A little over a year ago, Pastor Glen Allen was heading from his home in New Orleans to deliver a sermon in Shreveport, La. He was bringing his wife, Carla, and two children, Glen Jr. and Zoe, with him for the weekend, but their journey would last a lot longer than a weekend and would take them much farther than Shreveport.

In the days leading up to the trip, talk of a large storm, possibly a hurricane, kept growing and by the time Allen and his family left the city, he knew they would not be going back. He didn’t take the threat of the hurricane seriously until the day before he and his family left. By then he had decided the family should pack up their SUV with clothes and supplies.

“We could either stay in Shreveport and wait things out or see where God would lead us,” Allen stated, recalling the decision-making process during Hurricane Katrina. “We had no clue where we would go at the time, but we have a clue now. God led us to Fayetteville.”

Allen had been to Fayette County on several occasions. He had preached at Edgefield Baptist Church during an annual revival for a few years and a friend took Allen and his family in for a few days before Olivet Baptist Church was able to find them a temporary house until they purchased their own.

It was a busy year with the Allens closing things up in New Orleans, things that included a church with 800 parishioners and a home in a city that Allen had lived in for over 30 years.

The Allens were very lucky with their home in New Orleans. There was no flooding damage at the house, although there was some wind damage to the 160-year-old home and some rain leaked in as the house was shifted. There was a little damage to the church as well. Allen stated that though the house was livable and the church was operable, it was time for a change.

“We kept the church open in New Orleans through December for people transitioning back into the community,” said Allen, who added that during the immediate aftermath of Katrina, his cell phone rang constantly with his family, friends and parishioners calling to let him know where they were and that they were safe.

In addition to serving as the pastor for the church in New Orleans, Allen started a church on Old National Highway. He would preach in New Orleans at 5 p.m. on a Saturday and then hustle back to Georgia to preach at 3 p.m. on Sunday.

In March of 2006, Allen found a new home for his church in Georgia. The New Life Family Worship Center is located on 265 N. Jeff Davis Dr. in Fayetteville. There are already close to 200 members of the church and they are outgrowing their space already.

In addition to opening a church in Fayetteville and having it be successful so quickly, the pastor’s wife, Carla, has opened a fitness center for women, Fit 4 A New Life Ladies Fitness Studio, located on Bethea Road at Hwy. 314 in Fayetteville.

“It’s a miracle we ended up on our feet,” said Allen. “Lots of people still haven’t recovered, but I knew we would.”

The Allens made friends quickly, but it was still an adjustment to be in a new town on holidays like Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year’s Eve. Allen recalls many people being sensitive and helping out his family when they saw their Louisiana license plate.

There are still adjustments to be made. For instance, the streets of Fayetteville aren’t lit up or as noisy as New Orleans and for awhile the only things passing by the Allen’s home were deer. Allen also admits that one of the things he misses most about his former home is the food.

“The food here is good, but there is a different flavor, and no gumbo or jambalaya.”

Both of the Allen’s ventures are going well. The church is ethnically diverse and Allen credits an energetic service on Sundays with a lot of music and treating people the way they want to be treated as things that have helped him grow his congregation. Allen is launching a second morning service to be able to include all the members and he is already looking for more space. The fitness center also has a good number of members for only being open a month.

The center will launch a six-week, weight loss and fitness boot camp on Oct. 16.

Hurricane Katrina brought lots of devastation to the city and people of New Orleans, but Allen feels that all things work together for good, adding that it is hard to know God’s plan.

“My family is happier than they have ever been,” said Allen.

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