At Friendship Baptist Church, 40 years of inspiration

Montana City’s Friendship Baptist Church celebrated 40 years of service to the community this past weekend and looked ahead to many more.

David Klass, with the support of his wife Cathy, founded Baptist Baptist Church on Jan. 12, 1986. They soon held their first service in a rented space in Clancy’s St. John’s Church, with 10 families attending. The congregation grew steadily, prompting a 1987 move to Montana City, several rounds of church expansion/renovations, and in December of 2023 purchase of a Helena house to provide a retreat space for the church’s missionaries. 

With roughly 130 regular church attendees, Friendship Baptist has been led by Pastor Nicolas Karthals since Klass’s retirement last June.