I was radically saved and called to preach at the age of seventeen years old, a junior in high school, and started pastoring Southern Baptist churches when I was twenty years old.”Sam Hollis, East Side Baptist Church’s Pastor of Outreach
CULLMAN – East Side Baptist Church was hit hard by the tornadoes that came through Cullman on April 27, 2011. Thankfully, with God’s help and the dedication of many faithful church and community members, East Side Baptist has been rebuilt and is stronger than ever before.
Located on the corner of Highway 278 East and Convent Road, the church has a variety of events coming up soon. All are invited to attend, especially those looking for a place to worship.
“We will be having a weekend of prayer and praise on March 14 and 15,” Sam Hollis, Pastor of Outreach explained. “On the 14th, members of our congregation will be coming throughout the day and volunteering for an hour to pray at the church. Then on Sunday, March 15 we will have a day of praise. We’ll have a worship celebration at 10:30 a.m. and express our gratitude and give praise to the Lord for how He has sustained us and strengthened us as we have come out of the tornado destruction of our building.”
“We are spotlighting our Celebrate Easter at East Side,” said Hollis.
“On the Friday night before Easter we are showing the nationally acclaimed movie, ‘God’s Not Dead’. I’m not sure if you realize, but Billy Coleman, former Superintendent of Education of Cullman County, had a similar ‘God’s Not Dead’ experience when he was a student at Auburn University. He will be sharing his personal testimony that same Friday night after the movie is shown.”
There will also be a Mother’s Day celebration and banquet for the ladies and a guest at East Side on Saturday Night, May 9, 2015.
The event will be catered by Stone Bridge Farms and served by the East Side men. The cost is $10 per person, and reservations must be made by calling 256- 734-6144 no later than May 6. On Sunday morning following the banquet, there will be free family pictures taken at the church.
On June 6 and 7, the church will be having a weekend Bible School from 5-8 p.m. each night for children ages 4 through sixth grade.
There will be Bible study, music, and crafts. During that time, there will be things to do for the parents of the children in Bible School. Saturday night is date night with a nursery provided and Sunday there will be a parenting seminar.
“I was radically saved and called to preach at the age of 17 years old, a junior in high school, and started pastoring Southern Baptist churches when I was 20 years old,” Hollis said.
“I served as Pastor of East Side from 1979 to 1993 and from 1993 to 2006, I was the pastor at First Baptist Church at Hayden in Blount County. I returned to East Side in 2006 as the Pastor of Outreach.”
Mr. Hollis is a graduate of Samford University and the University of Alabama at Birmingham. He and his wife, Mary, are parents to a grown son, Paul, and they have one grandchild, Elianna.
East Side Baptist Church is located at 1111 3rd St SE, Cullman, Alabama 35055. Contact them at 256-734-6144 or visit EastSideCullman.com.
