Stephen Folker Princeton News Leader, NC

By Barry Merrill
NL Publisher
A young man with a heart for missions and music has been called to serve as an associate pastor at Princeton Baptist Church.
Stephen Folker, 23, accepted the offer to come to Princeton about two months ago.
As sometimes happens, his path to where he is now is a long way from where he started.
Stephen’s path was suddenly altered at age 11 when a heart attack claimed his father. His family was in the middle of building a new home at the time.
His mother, who had left teaching to raise the family, went back to work in the public school system and Stephen, the oldest of four children, tried to cope with the loss.
The family changed again, as his mother re-married a couple of years later, and they added two step-sisters to the family.
Stephen was, like many of his peers, a Georgia football fan, where his mother had gone to school. In the middle of high school he suddenly gave up football. He was asked to play with the school’s soccer team, a change in direction. He was president of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes in high school. He was involved in chorus and drama, and also worked with the school newspaper.
When it came time for college he didn’t do well on the SAT exam, so instead of going to Georgia to study photo-journalism, he attended Truett-McConnell, a small Baptist junior college in Cleveland, Georgia. He is the grandson of a Baptist preacher, and his family was always in and involved in church, so a church school felt comfortable and he could later transfer to Georgia. At the start of his sophomore year, he began hearing the call of God on his life, and felt it led him to go into music ministry, another change.
As God would have it, Truett-McConnell was expanding to a four-year college, and the first area they would offer a degree in was music ministry.
Stephen’s musical gifts are strongest in vocals, primarily working with choirs and coordinating musicians. He remembers praising God when he completed a piano course, understanding that was not his calling.
While studying, Stephen began working at churches to gain some practical experience and to share his musical gifts, first at a Methodist Church, and later at a Baptist Church in north Georgia. While working at the Baptist Church, he took another change in direction.
He thought about getting a master’s degree in music. He also thought about going to seminary. He looked at a number of schools and what they had to offer, but settled on Southeastern Baptist Seminary in Wake Forest, NC. He is majoring in International Church Planning.
He had been on three mission trips in high school, two to Belize and one to Romania, but it was a mission trip to Poland three years ago that made a deep impression on him. It made a change in his life. It was during that trip that he began to understand God’s calling on him to serve in the mission field. He has been back to Poland three times and will be making a fourth trip later this summer.
Stephen called Southeastern just before he was to begin school and changed his major to reflect what he understood now as God’s calling on his life.
He completed his first semester this spring and connected with Princeton Baptist Church. He also connected with Kelton Hinton, the Johnston Baptist Association’s head, who has spent time abroad as a full-time missionary. He expects to draw upon Kelton’s experiences as he understands where and how he is called.
He also sings with two groups at Southeastern, as well as working with the music program at Princeton Baptist, to stay active in that area of ministry, though he is not studying music now.
Rev. Duane Batten, who serves as pastor at Princeton Baptist, has a strong heart for missions, and his support and encouragement is a major reason Stephen felt led to accept the offer at Princeton Baptist.
Stephen says the church has been very supportive since he arrived. He talks about Operation Inasmuch, feeding World Changers, and working with the youth as they go to Cincinnati later this summer on a mission trip for the homeless and to lead some Backyard Bible Clubs.
This week in Denton the youth will be sharing about Christ during a tractor show.
“My prayer is to engage people across the earth. It’s not just about giving money to missions, but it’s about going.
“Right now we have a traditional service. In the fall we may do a second service. I may be coordinating that. We may be doing some music that’s jumpier, getting into a more intimate worship experience.
“It’s about growing spiritually, getting more into the Lord’s work.
“I just want to be loving on people and visiting people as an ordained pastor.”
We are looking for a youth pastor, he says, that we hope to add to the staff before long.
He will be working at the church, after school starts back in the fall, all day Monday, part of the day Wednesday and all day Sunday. He lives in a church-owned home in Princeton while in town.
Stephen’s not married at this point, but has started dating a girl from back home. He went back home for his ordination service at his home church in Georgia recently, and saw her, and saw her differently than in the past. Where that will end up, he’s trusting God.
“The ladies and the church have provided so much at the house since I moved in. They filled my whole house.
“I have been praying for a church that would be open to worshipping freely, not restricted to a single style of worship. I’ve been praying for a church that would be mission minded, and I know Princeton Baptist will grow into that. I was praying for a pastor who would be a mentor.
“I know God has answered my prayers. I wouldn’t want to be in any other place.”

Stephen warms up the choir before the morning service at Princeton Baptist Church this past Sunday. Among the choir members are (l to r) Betty Lee, Debora Stephenson and Ruby Barbour. (NL Photo by Merrill)

New Princeton Baptist Associate Pastor Stephen Folker (left) helps wash up after the men of the church fed the World Changers serving in the Princeton area lunch Friday. One of the other helpers was Marshall Price. (NL Photo by Merrill)

Trash Schedule Change

Princeton trash and recycling pickup will be Thursday, July 5 this week due to the July 4th holiday.

Visit Princeton Public Library
for Summer Reading

Located on Princeton School Campus
919- 936-9996
Mon., Tues., Thurs, 4-7 p.m. • Sunday 2-3 p.m.
(Summer hours may vary, call first)
101 Dr Donnie Jones Blvd E
Princeton, NC 27569

Wildlife commission reminds fishermen to get a license

Register for Little League football camp July 10, 12, 14

Area college grads, honors

Watching Princeton's Babe Ruth game

Wayne Wilson News Leader
113 N. Wilson St., PO Box 158,
Fremont, NC 27830
(919) 242-6301 •
Fax (919) 936-2065

Princeton News Leader
119 W. Edwards St.,
Princeton, North Carolina 27569
(919) 936-9891 •
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Headlines

Princeton a good fit for Folker

Trash Schedule Change

Princeton trash and recycling pickup will be Thursday, July 5 this week due to the July 4th holiday.

Visit Princeton Public Library for Summer Reading

Wayne Wilson News Leader 113 N. Wilson St., PO Box 158, Fremont, NC 27830 (919) 242-6301 • Fax (919) 936-2065

Visit Princeton Public Library
for Summer Reading

Wayne Wilson News Leader
113 N. Wilson St., PO Box 158,
Fremont, NC 27830
(919) 242-6301 •
Fax (919) 936-2065