"Go See Mr. Bunn; He'll Treat You Right"

Although my plan for this blog is to write about 85 members of Hayes Barton Baptist Church over the next 85 days, I do not have a particular order in mind as to who I’ll write about on any given day.   I knew when I first thought about writing these stories, there were a few people I needed to write about while early on my journey, if for no other reason than to launch the blog with the fuels of heritage, hope, and home that we’ve chosen to define our 85^th anniversary.

Thinking that I’d begin with a focus on heritage, Owen Smith, the architect of our current church building, was a natural choice for an early interview and hence he is written about on September 1.  Taking a step deeper into our heritage, my next “get,” to use a media reference about “must have” interviews, had to be Julian Bunn.  Every person I spoke to about writing the stories said I had to interview Julian.  “He was there at the beginning,” said one.  “He is a gem,” said another.  “Julian has so many stories to tell; you need to talk with him,” said a third.  “Go talk with Mr. Bunn,” said a fourth….and on and on and on.

And so when I spoke with Julian last week, a story he told me about his father resonated for me in a strange kind of way.  You see, he said that folks would say about his father, “Go see Mr. Bunn; he’ll treat you right.”  Well, I went to see this Mr. Bunn, and … he treated me right!

To even attempt to tell Julian Bunn’s story or any/many of his stories in a brief blog posting is to carry out an injustice.  He truly was here at the very beginning in 1926 when his father and some other area men decided to build a church on land that had been purchased by the Baptist City Council of Raleigh.  He actually stood on the corner listening to these men discuss putting a church here.  Stop for a moment and ponder that.  That was eighty-five years ago. Julian was an eyewitness to the planting of this church.  And he has been an eyewitness through all these many years.

Julian can talk to you about anything and everything related to Hayes Barton Baptist Church.  He can tell you about how Occidental Life Insurance Company was ready to take over the building in the 1930s before the debt was paid.  He can tell you about coming home to the church after working for General Electric as a consultant/contractor with the Air Force during World War II.  He can tell you about all the pastors we’ve had through the years because he knew each one personally.  He can tell you about the fire in 1962. 

Julian can tell you about the heritage and hope of Hayes Barton Baptist Church, and he can tell you about the home that it is.  The heritage is one of “friendship and fellowship,” he says reflectively.  “The door is open.  It is a very friendly church,” he continues. “I go because I want to be a good Christian and to be a good influence on others. With the help of God, we are granted to be good Christians.”

“The hope,” Julian says, “You can talk about the hope for a long time.  Without hope, we kind of lose our place.  It takes strong people to keep hope going.  People need to be conscious of the needs of the church, and, through the church, conscious of the needs of other people. The church needs to work more and more toward being missionary Baptists, dedicated in life and lifestyle to Christian efforts, sometimes no further away than next door.” 

The home that Hayes Barton Baptist Church is for Julian comes from his life experiences.  “I went all around this country and all around the world and never found anything better.”  This church, he says, is “a homecoming place.”

Julian Bunn is an eyewitness to all that Hayes Barton Baptist Church was and is and will be.  While most obviously reflective of our heritage because he has lived through it, he offers hope in a way that makes a person feel blessed just talking with him.  He is not only an eyewitness to all that is Hayes Barton Baptist Church, but a witness for good Christian living and, most importantly, for Christ.  He told me he sometimes asks the question, “What am I here for?”    He told me his answer is, “we are each, with the help of God, given a grant to be a good Christian.” 

Like I said, I went to see Mr. Bunn and he treated me right.  What a blessing he is.