Brief History:
October 16, 1982 - 2022
On Saturday, October 16, 1982, a small group of local pastors and clergy met at Second Liberty Baptist Church to consider the feasibility of organizing a minister’s union that would equip, inspire, and mobilize clergy and congregations to pursue the Great Commission together. Mills, host pastor; Dr. Philip Williams, Ebenezer Baptist Church; Rev. Dano Armstrong, New Elam Baptist Church; Dr. Lonnie Jones, Angel View Baptist Church; Rev. Russell Crawley, Second Elam Baptist Church; Rev. Thomas Jefferson, Rising Mt Zion Baptist Church; Rev. Frank Christian, Second Liberty Baptist Church; Rev. Hathaway, Second Liberty Baptist Church; and Rev. Willie Brown, New Elam Baptist Church. After prayerful deliberations, the group unanimously agreed to organize the Baptist Ministers Union of New Kent and Vicinity. The first elected officers were Rev. Phillip Williams, Moderator; Rev. Dano Armstrong, Vice-Moderator; Rev. Hathaway, Secretary; Dr. Lonnie L Jones, Treasurer; and Rev. Mills, Chaplain/Parliamentarian. Letters were sent out to Baptist churches in New Kent and Charles City inviting them to join us. Soon, our numbers began to swell as we discovered strength in unity. Within a few months, the following churches were members of the union, Angel View; Ebenezer; Lebanon; Mt. Calvary; Mt. Nebo; Mt. Olive; Mt. Pleasant; New Elam; Rising Mt. Zion; Second Elam; Second Liberty; and St. We would later reach Charles City County as the St. John Baptist Church joined our numbers. Over the years, we have provided wise counsel to clergy and congregations, hosted Countywide Revivals and Special Focus services, facilitated ordinations, and assisted with pastoral installations while using our collective impact to address real needs in the community. For a brief period, our name was changed to United Ministries Joint Conference, but in 2018 we returned to our original name. For almost four decades we have sought to maximize our impact for Christ by creating an interdependent network of clergy and congregations to facilitate ongoing collaboration and multiplication among churches in the county. As we celebrate four decades of cooperative ministry, we honor the memory of those members who have transitioned from labor to glory. In Memoriam:
Brown, Rev. Willie/New Elam
Crawley, Dr. Doris A/Second Elam/Mt. Nebo
Croxton, Dr. Carolyn R/Angel View
Christian, Rev. Frank/Second Liberty
Gaines, Dr. Cynthia L./Second Liberty/New Covenant
Garrett, Dr. Joseph/St. Luke
Hughes, Rev. Richard/Rising Mt. Zion
Jefferson, Rev. Thomas/Rising Mt. Zion
Jones, Dr. Lonnie L./Angel View
Lewis, Rev. Todd/Second Liberty/Mt. Pilgrim
Macon, Rev. Holiday /Lebanon/Zion
Mills, Rev. James W./Second Liberty
Newbill, Rev. Lewis/Angel View
Parham, Dr. Melvin/Ebenezer
Pennell, Rev. William/Mt. Olive
Perry, Dr. Eddie/St. John
Sherman, Dr. James/Mt Calvary
Towe, Dr. Earlie/Mt. Nebo
Washington, Rev. Amos/Angel View/Zion
Webb, Rev. Leo/Union
White, Rev. James/Mt Pleasant
White, Rev. Robert/Mt. Pleasant
Whittle, Rev. Conrad/Lebanon
