HISTORY OF THE CHURCH OF CHRIST AT GRAND BLANC

Christians worship at Grand Blanc at 4028 E. Hill Road (at the corner of Hill and Center Roads) holding to the New Testament Pattern as outlined by God. Man does not command, change, or establish doctrine, thus we are not a denomination, but adhere to Jesus Christ as Lord of Lords and King of Kings and glorify Him.

The church of Christ at Grand Blanc, Michigan began on 33 AD on the Day of Pentecost as recorded in Acts chapter two. Precious souls have been added by God to His church since that day (Acts 2:47).

Church of Christ at Grand Blanc, Michigan.

Sister Bessie Taylor was the last member of the church here in Grand Blanc who knew its early history from 1942. Ted and Bessie Taylor came to Grand Blanc because Brother Ted Taylor was a song leader. He led singing at Grand Blanc church of Christ for 40 years until 1983. He passed away in November 1985. Sister Bessie Taylor, passed away in 1991, and it is to her, Bernie Fair and Terry Fair we owe for the diligent recording of this history.

In 1942 Grand Blanc as a town was a wide spot on Saginaw Road that serviced the neighboring farming community. It had a mill, a train station, two gas stations, one school, a barber shop, plumbing shop, post office, small grocery store, small restaurant, bar, insurance office, one drug store, three small churches, and important to the children and those passing thru, a BoKay Ice Cream Shop where for a nickel you could get a cone with five different flavors of sherbert. Also on the northern outskirts of Grand Blanc, just south of a community known as Thrift City, General Motors was building a plant later known as the “Tank Plant,” where they were going to employ 1200 workers. This was looked on with glee by the surrounding area as GM paid great wages, up to $1.25 an hour for unskilled labor and even more if you had a skill, such as welding. Of course commodities were much cheaper in 1941. For example, you could buy the following in downtown Flint:

Stripped Down Standard Chevrolet $600.00
Radio Phonograph Combination $99.00
Sears Sheets $.67 each
Penney’s Towels $.15 each
Penney’s Washcloths $.02 each
Jell-O $.07 box
Chicken $.23/lb.


Grand Blanc was a typical small town serving a farming community.

An event that changed or affected in some way every family in our nation was December 7, 1941, a day our President, Franklin D. Roosevelt stated, would “Live in Infamy.” The Japanese Navy in a surprise attack on Pearl Harbor virtually destroyed the American Pacific Fleet. Our country was at war.

It was during the rationing of essential products necessary to the war effort, General Motors and other manufacturing plants rapidly converted their plants from auto production to war material, that the church was established in Grand Blanc.

Five families who lived in the Grand Blanc area at the time had a major influence upon the establishment of the congregation. They were: Jim Thoroman and Family, Roy Thoroman and Family, Carlton Scruggs and Family, Louie Pulliam Sr. and Family, Plez Carpenter and Family. Besides those five families, E. E. Wallace, a plumbing contractor who had been preaching at Bristol Road for two years, became available and agreed to come to Grand Blanc to preach.

So, on April 12, 1942 the first service was held in the Grand Blanc Community Hall with 60 people present, most being members of the church. The summer of 1942 a tent meeting was planned with Brother W. L. Totty of Indianapolis agreeing to do the preaching. A tent was erected on the southeast corner of Saginaw and Perry Road where the Speedway gas station now stands. The meeting was considered very successful, attendance was good and there were five additions. In the first year, 25 additions of which 20 were by baptism, the need for a building became apparent. Plans were made and a building fund was started.

Early in 1943 the property at the corner of Center Rd. and McFarland St. was purchased and shortly thereafter work started on the building and the cornerstone was laid in 1944. Due to shortages of manpower, material and funds, most of the work was done by hand. Help came from other congregations in the area but it was sporadic. Progress was slow and often discouraging and would have stopped altogether if not for the outstanding effort of E. E. Wallace. He would not quit and he encouraged others until all were devoted to a building program. An example: Bricks were almost impossible to acquire. E. E. Wallace found out that AC Spark Plug was demolishing a building and that he could have the bricks for hauling them away. The bricks, of course, were dirty with grime and mortar and had to be cleaned individually and again the family of our Lord came to the rescue. Women and children would clean bricks by day and the men of the congregation would lay them after getting out of work in the evening. If you look, the old building carefully, you will notice that the bricks on the tower are different than those on the rest of the building as the original supply from AC was not sufficient.

