuation of this policy. It is our profound wish of all that our Church shall always be supported in the sound spirit of Christian Stewardship.

The letter accompanying the pledge cards for 1956 stated that “everyone agrees that the discussion of money matters in the Manlius Baptist Church is held to a minimum, not because they are unimportant but because when a need is presented you and others accept the challenges without necessitating endless pressures.” (Board of Trustees)

Despite these policies, there was felt a need for more money for programs, for assistance for the pastor, for more space for an expanding Sunday School, and for more support for growing Mission Fields.

At the August 16, 1956, meeting, Reverend Raker explained the Sector Plan but there were only 18 members present (out of a possible 36) and it was decided that such an important vote should involve more of the membership. A second meeting was scheduled for August 23, 1956, but only 15 members attended. After much discussion, Ray Heller moved that the Official Board adopt the Sector Plan and added an amendment stating that “every member of the Official Board will cast a ballot voting for or against the motion.” The motion was seconded and carried. The balloting was to bone by letter.

On September 9, 1956, at a BWF sponsored all-church picnic at Highland Park, the Official Board took time out from the festivities to hear a report that the Board had voted 26 to 8 in favor of adopting the Sector Plan for immediate use in planning for the church program and its objectives for 1957. A committee was appointed:

• Charles Potter - General Chairman
• Raymond Heller - Publicity
• Robert Vermilya - Proposal
• Sidney Mawson - Appraisal
• Gamble Huffaker - Advanced Pledges

We don’t have a copy of the Sector Plan but the basic steps have been repeated thousands of times in fund drives for charitable institutions of every kind. The first step had to do with the determination of giving potential of the congregation. Time was taken from a Church Service to give adults a list of the church members. The members were asked to write down what they thought everyone (including themselves) might be able to give in light of their assessment of that persons ability to pay., Emphasis was on percentage giving with the hope that a tithe would be the standard. This step was supposed to encourage the members to reconsider their own thinking concerning their own contributions. The individual results were kept confidential but the total results were tabulated. Usually it was found that the giving potential as perceived by the congregation was much larger than everyone had thought. This step was probably the major reason the Sector Plan was somewhat unpopular. Some people thought that the assessment was an invasion of personal and private information and it was often deleted from the program for that reason.

With the figures of potential giving in mind, the next step was to ask the congregation in small groups (i.e., Boards, Committees, Circles, Sunday School Classes) to discuss the programs of the church and what they would like to see done in the future. The proposals would be put together in a proposed budget which would be presented to a congregational meeting for approval of all the members. With a budget that would echo many of the hopes and dreams of most of the members, and as determined by their calculations, one they felt the church could afford, the vote would be overwhelmingly positive. For the first few years of the Sector Plan, the budget was professionally printed in color and with photographs of the various activities of the church included. These were probably done with the aid of the New York State Baptist Association.

Now the time was ripe for the commitment phase. Callers were carefully chosen and trained. They had to be committed to the work of the church and the prepared budget, and ready to back their commitment generously with a percentage giving of their own resources. The total of their pledges combined with that of the pastor and leaders of the church would be announced to the church collectively as Advance Gifts, the amount of which should be impressive enough to encourage the rest of the congregation to follow suit.

After all kinds of positive publicity for the activities and programs of the church (present and future, especially those involving children), and for the advance gift total, the workers would be called together on a Sunday after church (designated as Pledge or Commitment Sunday), given a fine meal by the Baptist Women’s Fellowship, a pep talk and sent out in pairs to the home of the members to bring back the signed pledge cards. Again, the emphasis was to be on % giving.

The callers would report later in the afternoon to the church. The results would be tabulated and there would be a victory celebration at the next Sunday church service, with a follow up for those who escaped the pledging process.

Reverend Baker remembered the plan as a “bold new approach to the Stewardship emphasis of the church and its missions. While the plan generated considerable confusion and resistance for some, it ultimately came to be recognized as the method that transformed the approach to Christian Stewardship planning throughout the country.” As for our church, “in a very few years the Manlius Baptist Church budget was significantly increased and the church became one of the top mission giving churches among American Baptist Churches of New York State.”

