OUR HISTORY
We, the current members of the Union Grove Missionary Baptist Church, pay tribute to those of the past and present who strongly influenced the planning of the church. Through their consecrated service, continued prayers, and spiritual and physical contributions, our church has progressed greatly. In retrospect, one might visualized the first members as a band of God-fearing, Bible-believing Christians with a mission to serve God in spirit and in truth.

In the year of our Lord 1887, these members gathered under a bush harbor located on a tract of land adjacent to Highway 247. This land was approximately on block north of Green Street, Post Office Box B. These spirit-filled members gathered to give thanks and to praise God for their many blessings. This assembly sparked the onset of Union Grove as a place of worship in a small farming town in Georgia called Wellston, which is known currently as Warner Robins. As the membership grew, the space under the bush harbor was inadequate to meet the needs of the congregation. To accommodate this need, in 1887, R.W. and J.W. Johnson granted land to Union Grove for public worship.

In the year of our Lord 1887, these members gathered under a bush harbor located on a tract of land adjacent to Highway 247. This land was approximately on block north of Green Street, Post Office Box B. These spirit-filled members gathered to give thanks and to praise God for their many blessings. This assembly sparked the onset of Union Grove as a place of worship in a small farming town in Georgia called Wellston, which is known currently as Warner Robins. As the membership grew, the space under the bush harbor was inadequate to meet the needs of the congregation. To accommodate this need, in 1887, R.W. and J.W. Johnson granted land to Union Grove for public worship.

Many significant events and appointments were made during the 1940s. Union Grove served as a temporary school from 1947-1949 for approximately 75 students while Pearl Stephens School under construction. During the 1960s, Minister A.G. Tharpe initiated a remodeling of the church to include the following: a choir stand, bathrooms in the front, inside baptismal pool, a three-foot partition around the pulpit, new windows, lights and a steeple.

On December 6, 1976, Minister Bobby L. Smith served as interim pastor and Jerome Stephens served as chairperson of a building construction project to build a new fellowship hall. To accomplish this project, the deacons donated 3,000 hours of volunteer work. The improvements included a remodeled sanctuary, additional classrooms for Sunday school, a church office, a pastor’s study, a nursery, central heating and air, a baptismal pool, and a fully equipped kitchen.       On March 18, 2002, the Warner Robins City Council agreed to sell about three acres on South Davis Drive to UGMBC so the congregation, could expand the community outreach programs. These acres are within a few blocks of the church.

Some of the previous pastors of Union Grove include: Pastor L.J. Ross, Pastor R.D. Cummings, Pastor J.H. Williams, Pastor A.G. Tharpe, Pastor Bobby L. Hicks, and Pastor Arthur L. Hicks. On October 12, 2002, church members cast ballots consisting of three names to replace Pastor Hicks as pastor of UGMBC. The final ballot tabulation revealed that Pastor David Anthony Clarke, Sr. from Second Mt. Olive Baptist Church, Albany, Georgia. On December 15, 2002, Lorenzo L. Heard, Pastor of Second Mt. Olive Baptist Church, installed him as pastor.

Traditionally, our members have been God-fearing and Bible-believing Christians who supported the church spiritually and physically. We, the current members, will continue to do so. UGMBC church’s by-laws read:

“We will be led by the Holy Spirit, to walk together in Christian love; To strive for the advancement of this church, in knowledge, holiness and comfort; To promote its prosperity and spirituality; To sustain its worship, ordinances, discipline and doctrine; And to contribute cheerfully and regularly to support of the ministry, the expenses of the church, the relief of the poor and spread the gospel through all nations”