[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 131 (Tuesday, September 23, 2003)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1856-E1857]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




          TRIBUTE TO THE LATE REV. JAMES WASHINGTON STEPHERSON

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. KENDRICK B. MEEK

                               of florida

                    in the house of representatives

                      Tuesday, September 23, 2003

  Mr. MEEK of Florida. Mr. Speaker, I rise to pay tribute to one of our 
community's most remarkable leaders, the late Rev. James Washington 
Stepherson. He genuinely exuded the noble attributes that define the 
character of God's chosen steward in his role as the Good Shepherd of 
various churches throughout Georgia and Florida.
  On Saturday, September 20, 2003, at 10 a.m., Commissioner Barbara 
Carey-Shuler, chairwoman of the Miami-Dade County Board of 
Commissioners, will lead elected and appointed officials and community 
leaders, at ceremonies that will name 2799 N.W. 46th Street as the Rev. 
J.W. Stepherson Street. This event will symbolically consign his 
countless deeds of good work to the lasting appreciation of our 
generation and generations more to come.
  Born to the late Israel and Janie Hill Stepherson on September 22, 
1914, in Jacksonville, GA, Rev. Stepherson preached his first sermon in 
1946 at Kings Chapel Baptist Church in Abba, GA, and was subsequently 
ordained in that year by the late Rev. H.J. Walker.
  Historic milestones characterized Reverend Stepherson's pastoral 
service. In 1959 he visited Miami, FL, and became enamored of the 
Antioch Missionary Baptist Church of Brownsville. After preaching at 
this church on two occasions, the Board of Deacons offered him an 
invitation to become the pastor of the church. He accepted this 
providential offer, and the rest was history. As a visionary, he 
ordained and licensed countless clergymen and deacons throughout the 
State and across the Nation. Under his leadership more than 5,000 souls 
were led to Christ, as he fervently persevered to deepen his insights 
and expand his

[[Page E1857]]

knowledge by enrolling at Bryant Theological Seminary in Georgia, 
Florida Memorial College and Barry University in Miami-Dade County.
  The 17th Congressional District of Florida and its contiguous cities 
and neighborhoods will surely miss the dedication of this Man of God. 
The timeliness of his wisdom and the focus of his expertise guided us 
in committing ourselves to the well-being of the less fortunate, the 
voiceless and the underrepresented. By establishing the People United 
to Lead the Struggle for Equality (PULSE), he led the memberships of 
the Baptist Ministers Council, the Religious Leaders Coalition and the 
General State Convention to stand by and continue the mission of the 
civil rights movement.
  He was often heard to define the role of the church in its 
stewardship over the voiceless and the disenfranchised members of 
society as something analogous to the role that the civil rights 
leaders played as they resiliently struggled through the harrowing 
challenges of racial equality and the demands for simple justice and 
equal opportunity.
  I was truly privileged to enjoy the friendship of this quintessential 
Man of God in his understanding of and commitment to the less fortunate 
and downtrodden in our community. The sharpness of his mind, the 
timeliness of his common sense and the courage of his conviction served 
to strengthen and guide us when our community and the state of Florida 
needed someone to put in perspectives the agony and pain of 
disenfranchised African-Americans and other voiceless minorities 
yearning to belong and pursue the promise of the American dream.
  We lost this giant of a leader when Reverend Stepherson died in the 
service of his God and his fellowmen on September 8, 1998. Indeed, he 
exemplified a calm but reasoned leadership whose stewardship and 
advocacy buttressed our hope for a brighter future. While he is sorely 
missed by our community, particularly the congregation of Antioch 
Missionary Baptist Church of Brownsville, we will once again be given 
the opportunity to thank God for uplifting our lives through the 
stewardship of Reverend Stepherson, who faithfully and religiously 
consecrated his noble efforts on our behalf.
  This fitting but symbolic ceremony is but one small measure of our 
genuine acknowledgement for his remarkable contributions to the good 
name of our community. Our collective pride in sharing his friendship 
is only exceeded by our gratitude for all that he has sacrificed on our 
behalf. This is the legacy with which we will honor his memory.

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