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Announcements 

May 31, 2026

The 2nd Baptist Church ushers will be collecting food donations as part of the Southeastern District (SED) Usher Ministry from May 21 through June 7.   Donation barrels are located in the Annex Lobby.  All food donated from SED Ushers doing the conference go the church's Feed the Needy Pantry.

Items needed include snack size chips, cereal, Pop Tarts, canned fruit, hot dogs, canned foods peanut butter and jelly.

Sunday, May 31, 2026 3:30 pm, Zone III Meeting, West Baden First Missionary Baptist Church, 8034 W. Sinclair Street, West Baden Springs IN 47469.

June 8 through June 12, 2026 SED Conference

June 8-June 9, The Feed the Needy Food Pantry WILL NOT be open nor will there be Bible Study

July 7 through July 9, Vacation Bible School.  More information to follow.

The Missionary Circle Project:  Hannah House

The Missionary Circle will be taking up a collection to help Hannah House with a long list of items that you will find posted on the bulletin board.  Bins will be provided for collection that will carry through to June 10, 2026.

Keep In Prayer

Harry Price III, Arletha Dabney, The John Lee Family, Ron Charles Scarbrough, The Anna Barnhill Family, Teretta Wakefield, Khalil Morris, the Family of Charles Williams, Jr., Tyrone Morris, Diane Smith, Serafin Coronel Molina, Ching-Yu, Percy  & Dr. Jacqueline Webb,  Veodies Callaway, Robert Motley, Keith Barnard, Lisa Stieglitz, Michael Dabney, Terry Drescher, Lola Thompson.

Black History Spotlight:  Memorial Day

Last weekend we celebrated Memorial Day.  It was only on that day that I learned another piece of Black History that, once again, has been buried from view.  Did you know that Memorial Day started out as Decoration Day May 1, 1865 in Charleston, SC weeks after the Civil War had ended? And, it was started by former slaves?  

Charleston was ruins and the Plantation Owner elites had abandoned the city, including the open air prison for Union soldiers at the Washington Racetrack.  Some 257 Union prisoners had died of disease and exposure and had been thrown into a common pit behind the grandstand. Twenty-eight formerly enslaved people exhumed the bodies and gave them a proper burial at what became known as the Martyrs of the Racecourse. On May 1, 1865, more than 10,000 formerly enslaved people and white abolitionists marched to the racecourse to honor the dead. The procession was led by 3,000 schoolchildren carrying roses and lilacs singing John Brown’s Body.  They were followed by women with baskets of wreaths, and men marching with a brigade of Union soldiers, including the 54th Massachusetts and Colored Troops.  They covered the graves with these flowers and wreaths as black pastors read scripture from the grandstand.  And thus, we had the first “Decoration Day”.  Of course it was usurped by the white establishment in what was to become Memorial Day – but long before it became a national holiday, it was a sacred black tradition.   

If any of you would like to contribute to the Black History Spotlight, please feel free to send me your work and I will post it in these Announcements.  Now, more than ever, we need to keep black history alive and kicking. 

Announcements 

May 10, 2026

HAPPY MOTHERS’ DAY!!

Today, May 10, 2026 After Service:  There will be a meeting of the Southeastern District Planning Committee after church on SUNDAY, MAY 10 after church.

Tuesday, May 12, 2026 6pm Trustees’ Meeting

Friday, May 16, 2026 1st Quarter Business Meeting 6:30pm

Tuesday, May 19, 2026 2pm Missionary Circle

The Missionary Circle Project:  Hannah House

The Missionary Circle will be taking up a collection to help Hannah House with a long list of items that you will find posted on the bulletin board.  Bins will be provided for collection that will carry through to June 10, 2026.

Keep In Prayer

Tyrone Morris, Joanne Swayze, The Family of Rev. LaVon Mann, the Jesse Mosley Family, Larry Livingston, Harry Price III, Calloway Perine, Diane Smith The Geoff Bradley Family, Donetta Jackson, O.C. Caston (brother to Martha Chamberlain), Serafin Coronel Molina, Ching-Yu, The Pazlii Wilson Family (great niece to Jackie Perry), Percy  & Dr. Jacqueline Webb,  The Barbara Fuqua Family, Veodies Callaway, Robert Motley, The Jackie and Robert Perry Family, Keith Barnard, Lisa Stieglitz, Michael Dabney, Terry Drescher, Arletha Dabney, Lola Thompson.

