Our Church
Our congregation is a highly educated and diverse community comprised of children, youth, college/training, military, professional, and retired persons. The breakdown is illustrated on the right.
Shiloh Baptist Church was rebuilt in 1950 following a devastating 1948 tornado. The building is comprised of three wings. The original structure includes the sanctuary, baptismal and a few classrooms. An addition in the 1960s added a basement fellowship hall and additional classrooms. In 1982, an office and classrooms were added, and other areas were remodeled. Finally, a Family Life Center was added in 2007. This 8,000 square foot facility provided a large fellowship hall, new kitchen, restrooms and a chapel.
The sanctuary, offices, restrooms, nursery, toddler room, media library and most classrooms are located on the main level and are accessible via several entrances. The sanctuary includes beautiful stained glass windows, a baptistery and an audio/video loft. The basement level features additional classrooms and a fellowship hall. Collocated with the fellowship hall is a kitchen and food pantry for serving the church and community. To access the basement level, pass under the brick archway to the right of the main entrance and enter the side door to the right. Another access point is a stairwell near the choir practice room (205).
In addition to abundant handicapped and visitor parking, you'll find ramped entrances and a powered chair lift allowing everyone to join in activities in the basement level. Those in need of hearing assistance may obtain headphones from any usher.
The church's property spans both sides of Kings Highway (Route 3) and includes the building grounds, cemetery, playground, storage building and surrounding acreage. Much of the surrounding property was logged in early 2004.
Our Community
King George County, "Gateway to the Historic Northern Neck," with its 131 miles of shoreline on the Potomac and Rappahannock Rivers, acres of unspoiled natural beauty, cultural diversities and historic wealth, is home to approximately 20,637 citizens who are proud of their past and excited about the community's future. The County covers approximately 113,920 acres (183 square miles), of which 72,718 acres are forested, and 38,105 acres are agricultural. King George County is a transitioning rural County steeped in history that places a high priority on quality of life through the protection of natural, cultural and historical resources as well as by being a regional leader in pro-active and progressive planning, development and governmental services. (Source: http://www.king-george.va.us) The County is located approximately half-way between Richmond and Washington DC and is east of Fredericksburg, VA. There are two major thoroughfares in the county (US Rt. 3 and US Rt. 301).
In 2007, King George County was ranked second in Virginia behind Loudoun County for community growth with a growth rate of 4.6%. In the following year, 2008, the county fell to 2.9% growth for the first time since 2001 (ranked fourth in the state). The percent of population change from 2000 to 2008 was 37%.
The breakdown by gender is 49.9% female and 50.1% male. The median age is 33.7. Residents under the age of 5 is 8.2%, under the age of 18 is 26.8%, and over the age of 65 is 8.9%. The percentage of males over 15 years of age currently married is 58% and of females is 57.7%.
Of the population 25 years old and over, 80.4% have a high school diploma or higher and 23.6% have a Bachelor’s degree or higher. The public school enrollment in Fall 2008 was 1,380 in the three elementary schools, 645 in the middle school, and 1,241 in the high school. The student-teacher ratio during the 2006-07 school year was 13.7:1 elementary and 12.6:1 secondary. Of the 2004-05 ninth grade students, 87.9% graduated in 2008. Of those graduates, 85.9% continued their education, including military.
Virginia is the top state for total defense employment with 11.7% and with civilian defense employment with 12.7%. The state is second in military employment with 11.1%. The U.S. Naval Surface Warfare Center located in Dahlgren is the largest employer in King George County. It should be noted that Governor Kaine recently announced that Harris Teeter, Inc. will invest $101 million to open a food distribution operation in King George County, creating 335 jobs. According to the 2000 census, 2,444 King George residents commute to northern Virginia and 3,129 commute from northern Virginia to King George. In addition, 1,870 commute from King George to the Fredericksburg, Stafford, and Spotsylvania area and 7,254 commute from those areas plus Caroline, Essex, and Westmoreland Counties to King George. Residents of King George County who work in the county have an average commute of 35.2 minutes. The unemployment rate in King George has increased over the past two years from 3.0% in April, 2007 to 8.4% in March, 2009.
In 2008, the average annual wage in King George County was $61,496. The median household income for King George County in 2008 was $71,825. The families living below the poverty level is 4.4% and the individuals living below the poverty level is 5.8%.
The average home value in 2008 was $311,971 and the median was $308,800. The median sales price in March of 2008 was $349,950 which was the highest in the region. The current (April 2009) median sales price is $228,200 which is still the highest in the region.
For more information on King George, please visit the county website at http://www.king-george.va.us. The county web site contains or links to these useful web pages:
