1205 S. 9th St. Mattoon, IL 61938

217-235-4009 info@broadwaycc.org

broadwaycc.org

The Formation of Broadway Christian Church

The History of the First Year Several Christians of Mattoon expressed a desire to organize a new Christian Church, patterned after the Church of the New Testament. Mr. Glenn Webber invited all who were interested to meet at his home to discuss the possibility of such a venture for the Lord. The meeting was held July 18, 1956 and plans were made for the new congregation. Robert Ground, Earl White, Reuben Johnson, Percy Boston, Paul Burry, Glenn Webber, Don Rodebaugh, Raymond Rodebaugh, Ellis Tingley, John Lawyer, W.A. Wilson, Glen Cornell, Cyrus C. Storm, J. F. McMahan (a retired minister), and Van B. Hanna (an Evangelist from Neoga, IL) all attended the meeting. The group elected Percy Boston as temporary chairman. Following a wholehearted discussion concerning the organization of a church, the group went to 1321 Broadway Ave. in Mattoon, to look over the building recently vacated by the St. John’s Lutheran Church. Before adjourning, a committee (Glenn Webber, Reuben Johnson, Cyrus C. Storm and Van B. Hanna) was instructed to arrange a meeting with the trustees of St. John’s Lutheran Church, (Martin Garbe, Andrew Bariether, and Ed Von Behren) to ascertain their terms for sale of the vacated building. This committee met with the Lutheran trustees the following day, July 19, 1956. The Lutheran trustees made a tentative offer of $35,000, payable on contract terms. The second meeting of the new group was held at the home of Paul Burry on July 29, 1956. Percy Boston, Maurice Shanholtzer, Paul and Mabel Burry, Cyrus C. Storm, W.A. Wilson, Mr. and Mrs. Glenn Webber, Don Rodebaugh, Harry Hood, Ellis Tingley, Glen Cornell, Robert Ground, Reuben Johnson, Earl White, Kenneth McGuire, Van Hanna Jr. and Van B. Hanna all attended. Discussions were continued August 4, 1956, at the Glenn Webber home. It was decided to attempt to come to an agreement with the St. John’s Lutheran Church trustees, for the building at 1321 Broadway Ave., at a price of $30,000 on contractual terms. The committee elected the following temporary officers: Trustees: Paul Burry, John Shields and Cyrus C. Storm, Secretary: Glenn Webber, Treasurer: Cyrus C. Storm, Pulpit Committee: Percy Boston, Reuben Johnson and Cyrus C. Storm. The committee chose the name BROADWAY CHRISTIAN CHURCH. The temporary trustees met with the trustees of St. John’s Lutheran Church on August 6, 1956. A verbal agreement was reached for their building and furnishings at $30,000. On Tuesday, August 7, 1956, the temporary trustees met again with the Lutheran trustees at Gilkerson’s Law Office and arranged for a written contract. Temporary treasurer, Cyrus C. Storm, began receiving contributions toward purchase of the building on Saturday, August 11, 1956. On August 13, 1956, a meeting was held at the church for the election of regular officers of the new congregation. Chairman, Percy Boston, Trustees, Reuben Johnson, Paul Burry, Cyrus C. Storm and Clerk, Robert Ground were all elected to serve in their respective roles. Mrs. Lenora Howard, M/M

Paul Burry, M/M Percy Boston, Glen Cornell, Mrs. Van Hanna Jr., M/M Glenn Webber, M/M Gordon Cornell, M/M Earl White, M/M Reuben Johnson, M/M Cyrus C. Storm, M/M Harry Hood, M/M David Hudson, Don Rodebaugh, Raymond Rodebaugh, Robert Ground, John Lawyer, Ellis Tingley, John Shields and M/M Maurice Shanholtzer all attended this meeting. The first worship services were held Sunday, August 19, 1956, at the newly purchased church at 9:30am. The congregation sang, took communion, and Acts 2:37-42 was read during the service. A short comment was given on Acts 2:42 by Percy Boston. The 65 people in attendance then divided into groups and held the first Bible School session. Earl C. Hargrove, president of Lincoln Bible Institute, Lincoln, IL, preached at the 7:30 evening service with an attendance of 112 people. The second Sunday, August 26, 1956, Clarence McFadden of Lincoln Bible Institute, preached at both morning and evening services. During a meeting held at the church on Thursday, September 6, 1956, an invitation was extended to Howard D. McFadden, asking him to be the first full time minister of Broadway Christian Church. The temporary minister, Marion Porter, gave an invitation Sunday morning, September 30, 1956, for the people to place their names in the church membership book. 93 people signed the charter. One person came by confession of faith and request for baptism. There were 118 members when the charter was closed on November 18, 1956. In a special service held Sunday evening, October 28, 1956, Howard D. McFadden was installed as the full time minister of the newly formed Broadway Christian Church. He served faithfully in the ministry until 1967. Beyond the First Year From its beginning, the congregation was vibrantly alive and grew steadily in attendance. In the fall of 1967, David Pieratt was called to minister to the congregation until 1969. In the fall of 1969, Bill Stark became the senior minister. In 1976, Broadway Christian Church had outgrown the original location. The church purchased the former St. Joseph School for $250,000 at 1205 S. 9th Street. Located on nine acres of land, the building was comprised of classrooms, offices, a library and a multipurpose room. The multipurpose room was used for worship until the construction of the auditorium in 1981. With steadily growing attendance, a second worship service was added in 1993. Another building addition, consisting of several classrooms as well as a banquet room (now known as room 12) was added in 1999, and our third Sunday morning worship service was added in 2003. The auditorium was remodeled and more nursery, office, and foyer space was built in 2003 as well. In 2000, following the retirement of longtime Senior Minister Bill Stark, Marvin Flowers was called to be Senior Minister. He served from 2000 until 2007. Greg Sexton became Senior Minister in 2007 and is still serving in that role today. Currently, Broadway averages 732 people a week in worship. Eight people serve on ministerial staff, as well as several full and part time people in support areas. God has truly blessed Broadway through the years with many faithful people who have contributed and sacrificed to make Broadway Christian Church the church it is today.