A house RESOLUTION

TO RECOGNIZE AND HONOR THE CONGREGATION and Pastor OF Earle CHURCH of God AT THE CELEBRATION OF THEIR CENTENNIAL ANNIVERSARY AND TO CONGRATULATE THEM UPON THE JUBILANT AND MOMENTOUS OCCASION OF ONE HUNDRED YEARS OF MINISTRY IN THE Aiken COMMUNITY.

Whereas, the members of the South Carolina House of Representatives are pleased to learn that Earle Church of God will be celebrating a century of joyful worship of and significant ministry for God in the Aiken community in 2023; and

Whereas, Earle Church of God was first held as a brush harbor in 1923 with a few families gathering to meet to worship and praise the Lord, and the meetings soon grew to almost two hundred members.   Earle was voted to become part of the Church of God denomination and officially organized on January 1, 1924; and

Whereas, Pastor Green was the first pastor of Earle Church of God.  Pastor Green shared pastoral responsibilities with several other ministers as the church met almost every night for services; and

Whereas, the first acre of land for the church was located at 341 Earl Church Road and was donated by the Payton family for a church building.  The first building was a wooden structure which was later destroyed by a fire; and 

Whereas, the second church was constructed in the 1950s under the leadership of A. C. Godwin, and members of the church made the blocks that were laid for the building; and

Whereas, the church building was bricked under the leadership of Pastor Billy Gillard, and the congregation added bathrooms along with central heat and air conditioning under the leadership of Reverend William Bevell in 1977; and

Whereas, Reverend Edward Wood was instrumental in getting the plans for the new church organized, and under the leadership of Pastor James Steven Hall, the third church was built in 1996; and 

Whereas, the parsonage was renovated in 2006 under the leadership of Pastor Tim Burroughs, and a plot of land totaling two acres was donated to the church in 2018 by Clyde and Luke Stewart for use as a cemetery; and

Whereas, the church has completed upgrades in 2023 under the leadership of Pastor Ronald Lee; and

Whereas, the South Carolina House of Representatives joins in celebrating with Earle Church of God upon the anniversary of a century of ministry and worship, and the members wish the congregation many years of continued blessings.  Now, therefore,

Be it resolved by the House of Representatives:

That the members of the South Carolina House of Representatives, by this resolution, recognize and honor the congregation and pastor of Earle Church of God at the celebration of their centennial anniversary and congratulate them upon the jubilant and momentous occasion of one hundred years of ministry in the Aiken Community.

Be it further resolved that a copy of this resolution be presented to Pastor Ronald Lee.

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