Lead Pastor Danny Anderson prepares to cut the ribbon with various staff and community members by his side during the ribbon cutting ceremony of Emmanuel Church’s new facility at 1849 First Avenue West, Seymour.
Erika Malone | The Tribune
Community members cheer after the ribbon is cut for Emmanuel Church’s new facility.
Erika Malone | The Tribune
Emmanuel Church celebrated the opening of their new facility Monday afternoon with a ribbon cutting ceremony along with many community and church members at 1849 First Avenue West, Seymour.
Opening its Seymour campus in February 2022 at first by leasing the Jackson Live and Event Center building for a few years, the church and their impact have expanded exponentially.
With a vision of pursuing those who don’t have a relationship with Jesus and helping those grow in Christ, the church have extended beyond its Greenwood roots and became a multi-site church.
Banta (2013), Franklin (2015), Online (2018), Garfield Park (2019) and Martinsville (2023) campuses were launched. The latest addition is the Greenwood East campus which launched this year.
“We are working to reach the young families in Jackson County and our mission is to help others come and grow in Christ,” said Andy Schroeder, Seymour campus pastor.
Emmanuel Church started in the living room of Darrel and Pauline Towles in Whiteland. The church opened its doors on Easter 1977 with 17 people. Founding Pastor Jim Devney retired in 2006 after 29 years of service. Danny Anderson, then High School Pastor, stepped into the role of Lead Pastor.
Schroeder said when they first opened the Seymour campus, around 230 people attended the first service — now over 800 people attended this past weekend through in-person and online.
The nondenominational church offers video teaching and live worship from its main campus and a dedicated staff at each campus.
In the last two years, Emmanuel Church has been heavily involved with the community, helping different organizations such as Clarity and Anchor House to name a few.
The church has also been involved in various community outreach efforts such as Blessings in a Backpack, Fellowship Christian Students and serving at Seymour High School’s after prom.
“With all of our campuses combined we reach about 7,000 people every weekend through in-person attendance and online,” Schroeder said.
Members of the church and the Jackson County Chamber thanked those for coming to witness such an event.
Worship services are at 9 and 11 a.m. Sundays and all events are open to the public. For more information visit eclife.org.