Smith leaving Northlake for Lanier Village Estates

Lanier Village Estates Retirement Center on Thompson Bridge Road in Gainesville soon will be getting a full-time chaplain. <br> <br> Doctor Tony Smith is leaving Northlake Baptist Church, also on Thompson Bridge, after 19 years as pastor there to take the new position. <br> <br> He says it will be an awesome challenge.<br> <br> &#34;I think it&#39;s exciting to have the opportunity to design a spiritual program in the community that&#39;ll meet the needs of those folks and, so it&#39;ll be a pretty demanding responsibility there,&#34; Smith said.<br> <br> Lanier Village Estates eventually is expected to have about 400 residents and 200 staff members.<br> <br> June 2 will be his last day at Northlake.<br> <br> &#34;It certainly has been the best thing that&#39;s ever happened to me in my ministry is to be able to be here,&#34; Smith said.