A building suitable for worship and service was completed at a great sacrifice. The first service was held in the spring of 1945 at a total cost of $20,743.00. The congregation had grown rapidly over the next three years that they have been able to build a new building. Elders were appointed: Arthur Morford and Isom Sparks and deacons: Herbert Fisher, Donovan Willis and Elmer Detloff.

E.E. Wallace, who had preached for the congregation since its origin, left to establish a church in Saginaw in 1948. Arthur Beauchamp, who was preaching in Lansing at the time, agreed to come to Grand Blanc and arrived in September of 1948. He was a businessman in the Flint area, and served the church well, until a full time minister could be afforded.

In June of 1951 Kenneth Maynard came to serve the congregation. He and his family lived in an apartment belonging to a member of the congregation until the spring of 1952, when a home was built next to the church building and was ready for occupancy.

In January of 1953 Kenneth Maynard moved to Monroe, Michigan to work with the church there. In June of 1953 Warren Whitelaw became the minister. He stayed until 1955 when he moved to Valparaiso, Indiana to work with the Schultz Lewis Children’s home.

In June of 1955 J. Allen Barber began working with Grand Blanc and stayed nearly three years. He left in February 1958 to accept the work of the church in South Point, Ohio. In June of 1958 Hoy Ledbetter began his work with the congregation.

The church continued to grow and by 1960 it had outgrown its building. A building committee consisting of Herbert and Maurice Fisher, Bill Hainline, and Jack Preston and Hoy Ledbetter was formed. The present site was found to be available and on February 1, 1961 the final papers were signed for eight acres of land. Nurmi, Nelson & Associates were hired as architects.

A model was prepared and presented to the congregation where it was overwhelmingly approved. A building and finance committee began the sale of one hundred and twenty five thousand dollars in church bonds. Hoy Ledbetter resigned in November of 1961 and moved to the West Dearborn Church of Christ in January 26, 1962. Edward Anderson of Morrison, Tennessee became the minister on April 8, 1962 and also agreed to help with the building program.

Work on the new building started in the fall of 1962 and continued through the winter months. On April 7, 1963 the congregation met for the first time in the new structure. The formal opening was on May 19, 1963 and was considered immensely successful with an attendance of 335 and a contribution of $1123.00.

In March of 1964 Eddie Anderson took a preaching position with the Mt. Morris congregation. From March thru August we were without a regular preacher. Many men from the brotherhood filled in on a weekly basis. Among them was Norman Haight from our own congregation, Milton Fletcher from Michigan Christian College and Jim Grotts from the Bristol Road church of Christ. In November of 1964, Hoy Ledbetter, who had been preaching for West Dearborn congregation for two and one half years, returned to Grand Blanc church of Christ for four years until 1968.

Five good and faithful men were chosen as Elders and three as deacons. Other congregations helped and supported the work at Grand Blanc.

Robert Buchanan of Chattanooga, Tennessee became our regular minister on January 26, 1969. A personal work program began in June of 1969 and the church began to grow. Robert Buchanan moved to Flat Rock, Michigan. In August of 1972, Lacy Taylor, who was attending the Pontiac School of Preaching, came to work with us. A bus ministry was started with the acquisition of two buses. In July of 1974, Bud Mills who was an Elder of the Bristol Road church of Christ came to preach until a full time preacher could be secured.

In July of 1975 David Stites and his family moved to Grand Blanc to become a full time minister and the church began to grow and prosper.

On September 18, 1977 the Grand Blanc congregation celebrated the burning of the mortgage on our building.

In November of 1978, David Stites resigned and moved to Elyria, Ohio. Again we were without a full time preacher for almost ten months, and again we had many guest speakers with the assistance of the other congregations in the area.

In September of 1979 Steve Prestidge accepted the work here at Grand Blanc. He was a good worker and well liked by all and the church was growing. Steve, however, wished to return to his home area in Ohio and thus resigned in June of 1980.

