Who We Are

We are a community of Christ followers who intentionally live out the love of God by serving the least among us, striving to make disciples of Jesus Christ and be a light of hope in Wadesboro, Anson County, and the world. Relationships are the bond that holds this congregation together and we are always ready to build new ones. We value loving one another, mentoring children and youth, and serving this community. We reveal our faith by how we live together.

We are historic Baptists who affirm our distinctive Baptist heritage as represented in the four freedoms of Bible interpretation, congregational autonomy, individual freedom, and soul freedom. Our denominational home is with the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship.

We strive to welcome all in the love of Christ Jesus. We receive into membership all who follow Jesus—regardless of race, gender, national origin, or sexual orientation. We practice believer’s baptism as well as honor the baptisms of those who come to us from other Christian traditions. We affirm women in ministry and have ordained women as deacons and ministers of the Gospel.

First Baptist Church Wadesboro will voluntarily cooperate with and support missions and partnerships with other Christian Churches, including but not limited to Baptist congregations and other faith groups, provided such cooperation does not conflict with the church’s theology and practice.

Leadership

Our church is shepherded by the Rev. Anita Thompson who became our pastor on June 1, 2024. A native of Ahoskie, NC, Pastor Anita holds degrees from East Carolina University (Bachelor of Music Education), the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary (Master of Church Music) and Baptist Theological Seminary at Richmond, VA (Master of Divinity). Pastor Anita also serves as our Minister of Music.

Ministry Teams

We organize our ministries through five teams:

Our Deacons

Our Deacons serve in two main capacities: family ministry, in which every member is assigned a deacon or family minister to provide pastoral care along with our pastor, and serving along with the pastor as the spiritual leaders of the congregation. All administrative matters come to the deacons before going to the whole church.

Our Stories

What makes FBC Wadesboro a special place? There many diverse perspectives and answers to that question. Listen to a few of our members’ stories below, and you will begin to understand more about who we truly are.

Whitney's Story

“We have a church family who steps up every time there's a need...Our children's ministry is also particularly special to me...they look forward to coming to church every Sunday.”

Ken's Story

“Our church is open and accepting to all of God's children...come experience the unconditional love of Jesus in this place and community of worship.”

Donna's story

"It's so warm here...people welcome you here...they don't judge you. You feel the presence of God here, and everybody is friendly...people here are just very supportive."

Janine's story

"The music ministry is what brought me to the church, but after I met the people and experienced the worship service in our sanctuary...I don't know what it is about it...there is a presence there and you know you are in the presence of God..."

Warren's story

"The Holy Spirit is real. He led me to this church...and everybody here is just the friendliest...they're more friendly here than any other places I've lived."

History of the Church

Our Beginning

Pre-1847
Welsh Baptists settled along the Great Pee Dee River and organized churches in Anson County, North Carolina.
1847
Brown Creek Baptist Church purchased land for the first Baptist church in the county seat of Wadesboro and First Baptist Church of Wadesboro was organized.
1847-49
FBCW met in an old, dilapidated barn near the current location.
1849
FBCW built a frame building with a door for men and a separate door for women.
1854
FBCW paid its building debt, became independent of Brown Creek Baptist Church, and called its first pastor.
1865
Sherman’s army used the FBCW property as its headquarters.

Into the 20th Century

1889-1929
FBCW met in a beautiful brownstone building on the corner of Wade and Rutherford Streets.
1909
FBCW hosted the North Carolina Baptist State Convention for five days.
1929
FBCW members marched to a new not-yet-finished building singing Onward Christian Soldiers.

COMPLETING AND USING THE PROPERTY

1937
Completed the building, paid the debt in full, and dedicated the current sanctuary.
1941-1945
Opened a service center downstairs for World War II soldiers.
1980-2000
Remodeled and updated the building, including a chapel, sanctuary, elevator, portico, and kitchen; purchased adjoining property.

CONTINUING OUR LEGACY

1983
Ordained our first female deacons, Mrs. Margaret Smith.
1991-2005
Dr. Fred Senter served as pastor and introduced us to the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship.
2001
Ordained our first female minister, the Rev. Laura Senter, a hospital chaplain.
2022
Ordained Iva Stowe as minister. She served as the Minister of Music for 34 years, 1981-2015.
2022
Adopted new Bylaws, Manual of Operations, and Church Vision.
2023
Current Deacon Ministry of sixteen includes eight women.
2024
On April 14, 2024, the Rev. Anita Thompson was called as the church’s first female pastor. She began her ministry on June 1, 2024.

Vision and Purpose

To be a community of Christ followers who intentionally live out the love of God by serving the least among us to make disciples of Jesus Christ and be a light of hope in Wadesboro, Anson, and the world.

We are focused on love of Christ and each other: Our Church, FBC Wadesboro, is a community of Christ followers, saints, and sinners, brought together by grace under the Lordship of Christ. The purposes for which this corporation is organized are to operate and function as a church in all its religious, charitable, and educational dimensions including but not limited to the following church’s purposes and missions:

  • To advance and promote the worship of God.
  • To engage in and promote the study of the Holy Scriptures to promote discipleship in all ages.
  • To advance the gospel of Jesus Christ by preaching, evangelism, teaching and the administration of the ordinances of the church.
  • To create and enable Christian fellowship as a nurturing and discipling function of the church.
  • To promote the biblical principles of justice and righteousness in personal, social, community and national life.
  • To continue the work of the church in all its spiritual, benevolent, educational, philanthropic, civil, and social aspects and activities.
  • To promote the Gospel through evangelistic, educational, and charitable missions.
  • To organize and maintain such ministries and divisions, including but not limited to, schools, day care centers, relief programs and social services and other programs authorized by law which will promote and advance the religious purposes set forth herein.