First Baptist Church of Gainesville hosts Fourth of July cookout to honor veterans, bring community together

GAINESVILLE, Fla. (WCJB) - First Baptist Church of Gainesville extended its Independence Day celebration with an extra day of festivities just hours ago, aiming to bring the community together for a patriotic weekend event.

Senior Pastor Dr. Ray Johnson said the church chose to recognize the holiday even though it didn’t fall on a Sunday, emphasizing the importance of honoring veterans in the congregation. The church hosted a cookout featuring food and desserts, inviting neighbors to gather in a relaxed setting.

“This church has some wonderful veterans who have served. We have some decorated war veterans in the congregation. So we want to honor them and remember their sacrifices for the country,” Johnson said. “And it helps us to get to know the community better… we believe that our church is here to serve the community. It’s not a country club… This is a church. So we want to know our neighbors.”

Johnson added that the event is also meant to encourage conversation and relationship-building among attendees. The celebration continued into the afternoon with waterslides for children and activities for all ages, officially wrapping up the holiday weekend.

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