Biography
W. Franklyn Richardson is Senior Pastor of the historic Grace Baptist Church in Mount Vernon, New York. Under his leadership, the congregation has grown to more than 4000 members. In 2003, the ministry of Grace Baptist Church was expanded to Port St. Lucie, Florida. Dr. Richardson has been the leader of this vibrant, diverse, multi-staffed ministry since April, 1975. Prior to coming to New York, Dr. Richardson was pastor of Rising Mt. Zion Baptist Church, located in Richmond, Virginia and St. James Baptist Church in Varina, Virginia concurrently from 1969 until 1975.
A graduate of Virginia Union University, Dr. Richardson received his Divinity degree from Yale University, Divinity School and his Doctorate of Ministry as a Wyatt Tee Walker Fellow from the United Theological Seminary in Dayton, Ohio. Dr. Richardson has received many honors for his leadership in ministry including the Doctor of Divinity degree from his alma mater, Virginia Union University and several other colleges and universities. In 1989, Dr. Richardson was inducted into the Martin Luther King, Jr., Board of Preachers at Morehouse College in Atlanta, Georgia.
A community builder and organizer for decades, Dr. Richardson has played a pivotal role in the grass root efforts of reestablishing a cultural bridge between community and education. He has been involved in the brick and mortar realities of housing development and is singularly responsible for leveling the ground by fighting for equitable opportunities in public education in the Mount Vernon community. His insightful guidance is responsible for two Grace Church related Community Development Corporations which have constructed more than 100 million dollars in affordable housing.
Dr. Richardson served as General Secretary for twelve years of the 8 million member, National Baptist Convention USA, Inc., which thrust him into the international arena of the World Council of Churches where he served on its prestigious Central Committee. The World Council represents more than 400 million Christians in 150 nations. He also served on the boards of the Congress of the National Black Churches, the National Urban League, and the Constituency for Africa. A life member of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, Dr. Richardson is also a member of the Sigma Pi Phi Fraternity.
This distinguished theologian is an internationally sought after preacher, lecturer and facilitator, having preached on several continents. For the past thirty years, he has been heard throughout the tri-state area on WVOX radio and is viewed on national television every Sunday morning. He is the author of the widely acclaimed, Power of the Pew, and has written several extensive articles on faith-based community developments, of note: “Mission to Mandate” in the National Urban League’s: State of Black America. A published preacher as well, Dr. Richardson sermons can be found in publications including Keep the Faith, by Welcome Rain Publishers, and Joy to the World, by Simon & Schuster.
Dr. Richardson enjoys a stellar career as a national leader. A man of intuitive reason and an incisive mind; he demonstrates in his persona, the marvelous union of passion and intellect. He is a national advocate for economic equity and his counsel and advice is widely solicited in several major corporate boardrooms throughout America.
Currently, Dr. Richardson serves on the boards of the ; Pepsi Cola Ethnic Advisory Board; the Ujamaa Community Development Corporation; the Harvard University Divinity School Summer Leadership Institute for Church-based Community and Economic Development; Comcast Corporation and NBCUniversal Joint Diversity Council and Grace Community Development Corporation. He is Chairman of the Board of the National Action Network, the Conference of National Black Churches, American Legacy Magazine and Virginia Union University.
Dr. Richardson is married to Inez Nunnally Richardson. They are the parents of three adult children and the grandparents of five.
A Call To Consciousness
In a keynote message on January 16, 2011 at New York City’s Riverside Church, Rev. Dr. Richardson said, “The only way that this gathering, this celebration can be relevant is if we take time to apply the message and life and values of Martin Luther King, Jr. to our present context; to our present dilemma in America, to our present challenges that we face as a nation…”
Watch Now
courtesy of Velma McKenzie-Orr http://nonprofitpal.com/
