The People's Community Baptist Church

Chapter I:  A Vision:  God Plants His Seed 

Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send?
And who will go for us?”   And I said, 
“Here am I.  Send me!”--Isaiah 6:8 

There is a quality at the very core of the religious experience that pushes against any mood of self-centeredness until the very boundaries of self are transformed into a dimension of the other, the more than self.  Thus, the ultimate validity of the primacy of the religious experience is its universality.  This is the miracle and the paradox of ‘How It All Began. . . .’  My decision to organize a church was not prompted nor advanced by grim tragedy, nor by sinful, vain glory, but [by] an ardent and serious study of the Holy writ after years of dedication and sacrifice.  I challenge . . . my resources, [both] present and future, to erect to God a witness to a people who in my opinion, were, and are, more than deserving.

From “My Religious Experience”
The Rev. Dr. Thomas J. Baltimore
September 11, 1983 

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In the reasonable observation of family, friends, and colleagues, the Rev. Dr. Thomas Jeremiah Baltimore had already attained his life’s goal in 1977 to fulfill his calling to minister to God’s world.   

The Dream, The Name, The Community

At that time, the Rev. T.J. Baltimore was the successful pastor of The Turner Memorial Baptist Church in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, a thriving parish that he had nurtured for eight years.  From all appearances, his years of tutelage under his father, the Rev. J.P. Baltimore, Sr., and his years of personal study and growth had brought him to the place he wanted to be. 

Many were compelled to ask, “Why would T.J. Baltimore want to leave The Turner Memorial Baptist Church to endure all of the challenges and uncertainties of starting a new church?”  The answer to that question lies in the glorious workings of God’s will and a vision.  God had placed a seed, a vision in T.J. Baltimore’s heart, and that vision had become just as consuming as the fire God had shut up in T.J.’s bones to preach. 

In the fall of 1977, T.J. Baltimore found that he no longer had the power to resist the seed God had planted within him; the man, the vision, the dream of starting a new church had merged into one.  Inevitable by fate, one Sunday afternoon in October 1977, T.J. was moved to reveal his spurring vision, his dream, to two of his closest friends: the Revs. Jefferson W. Wright and R. Earl Bartley. 

As they sat around the kitchen table in Rev Wright’s home, T.J. shared his vision of  “an alternative church” that would meet people “where they are,” a community-based church that would embrace the concept of “shared ministry,” and a church that would evolve through keeping sound principles in Bible study at the center of its creed.

When asked what the church would be called, Rev. Wright responded that it should be called “The People’s Community Church.”  “No,” T.J. said. “The church is going to be a Baptist church.”  With that, Rev. Bartley wrote a check for $15, payable to “The People’s Community Baptist Church”—the first donation to the church—and with that stroke of the pen, the vision had been given life! 

So, in June 1978, the Rev. T.J. Baltimore left The Turner Memorial Baptist Church, returning to the Washington area, Montgomery County, to begin the work of faith, the fruit of his vision, which would manifest itself as The People’s Community Baptist Church.  There were family members, friends, and colleagues who were not completely comfortable with his decision to leave Harrisburg, but T.J. retained the loving support of Revs. Wright and Bartley, and he knew that there was no turning back on his vision.  

Strengthened by the assurance of God’s will, T.J. went door to door in Silver Spring, Wheaton, and Rockville; he mailed flyers, aired radio announcements; and he seized every opportunity to spread the word that his new, alternative church—offering a proactive religious experience—was dawning in Montgomery County, Maryland.

Word traveled.  On Saturday, July 8, 1978, a committee of 35 community members met to organize the church. About a month later, Sunday, August 5, 1978, the first worship service of The People’s Community Baptist Church, with Dr. T.J. Baltimore as pastor and founder, was held in the auditorium of John F. Kennedy High School.  About 100 people attended, including Pastor Baltimore’s parents, the Reverend J.P. Baltimore Sr., pastor of Mt. Morris Baptist Church, located in Hume, Virginia, and Mrs. Virginia Baltimore. 

Also attending were many other family members, friends, and local political dignitaries.  Between that day and January 1, 1979, 95 people joined the church as charter members and pledged financial support.  From God’s hand and out of T.J.’s heart, the vision had become a being unto itself! 

With the pure simplicity of a newborn child, the nascent church emerged from humble beginnings that were reminiscent of a Holy One who was born and placed in a manger.  In the beginning, there were four deacons, but two of them (including Phillip Baltimore, T.J.’s brother) were on loan from Mt. Morris Baptist Church.  The People’s Community Baptist Church had to have baptismal services at neighboring churches:  including Mt. Calvary Baptist Church, Ken-Gar Baptist Church, and Round Oak Missionary Baptist Church.  

Other Firsts for the New Church

Six members constituted the initial church choir, formed in December 1978 and later named the Chancel Choir: Mary Baltimore (the pastor’s sister-in-law), Carolyn Casey Middleton (the first church clerk), Joyce Yancey (the first Hospitality Committee chairman), Sonya Watson, Tish Winfield (the first Program Committee chairperson and president of the Senior Usher Board) and Michelle Webb (the first bride and new mother in People’s).   

