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About Us
In 1925 Tampa, Florida
was a lively little city with a population of 50,000 and was a mere 19 miles in
diameter. Ybor
City, the Spanish district, noted
for its cigar industry, was just a rock-throw away. The roads were
unpaved. In the middle of College Hill,
Reverend Andrew Mack Woodard founded his church in the year 1925 and named it St.
John Progressive Missionary
Baptist Church. Pastor Woodard split his time between his two
churches ministering to the needs of his flock.
St. John Progressive
Missionary Baptist
Church was built on very fertile
ground. It was born on the threshold of
the Great Depression years and was able to survive the lean impoverished times
during that era. St.
John branched off from St. Matthew Missionary Baptist
Church. It started as a store front
church on Potter Street and
Lake Avenue. The membership was small. The members labored tirelessly building a
sound foundation for the church under the leadership of Reverend Woodard.
In 1928 St. John
moved from Potter Street
into a small wooden church located right where our church sits today. Several years later, Reverend Woodard and his
wife, Sister Beatrice, left St. John
and continued God's work as missionaries.
Reverend Woodard traveled throughout Florida
preaching the Gospel until his death in 1945.
God continued to send his trusted shepherds to watch over and guide his St.
John flock. These
former pastors were Reverends Monroe Lovett, B.J. Townsend, Steve Rogers, W.M.
Johnson and Ishmal Anderson.
In May 1949, Reverend Dr. Flagger G. Hilton, his wife,
Sister Savannah Hilton and son, Roosevelt, united with St.
John in the little old church. Reverend Hilton served St.
John the longest (from 1949 to 1991). He was truly a visionary, aggressive,
goal-oriented and very wise man. He was
a great leader, teacher, organizer and humanitarian. He was very passionate about the Lord's work
and it was exemplified in his sermons, actions and deeds. He believed in
progress. Under Pastor Hilton's
leadership the church grew at an exorbitant rate of speed spiritually,
financially and numerically. It was like
a fire had suddenly ignited overnight.
God's blessings continued. The
membership grew from 25 saints to hundreds.
Many ministries were established at that time. In 1953 under his dynamic leadership they
marched from the little old wooden church into the first concrete edifice.
St. John
continued to progress under Pastor Hilton's leadership. The membership continued to multiply and the
church continued to prosper financially.
The membership grew above one thousand. In 1984 the current edifice was
built and paid off in record time. This
new edifice was more spacious and had state-of-the-arts accommodations,
including a baptismal pool. God blessed us with more property. By 1991 the membership roll was above 1400.
Pastor Hilton ordained and developed a total of 25 ministers and most of them
moved on to pastor other churches. In
1991 Pastor Hilton retired and his unyielding efforts garnered him the title of
Pastor Emeritus. One year later he was
called home to glory on July 10, 1992.
On February 9, 1992
Reverend Dr. Bartholomew Banks, Sr. was installed as Pastor. He is very active in the community and has
held several positions in the Mt. Pilgrim Baptist Association during his tenure
at St. John. He currently sits on several local boards. In
March 2006, Pastor Banks was elected President of The Progressive Missionary
and Education Baptist State Convention of Florida, Inc. He is responsible for providing leadership to
300+ churches within the Association. He
was also blessed to receive an Honorary Doctorate Degree in 2005. The church family is so proud of his
nomination and degree.
St.
John has continued to progress spiritually,
financially and numerically. Today the
membership is over 2,000. Pastor Banks has led and/or ordained 19
ministers. Two are now pasturing their
own church. Three have relocated to
other states.
Under Pastor Banks' leadership, St.
John continues to excel, prosper and progress. The Lord continues to bless us. We truly give thanks to Him for sending
Pastor Banks back to us. Again, God has
sent us a shepherd with vision, wisdom, excellent leadership abilities,
humility, organization and perseverance, and most of all a spirit filled man
led by God. Through his leadership we
have accomplished so much during his tenure as Pastor of St. John Progressive
M.B. Church.
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