First African Baptist Church — Attraction in Savannah

Gerald Simmons reads over the letter addressed to Josephine King, his 92-year-old aunt, "Josephine King is no longer considered a member of the First African Baptist Church of Bainbridge, Georgia."

"It's terrible," Simmons says.

The letter, signed by senior pastor Derrick Mike, states that Ms. King has shown non-support towards the church in the areas of "constant and consistent financial and physical participation."

"She was stunned. She was disappointed. She was shocked," her nephew said.

Simmons says his aunt was considered sick and shut-in for several months, which explained her lack of attendance. He also says his aunt has gone above and beyond in the past to financially support the church.

"You shouldn't chase the individuals down. You shouldn't do that. If that's the case, you're money hungry," said Simmons.

Simmons says he knows his aunt isn't the first person to receive a letter of removal for not tithing and hopes the story will shed some light on the policy.

"You got to have money to make these churches run, but it's not about money. It's about god. You have to put god first."

Attempts to contact members or officials from the church for their side of the story were unsuccessful.

A number of people have posted on the church's Facebook page to condemn its decision to remove king.

The church has not posted on its Facebook page in more than two years.

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Myself and. some friends of mine just returned from our girls trip in Savannah. I was really excited about the trip, as I had been there before and was not able to visit this historical church. I have to say, visiting the church and seeing history with my on eyes was in itself, a great experience. However, our tour guide ruined the experience for me. I felt he was extremely opinionated toward the group. I feel that he spent far too much time calling out people in the group who were there to learn. Especially a young kid. I do understand the importance of the point he was trying to make,… about it is our responsibility to teach the children our history…. However, the way in which it was done, by this particular tour guide, was embarrassing and quite frankly made the whole tour very uncomfortable with his extra comments, and subtle, passive aggressive comments with people he would call on with in the group. For me it took something out of the experience. I also understand that maybe the tour is suppose to be interactive, and that’s okay, but my suggestion would be, in particular with the tour guide we had, is to focus on teaching more about the church, slave history, instead of trying to be a comedian, calling people out, putting people on the spot, and taking away from people having an informative experience… the whole reason why people come, it too learn what they may not...

I have always wanted to visit Savannah. It's rich history has always intrigued me so why not make it a road trip. So, I drove from Chicago to Atlanta to visit friends and family, and the next day I made my way to Savannah. What I wasn't prepared for though was the emotional journey that would forever change my life.

Visiting First African Baptist Church was not planned. My fiancé and I toured the many landmarks such as The Pink House etc... that is until our wonderful guide suggested we visit First African Baptist Church while we were there.

This visit changed my life! The market square where the Africans were auctioned off....You could still feel their spirit hovering. The red door of the church symbolizing that the church was owned free and clear. The amazing stories of engineers from all over never able to find out the entrance of the Underground Railroad beneath the church, much less understanding how structurally sound the handmade bricks made by the slaves makes the building an architectural marvel....wow!

I believe every African American should at least pilgrimage to Savannah to visit this sacred place. I'm sure it would change their perspective much like it has mine. I plan on visiting again soon, only this time with...