In August 1980, Mike Scholten preached through 1987. In January of 1988 David Nelson assumed the responsibilities of a full time minister and remained until 1993. Brother Bud Mills filled in again while in between ministers. He preached until 1995.

Willie Long was secured as a preacher from 1995 to 1998. He retired from teaching public school in Detroit and moved south (1999).

During his plan to retire the congregation secured Michael Golwitzer in 1998. The congregation had 22 members. Latin American Missions has been an evangelism effort of this congregation since 1999. They run a school of preaching and support mission trips and preachers throughout Latin America. We have supported other mission fields throughout the world as the need arises. A food closet has fed many who were in need.

We manage and teach by means of a Web Page. As of this date we have had over 61,000 visitors to the web site (www.churchofchrist-grandblanc.com).

In 2000 the congregation included in our labor for the Lord support and sponsorship of a mission to Maasin City, Philippines. Brother Sam Octobre is the preacher who went to this city where no congregation existed. He and his wife Garnet (En en) returned to the United States in December 2003. He started preaching in Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan in the Upper Peninsula with the West 8th Avenue church of Christ in April 2004. Brother Octobre and Garnet moved south to Nevada in 2004.

In 2000 the congregation reached into the homes of over 2,000,000 by mailing out the House-to-House and Heart to Heart publication. Visitors, Bible studies, correspondence courses, food closet and requests for information have resulted from this work. Several have been baptized and many visitors continue to come each week.

Training of preachers has been a goal of the congregation. Three men received support to attend preaching school. Brother Collin Pinkston was supported through preaching school and for two years at the Gibson Road Church of Christ. Michael A. Golwitzer II was supported through preaching school and is now preaching at the Milan church of Christ in Milan, Michigan since November 2007. Sam Octobre was supported in preaching school and as a missionary for two years in the Philippines.


In 2002 the congregation supported and sponsored the church of Christ, Deaf Congregation with the help of area congregations. Sam Roach agreed to work with us in reaching the lost of the deaf community. Many recognized the need and we made an effort to reach the deaf establishing a congregation with a preacher to the deaf. The work started with an Open House on November 3, 2002 with services to follow on November 10, 2002. This work continued for one year. Brother Roach upon completion of his work here went to the Philippines to teach in a deaf school.

In 2005 the congregation helped through the work of Online Academy of Biblical Studies (OABS) in Dyersburg, TN to put lectureships and gospel meetings live on the internet and archive them to our website. Since 2005 we archived the Michigan Bible Lectureship and many gospel meetings held in Michigan and one in Indiana. (http://www.oabs.org). This is an exciting work that we invite you to take advantage for your study of God's Word.

In 2007 Brother Don Pierson stepped down as an elder due to health problems. Brother Ralph Putman and Charles Marchbanks were installed as elders. A dinner was given to honor Brother Don Pierson for his 32 years service as an elder at Grand Blanc congregation. Brother Bill Hobson was recognized for his long service as an elder as well. Attendance was 120 for this special event.

All that is accomplished by the Christians worshiping at Grand Blanc is owed to Jesus Christ and Him crucified. We have nothing to glory in, except the great blessing of serving, worshipping and glorifying our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

The congregation has continued to grow spiritually and numerically. Opportunities abound in the Grand Blanc Township in 2008 with many new homes being built within a few miles of the church building. We find our location in the center of the growing area. The many precious souls brought to our front door in the new developments are the focus of evangelistic efforts.

The industrious history of reaching precious souls of the church of Christ located in Grand Blanc is because of the blessings of God and many dedicated and hard working Christians. Many have supported the preaching and teaching of God’s Word over the years. Our Christ likeness is always at the forefront, and as the going got tough many responded with vigilance and encouragement to live our lives more perfectly to adorn the doctrine of Jesus Christ. In 2008 the membership is 150.

To all who had a part in this great work, we say, as the Hebrew writer would say, “By him therefore let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually, that is, the fruit of our lips giving thanks to his name” (Heb. 13:15).

Ralph Putman and Charles Marchbanks - Elders