Announcements 

May 3, 2026, 2026

Today, May 3, 2026 After Service:  There will be a meeting of the 2nd Baptist Culinary Committee and the SED Food Committee after church on Sunday, MAY 3.  If you are a member of the Culinary Committee, please plan on attending.

Friday, May 8, 2026 6:30 pm 1st Quarter Business Meeting in the Annex and on Zoom.

Sunday, May 10, 2026 After Service:  There will be a meeting of the Southeastern District Planning Committee after church on SUNDAY, MAY 10 after church.

Tuesday, May 12, 2026 6pm Trustees’ Meeting

Tuesday, May 19, 2026 2pm Missionary Circle

The Missionary Circle Project:  Hannah House

The Missionary Circle will be taking up a collection to help Hannah House with a long list of items that you will find posted on the bulletin board.  Bins will be provided for collection that will carry through to June 10, 2026.

Keep In Prayer

Tyrone Morris, Joanne Swayze, The Family of Rev. LaVon Mann, the Jesse Mosley Family, Larry Livingston, Harry Price III, Calloway Perine, Diane Smith The Geoff Bradley Family, Donetta Jackson, O.C. Caston (brother to Martha Chamberlain), Serafin Coronel Molina, Ching-Yu, The Pazlii Wilson Family (great niece to Jackie Perry), Percy  & Dr. Jacqueline Webb,  The Barbara Fuqua Family, Veodies Callaway, Robert Motley, The Jackie and Robert Perry Family, Keith Barnard, Lisa Stieglitz, Michael Dabney, Terry Drescher, Arletha Dabney, Lola Thompson.

Black History Spotlight:  The Cotton Club

The Cotton Club!  To me, the Cotton Club was where you could hear Duke Ellington live and the Nicholas Brothers doing their thing.  There was Cab Calloway, Billie Holiday, Bill Robinson, Lena Horne – the list could go on and on.  It showed up in movies from the 30’s, which usually involved rich white people barhopping on a Saturday night sometimes to a Cole Porter soundtrack.  I remember a montage on screen of the neon signs of The Savoy, the Stork Club, and the Cotton Club. Scantily clad chorus girls danced across the screen.  That was New York City and that was the Cotton Club for a lot of people who lived in the middle of America and would probably never go there themselves.

But what was the Cotton Club?  It started as an intimate supper club on the upper floor of a building at the corner of 142nd Street and Lenox Avenue in the heart of Harlem called Club Deluxe. Heavyweight Jack Johnson started it.  In 1923, the club was taken over by Owney Madden, a bootlegger and gangster, who renamed it The Cotton Club.  He and Jack made a deal – Johnson was the manager, Owney was the business – he was running his “#1 with the Prohibition Crowd” through the place.  In fact the club was raided and shut down in 1925.  Wikipedia notes that it was soon re-opened without any interference from the police. Read into that what you want. So by 1926, Owney had his bootleg operation, his high class clientele, and the Duke Ellington Orchestra as your house band, and $2 dollar cover charges on weekday! Quite the rise for the leader of the Irish Gopher Gang from Hell’s Kitchen and who had just gotten out of Sing-Sing in 1923.

Madden’s vision for the Cotton Club was to provide “authentic black entertainment to a wealthy, whites-only audience” – and sell some booze along the way.  Yes, you heard that right.  It was the venue for some of the most popular music and performers in the country – but their friends and fans couldn’t watch them perform live.  Yes, there were exceptions – celebrities like Ethel Waters and Bill Robinson were allowed in – but the rest?  Go meet your buddies over in the basement at 646 Lennox.  That’s where many of the performers went to unwind after the shows – because of course it was understood they would be there since they weren’t supposed to fraternize with the clientele.

