There will be a pastor’s anniversary event celebration honoring the 26 years of devoted service provided by Bishop Varnie N. Fullwood Sr. and Elder Idella Fullwood, First Lady. Come and join the church family at Mt. Pleasant Missionary Baptist Church Inc., 4442 Bonnettsville Road, Clinton, as they come together in unity to celebrate the church’s man and woman of God for 26 years of working for the Kingdom of God. The anniversary services are as follows: Thursday, June 20, Dr. S.E. Bryant of the Snowhill Missionary Baptist Church, Roseboro, will be guest speaker accompanied by the choir and church family; Friday, June 21, Bishop Eva Darden, pastor of House of Praise in Newton Grove, will be guest speaker accompanied by clergy members and the choir of the Southeastern District Assembly of Churches. Sunday morning worship service will begin at 10:45 a.m. on June 23 with guest speaker Pastor Willie Pennington of Kingdom Word Church, Newport News, Va., and the Mount Pleasant Mass Choir will minister through music. The culmination service will be held Sunday afternoon at 4 p.m. The guest speaker will be Pastor David Flowers of Central Baptist Church of Whiteville; he will be accompanied by his church family and choir. Make plans to attend this great series of services.

You are invited to join us for the Greater Mount Calvary Combined Choir anniversary celebration Sunday, June 30, beginning at 3:30 p.m. on Southeast Boulevard, Clinton. The groups that will be performing are the Endtime Messengers of Kinston; Prophetic Worship of Clinton; Brother Johnny and Minister Tralia Faircloth of Roseboro; Elder Antonio Patterson of Clinton; Selah of Roseboro; Faison Singers of Roseboro; William Singers of Roseboro; N.C. Prayer Tower of Clinton; Tracy Nettles McKinnon and New Destiny of Fayetteville; Blessed by Faith of Sanford and many more. For more information, call 385-4037.

The first annual Male Chorus Extravaganza will be held Saturday, June 29 at the Friendly Community Center, 421 Hanson Road, Clinton, beginning at 7 p.m. The doors will open at 6 p.m. Scheduled to appear on the program will be Cutts Chapel Male Chorus of Angier; Snowhill Male Chorus of Clinton; Jordan Temple Male Chorus of Lillington; Andrew Chapel Male Chorus of Clinton; Mount Zion Male Chorus of Dunn; First Baptist Male Chorus of Roseboro; Robinson Chapel Male Chorus of Clinton; Warsaw Male Chorus of Warsaw; Lisbon Street Male Chorus of Clinton and many others. For more information, call 910-249-2357 or 910-916-8514.

Regular morning worship service will be held at the Cedar Creek Missionary Baptist Church Sunday, June 23 at 10 a.m. The pastor, the Rev. Alice Jean Boykin, will bring the message and the adult choir will render the music. Everyone is cordially invited.

Men’s Day will be celebrated Sunday, June 23 at the First Baptist Church, Bowden, beginning at 11 a.m. The pastor, the Rev. Harold Boykin, will bring the message and the male chorus will provide the music. All are invited.

The Pastor Aide service will be held at the Running Branch Disciple of Christ Church, Clinton, Friday night, June 21, beginning at 7:30 p.m. The guest speaker will be Eldress Evelena Oliver, choir and congregation of Warsaw. On Sunday, June 23, the Ushers Anniversary will be held at 3:30 p.m. The guest speaker will be the Rev. Victor Wilson, along with his choir and congregation of the Lisbon Street Missionary Baptist Church in Clinton. The host pastor is Elder Calvin Deans. All are invited to both services.

Regular morning worship service will be held at the Browns Chapel Missionary Baptist Church, H.B. Lewis Road, Sunday, June 23 at 11 a.m. The pastor, the Rev. Jeffrey White, will bring the message and the Gospel Choir will provide the music. Don’t miss it.

Regular morning worship service will be held Sunday, June 23 at the Christ Missionary Baptist Church, 5220 Faison Hwy., Clinton, beginning at 10 a.m. The Rev. Marvin T. Clowney Sr. will bring the morning message and the youth choir will provide the music.

