Seventy years after its construction, Naples’s oldest Black church remains intact.

The oldest black church in Naples is still standing decades after it was built. For almost 70 years, the Macedonia Missionary Baptist Church has functioned as a cultural center for Naples’ Black community.

The historic Black Church, located off Third Street North, was established in 1953, prior to the end of apartheid, according to a recent article by Mahmoud Bennett of Fox4.

Ida Lawson, 85, who has been with the church since its founding, has good memories of the close-knit community. “Everyone knew each other. “And we collaborated very closely,” she explained.

Lawson, originally from Alabama, recalls the area’s humble beginnings during the segregation era.

“It was absolutely nothing. When I initially arrived, there was too much here. But then everything just piled up around us, and I still can’t believe it,” Lawson told Fox 4.

Voncile Whitaker, the church clerk, described how the church acted as a primary gathering place for the Black community in its early years. “The church is rooted in the Black community,” she said, highlighting its importance beyond worship.

“This was the spot where people gathered. Voting registration, etc’. Whitaker remarked, ‘This was the central location.”

Despite segregation, Whitaker noted that both communities came together to support and pay for the church’s construction.

“Most people were together. You could always count on someone to lend you a hand,” Lawson said.

However, the church faces difficulties in sustaining its membership and gaining new members. Whitaker reported a drop in youth attendance.

The church aims to petition for historical site registration in Naples.

This article originally appeared on Fox4