Brief History

Cottage prayer meetings and a community Sunday School was the beginning of Oakdale Baptist Church. On April 2, 1939, the Sunday School was organized in an old store building and moved to a borrowed pack house in 1943. The church, meeting in the pack house, was organized on Sunday June 20, 1943, at three o’clock with approximately 39 members present, which later constituted the new church after the members accepted the Church Covenant and Articles of Faith. A board of deacons and their chairman, Trustees, Treasurer, Clerk, WMU President and Superintendent of Sunday School was elected. In the fall of 1943 Oakdale was accepted into the Roanoke Baptist Association. A new church building was started in July of 1944. The church was free of debt by July 20, 1946 and an additional building was added to the existing one. On Easter Morning Service of 1954 the “Paid in Full” note on the addition was burned. The entire building was destroyed by fire the following Tuesday morning. 

Oakdale united and God blessed—the present building was constructed, first the back area and then the sanctuary. Until we could build, the congregation met at West Edgecombe School and then in an old store building across the road from the church. The Educational Building and the Family Life Center were added as the membership grew. Paving of the church parking lot was completed in 2004. Again God blessed when the buildings were connected adding an elevator, additional restrooms, new choir room and remodeling of both nurseries in March 2010.

May 1946---First Wedding

June 1946---First Vacation Bible School

October 1946---Church Dedicated

November 1953---First GA Coronation Service 

Oakdale Childcare Ministry was started in 1979