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By DONNAMY STEELE | Special to the Reporter

ALABASTER – After much consideration, Westwood Baptist Church of Alabaster is planning a celebration service for the church’s 40th anniversary.

The celebration event was originally planned to occur in January, but the church ultimately decided to postpone the festivities due to COVID-19.

Barbara Cingoranelli, assistant to the senior pastor, said Westwood Baptist has been standing since January, 1981.

“The church opened in January of 1981, so the anniversary is this month,” Cingoranelli said.

Despite the church turning 40 this month, they are going to celebrate the special milestone on June 6. Cingoranelli said there are some charter members who still attend Westwood Baptist, and they will be a focal point of the celebration.

She said the service will be the normal Sunday morning service, but they will honor several of those original members to see how God has been faithful to them over the years and what the future might hold.

Cingoranelli said the landmark date for the church represents a lot of sacrifice and faith. Westwood has seen a number of members and leaders throughout the last 40 years, something that Cingoranelli is proud to say.

“I hate to quote the pastor, but there was a lot of sacrifice to get here,” Cingoranelli said. “We have grown a great leadership, and we have had to sustain that in the 40 years of being a church. It’s a time of celebration. We want to look back on how God was faithful to us, and we look forward to the future.”

Westwood Baptist is preparing a whole service of celebration and more updates and information will be made available as the event approaches.

“The service that morning will be geared toward the celebration,” Cignoranelli said. “We want people to know and we will have more definition of what will be planned in the future.”