Chaplain (COL-R) Sonny Moore
Pastor

Chaplain (COL-R) Alvin M. "Sonny" Moore, III, is serving as pastor at First Baptist Church and brings a wealth of experience and great enthusiasm. He is a member of the Southern Baptist Church. He served as a civilian pastor for 16 years before coming on active duty in 1982. He also served in the Mississippi National Guard and Army Reserve for 8 years. He is a graduate of Northwest Mississippi Junior College, Delta State College, New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary, Army Command and General Staff College, and the Army War College. In 2009, he was awarded the degree of Doctor of Humane Letters from Waynesburg University in Waynesburg, Pennsylvania.

Chaplain Moore retired in June, 2008, having served 34 years in uniform. He served as the Command Chaplain at U.S. Army Forces Command, Fort McPherson, Georgia, and many other Army assignments.

Chaplain Moore was married for almost 40 years to his 4th grade sweetheart, Martha. She went to heaven on July 4, 2005. A Memorial Garden was dedicated in her memory at Fort Rucker, Alabama in 2005. Chaplain Moore is the father of three children and seven grandchildren. His two daughters are married to career Army officers and his son works in Development with Southern Methodist University.

On April 30, 2011, Chaplain Moore was united in holy matrimony to Celia Stump. Celia is a lifelong member of First Baptist Church and has practiced dentistry for the past 22 years.

Matt Smith
Minister of Administration

Matt Smith joined our Ministry Team at FBC in February of 2012. For over twenty years he has served in churches in Alabama, Mississippi, North Carolina and Tennessee. Having grown up and beginning his ministry at Enterprise First Baptist, he is no stranger to our church.

Prior to coming back to FBC, Matt served at one of our sister churches for nearly nine years. His fingerprints are all over Enterprise. In our community, he has served in various capacities for the Mayor's Office, Enterprise City School System, Coffee County Baptist Association and the Enterprise YMCA. Since 2006 he has been a Chaplain for the Enterprise Police Department.

Matt loves people and enjoys building relationships with them in order to share the love of Christ. He believes that God's salvation is for all people, and that everyone has a place to serve the Lord. He passionately shares his faith and enjoys preaching God's Word.

He graduated with honors from the University of Mobile where he received a BA in Christian Studies. He earned a Masters of Divinity with Biblical Languages from Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary and is presently pursuing his Doctor of Ministry degree with an emphasis in Pastoral Ministry and Expository Preaching.

In July of 1995 Matt married his high school sweetheart Julie Birchfield who also grew up at First Baptist. They have two sons, Spencer and Skyler. During his spare time he enjoys spending time with his family, four wheeling and watching Alabama football!

Ben Bowden
Associate Pastor/Education

Ben came on board with the FBC team in June of 2011. He is a local boy, born and raised in Enterprise, Alabama, where he spent his childhood years running around on his family farm, playing sports, and hanging with family.

In 1998, Ben graduated from Enterprise High School. He earned a degree in Marketing with a minor in Logistics from Auburn University. During his days at Auburn, he was very involved with his fraternity, Phi Gamma Delta. He served as a River Guide for the JH Ranch (a high adventure Christian camp) in northern California. He also regularly attended Farmville Baptist Church in Auburn. It was through his ministry at his church, his fraternity, and the Ranch that the Lord called him into ministry.

After college, Ben move to Madison, Alabama to serve as Youth Pastor at CrossPointe Church. It was during this time that he began to get to know the love of his life, Lindsay Michael, a Kentucky girl who was still a student at Auburn. They got married in 2005 and Ben took a position as Regional Sales Manager in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. Having saved enough to pay for seminary, Lindsay and Ben packed their bags in 2007 and moved to Louisville, Kentucky where they both attended The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. During this time, Ben served as interim pastor of New Washington Christian Church in southern Indiana. After graduating from Southern Seminary with a Master of Divinity degree in the summer of 2009, Ben moved to Maplesville, Alabama and served as senior pastor at Maplesville Baptist Church. In June of 2011, Ben received the call to come home to First Baptist Enterprise.

Lindsay and Ben have three girls, Libby, Susie, and Annie. Ben finds great joy in listening to Norah Jones and Van Morrison while squeezing his girls' cheeks.

Ben is eager to preach and teach the unsearchable riches of Christ. His passion is to see Christ magnified through discipleship in the local church that mobilizes missions around the globe.

Craig Stringfield
Minister of Music

Craig Stringfield is serving as our Minister of Music. He has been a fulltime music minister since 1987 and served churches in Alabama and Texas. He most recently served in Gulf Shores, Alabama, for over a decade. Craig graduated from Samford University in Birmingham, Alabama, with a degree in Music Education and received his Masters Degree in Religious Education from Southwestern Seminary in Fort Worth, Texas. He is married to Mindy Stringfield from Clarksville, Tennessee, who is a gifted teacher in the public school system. They have two daughters: Brittany who graduated from Auburn University in 2012, and Lydia who is a freshman at Auburn University. Craig enjoys sports, working out, the beach, time with his family, and serving the Lord through music.

Catherine Sims
Minister to Preschool and Children

Catherine Sims is our Children's Minister and we are thrilled to have her at FBC. She grew up in Blountsville, Alabama, and is a graduate of Judson College. She served with the International Mission Board in Peru for 2 1/2 years as a teacher for missionary children. She received her Master's Degree in Christian Education from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary and recently served FBC Phenix City, Alabama, as the Children's Minister for four years. Catherine is married to Nathan Sims who has been a pastor for 18 years.