[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 156 (2010), Part 8]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 10979]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                  A TRIBUTE TO REVEREND ALVIN BARNETT

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                          HON. EDOLPHUS TOWNS

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, June 16, 2010

  Mr. TOWNS. Madam Speaker, I rise today in recognition of Reverend 
Alvin Barnett for his years of service to ministry and his community.
  Alvin Barnett attended the famed Boys High, where he became a star 
football player. He was goal-oriented and this served him well again 
during his college years, first at Tennessee State College, and then at 
American Baptist Theological Seminary, in Nashville, Tennessee, from 
which he received a Bachelor of Theology Degree. Rev. Barnett continued 
his studies in Business Administration at New York City's Pace 
University, and at Malloy College in Valley Stream, New York.
  Reverend Barnett was licensed and ordained to preach the Gospel at 
the Mount Ollie Baptist Church in Brooklyn by the late Reverend Dr. 
R.D. Brown. His pastoral journey includes two other Brooklyn churches: 
Mount Zion Baptist Church, and West Baptist Church, where he has served 
for the last 30 years.
  Alvin Barnett recognizes that one's journey in ministry must include 
learning and studying. He is a lifelong student and prodigious reader. 
In his life's work, he uses the collective knowledge gained from his 
theological intellectual pursuits for the glorification of God. He 
consults daily and advises young ministries, seminarians, and seasoned 
pastors in ministry. Alvin Barnett is humble, and seeks advice and 
consultation from the best and brightest in ministry and other 
professions. He is a keen observer of the human condition, and is 
faithful and persistent in the work that God has called him to.
  Reverend Barnett is a team builder who utilizes his experience and 
knowledge to develop effective teams that actualize his vision of 
Ministry. He knows well how to use the best skills to enhance the work 
of the kingdom.
  Rev. Barnett is an active member of many organizations, including 
Churches United for Worldwide Action, the Metropolitan Ministers 
Ecumenical Conference, the NYPD Committee Advisory Council, the 
International Prison Ministry (he serves as President), and the 
National Baptist Convention USA, Inc. (NBCUSA), and he is active in the 
NBCUSA Moderator's Auxiliary. He has been a member of the Eastern 
Baptist Association (EBA) New York, Inc. for more than forty years. 
Rev. Barnett has served as treasurer and president of Prison Ministry, 
chairman and vice chair of the board of trustees, executive manager of 
the EBA Headquarters in Brooklyn, a member of the Board of Managers and 
the Advisory Council, and as chairman of the Board of Evangelism.
  During his tenure in evangelism, he organized and taught classes on 
evangelism and prepared many teams for street ministry in churches 
throughout the Eastern Baptist Association. He remains a tireless 
Evangelizer, and utilizes a unique hands-on approach.
  Reverend Barnett travels extensively, witnessing to incarcerated men 
and women throughout the Eastern Seaboard, including the Nassau County 
Correctional Facility on Long Island, Rikers Island in New York City, 
as well as upstate New York, Pennsylvania, North Carolina and South 
Carolina.
  Reverend Barnett was overwhelmingly elected the 16th Moderator of the 
Eastern Baptist Association on July 17, 2009. He has embarked upon the 
work of reenergizing, rebuilding and regenerating the Eastern Baptist 
Association where a renaissance is taking place among Baptist churches 
of geographic Long Island.
  Madam Speaker, I urge my colleagues to join me in recognizing the 
work of Reverend Alvin Barnett.

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