So what was Owney’s idea of “authentic black entertainment”? Well he relied heavily on jungle themes and the old Plantation South.  Ellington was expected to provide a “jungle beat” for the jungle nights and I’m guessing something sentimental for that Ol’ Black South.  The chorus girls were expected to be “tall, tan and terrific” which meant they had to be at least 5’6”, light skinned and under 21.  Lena Horne started as a chorus girl at 16.  

Langston Hughes, one of those few black celebrity customers, often went to the club in the 1920’s and 30’s.  Where else could you hear the likes of Ellington and Calloway, Dorothy Dandridge and Ethel Waters.  In his memoir, though, he summed up the price for such pleasure,…“it was a Jim Crow club for gangsters and monied whites”.  He believed Madden’s idea of authentic black entertainment was similar to the entertainment provided at a zoo and that white “strangers were given the best ringside tables to sit and stare at the Negro customers like amusing animals in a zoo”

In 1935 it opened its doors to black patrons in anticipation of the Joe Louis fight that year.  The club was closed temporarily in 1936 due to race riots in Harlem.  When it reopened, it had moved itself to Broadway and 7th Avenue and presented one of its most extravagant musical revues on September 24, 1936.  Bill Robinson and Cab Calloway and “a roster of 130 performers”.  It was a hit.  At that time, Robinson was pulling a salary of $3,500 a week – the highest salary ever paid to a black entertainer on Broadway and a higher salary than any nightclub performer.

By 1940 it had closed.  Wikepedia notes : “The club closed permanently in 1940 under pressure of higher rents, changing taste, and a federal investigation into the alleged tax evasion of Manhattan night club owners”.

So there you have it.  If you want to see some of the performers noted here, there are several clips on YouTube 

Cab Calloway and the Nicholas Brothers “Jumpin’ Jive” https://youtu.be/_8yGGtVKrD8?si=jc4y_7lFvpjmdbEI

Duke Ellington “Old Man Blues” (1930) https://youtu.be/RGb6fpS4Ais?si=28rL0bkQ7yNe28kO

Additional information can be found:  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cotton_Club

https://www.britannica.com/topic/Cotton-Club

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jazz_(miniseries)

Voting Spotlight

As I think we all would agree that information regarding the upcoming elections both locally, at the state level and at the national level is of utmost importance.  Please take the time to register if you have not.  Please check your registration status to ensure your registration matches the required id to vote.  Going forward I would like to add this to our weekly announcements along with our Black History Spotlight to keep us all up to date on our upcoming elections.

1. https://indianavoters.in.gov/ From this link you will be able to register, check your registration status, and find your polling station.

2. The registration deadline for primary voting is Monday, April 6.  You can register by mail, in person, or online:

3. Early voting started on April 7 at Shower’s Plaza, 501 N. Morton Street

4. Indiana Primary is Tuesday, May 5, 2026

5. SBC will be providing transportation as needed to the polls – more information

Announcements 

April 19, 2026

Today, April 19, 2026 Memorial Service for the wife of Calloway Perine, Kerrie-Ann Fortune.  Family/Friends Visitation from 1pm – 2pm with Services starting at 2pm.  A repast will follow in the Annex.

Saturday, April 25, 2026 Men/Women’s Breakfast Annex

Friday, May 8, 2026 6:30 pm 1st Quarter Business Meeting in the Annex and on Zoom.

Tuesday, May 12, 2026 6pm Trustees’ Meeting

Tuesday, May 19, 2026 2pm Missionary Circle

The Missionary Circle Project:  Hannah House

The Missionary Circle will be taking up a collection to help Hannah House with a long list of items that you will find posted on the bulletin board.  Bins will be provided for collection that will carry through to June 10, 2026.

Keep In Prayer

Joanne Swayze, The Family of Rev. LaVon Mann, Jesse Mosley, Larry Livingston, Harry Price III, Calloway Perine, Diane Smith The Geoff Bradley Family, Donetta Jackson, O.C. Caston (brother to Martha Chamberlain), Serafin Coronel Molina, Ching-Yu, The Pazlii Wilson Family (great niece to Jackie Perry), Percy  & Dr. Jacqueline Webb,  The Barbara Fuqua Family, Veodies Callaway, Robert Motley, The Jackie and Robert Perry Family, Keith Barnard, Lisa Stieglitz, Michael Dabney, Terry Drescher, Arletha Dabney, Lola Thompson.

