Church Changes Location and Name But Not Heart

Excited church members walked door-to-door throughout the Ballast Point neighborhoods last Sunday inviting all to share in the upcoming celebration of their updated facility at 5101 Bayshore Blvd. The grand opening of South Tampa Fellowship on Sunday, November 18 will commemorate much-anticipated progression towards reaching the community for Christ, a goal that resonates in the hearts and minds of church members.

Along with a new street address also comes a new name, South Tampa Fellowship. While the church remains a member of the Southern Baptist Convention it follows the recent trend of updating to a non-denominational title.

“We are a fellowship of believers in Jesus Christ located in South Tampa,” said Singles and Young Married Pastor James Patterson. “Since the church will still make use of the Davis Islands campus for certain activities, it is fitting for the name to encompass the entire community.”

In 2003 Ballast Point Baptist Church and Davis Island Baptist Churches merged as one body of believers. Since renovations to the Ballast Point campus began in January 2007, the 1,350 church members have been overflowing the facilities on Davis Island. After parking on the streets surrounding the church on Davis Island, the expanded parking lot is a welcomed benefit to the updated Ballast Point campus. The $8.6 million renovation funded by church members includes more classrooms, a playground, a café and a larger worship center, and fellowship hall with larger atriums. While the main worship services on Sunday and Wednesday move to the Ballast Point campus, Davis Island will still be utilized for half of the administrative offices along with various activities throughout the week including the high school ministry on Sunday evenings, singles worship service on Tuesdays, and Celebrate Recovery each Thursday.

The grand opening celebration will feature guest speaker, Ken Whitten, Senior Pastor of Idlewild Baptist Church. Sunday services will be held at 9:00 a.m. and 10:30 a.m. Please visit www.stfchurch.com for more information.


About South Tampa Fellowship

Located at 97 West Biscayne Avenue in Tampa, Florida, the church originally known as Davis Islands Community Church was started in 1962. After attendance dropped in the early nineties, the church merged with Idlewild Baptist Church in North Tampa. Idlewild Baptist Church-Davis Island held its first service in November of 1995. The church became an autonomous congregation and incorporated the name Davis Islands Baptist Church on October 1, 1999. After experiencing a similar pause in growth, Ballast Point Baptist Church sought a merger with Davis Islands Baptist Church in 2003, at which point the facilities at Ballast Point became property of Davis Islands Baptist Church. During renovation to the Ballast Point campus in 2007, the church changed names to South Tampa Fellowship in order to succinctly describe their presence throughout the community.

www.stfchurch.com

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