The first service of Westwood Baptist Chapel was held on Sept. 24, 1961 at the Washington Irving Intermediate School with 37 people attending. The local Mount Vernon Baptist Association provided assistance and the first speaker was Rev. William J. Cumbie, who served as Superintendent of Missions for that Association. Membership grew from 24 to 67 people by the end of 1962. Continued growth allowed the church to start looking for its first full-time pastor. On April 1, 1964, Dr. Robert D. Whitten, a graduate of Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, was called and preached his first sermon. The chapel was officially organized as Westwood Baptist Church on June 7, 1964, with 95 charter members.
Dr. Whitten led the church in four major building programs during his 35 years as pastor. The church reached out to the community with support of programs like Mother’s Day Out cooperative preschool, ECHO (Ecumenical Community Helping Others), Vacation Bible School, sponsoring a Vietnamese and a Laotian refugee family, ESOL classes, housing a Chinese-speaking mission and then a Spanish-speaking mission, and by starting a new Baptist mission now called South Run Baptist Church.
Dr. James K. Abernathy was called as the second pastor in 2001. Community outreach programs now include Hypothermia Prevention week in connection with Fairfax County’s Facets program; and Impact! Virginia—a youth program to help in repair and reconstruction of homes for those who cannot do such chores. Mission partnerships have been initiated with Persian World Outreach and ServeTrust, a ministry to the poor and outcast in India. Westwood has a vibrant music program for all ages, weekly classes for adults on life issues, a library filled with resources for further education in religion and family life, and programs in art, drama, video, and games to enhance Bible learning for children.
The church has invited former members to return for a Homecoming Weekend in November to help celebrate 50 wonderful years under the leadership of 2 pastors, and many additional staff and member volunteers who keep multiple programs current and relevant for today’s Christians.