PIONEERING Pastor Ron Stidham is hoping to perform another miracle - to breathe fresh life into Bolton's old Bethel Church.

The American-born Baptist pastor has notched up a long list of achievements in the town including building churches, founding charities and setting up a number of private nursing homes.

Now the dynamic family man is putting his weight behind another challenge - to help save Bethel Church from the bulldozers.

Pastor Stidham, who was a driving force behind the hugely successful Cornerstone Baptist Church, Bromley Cross and founder of Westhoughton Baptist Church, will be inducted as pastor of Bethel Church on Saturday, October 5.

His goal is to pack the recently built Bethel Church, just off Topp Way.

Rev Stidham, who has taken on the tough job free of charge, said: "The church has been a centre of the community for 60 years. But it was forced to operate from portable cabins in the car park when Bolton Council built Topp Way.

"The new road tore the very heart out of this community and the church suffered."

Rev Stidham has already drawn up an ambitious programme of events to entice the local community.

Plans to operate his successful Christian Counselling Service from the newly-built centre are underway.

The project has also been 'adopted' by Rev Stidham's wife and mother-of-three Connie Stidham who has brought her charity fund-raising choir, Celeste, to the church.

Other plans for a vast selection of community groups at the church are in the pipeline.

Pastor Stidham, who lives at Ladybridge, said: "Already the church is benefitting as my congregation from Westhoughton have taken a big interest and are lending their support. We want to encourage the family back to this church using its modern facilties.

"When I was asked to take over, it was a well-spoken fact that this church would not have survived another two years. Although the building itself is paid for, the running costs have to be funded through the congregation. We desperately need people to start using this building again."

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