Just the little things.
How many times have you heard the term "Orlando" in your lifetime? And whats the first thing that comes to mind? Disney. Theme Parks. Attractions. Tourism. What doesnt come to mind is the little gems that central Florida has to offer. Hometown Concerts. Small time Restaurants. Local Celebrations. Landmarks.
Orlando borders two different towns. Kissimmee and Saint Cloud. Since Kissimmee is essentially where Disney and the attractions are located, this town gets all of the hype. Starting in 1883, Kissimmee is older than Saint Cloud and is a major tourist attraction. While Saint Cloud is mostly residential (24,700 in the 2000 census), it does have its landmarks.
One of these landmarks is a church located directly in the center of the city. Established in October, 1909, First Bapist Church of Saint Cloud (FBSTC) has celebrated its 100 year centennial over a weekend celebration festival located across the three blocks of its property. Setting up a tent that holds well over 1000 people, this event was seen from everywhere in the small town. And thanks to the bands this local gem was able to contract, HEARD from everywhere. Since there was too much stuff for this church to fit into one night, they had to split it over three days. Friday night was the concert, Saturday was a Festival, and Sunday morning was a service with Big name Preachers and Song Artists.
The concert incuded three bands. Up and coming artist Chyna and Vaughn, who had a Taylor Swift sound. Bluetree, who is a praise and worship band. And Newsong, one of (if not the) biggest names in christian Contemporary. This concert was probably the highlight of the weekend for most people. FBSTC had well over 1000 people on this first night. All three bands did an incredible job, and went all out for presentation. The staff at church spent the weekdays setting up for them.
Saturday night was aimed at families. Children could come and play carnival games for candy and prizes, and there was even a costume contest. It was kind of like an early halloween (Without the scary things). Over 400 families came from all over the town came through here this night. There were more people than the first night. As far as the church was concerned, this was the main event. Lasting for most of the afternoon and night on saturday. This required the most work for setting up and ended up running smoothly. They had their local church band play some stuff, as well as some gospel singers from all over central Florida. The Pastor gave a brief challenge and there were multiple costume contests throughout the night with prizes varrying from candy bags to gift cards. They gave away hundreds of pounds of candy to hunderds of kids and families. The church provided dinner for anyone who wanted it. This meal included hamburgers and hot-dogs with all the fixings. It was a nice touch to the evening. Everyone on saturday night was given and invitation to sundays morning service.
The sunday morning service couldnt have went any smoother. The church band did incredible opening the service while they brought in a guest Artist who was a great singer from Orlando. They also had people who had been in the church for over 70 years give testimonies about what the church had meant to them. And like any good baptists, they provided lunch at the end of the service. Coffee Cup Cafe (Which is owned and operated by a Saint Cloud resident) catered. Providing a barbecue style meal of barbecue chicken, Pulled Pork, and the rest of the barbecue meal including beans and cole-slaw.
It was a nice change of pace from the typical orlando vacation. While Disney and the rest of the attractions are all well and good, its hard to rival a local, home-town celebration. While some may think that this was the churches way of promoting themselves, it wasn't. It was simply a celebration that the church made available to the community. If people walked away from it with more than having a good time, thats an added bonus. Since the church has been there since 1909, it has been a beacon to the town for over a century now. It ended up being an incredible weekend and i wish the church 100 more.
Orlando borders two different towns. Kissimmee and Saint Cloud. Since Kissimmee is essentially where Disney and the attractions are located, this town gets all of the hype. Starting in 1883, Kissimmee is older than Saint Cloud and is a major tourist attraction. While Saint Cloud is mostly residential (24,700 in the 2000 census), it does have its landmarks.
One of these landmarks is a church located directly in the center of the city. Established in October, 1909, First Bapist Church of Saint Cloud (FBSTC) has celebrated its 100 year centennial over a weekend celebration festival located across the three blocks of its property. Setting up a tent that holds well over 1000 people, this event was seen from everywhere in the small town. And thanks to the bands this local gem was able to contract, HEARD from everywhere. Since there was too much stuff for this church to fit into one night, they had to split it over three days. Friday night was the concert, Saturday was a Festival, and Sunday morning was a service with Big name Preachers and Song Artists.
The concert incuded three bands. Up and coming artist Chyna and Vaughn, who had a Taylor Swift sound. Bluetree, who is a praise and worship band. And Newsong, one of (if not the) biggest names in christian Contemporary. This concert was probably the highlight of the weekend for most people. FBSTC had well over 1000 people on this first night. All three bands did an incredible job, and went all out for presentation. The staff at church spent the weekdays setting up for them.
Saturday night was aimed at families. Children could come and play carnival games for candy and prizes, and there was even a costume contest. It was kind of like an early halloween (Without the scary things). Over 400 families came from all over the town came through here this night. There were more people than the first night. As far as the church was concerned, this was the main event. Lasting for most of the afternoon and night on saturday. This required the most work for setting up and ended up running smoothly. They had their local church band play some stuff, as well as some gospel singers from all over central Florida. The Pastor gave a brief challenge and there were multiple costume contests throughout the night with prizes varrying from candy bags to gift cards. They gave away hundreds of pounds of candy to hunderds of kids and families. The church provided dinner for anyone who wanted it. This meal included hamburgers and hot-dogs with all the fixings. It was a nice touch to the evening. Everyone on saturday night was given and invitation to sundays morning service.
The sunday morning service couldnt have went any smoother. The church band did incredible opening the service while they brought in a guest Artist who was a great singer from Orlando. They also had people who had been in the church for over 70 years give testimonies about what the church had meant to them. And like any good baptists, they provided lunch at the end of the service. Coffee Cup Cafe (Which is owned and operated by a Saint Cloud resident) catered. Providing a barbecue style meal of barbecue chicken, Pulled Pork, and the rest of the barbecue meal including beans and cole-slaw.
It was a nice change of pace from the typical orlando vacation. While Disney and the rest of the attractions are all well and good, its hard to rival a local, home-town celebration. While some may think that this was the churches way of promoting themselves, it wasn't. It was simply a celebration that the church made available to the community. If people walked away from it with more than having a good time, thats an added bonus. Since the church has been there since 1909, it has been a beacon to the town for over a century now. It ended up being an incredible weekend and i wish the church 100 more.
posted by Travis Cannata at
8:32 AM
