White Plains Church Ministries Inc. will conduct a grand march and dedication ceremony at noon today to help dedicate its new sanctuary and offices.

The first official worship service at the new facility is set for 11 a.m. Sunday. The church is located at 748 Edwards St., Belhaven. The Rev. Dr. Douglas Cogdell is pastor of the church, with Debra Cogdell serving as co-pastor.

Beginning Feb. 3 and ending Feb. 7, a week of dedication and celebration services are planned, with each service beginning at 7:30 p.m. The weeklong activities culminate at 11 a.m. Feb. 9 with Celebration Sunday.

“Our church is more than 100 years old,” said pastor Cogdell, who has been at the church for 26 years. “We have been positioning ourselves to build this facility for the past 10 years. The time has finally arrived. Our old church served its purpose. It needed a lot of renovation. It doesn’t have any parking. It doesn’t have any classrooms.”

The new facility includes a new sanctuary, classrooms and a multipurpose room, Cogdell said. The ministry also has plans to build a 200-seat fellowship hall and a community walking trail on its 29 acres, he noted.

Cogdell said the ministry wanted to open its new facility on Mother’s Day 2012, but problems surfaced during the building’s final inspection, problems that took time to correct.

The church, which has a little more than 100 members, provides several ministries, including outreach and youth ministries, Cogdell said.

 

For more information about White Plains Church Ministries Inc., visit www.wpcminc.com