ALPHARETTA, Ga. (BP) — When Dan McSwain’s construction business needed a bigger space on Old Milton Parkway in 2005, he prayed over the property and placed Bibles opened to various passages in doorways. Twenty years later, that building has become the new home of the Georgia Baptist Mission Board (GBMB).

Jay McSwain worked with his dad back then. Now the discipleship pastor at First Redeemer Church in nearby Cumming, the younger McSwain was on hand alongside Georgia Baptist leaders, GBMB staff and city officials for the official ribbon-cutting ceremony Aug. 12.

“It’s incredible to know that the prayers he prayed and the faith he lived out are now continuing through the ministry that will take place in this building,” McSwain, who also serves as a chaplain for the Atlanta Braves organization, said in a report by The Christian Index. “The legacy that our dad gets to leave is all the administrative work that’s going to go on through Georgia Baptists through this campus facility right here.”

In his remarks, GBMB Executive Director Thomas Hammond reiterated that 3,400 Georgia Baptist churches are the true headquarters for the state convention.

“We are here to serve churches … pastors are our heroes, churches are our priority and Georgia is our mission field,” he said.

Participating local officials included Alpharetta Mayor Jim Gilvin and Director of Public Safety John Robison, the former saying that “government isn’t the solution — it’s you. It’s the people … Georgia Baptists make this community what it is.” 

The GBMB sold its previous property in Gwinnett County about a year and a half ago to a hotel developer after a years-long search for a buyer. Staff had vacated the premises in January 2023 and had been split between working in a leased building in Suwannee and space at Hebron Baptist Church in Dacula.

Administration and office personnel have been at the Alpharetta location since May. Approximately 70 people are currently on the state convention staff, with half reporting to the building and the rest “in the field,” Assistant Executive Director Andy Childs told Baptist Press.

“We are committed to regionally focused ministry with staff working and living in the regions,” he said.

The McSwain family business — KM Homes — occupied the two-story building for seven years before selling it to The Scheduling Institute, a business consulting and trading company.

The facility comes with solar panels and has spaces for committee meetings, statewide gatherings, training and planning. Areas have also been dedicated to visiting ministers for study or personal retreats, emphasizing its purpose to serving churches, Hammond said.

(EDITOR’S NOTE — Scott Barkley is chief national correspondent for Baptist Press.)