KILLEEN, Texas (KXXV) — Simmonsville Missionary Baptist Church is a total loss after a fire broke out from a neighboring lot, but the pastor and congregation say the church's legacy will continue.
Just one day after watching their building go up in flames, community members and leaders returned to the same spot with prayers of hope.
Gwendolyn Tyler has been a member for more than 40 years. She said the congregation had just celebrated a joyous 75th anniversary the Sunday before the fire.
"I just started thinking about all the memories, all the things that we've done, and then I started thinking about Sunday, what a glorious time we had in the Lord," Tyler said.
"We have been together, we have prayed together, and so I think right now this is just a test of our faithfulness, a test of our togetherness. This is the time when we, our scripture come to life," Tyler said.
Frank Washington attended the church with his aunt in the 1980s and said it was a safe haven for the Black community in Killeen.
"It's a real family oriented church. It was one of the churches you wanted to go to. Back then, it was really only two black churches...It meant a lot to the black community of Killeen. It wasn't really a lot for the black community of Killeen to do and that's a place where, more or less, the black community came together," Washington said.
As the fire burned, church and community members gathered to pray and worship amid the devastation. Deon Moore lives near the church and was one of the first to see the smoke.
"It's amazing that even then right as the fires happening, everybody at least took the time out to reverence God and know that this was an opportunity for something bigger," Moore said.
Pastor Deric Jones chose to continue the church's normal schedule, still holding their Wednesday prayer service. He said the response in the 24 hours following the fire was overwhelming and encouraging, and that the church's legacy will extend far beyond brick and mortar.
"God is still good, even in this process. Even though this hurts, even though there are memories in that building, the church is still intact. And what I mean by the church, the spiritual church, the church is in our heart. That's just a physical building," Jones said.
The building was deemed a total loss. Jones is continuing to ask for prayers and support from the community as they decide on next steps.
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