Black History Spotlight:  Gil Scott-Heron

I first heard about Gil Scott-Heron watching the Kendrick Lamar half-time show at the 2025 Superbowl referencing his poem, “The Revolution Will Not Be Televised”.  More recently, with the Artemis II mission around the moon, his poem, “Whitey On the Moon”, has gone viral.  With no disrespect for the mission itself, this tone poem seems as relevant today as it did in 1970. Below is a paragraph from Wikipedia regarding Scott-Heron.  There are number of clips of these and other works that can be found on YouTube.  Find out more about his life and his work at the link below.  

“Gilbert Scott-Heron (April 1, 1949 – May 27, 2011)[8] was an American jazz poet, singer,[3] musician and author, known for his work as a spoken-word performer in the 1970s and 1980s. His collaborative efforts with musician Brian Jackson fused jazz, blues and soul with lyrics relative to social and political issues of the time, delivered in both rapping and melismatic vocal styles. He referred to himself as a "bluesologist",[9] his own term for "a scientist who is concerned with the origin of the blues".[note 1][10] His poem "The Revolution Will Not Be Televised", delivered over a jazz-soul beat, is considered a major influence on hip hop music.[11] “  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gil_Scott-Heron

Voting Spotlight

As I think we all would agree that information regarding the upcoming elections both locally, at the state level and at the national level is of utmost importance.  Please take the time to register if you have not.  Please check your registration status to ensure your registration matches the required id to vote.  Going forward I would like to add this to our weekly announcements along with our Black History Spotlight to keep us all up to date on our upcoming elections.

1. https://indianavoters.in.gov/ From this link you will be able to register, check your registration status, and find your polling station.

2. The registration deadline for primary voting is Monday, April 6.  You can register by mail, in person, or online:

3. Early voting started on April 7 at Shower’s Plaza, 501 N. Morton Street

4. Indiana Primary is Tuesday, May 5, 2026

5. SBC will be providing transportation as needed to the polls – more information to follow.

Announcements 

April 12, 2026

Tuesday, April 14, 2026 6pm Trustees’ Meeting

Tuesday, April 14, 2026 2pm, Missionary Circle Please note this is a date change.

Sunday, April 19, 2026 Memorial Service for the wife of Calloway Perine, Kerrie-Ann Fortune.  Family/Friends Visitation from 1pm – 2pm with Services starting at 2pm.  A repast will follow in the Annex.

Saturday, April 25, 2026 Men/Women’s Breakfast Annex

The Missionary Circle Project:  Hannah House

The Missionary Circle will be taking up a collection to help Hannah House with a long list of items that you will find posted on the bulletin board.  Bins will be provided for collection that will carry through to June 10, 2026.

Keep In Prayer

Larry Livingston, Harry Price III, Calloway Perine, Diane Smith The Geoff Bradley Family, Donetta Jackson, Joanne Swayze, O.C. Caston (brother to Martha Chamberlain), Serafin Coronel Molina, Ching-Yu, The Pazlii Wilson Family (great niece to Jackie Perry), Percy  & Dr. Jacqueline Webb,  The Barbara Fuqua Family, Veodies Callaway, Robert Motley, The Jackie and Robert Perry Family, Keith Barnard, Lisa Stieglitz, Michael Dabney, Terry Drescher, Arletha Dabney, Lola Thompson.

Black History Spotlight:  Freedom House Ambulance Service

Freedom House Ambulance Service was the first emergency medical service in the United States to be staffed by paramedics with medical training beyond basic first aid. Founded in 1967 to serve the predominantly Black Hill District of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, it was staffed entirely by African Americans. Freedom House set the standard of training and procedures for EMTs today.  Read more at:   https://teamrubiconusa.org/news-and-stories/freedom-house-ambulance-service-a-legacy-of-life-saving-care/

Voting Spotlight

As I think we all would agree that information regarding the upcoming elections both locally, at the state level and at the national level is of utmost importance.  Please take the time to register if you have not.  Please check your registration status to ensure your registration matches the required id to vote.  Going forward I would like to add this to our weekly announcements along with our Black History Spotlight to keep us all up to date on our upcoming elections.