This was probably the first year in which the church had two yearly budget campaigns. The normal campaign was run for the 1956 Budget in January 1956. The Budget was discussed and accepted at the January 9, 1956, Annual Meeting, where all the members had been invited to “ lend your voice in the matters of church planning and policy making for the year 1956.” The budget adopted was “an ambitious attempt on the part of our people to see before themselves a challenging goal of Christian stewardship.” A letter with a “personal enlistment” card (a new name for pledge cards) was sent to each member. Those who didn’t return the card could expect a visit from a Trustee. There was no further official adjustment of the budget to match the pledges.

The Sector Plan campaign for the 1957 Budget was carried out during the time we would do our Financial Campaign today with the preparation of the Budget and the drive for pledges in the fall of 1956. Trustees with input from all of the participating boards prepared an adjusted budget for presentation and adoption at the Annual Meeting of January, 1957.

The Budget for 1957 was very ambitious and included goals for Baptist World Missions as well as for the local church. A copy is reproduced in the appendix. This Budget was prepared before Reverend Baker’s resignation and was printed with his picture representing our Pastoral Ministry. The goal for the local church was an ambitious $27,675.55 and for Baptist World Missions (and local missions as well) was a modest $4,400.00. (In 1956 the actrual expenditure for the local church was $15,481.96 and for Missions was $4,241.32.) Little was said about the actual campaign in the church minutes but you can be sure it was properly done under the watchful eyes of the Reverends Baker and Raker.

In the Trustee’s meeting of September 10, 1956, pastoral assistance was again discussed with Reverend Baker. Previously Official Board discussion had centered on hiring a Christian Education Director or an Assistant Pastor (professionally trained persons.) Pastor Baker now asked the Trustees to waive these suggestions in favor of hiring a person with “ingrained dedication for church work and service.” He said “he had found such a person and she is available for half-time service.” The Trustees authorized Reverend Baker to hire a Pastor’s Assistant at a salary not to exceed $35.00/week. At the Official Board meeting November 1, 1956, it was reported by the Christian Education Committee that the Released Time School had a registration of 180 children. Reverend Baker told the Official Board that Margaret Vermilya had been hired as a Pastor’s Assisstant and was “a great help doing a fine job.”

On October 28, 1956, at the close of the church service, Reverend John J. Baker shocked the congregation by announcing his resignation to be effective December 31, 1956. He had accepted a call from the First Baptist Church of Rome, New York. The Rome church was a large church which listed 1,000 members and employed three full time Christian workers.

The Trustees met on November 2, 1956, and voted to buy folding doors to divide the Parlors into three Sunday School rooms. This was to provide more space for the growing Sunday School. On November 6, 1956, the question of children taking Communion was brought up. Reverend Baker stated that anyone who belongs to the Household of Faith is eligible for Communion, and that parents should use their discretion.

Reverend Baker’s was the third longest pastorate. Reverend Elias Barber served a little longer than 12 years and Elder Nathan Baker approximately 21 years (and perhaps longer.)

Later in the year the local newspapers (Post Standard, Herald Journal, Eagle Bulletin) all told of Reverend Baker’s leaving and of the various local and area capacities served during Reverend Baker’s nearly 12 years. He was moderator of the Onondaga Baptist Association, a member of the Board of Directors of the Upstate Home for Children in Oneonta, New York, Secretary for three years to the New York State Baptist Pastor’s Conference, Adult Leader of the Onondaga Baptist Youth, President of the Manlius Chapter of Commerce for two years and Chaplain of the Masonic Military Lodge #93 for seven years.

After nearly twelve years of remarkable growth in the church, both in numbers and spirituality, and many more years of service to other Baptist Churches and the American Baptist Convention, Reverend Baker remembers that his time here was “a challenging yet wonderful time in the life and development of the Manlius Baptist Church” and that he was “proud to be a part of it.”