Foundations
History
A
small group of Baptists held meetings during 1881 to discuss the
formation of a church in Phoenix, Arizona. The Rev. R. A. Windes, a
frontier minister who established a Baptist Church in Prescott in
1880, made several trips to Phoenix to encourage the faithful in
the task God had for them. It was no easy trip to ride from
Prescott to Phoenix in 1881, and it took five days under the best
of circumstances.
In 1882 Rev. Windes held regular meetings in Phoenix, and the
Church was formally organized
March 21, 1883 with a membership of eight people. In 1884 a small
wooden frame church was erected in then downtown Phoenix; this
building was destroyed by fire in 1902, and the Church moved to a
new location not far away. The Church had seven different ministers
in the early years, and one new minister died on the way to his
first sermon when his buggy overturned.
The membership grew from 91 in 1893 to over 1,000 in 1923 and over
2,000 in 1977. The First Baptist Church was located in downtown
Phoenix until 1968 when the first service was held at the new
church campus in the growing north central part of Phoenix. This is
the property that would later be sold with the funds provided to
the First Baptist Church of Phoenix Foundation.
Over the 125 years of its existence, several Phoenix area churches
were off-shoots of the membership of First Baptist Phoenix. In
addition, many pastors around the country have received their
ministry training at First Baptist Phoenix.
First Baptist Phoenix was instrumental in starting other Christian
outreach organizations from community centers and day care centers
to camping ministries. Tonto Rim Christian Camp, north of Payson,
Arizona, originated from a group of First Baptist Phoenix people in
the early 1950’s and has provided a Christian camping experience to
thousands of people of all ages. In the 1970’s a young man who had
grown up at First Baptist Phoenix started Rainbow Acres in Camp
Verde Arizona. Rainbow Acres is a 27 acre Christian community that
provides caring homes and lives of purpose and dignity for adults
with developmental disabilities. At the north central location,
First Baptist Phoenix also started a Respite Shelter for Homeless
Men just out of the hospital, that continues in operation today.
These are just some of the examples of the outreach legacy of First
Baptist Phoenix and its impact on the spiritual lives of numerous
people in expanding the Kingdom of God.
The First Baptist Church of Phoenix Foundation was originally
formed in 1993 by the leadership of First Baptist Phoenix, and the
first assets were donated by Edith Coggins in 1994. The
Foundation’s activities were limited until 2006 when the members of
First Baptist Phoenix voted to formally dissolve, sell the property
to another like minded congregation, and turn the proceeds over to
the First Baptist Church of Phoenix Foundation for furthering God’s
kingdom. Under the leadership of Lee Gean and Bill Beamon, the
Foundation Board formulated a mission statement that reflected the
members’ desires in the use of the sale proceeds and also to allow
the location at Central and Glendale Avenues in Phoenix to continue
as a worship center and lighthouse for God.
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