[Congressional Record Volume 170, Number 106 (Tuesday, June 25, 2024)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E661]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




    HONORING REV. DR. WADE A. STEVENSON ON THE OCCASION OF HIS 21ST 
                          PASTORAL ANNIVERSARY

                                 ______
                                 

                      HON. BRADLEY SCOTT SCHNEIDER

                              of illinois

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, June 25, 2024

  Mr. SCHNEIDER. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor and congratulate my 
dear friend, and a respected faith leader, Rev. Dr. Wade A. Stevenson, 
on the occasion of his 21st pastoral anniversary at Gideon Missionary 
Baptist Church in Waukegan, Illinois. For more than two decades Pastor 
Stevenson's leadership has helped further the spiritual well-being of 
not only his congregation at Gideon, but the entire surrounding 
community.
  Rev. Dr. Stevenson was invited to become pastor of Gideon Missionary 
Baptist Church in 2003. At the time, he was the Pastor for Farristown 
Baptist Church in Berea, Kentucky, the state in which he grew up and 
where he earned his degrees from the University of Kentucky and 
Lexington Theological Seminary. On October 19, 2003, Gideon held a 
formal installation service for Pastor Stevenson.
  As a man of faith, Pastor Stevenson's mission for leadership is: To 
Equip the Saints to Serve, True to this mission, he has empowered his 
congregation to support their families, their church and their 
community.
  I am honored to have personally observed, and experienced, the 
extraordinary leadership and powerful ministry of Pastor Stevenson for 
more than a decade. Across the year's, I have come to know Pastor 
Stevenson as an exceptional leader, teacher and friend.
  Pastor Stevenson is widely recognized in our community for his 
remarkable service and many accomplishments. He even had the honor of 
delivering an opening prayer as guest chaplain in this chamber in 2016. 
Yet, more than the accolades and awards, he is beloved as a beacon of 
hope, optimism and spirituality for all who know him.
  I congratulate Rev. Dr. Wade A. Stevenson, his wife Gloria, his three 
sons, and the entire Gideon family in honor of his twenty-first 
pastoral anniversary with Gideon Missionary Baptist Church, and in 
recognition of his 34 years in the pastoral ministry, I wish him and 
the entire congregation blessings of health, happiness and peace.

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