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Cornerstone pastor presents 26-day prayer resolution to Chesterfield County supervisors
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Summary
Pastor Franco of Cornerstone Assembly of God delivered the annual prayer presentation to the Chesterfield County Board of Supervisors, recounted local history tied to religious freedom, and presented a 'resolution of thanksgiving and prayer' asking the board to observe a 26-day prayer guide; no formal vote was recorded.
Pastor Franco of Cornerstone Assembly of God stood before the Chesterfield County Board of Supervisors and presented the church’s annual prayer and thanksgiving resolution, asking supervisors and county staff to observe a 26-days-of-prayer guide distributed in board packets.
The presentation, made during item 5 of the board meeting, combined a historical reflection — including an account of 18th-century preacher John Weatherford and the role of Patrick Henry in Weatherford’s defense — with a formal request that the board and county employees be included in daily prayers. Pastor Franco said the 26-day guide covers “26 of the 40 departments” and began the day before the meeting.
Why it matters: the appearance is an annual civic practice in which local faith leaders offer blessings and public prayers for county governance. Pastor Franco’s remarks invoked local history and constitutional-era references to frame the request as part of Chesterfield’s civic identity rather than as a policy proposal. No formal motion or recorded vote on the resolution was made during the meeting.
Pastor Franco told the board, “May God show you the difference 1 person, 1 decision, and 1 prayer during fear or crisis can make,” and read a written resolution that cited Jeremiah 29 and 1 Timothy 2 and honored the late Supervisor Jim Holland. He recounted that Reverend John Weatherford was imprisoned for preaching without Anglican approval and described Patrick Henry’s later involvement in Weatherford’s case; he said that the Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom (1786) and its principles informed the First Amendment.
Board members thanked Cornerstone for attending and for the support the church has shown elected officials and county staff. One board member said the tradition was meaningful and urged wider sharing of the presentation, calling the practice an example of local civility. Another board member thanked Pastor Franco for providing prayer guides in both English and Spanish.
The meeting record contains no indication that the board took formal action to adopt the reading as an official county policy; the resolution was presented and the board received the guests with thanks and applause. The session moved on after the blessing and brief comments from supervisors.
Provenance: the presentation and resolution were introduced at the start of item 5 and were read and discussed through the congregation blessing and board responses later in the same agenda segment.
