Prison guard-pastor breathes new life into Bellingham church 

By DANI ELLE BRISSETTE

BELLINGHAM – The First Baptist Church of Bellingham has encountered a groundswell of new members in the last few months after a new face in the pulpit apparently sparked churchgoers’ interests

."There were just 14 members who were actively attending church and now we’re averaging about 54 [members]," says Baron Rodrigues, pastor of the church. "The spirit of joy and love has been in the church now and everyone is excited and people are actually coming forward wishing to be part of the ministry."

Most people wouldn’t expect to hear the terms "correctional officer" and "church pastor" in the same sentence – especially not in reference to the same person – but that is exactly what Rodrigues is.

A correctional officer for the Massachusetts Department of Correction for the past 21 years, Rodrigues had worked in his local church, has four years of Bible college under his belt and had been a guest pastor for about seven years when, he says, he began praying about leaving the Department of Correction and pursuing a full-time career in a ministry in the south.

Fortunately for the First Baptist Church, a parishioner had heard Rodrigues’ preaching and asked him to temporarily lead the congregation during their search for a permanent pastor.

"They asked me if I could be the interim pastor, which I accepted, which was just a temporary position for a couple of months," says Rodrigues. "While I was preaching there on Sunday mornings, that’s when I was approached to put in my name for candidacy for the permanent pastor’s position."

After being ordained in September and officially being approved for the pastorship by the church in November, Rodrigues nixed the idea of relocating to the South and embraced the opportunity to become the church’s new pastor; even moving with his family to Bellingham from his hometown of Mattapoisett, Mass. in order to become more involved in the community.

"I just felt led and I had a settled spirit that [the First Baptist Church] was where God wanted me to go," he says.

Although he enjoys his work as a correctional officer, Rodrigues explains that he plans to retire sometime in July so he can focus his time on his new ministry and develop a bond with the members of his new community

"This church has been involved with this town for a long time and I just want to maintain and even enhance the connection with the First Baptist Church and the town of Bellingham," Rodrigues says.

A correctional officer background, to some, might not seem applicable when it comes to being the pastor of a church but Rodrigues feels that his strong education in public safety is a benefit that will help him reach out to the community and devise a program for troubled youth in town.

"The vision that I’m looking for in the coming months is that I want to start reaching the youth of Bellingham to help them find things to do in their idle time that could benefit them," Rodrigues says. "I just feel deeply honored to be the pastor at this church. There’s such a sweet spirit and God is really blessing us. I want to get involved not only as a member of the church but as a member of the community, too."

The First Baptist Church is located, 39 Mechanic St., Bellingham. Sunday School for all ages begins at 9:15 a.m. and morning service begins at 10:30 a.m. For more information, contact the church office at (509) 996-0717.