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Press Release | Willow Bend Church Celebrates 160 Years

Collin County had only been organized for four years, when a band of 11 Christian pioneers "constituted" Liberty Baptist Church at the log cabin of Brother Henry Cook on White Rock Creek. Elder Eli Witt, one of the organizers, served as the first pastor from that inaugural meeting on February 16, 1850 until 1856. Witt was a circuit pastor who founded several churches in North Texas and rode on horseback through the still wild prairie to pastor them. One hundred and sixty years later, Liberty Church, now known as Willow Bend Church, is recognized by historians as the oldest Baptist congregation in continuous existence in the county.

On Sunday, February 21st, Willow Bend will celebrate the anniversary with a special worship service, starting at 10:30 a.m., with a barbecue luncheon immediately following. The event is open to the public and is free; however, reservations are requested at the Willow Bend homecoming website.

"For 160 years, this church has served a growing, ever-changing community," said Dave Jobe, who recently celebrated his tenth anniversary as Senior Pastor of Willow Bend. "The founders established Liberty, as well as other churches in the wild Texas frontier, to help make life for the pioneers a little less discouraging, to celebrate, to comfort and to provide community. Our mission today is much the same, though the needs have grown exponentially."

Liberty Church's congregation first met at Cook's two room cabin, just north of Baccus Cemetery on the northwest corner of today's Bishop Road and Legacy Drive. Known as "Lonesome House", this cabin served as a school and social center for weddings and square dances. The cemetery has been preserved by the developer of Legacy Town Center.

A few years later, a log church was built on prairie land where the present church stands on 5701 W. Park Boulevard, about one mile west of Preston Road. This property was several miles south of Cook's cabin, and was also located on the Shawnee Trail, the major route for cattleman driving cattle to northern cities. On February 20, 1886, J.F Purcell who owned the acreage, conveyed "one acre more or less, for the sum of ten dollars and the condition that the property be used solely for church purposes" to the Trustees of Liberty Church. According to historians, a new white frame building was dedicated in 1885, a year before the property was deeded, and stood until it was razed in 1975 to build the brick structure that is part of the education wing today. In 1979, Liberty purchased 3.5 acres adjoining the church for future expansion. That same year, a plaque was installed at the church site by the Texas Historical Commission as part of their program of preservation activities. Willow Bend underwent another expansion in 1998, adding new classroom space and the familiar native stone tower that faces Park Boulevard.

In 1891, Liberty leaders organized the Liberty Singing Society. Early church records tell "they had a lot of singin' back in the early days". Pastors were paid with chickens, turkeys, eggs and other farm produce.  Box suppers were organized to pay for coal which could be bought for $2.00 for 950 pounds in 1894. Located in a part of the Plano area that was far from any large settlement and still very rural, the church served as a gathering place and a lighthouse for the small community.

Fast forward to 1991, as Liberty's congregation of about 400 found itself in the midst of the rapidly growing city, with new urban pioneers coming from all over the country for promise of jobs and prosperity in the north Dallas suburb of Plano.  An estimated 75% of the population was "unchurched", requiring a creative outreach and a comfortable environment to investigate Christianity. The decision was made to transition to a seeker-targeted Bible-based Christian church, based on a model set forth by Bill Hybels, founder of Willow Creek Church in Illinois. While the change took many of the congregation out of their comfort zone, three families remained and Willow Bend Church sought to rebuild as a church to be "used by God to be a biblical community that is relevant to seekers and stimulates people to live as fully devoted followers of Christ."

Noel and Susan Gouldin and their two sons stayed on through the transition.  "We continue to innovate and pioneer new ministries that meet the changing needs of our community.  Small groups that meet in individual homes are a foundation of our church, much as home churches were an important part of the early churches in Collin County," said Noel Gouldin, who serves as an Elder today.  "In addition to being an early adopter of the Willow Creek model, Willow Bend was one of the first in Dallas to add a Celebrate Recovery (CR) ministry in 2002."

"CR offers a place where participants can heal from life's hurts, habits and hang-ups that keep us from enjoying the full life God intended," according to Darrell Bye, who has served as the ministry's leader since 2006.  CR meets Monday evenings for fellowship, worship and small group meetings and offers Step Study Groups throughout the week utilizing 8 Principles and 12 Steps of Recovery resources.

"I find it inspiring that Liberty Church, now Willow Bend, was established along historical trading grounds and the pioneer trail that brought settlers to North Texas, which is still here as the area continues to grow," noted Lee Swanson, a long-time member and Elder at Willow Bend.  "I was attracted to Willow Bend after many years being unchurched and distant from our community.  At the encouragement of my stepson moving back from out of state to be close to family, and the urging, prayers and support from my precious wife, this little church, Willow Bend, has been a place where I have found my faith, doing life together in fellowship with families who have a heart to worship together to seek His good purpose and to serve others."

Willow Bend Church continues to serve, in Plano and beyond. "At its core, Willow Bend still prevails as it was conceived by the original founders," said Jobe. "We are very much a small, intimate family that encourages one another, that celebrates and comforts.  We are a sending church with mission/outreach activity in Plano and Dallas, as well as in Chiapas Mexico, Turkey, China and India.  And we are still a 'singing church', although the praise and worship is more contemporary.  I am proud to be a part of this church. "