1. https://indianavoters.in.gov/ From this link you will be able to register, check your registration status, and find your polling station.

2. The registration deadline for primary voting is Monday, April 6.  You can register by mail, in person, or online:

3. Early voting started on April 7 at Shower’s Plaza, 501 N. Morton Street

4. Indiana Primary is Tuesday, May 5, 2026

Announcements 

April 5, 2026

.

Easter Sunday, April 5, Sunrise Service at 6am 

Monday, April 6 Deadline to Register to Vote in the May Primaries. See Link Below.

Saturday, April 11 8am-1pm SED Board Meeting.  Second Baptist Church is hosting the meeting.

Tuesday, April 14, 2026 6pm Trustees’ Meeting

Tuesday, April 14, 2026 2pm, Missionary Circle Please note this is a date change.

Sunday, April 19, 2026 Memorial Service for the wife of Calloway Perine, Kerrie-Ann Fortune.  Family/Friends Visitation from 1pm – 2pm with Services starting at 2pm.  A repast will follow in the Annex.

Saturday, April 25, 2026 Men/Women’s Breakfast Annex

The Missionary Circle Project:  Hannah House

The Missionary Circle will be taking up a collection to help Hannah House with a long list of items that you will find posted on the bulletin board.  Bins will be provided for collection that will carry through to June 10, 2026.

Keep In Prayer

Larry Livingston, Harry Price III, Calloway Perine, Diane Smith The Geoff Bradley Family, Donetta Jackson, Joanne Swayze, O.C. Caston (brother to Martha Chamberlain), Serafin Coronel Molina, Ching-Yu, The Pazlii Wilson Family (great niece to Jackie Perry), Percy  & Dr. Jacqueline Webb,  The Barbara Fuqua Family, Veodies Callaway, Robert Motley, The Jackie and Robert Perry Family, Keith Barnard, Lisa Stieglitz, Michael Dabney, Terry Drescher, Arletha Dabney, Lola Thompson.

Black History Spotlight:  The Greensboro Four

“In one remarkable day, four college freshmen changed the course of American history. On February 1, 1960, Ezell Blair, Jr. (now Jibreel Khazan), David Richmond, Franklin McCain and Joseph McNeil—later dubbed the Greensboro Four—began a sit-in at a Woolworth's lunch counter in a small city in North Carolina. The act of simply sitting down to order food in a restaurant that refused service to anyone but whites is now widely regarded as one of the pivotal moments in the American Civil Rights Movement.” Description from the PBS Documentary “February 1”. (https://www.pbs.org/independentlens/documentaries/februaryone/)

 What started as a peaceful sit-in by 4 students grew to 25 the next day, then 60.  Soon over 1,400 people were participating in the protest.  

“By July 1960, the Greensboro Woolworth's was facing sales' losses of more than $200,000 ($2.1 million in 2024) and store manager Harris' salary had been cut because of the store's poor performance. Harris finally relented on July 25, 1960. With little fanfare, he invited several Black Woolworth's employees to eat at store's lunch counter.” (https://www.census.gov/about/history/stories/monthly/2025/february-2025.html)

Voting Spotlight

As I think we all would agree that information regarding the upcoming elections both locally, at the state level and at the national level is of utmost importance.  Please take the time to register if you have not.  Please check your registration status to ensure your registration matches the required id to vote.  Going forward I would like to add this to our weekly announcements along with our Black History Spotlight to keep us all up to date on our upcoming elections.

1. https://indianavoters.in.gov/ From this link you will be able to register, check your registration status, and find your polling station.

2. The registration deadline for primary voting is Monday, April 6.  You can register by mail, in person, or online:

3. Indiana Primary is Tuesday, May 5, 2026

The following is a link to our Zelle QR Code