West End Baptist Church in downtown Suffolk is inviting members of the community to bring their favorite, four-legged friends to their “Blessing of the Animals” service this Sunday.

The service will begin Sunday at 12:30 p.m. on the front lawn of the church, located at 105 Saint James Ave. Church members will be assisted by Girl Scout Troop 357 for the proceedings.

There will be brief reading of scripture to begin the event, and then each person will bring their pets to the Rev. Dale Peterson for individual prayers and blessings. People may also bring photographs of pets who have died, along with those who otherwise couldn’t be at the event.

“We’ll give thanks to God for all of the good animals and critters and pets and wildlife in all of creation, and we’ll ask God to help us be good caretakers of all the animals,” Peterson said in a phone interview.

There will be refreshments for people along with treats for all of the animals at the event.

Peterson said that people were entrusted by God to be good caretakers of the world He made, including His animals, and that this event was a way to give thanks to God and also to promote care for His good creations.

“We want to especially give thanks to the ways pets bless our home life and our family life,” he said.

He emphasized that it’s not just dogs and cats — all animals are welcome at West End Baptist Church this Sunday.

“I know somebody is bringing hermit crabs, and somebody is bringing a rabbit,” he said. “I know we’ve got some dogs and cats coming, (and) I wouldn’t at all be disappointed if someone showed up with a camel or a zebra.”

Call the West End Baptist Church office at 539-8771 for more information.