By NEAL WAGNER / City Editor

The First Baptist Church of Pelham will look to spread its Easter service to thousands on March 31 when the church hosts a communitywide service at the Pelham Civic Complex and Ice Arena.
Pelham First Baptist typically holds its Easter services at its main campus on U.S. 31, but the church is looking to share the Easter message with a wider range of people this year, said First Baptist Middle School Student Ministry Rev. Ben Birdsong.
“It was actually a vision in one of our pastor meetings. We asked ‘What can we do to reach more of the community?'” Birdsong said.
The communitywide Easter service, which will be titled “Empty?” will begin at 10 a.m. on Sunday, March 31 in the Civic Complex’s drained main ice arena.
A coffee shop will open at the Civic Complex before the service at 9 a.m., and will offer coffee, doughnuts and fellowship time to attendees, Birdsong said.
“We wanted to do a big push to reach people in Pelham, Alabaster and Helena. Most of the people in this area go to church on Easter Sunday,” Birdsong said, noting the service will feature an empty tomb.
“We all live busy lives and many times feel drained,” read a church press release. “When we feel like we are running on empty, we can find grace, hope and forgiveness in the message of an empty tomb – the true meaning of Easter.”
For more information about the community Easter service, visit Fbcpelham.org.