Welcome!
Welcome to our website! We are glad, so glad you are here. We pray that God will lead you to visit with us during our virtual services until we are able to reopen for in-person worship.
Because of God’s word, we believe “one makes a difference.” And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place” (Acts 2:1). There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called in one hope of your calling; one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is about all, and through all, and in you all. (Ephesians 4:4-6). We seek to elevate these truths as the central core value of our family identity. We believe our God will do even greater things when we are all on “one accord.”
As you visit our site, you will learn that we value our relationship with God the Father, God the Son, God the Holy Spirit. It is through Him that we seek to strengthen our relationships with people both in and beyond our immediate community. We strive daily to be an enlightened beacon of hope and change in order to bring all persons to faith in Jesus Christ Our Lord and Savior.
Your Servant Leader
Dr. Gerald L. Smith, Pastor
Announcements
Welcome!
Welcome to our website! We are glad, so glad you are here. We pray that God will lead you to visit with us during our virtual services until we are able to reopen for in-person worship.
Because of God’s word, we believe “one makes a difference.” And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place” (Acts 2:1). There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called in one hope of your calling; one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is about all, and through all, and in you all. (Ephesians 4:4-6). We seek to elevate these truths as the central core value of our family identity. We believe our God will do even greater things when we are all on “one accord.”
As you visit our site, you will learn that we value our relationship with God the Father, God the Son, God the Holy Spirit. It is through Him that we seek to strengthen our relationships with people both in and beyond our immediate community. We strive daily to be an enlightened beacon of hope and change in order to bring all persons to faith in Jesus Christ Our Lord and Savior.
Your Servant Leader
Dr. Gerald L. Smith, Pastor
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Announcements
Pastor Smith’s Biographical Sketch
Dr. Gerald L. Smith, Pastor
Gerald L. Smith is a native of Lexington, Kentucky. He earned his B.A, M.A., and Ph. D degrees from the University of Kentucky in history. He taught at the University of Memphis from 1988-1993. He is a full professor of history and a former holder of both the Theodore A. Hallam Professorship and the Martin Luther King Center Scholar-in Residence at the University of Kentucky. From 1997-2005, he served as the director of the African American Studies and Research Program at UK. He is the former pastor of the Farristown Baptist Church in Berea, Kentucky. He was called to serve as Pastor of Pilgrim in November 2011.
Dr. Smith is the author, editor, or co-editor of four books. He has more than forty articles, essays, and book reviews published in historical journals and encyclopedias. He has served as a keynote speaker for numerous programs, consulted on various historical projects, lectured on college campuses, and conducted workshops for primary and secondary school teachers. He has appeared in historical documentaries which have aired on CBS, NBC, KET, the CBS Sports Network, and TruTV and the ESPN Flim Series. Dr. Smith is co-editor of the award winning Kentucky African American Encyclopedia which was recognized with the Kentucky Archives Month Certificate for Merit for Writing/Publication. It was the Thomas D. Clark Medallion Book in 2015 and awarded the Kentucky Historical Society Publication Award in 2016. Choice described the book as a "brilliant compilation."
Pastor Smith's fifth book titled: Slavery and Freedom in the Bluegrass State: Revisiting My Old Kentucky Home is an edited collection of pathbreaking essays and received the Kentucky Historical Society's 2023 University Press Publication Award. He is currently researching and writing a new general history on the Kentucky African American experience and serving as co-editor of a book series on race and sports in America. Over the years, he has served on many different boards and committees. He is the former Chair of the Kentucky African American Heritage Commission.
In June 2020 he was appointed by the mayor of Lexington to serve as Co-chair of the Commission for Racial Justice and Equality in Fayette County. The Commission's final report was formally submitted on October 23, 2020. He currently serves on the Kentucky Historical Society Foundation Board, the Mary Todd Lincoln House Board of Directors and as an advisory member of the Kentucky Center for African American Heritage. He also host a radio segment series on " Racial Justice and Equality" on the Eastern Standard, WEKU.org 88.9 FM (NPR for Central and Eastern Kentucky.)
His awards include: selection as a National Faculty Scholar (1997); Who’s Who Among African Americans (2000); induction into the Martin Luther King Jr. Collegium of Scholars of Morehouse College, in Atlanta, Georgia ( March 2000), and the Evelyn Black Award from the UK Black Student Union (2005, 2017). He is a 2006 inductee into the Henry Clay High School Hall of Fame in Lexington, Kentucky; recipient of the 2011 Richard H. Collins Award from the Kentucky Historical Society, and, one of six professors on campus chosen by the UK Alumni Association to receive the 2013 Great Teacher Award.
In 2014 the Commonwealth of Kentucky’s Personnel Cabinet presented him with the annual Charles W. Anderson Laureate (Medal) Award, its highest award given to individuals recognized for significant contributions to equal opportunity in their communities. He received the Racial Reconciliation Award (2015) and The Kente Cloth Award (2017) from Campbellsville University. He was named a recipient of the 2016 Living Legacy Award by the Kentucky Black Legislative Caucus during the 13th annual Black History Month Celebration at the Kentucky State Capitol in Frankfort. He was recognized as the Outstanding Professor by Fraternity and Sorority Greek Life at UK in 2017.
He was awarded the 2018 University of Kentucky Inclusive Excellence Award and the College of Arts and Sciences Distinguished Service and Engagement Award. In 2019, he was inducted into the University of Kentucky College of Arts and Sciences Hall of Fame. In 2021 he was one of five recipients of the inaugural Reginald A. Guy. Jr. Lifetime Achievement Award from the Kappa Tau Alumni Association of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Incorporated.
He is married to the former Teresa Turner. They are the proud parents of Elizabeth and Dr. Sarah N. Smith.