Our Story
A legacy of faith, revival, and the Word.
From a burden in a sisters' heart to a movement of God that continues today,
our story is a testimony of His faithfulness across generations.
Not Actual Photo. Produced as representation
1914
1914
The Invitation to Bear
While visiting her brother in Bannister, Louisiana, Mary Richey learned of a Pentecostal revival taking place in LeBlanc. Rev. Bennie Baggett was the evangelist. Letters were sent to James Hagar, Ira Cooley, and William Hodges about inviting Rev. Baggett to hold a revival in the Bear community.
1915
1915
January 9, 1915 — The First Service
William Hodges offered the use of his property for the revival. Rev. Bennie Baggett and his workers erected their tent, and the first Pentecostal service on the future church grounds was held on January 9, 1915.
Sixty-Seven Receive the Holy Ghost
The first revival continued for approximately nine weeks. Church history records that 67 people received the gift of the Holy Ghost. Elizabeth Richey, Mary Richey’s mother, was the first, while Madge Cooley—about ten or eleven years old—was the youngest.
1915
List of People that Received the Holy Ghost
1. Katie Alston
2.Dave Baggett
3.Hester Baggett
4.Louis Baggett
5.Ruby Baggett
6.Ida Brown
7.Jeanette Brown
8.John Burgess
9.James J. Burnett
10.Leona Burnett
11.Maude Burnett
12.Burrell Cooley
13.Elizabeth Cooley
14.Florence Cooley
15.Fountain (Bud) Cooley
16.Julia Cooley
17.Lonnie Cooley
18.Madge Cooley
19.Rosa Cooley
20.Hugh Day
21.Loner Day
22.J. P. Glass
23.James Hagar
24.John Hagar
25.Lydia Hagar
26. Mary Hagar
27.Charles Havens
28.Doc Havens
29.Gillespie Havens
30.Nancy Havens
31.Norma Havens
32.Thelma Havens
33.Alton Hodges
34.Beulah Hodges
35.Elizabeth (Bessie) Hodges
36.Frank Hodges
37.Henry Hodges
38.Nora Hodges
39.Ora Hodges
40. Ray Hodges
41.Denease LeBleu
42.Fronia LeBleu
43.Lonease Lebleu
44.Moease LeBleu
45.Quince LeBleu
46.Allie McCorquodale
47.Melisa McDonald
48.Ross McDonald
49. Wesley McDonald
50.Lillie Mitchell
51.Robert Mitchell
52.Walter Mitchell
53.Elizabeth Richey
54.Lillie Richey
55.Mary Richey
56.Annie Royer
57.Celestie Sandifer
58. Janie Scarmela
59. Jim Sellers
60.Lydia Sellers
61. Emma Thomason
62.Jim Thomason
63.Beulah Vincent
64.George Vincent
65.Annie Wilcox
66.Pearl Wilcox
67.Edward Williams
In 1914, Mary Richey was visiting her brother in Bannister, Louisiana, when she heard about a revival underway in LeBlanc. Rev. Bennie Baggett was the evangelist, and reports of what God was doing soon reached James Hagar, Ira Cooley, and William Hodges. They invited Bro. Baggett to bring the revival to the Bear community, and Mr. Hodges offered his land for the tent.
The first service was held January 9, 1915. During that revival, 67 people received the gift of the Holy Ghost. Elizabeth Richey was the first, and Madge Cooley—only ten or eleven years old—was the youngest.
Bro. Hodges donated an acre of land, and Bear Pentecostal Church was established in February 1915. According to the church’s preserved history, it became the first established Pentecostal church facility in Louisiana.
THE FIRST PASTOR
After evangelizing the Bear revival, Bro. Bennie Baggett became the congregation’s first pastor. The first deacons were James Jefferson Burnett, Gillespie Havens, Bud Cooley, and Frank Hodges.
The first sanctuary was plain and practical: unpainted board walls, handmade pews, kerosene lamps, and a pot-bellied stove. Even a quilt hung between two pews served as a bed for sleeping babies.