here were many people of our denomination spending their winters in Bradenton and in 1951 a movement was started to organize an Evangelical United Brethren Church. The Presbyterians had outgrown their downtown building and it was purchased for
$35,000 in 1953.
It did not take but two or three years for us to discover that the building and grounds were not adequate for our church needs during the winter months. There was very limited parking and during the height of the winter season people from the
north were complaining that they had to worship in other churches. So we again began the difficult task of relocating and rebuilding. As was the case in Elkins, there was much opposition on the part of many for various reasons.
On April 17, 1960 the last note on the debt for the old building was burned in a worship service. Exactly three years later five acres were purchased on the southwestern edge of Bradenton. The cost of the land was $15,000. It was three miles from
the downtown location and some were convinced that we would lose half our congregation when we moved. This was not the case. We lost only one family, but I did pick up each Sunday some older ladies who would have had to go to a closer church
unless transportation was furnished to them.
On the last day of 1963 the city of Bradenton closed the deal to buy the old downtown property. The beautiful Spanish-type, but termite ridden building was demolished, after we had moved to the new location. The site eventually became a parking
lot. The city paid $40,000 for the property. The lot also held a small, two story building, which the Cooneys had used as a parsonage for two years. We had used it for extra classes downstairs and for the church office and Troy's study upstairs.
The Old First Evangelical United Brethren Church in Bradenton
A rather inadequate parsonage had been purchased in 1951 during the pastorate of Rev. J. T. Cooney, who had left in July to become a chaplain is the armed services. The living room was too small, but it did have three bedrooms but only one bath.
It was located several blocks from the church. The address was 1505 29th Street West. It remained the parsonage during the years we served that church. I can understand the Cooneys desire to get out of the small building next to the church. What
I thought of as inadequate must have looked wonderful to that family of five.
I well remember one called congregational meeting Troy held in the old building, after the purchase of the five acres for the new location. Now that "the die was cast" opposition had died down somewhat. The topic of interest was how we were going
to raise the $91,000 which had been contracted for the first unit of the church and six additional Sunday School rooms.
In the midst of the discussion the lady in front of me turned to me and said, "Mrs. Brady, you have no business teaching school. You should be down here at the church selling hot dogs and soft drinks to the people on the shuffle-board court. You
could help pay for the new church that way." I do not know if what I felt at that time was anger or righteous indignation! After all the years that have elapsed since that time I think I was just plain MAD! I answered in no uncertain tones!
"I have just as much right to work as any other woman in this congregation! This church does not employ me! It employs my husband! I do not owe it, or the Lord, any more of my time than you or any other woman in this church does! This church gets
every penny of my tithe! If every member paid their tithe we would not be wondering how we could pay for the new church"
This little tat for tat was carried on in voices above the level of whispers, so the folks sitting nearby knew what was going on. I imagine that most of them knew that their pastor's wife was angry. The lady’s nephew, who was a banker, apologized
for his aunt after the meeting was over. Bob and his wife and his son visited us in Singers Glen several years later. We are still good friends.