Vacation Bible School will be held at the Saint Stephens Holiness Church, Turkey, June 24-28, from 6 until 8 p.m. All children and adults are invited. Refreshments will be served daily.

Vacation Bible School will be held at the Union Star Free Will Baptist Church, Clinton, June 19-21 from 6 until 8 p.m. nightly. All children and adults are invited to participate. Refreshments will be served nightly. Bishop James Leftwridge is the host pastor.

Vacation Bible School is already in progress at the Littlefield Missionary Baptist Church, Newton Grove, from 6 until 8 p.m. All children and adults are invited. Refreshments will be served. The host pastor is Dr. Claudie Morrisey.

Vacation Bible School will be held at the Point Level Disciples of Christ Church, Clinton, June 26-28 at 6 p.m. Refreshments will be served each day. The host pastor is Elder Dannie Robinson.

Vacation Bible School will be held at the Big Piney Grove Missionary Baptist Church June 19-21 from 6 until 8 p.m. All children and adults are urged to participate. The host pastor is the Rev. James Mitchell.

Vacation Bible School will be held at Christ Missionary Baptist Church June 20-21 from 6 until 8 p.m. The closing of VBC and a Community Day Picnic will be held Saturday, June 22 at 11 a.m. Free dinner plates will be served and the community is invited to come and fellowship. The host pastor is the Rev. Marvin T. Clowney.

Revival will be held at the Kingdom Building Baptist Church, 2600 High House Road, Salemburg, June 26-28 at 7 p.m. nightly. Share with everyone you know. The guest speaker will be the Rev. Zephania D. Osok from Shalom Gospel Church of Capital Mega, Kenya. Come and expect a wonderful time in the Lord and you will be blessed in the Lord. The host pastor is Dr. Rudolph Tripp.

Regular morning worship service will be held at the Jackson Grove Bible Church of God Sunday, June 23 at 11 a.m. The speaker for the morning service will be Elder Patrick O. Stewart and the Gospel Choir will render the music. At 3 p.m., a birthday program will be held for Mother Ida Taylor and Sister Eva Evans. Several singing groups will be on the program, including the Gospel Lites of Angier, the New Beginners in Christ, the Chapel Hill Gospel Choir, the Robertson Brothers, soloist Stephene Johnson and others. Everyone is invited.

A Pre-Men’s Day Revival will be held at the Saint Jude Holiness Church, H.B. Lewis Road, Clinton, June 20-21 at 7:30 p.m. nightly On Thursday, June 20, Elder Raph Smith and Saint Stephens of Turkey; Friday night will be the Rev. James , choir and congregation of Saint James Church in Delway. On Sunday, June 23, Elder Willie Bryant will bring the message and the men’s choir will provide the music. At 4 p.m., there will be a male chorus singing program. The Community Male Chorus of Clinton, Cedar Point Male Chorus, Saint Stephens Male Chorus, St. Jude Male Chorus and others will participate. Elder Louise Royal is the host pastor.

Revival will be held at Elizabeth Missionary Baptist Church, 2316 Maxwell Road, Autryville, June 24-28 at 7 p.m. nightly. The Rev. Dr. Jerry Jones, pastor of First Temple Missionary Baptist Church, Greer, S.C., will be the evangelist for the week. FMI, call 567-2332.

We wish Michael Boykin a blessed anniversary during the month of July. I will tell you more about this next week.

We solicit your prayers for the sick and shut-ins everywhere.

Our love and deepest sympathy goes out to all families who have lost a loved one recently.

A thought for today: Love is not love until you share it.

Go to the church of your choice this Sunday and have a blessed week.

Mae Bell Williamson is the news columnist for Brown’s Chapel. You can reach her at 592-2468 or 709-3490.

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MOUNT OLIVE – Students in the Mount Olive College Honors Program recently spent a week overseas in the beautiful countries of Spain and Portugal. President and Mrs. Philip P. Kerstetter, Dr. and Mrs. Alan Lamm and Dr. Ivan Danchev traveled accompanied the students. Everyone involved reported having an exciting, educational experience that allowed them to enrich their own lives by learning about cultures different from their own.

