Beginning as a small group Bible study in 1985, Fellowship Baptist Church was officially chartered in 1987 with 12 members.  The small congregation purchased the building and property which had formerly housed Clifton's Grocery Store.  Extensive renovations were completed quickly and the congregation began meeting in their new facility.    Steve Jaspers was our first pastor, serving for 2 years until moving with his family to Michigan where he accepted a position as a Christian school administrator.  Later that same year Joel Rose accepted the call as our new pastor, serving for the next 13 years.  During this time the church body grew to  approximately 100 regular attendees.  February, 2002, brought a new transition to Fellowship as the Rose family moved to Chicago to assume the leadership of an established inner city ministry.  In July of that same year Pastor Janke and his family began their ministry here, building on a solid foundation of stable ministry in the city of Tama, while moving forward in new directions.
   The past several years have brought many new changes to our Church family.  While there are many "familiar" faces in the congregation, over half of those attending are new since 2002.  Additionally, we have a strong contingency of regularly attending families driving long distances to our services--from Marshalltown to the west, Marion/Cedar Rapids to the east, and as far south as Oskaloosa.  We also enjoy a balanced generational diversity from young adults to seasoned seniors.
   While change is inevitable, we are thankful that the same spirit and values present in 1985 still exist in our Church family today.  Close bonds of friendship, warm relationships, spiritual encouragement, and solid Bible instruction were important in our founding and continue to be so today.  We look forward to many more decades of service to our wonderful Savior and Lord, Jesus Christ.
    
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