Florida Primitive Baptist Convention Prepares for Inauguration of its Seventh President

Willie-Junior-WilliamsFlorida Primitive Baptist Convention Prepares for Inauguration of  its Seventh President

The Florida State Primitive Baptist Convention, organized in 1901, is preparing for the inauguration of Dr. Willie Junior Williams as its seventh president.  The inaugural activities will be held on Thursday, January 11, 2018, at the Bayfront Hilton Hotel, 333 1st Street, South, St. Petersburg, beginning at 6 p.m.

The inaugural ceremonies with Elder Kenneth Washington, First Vice President presiding, will include the Reverend Dr. Bartholomew Banks, Sr., president of the Progressive Missionary & Educational Baptist State Convention of Florida, as guest speaker.

After the ceremony, attendees will have an opportunity to greet/congratulate Dr. Williams and other program participants during a lavish reception planned for the Grand Ballroom of the Hotel.

Dr. Williams, a native of Cairo, Georgia—Cairo High School’s Class of 1974—has been an active force in Florida following a six-year tour with the United States Navy after graduation from High School.  His academic credentials include earning a Bachelor of Arts degree in history at Southeastern University and an Honorary Doctor of Divinity at Florida Beacon College. He served as an employment interviewer for Job Services of Florida (Lakeland) before beginning a ten-year teaching career at Kathleen Senior High School (Lakeland).

An active community participant, he served for five years as a Commissioner for the City of Lakeland and one year as Mayor of the City of Lakeland.  Other community involvement include: FBI Citizens Academy Graduate, President of the South Nebraska Neighborhood Association (Tampa), United Way Advisory Board of Lakeland, President of the Lakeland NAACP, Member of the Legislative Committee for the Florida League of Cities, Concerned Citizen Group of Northwest Lakeland, and several other boards and committees.

After accepting his call into the ministry in 1974, his first pastorate was at Mount Zion Primitive Baptist Church, Milton. From there, he pastored the Zion Hill Primitive Baptist Church in Lakeland for 13 years before being called to pastor at Greater Mount Moriah Primitive Baptist Church in Tampa for 18 years.  Since 2010, he has been the pastor at Greater Mount Pilgrim Primitive Baptist Church in Bradenton.  During each of these pastorships, major accomplishments took place including renovating existing facilities, adding additional facilities, implementing new programs and procedures, recording worship services to share with sick and shut-in, installing sound systems, computerizing church operations, establishing church by-laws, initiating new member orientation classes, implementing scholarship funds, and church school teachers training workshops.

He has been in a Primitive Baptist leadership role since 1979 when he was elected financial secretary for the South Florida Progressive Primitive Baptist District Association. (SFPPBDA) where he served for nine years before his election as vice president of the South Florida Progressive Primitive Baptist Church School Convention (1983) and President (1995) for SFPPBCSC.  From 2001 to pre-sent, he has served as moderator for the South Florida Progressive Primitive Baptist District Association, Inc.   He served 14 years as recording secretary for the Florida State Primitive Baptist Convention (FSPBC) and 15 years as vice president for FSPBC.  He currently serves as recording secretary for the National Primitive Baptist Convention.

He is the proud father of Elder Cedric Williams and Jennifer Williams and grandfather of Alexandria, Layla, and Zandria.

In his upcoming role as president for the FSPBC, Dr. Williams is looking  forward to organizing and instituting an operations and procedures manual along with the Vision that God reveals to him for the Convention.

 

About Carma Henry 24481 Articles
Carma Lynn Henry Westside Gazette Newspaper 545 N.W. 7th Terrace, Fort Lauderdale, Florida 33311 Office: (954) 525-1489 Fax: (954) 525-1861

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