In Madrid, the group visited the Royal Palace, the Plaza de Colon, the Prado Museum and the Plaza España on the Madrid City Tour. Then they traveled to Salamanca, Spain and saw the Plaza Mayor, The University of Salamanca, the Nouveau Museum, the Church of San Esteban and the Roman Bridge.

The next day they departed for Lisbon, Portugal, via the beautiful Serra da Estrela mountain range. They saw Belem Tower and visited the Cathedral of Lisbon on the Lisbon City Tour. They also enjoyed the elegant Liberdade Avenue, viewed the Monument of Discoveries and walked through the cobbled alleys of Alfama, the old fishermen’s quarter.

Junior Hannah Singleton of Goldsboro had never traveled overseas before. “I really just enjoyed the entire experience of soaking up another country and culture,” she said. “This has enhanced my college experience because it has helped to broaden my horizons. In today’s world, it helps to a have a wide world perspective and be aware of what’s happening around you. It’s not enough to just know about where you live and local experiences but to know about other cultures, religions and world perspectives.”

Recent graduates Heath Radford and Aisha Atkinson both of Goldsboro traveled to Slovenia and Croatia last year in the Honors Program. They made sure they enjoyed their last trip as MOC students. “Despite the language barriers, I honestly enjoyed being able to communicate with the local citizens of Spain and Portugal,” said Atkinson. “The people were incredibly friendly and very forthcoming when it came to discussing their cultural beliefs and values.”

“I definitely enjoyed surveying each country, and becoming awestruck by the different landmarks like the Roman aqueducts and the intricate cathedrals that words really cannot describe,” said Radford. “Visiting such places that kings and queens along with past civilizations have lived at added a sense of perspective.”

Seniors Marah Radford of Goldsboro, Amber Thompson of Radford, Virginia, and Nicole Powell of Oxford, NC developed a passion for traveling. “This journey has inspired me to travel around the world on my own,” said Radford. “I now feel comfortable enough to plan possible trips to other countries that without the experiences through MOC’s Honors Program would not have been possible.”

“We watched so many videos about Spain and Portugal, but actually being there was amazing,” said Powell. “I would love to spend more time in Europe so I can see even more places and spend a longer amount of time in each place. There is so much to learn everywhere you go that it is impossible to do so in a day or two.”

Thompson felt the same way. “This trip has inspired me to do more traveling and get involved with many different cultures,” she stated. “I enjoyed trying new foods, looking through local shops, and watching or listening to the native music.”

Senior Nicole Sparks of Songtan, Korea was grateful for the opportunity MOC provided her and other students in the Honors Program. “Going to a small school, people seem to believe that it may limit the opportunities larger schools may provide, such a studying abroad for a semester,” said Sparks. “However, this trip from the Honors Program was the experience of a lifetime that many of us may not be able to experience again.”

Mount Olive College is a private institution rooted in the liberal arts tradition with defining Christian values. The college, sponsored by the Convention of Original Free Will Baptists, has locations in Mount Olive, New Bern, Wilmington, Goldsboro, Research Triangle Park, Washington and Jacksonville. For more information, visit www.moc.edu.

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Stanley Matthews III received his doctorate of Oral Maxillofacial Dental Surgery from the Woodhall Medical Center School of Medicine in North Brooklyn, N.Y. on May 3.

Dr. Matthews is now working at Coney Island and Staten Island Hospital in private practice.

He is the son of the late Stanley Matthews Jr. and the grandson of the late Stanley Edward Matthews. His mother is Loretta Matthews of Baltimore, Md. and his aunt of Bessie Matthews of Salemburg. Dr. Matthews has other relatives in the Sampson County area, as well as in Virginia and Maryland.

Born and raised in Baltimore, as a small child Matthews’ dream was to become a doctor, something he realized and something, his family said, they took much pride in, especially since he is the first doctor and surgeon in the family.

Dr. Matthews will leave June 30 on a mission trip to Jamaica and upon his return there will be a reception in his honor to be held in the Clinton area for family and friends.