I am talking today with Douglas Tilton, Pastor of Old Cranberry Baptist Church. Pastor Tilton will be officiating the wedding of Sam Castleby and Maggie Payton. Pastor Tilton, it is so good to meet with you.
Thank you Russell. It is a pleasure to meet with you.
How long have you been serving at your church in Old Cranberry?
It hasn't been that long Russell. But then, it doesn't take long to establish roots in such a fertile community.
The church itself has quite a long history though, doesn't it?
Yes it does. And I am discovering just how far back those roots go every day. There is a strong sense of tradition here.
I gathered that from my conversations with Mildred Cranberry-Smith and Jac-leen Hudson.
Two very strong and highly influential women.
Is that influence financial or political, or both?
Definitely financial. One of the things that attracted me to this area was the potential for making a difference in the surrounding communities.
So, do you have plans to provide outreach to lower-income communities?
I didn't say I had plans. I said there was potential and that was attractive to me.
I did hear that Mrs. Hudson made a significant investment in a new mausoleum for her husband, Preston.
I really should have looked more closely at the plans before construction started. It is quite huge. But I had just arrived on the scene and I understood the plans had been in the works for a while.
The history of Old Cranberry goes back over two hundred years, but the church isn't that old.
No. There was a church on that site though. It was a wooden structure, Anglican, I believe.
Is the cemetery the same one that was there during that time? I am curious about where the burial grounds are for the Cranberrys, specifically Chester and Elceera.
You know there are legends about those two. Quite fascinating if you like that sort of stuff. I try to stay clear of gossip and the like.
So, you don't know?
I haven't been here long.
Yes you said that. But given the importance the community has given to these legends, I would think your interest would have been piqued.
I am much more interested in the pastoral care of my congregation and the community in general.
So, tell me about the Payton-Castleby wedding. It is coming up soon.
I am really looking forward to it. I have been working on the service for weeks. I want to make sure I do everything right.
Is this your first wedding?
My first official one, yes.
Well, Pastor Tilton, you probably have a lot to do in preparation for that wedding. Thank you for taking the time to talk with us today. Our listeners and I are looking forward to reading about The Old Cranberry Ladies Garden Club when the book comes out.
Let them know they should check out the website for the Old Cranberry Baptist Church and sign up for our newsletter. We hold a fabulous tag sale every Spring.
Thank you again, Pastor Tilton. For our listeners, I do hope you will join us again next time when we interview Pastor Tilton, of the Old Cranberry Baptist Church.
This has been another episode of Interviews with Fascinating Characters of Fiction. You can learn more about the book and the Cranberry family on our website, BillCusano.com And you can access more of Bill's writing on BillCusano.Substack.com where you will find more interviews with the characters. Thank you for listening. If you have any questions or comments, please write to Bill@BillCusano.com
