Lakeview Baptist Church began with a group of people meeting for prayer at the home of Sonny and Barbara Shaw. Several other Saturday night prayer meetings were help in the homes of Doris and Billy Shaw, Jewell and Edna Hayes, Robert and Joanne Jones, Mac and Nancy Winders, and Ed and Daisy Hale. The group continued to meet for several weeks for prayer time and Bible study. The Bible study was led by Mr. Jewell Hayes and he chose the book of Nehemiah for the study because he though that like Nehemiah, they needed to build.
After much prayer, the group decided to build a church. The land for the church was donated by Jewell and Edna Hayes. In 1988, the group met on the site of the present day church for a ground-breaking ceremony with the deacons turning the first shovel of dirt.
Construction on the church foundation started when Kent Adams donated his time and equipment to dig the footer, water lines and septic lines and to install the septic tank. The building began with Phillip Shaw, Mitchell Dawson and Mike Newswanger as carpenters. during the week and donating their time on Saturdays. Other workers who donated time, material and money were Jewell Hayes, Albert Draper, James Mitchell, Sonny Shaw, Earl Newswanger, Don Laster, George Buckley, Bill Shaw and Bowden Kisselbaugh. Several other neighbors and friends helped out with the building as well. A group of young men who assisted were, Keith Shaw, Ben Buckley, Mark Buckley, David Shaw, Douglas Powell, and Mike Newswanger. David Fields provided the crane and Danny Caroll Hayes set the trusses on the building. Mr. Fields sent his crane back after the building was complete to set the steeple.
It was not always smooth sailing with the construction, though, and once a portion of the basement wall caved in. Earl Newswanger re-laid the blocks and continued to work and build the steps to the back door and laid the bricks on the front of the building. After the outside was completed, the ladies began work on the inside. They were Yvonne Adams, Joanne Jones, Barbara Shaw, Daisy Hale, Sue Hale, Donna Shaw, Valerie Shaw, Susie Dawson, Nancy Winders, Mary Lea Laster, Betty Sue Buckley, Vick Mitchell, and Virginia Newswanger. Young ladies assisting were Ellen Adams, Pam Jones and Regina Dawson. Bro. MacArthur Winders meet with the group several Saturday nights for Bible Study and he agreed to preach for them on Sunday Afternoon. Vaughn’s Grove United Methodist Church allowed the group the use of their church building to hold services on Sunday afternoons. The first service was held in August 1988. Bro. Mac Winders was elected as Pastor.
Allegre Missionary Baptist Church allowed Lakeview Baptist Church to be commissioned as a mission for them. Thirty-nine people from Lakeview went to Allegre Baptist Church and joined their church and the mission was formed.
Shiloh Baptist Church was a great supporter of the group. Some of their members met with them on Sunday evenings and invited them to their fellowships. Shiloh offered the use of their building for a song service by The Inspirations when Lakeview’s building was not completed by the date The Inspirations were scheduled to perform.
The first service in the new building was on Mother’s Day, 1989.
Lakeview Baptist joined the Christian County Baptist Association in 1992 with Jewell Hayes, Yvonne Adams and Susie Dawson attending the meeting.
So we built the wall, and all the wall was joined together unto half thereof; for the people had a mind to work. (Nehemiah 4:6)