Dave and Cindy Bottrell

Dave is the second of six children to Pastor and Mrs. Rodger Bottrell. Being a pastor's son, he heard the Gospel at a very early age; and before he was a teen, he accepted Christ as his Savior. Two years later, the Lord called him to preach. Cindy grew up in a Christian home and was also saved as a young child. As an active member of an independent, fundamental, Baptist church youth group, she became involved in church ministries and dedicated her life to the Lord at youth camp.

God led both of them to Fairhaven to train for the ministry. Dave came to "College Days" during our annual Preaching Conference, and students treated him like an old friend. He did not think he belonged in college but thought he should at least try. After one year, he knew he was where God wanted him.

During college Dave was able to participate in many ministries. Some of these training opportunities were: Jolly 60's, nursing home ministry, Sunday School class, mission work in Chicago, bus ministry, and a special opportunity to preach at our New Year's service. Also, during the summer of 1989, he traveled as a Neighborhood Bible Time evangelist. The training and experience of preaching and leading children and teens to Christ across the nation was very helpful. He was also a member of the Fairhaven College Ensemble. During that time, he not only sang but also was able to preach and give testimony to many teenagers about finding God's will for their lives in choosing a college. Joining the ensemble enabled him to minister in over 200 churches. A major part of his training came from working on a bus route in Gary, Indiana, for four years. This really gave him a burden for what God's work is all about; and that is, simply leading others to Christ and salvation, and then seeing them grow through much prayer and work. Dave summarizes what he learned in college with these phrases: dependability in ministry, flexibility to grow, courage to stand, tenacity to stick, and loyalty to God.

After graduation, Dave and Cindy were married. The Lord led them to Brogue, Pennsylvania, to work with Pastor Randy Starr. God blessed their ministry as associate pastor, choir director, camp director, soulwinning director, youth pastor, and VBS director. Dave and Cindy have learned a lot about working with people, raising children, living by faith, leadership, and being an example. They also learned how to deal with disappointments. Their third child was stillborn. God has taught them many things through this trial.

God used all these experiences to prepare them to plant a church in the Hunt Valley region of Maryland on the north side of Washington, D.C. Hunt Valley Baptist Church held its first service on April 25 with 75 in attendance and 15 area families represented.