During these early years, the $35 weekly payment to the church pianist often exceeded the amount of money in the collection plate, requiring T.J. and his brother, Phillip, to make up the difference.  “The Teller,” the weekly church bulletin that would evolve into a church mainstay, was a one-page fold-over that Pastor wrote and Tish Winfield typed.

Many helped to ensure that services were held in an orderly, worshipful manner.   

That first year was a year of firsts: the Executive Board, a forerunner of the Deacon and Trustee Ministries, met regularly with Pastor Baltimore.  Church departments were formed; the first church picnic was held in July; The People’s Pride, the church’s newsletter was printed; and by the end of the year, 68 new souls had joined The People’s Community Baptist Church. 

And then came the 1st anniversary celebration.   It was for this occasion (August 5) that Pastor Baltimore penned the first history of the church, read by Lillie Kearney, and later reported in the church’s newsletter, The People’s Pride of August 1979, as “The History of A Dream.” 

The People’s Community Baptist Church began to grow in God’s will, spurred on by the vision of T.J. Baltimore.  The church instantly took on the personality of warmth and loving kindness that would sustain it through the years. 

And, from the beginning, the serious business of Christian Education took center stage.  A Sunday School was inaugurated almost immediately, the Christian Education Ministry was formed, and Tuesday Night Bible Study was added. 

Though tending to spiritual nurturing first, the infant congregation began to grow steadily, if only by small steps.  Soon the church family had more than doubled its size, and Pastor Baltimore determined that the four existing deacons were unable to meet the needs of the congregation.   

So, during June 1980, The People’s Community Baptist Church ordained its first deacons, five in all, including Owen Mulkey who remained on the Deacon Board until his death on April 21, 2002. 

Land Found for Church Site

The infusion of new, dedicated members was met with Pastor Baltimore’s emphasis on sound biblical teachings of good stewardship and the obedient use of our time, talents, and treasures.  This formula of faith and dedication served to solidify the financial base of the church.  On Sunday, February 18, 1981, the congregation learned that the church now had a phone (949-1763) and anyone wishing to reach Pastor Baltimore could call between 9 a.m. and 9 p.m.   

Also during 1981, weekly offerings increased from an average of $100 to $1500, and it became evident that the church had outgrown John F. Kennedy High School and needed its own home where its program ministries could continue to expand and flourish.  A land search and acquisition committee was formed.

By God’s guiding light, this committee located the “promised land of T.J.’s vision,” 3.4 acres at 31 Norwood Road.  On August 24, 1981, a down payment was made from about $23,000 raised by the church family and friends.  The $90,000 note on this land was paid in just two years! 

Although The People’s Community Baptist Church continued to meet at the high school for worship services, Pastor Baltimore took up occupancy, albeit humble at first, on the site of the newly acquired land.  He orchestrated the church’s daily administrative functions from a 72-foot trailer at the rear of the property.  The trailer, a former mobile classroom, was renovated mostly through the personal labor of Pastor Baltimore, and a working office was installed. 

Outreach Ministries Continue

Parked next to the trailer was what became known as the “Green Machine,” the church’s 40-passenger bus, which helped with the formal launch of the “youth bus ministry.” 

It was from “the trailer” that Pastor Baltimore and the burgeoning number of faithful servants of the church continued to vitalize the ministries, reaching out to all facets of the community.  Pastor Baltimore was appointed to the Community Action Board.  From there, he worked closely with Montgomery County Social Services.  He helped organize the Black Ministries of Montgomery County; from 1982 to 1985, he was vice president of the Montgomery County NAACP. These interactions placed People’s at the forefront of community outreach, providing a sign of hope and a reliable friend to the poor and destitute.   

In 1983, the church helped to organize the highly successful Manna Food Center program, feeding the homeless, and then became actively involved with the Clothes Closet, a program that collected donated clothes for the poor.   

Pastor Baltimore led by example, often personally carrying food and arranging housing and transportation for families suffering hardships.  Canned goods and clothes donated by church members, as well as surplus food received from governmental sources, were kept in the trailer and distributed as needed.  During the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays, a special charitable emphasis was made. Also during these times, food baskets were delivered to families that were identified by various sources as being needy. 

These gestures of love and caring became a habit; the habit, a tradition; and the tradition, the Social Action Agency—a church ministry that continues to address social concerns of the community in all areas affecting quality of life.  Under its umbrella have risen family health programs (including the Health Fair), Alcoholics Anonymous and Narcotics Anonymous chapter meetings, cancer support groups, voter registration drives, and the SHARE program (low-cost, monthly food distribution).  Soon thereafter, a Prison Ministry was created.  This ministry effectively took on the noble cause of bringing the message of hope, redemption, and salvation to the incarcerated. 

And within The People’s household, ministries emerged that added strength and vitality to the life of the church.  The ministries, during the early years, included the Women’s Mission Union, the Men’s Fellowship, and the Singles Ministry.  Thus, from its inception, The People’s Community Baptist Church, the rock of T.J.’s vision, has adhered to the principle that it is we who are called upon as disciples in Christ to administer God’s grace in all its varying forms.  “Shared ministry” has been our beckoning call.