STATEMENT OF THE REGIONAL LEADERSHIP OF THE NORTH AMERICAN DIVISION REGARDING OAKWOOD UNIVERSITY PRESIDENT LESLIE POLLARD WHEREAS, we have been entrusted to oversee the stability, progress and growth of the Black work in the North American Division of the Seventh-day Adventist Church; and WHEREAS, we are called to provide individual leadership to our respective fields...
Category: News
Oakwood University Statement – Murder of OU Student
From the Oakwood President September 19, 2018 “First, I wish to thank our alumni, friends, church members, and each of you personally for the numerous messages of assurance, support, and prayer for our campus in the wake of the tragic off-campus incident involving one of our students last weekend. Second, I want to reassure you as...
Young Pastors: The Church’s Scapegoats??
Let me state my bias up front. I love pastors and I loved pastoring. For close to 30 years I pastored churches large and small. Churches so large that I had multiple pastors and staff. Churches so small I had to wash my own feet at communion! And today I spend a significant amount of...
I Still Believe in Christian Education
One of my favorite passages of Scripture is John 6:66-69. Jesus has just fed the 5,000, with five loaves and two fish. The people were excited by the thought of someone who could do that. In their minds, He was their Savior-which He was-just not the kind of Savior they wanted. They wanted a Savior from the...
Elder Vandeon Griffin
Have you met Elder Vandeon Griffin? If you’ve seen a short, dark skinned man with the biggest smile and the personality to match, then chances are you’ve met Elder Griffin! Hailing from Greenville, Mississippi, he is married to the former Kimberly Tinson (the love of his life) and has one daughter, Kalin (the joy of...
Jasmyn Collins
Numbers are no stranger to this senior accounting major. Growing up in a pastoral family home, she has had her share of moves-seven to be exact. Jasmyn was born to Pastor E. J. and Mary Collins in Texas. She reports later moving to Nevada, Missouri, California, Michigan, Oklahoma, and Arkansas, where she attended and graduated...
Jermaine Jackson
Prior to joining Allegheny West, Jermaine Jackson served the church at Adventist Risk Management, Inc. (ARM). He joined the office in 2009, as a Senior Accountant and was soon promoted to Controller. In 2014, he was elected as Vice President, Chief Financial Officer for ARM and Gencon Insurance Company of Vermont (GICV). In that role,...
What I Learned from My “Museum Tour”
In the past 3 weeks, I have had the privilege of visiting two museums that deal with African-American history: The National Museum of African American History and Culture in Washington D.C. and the Legacy Museum in Montgomery, Alabama. It was a wonderful and enlightening experience; I highly recommend them both-not only to African-Americans, but to...
Highlights of Black Caucus
Recently the leadership of the African American work in North America met at its Black Caucus meeting.
Elder Garth Gabriel
May 20, 2018 is a very special date and an easy date to remember for Elder Garth Gabriel. On this date, the constituents’ of Lake Region Conference in conference session, voted to ask Elder Gabriel to serve as the Executive Secretary, but also, 39 years ago on May 20th, was the day Elder Garth Gabriel...









