Totally Gospel Network
Classics
Rev. B.W. Smith
1933-2001
Rev. Bennett Walker Smith was a native of Florence, Alabama. Born on April 7, 1933, Smith grew up on West Mobile Street with his mother and grandmother. He joined the Air Force after graduating from Burrell High School in 1950. He studied at Tennessee State University and went to Chicago public schools to pursue a teaching career.
In 1960, Smith entered Bethel M.B. Church and enrolled in the Moody Bible Institute for ministerial training.
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In 1972, Reverend Bennett W. Smith Sr., was called to pastor St. John Baptist Church. Pastor McCarley had met Reverend Smith, then a pastor in Cincinnati, Ohio, when he came to preach a soul saving revival at St. John. Under Pastor Smith’s leadership, the church continued its progress in gaining souls and enlarging its territory. The mortgage was paid in full; a mission center opened; and a federally chartered credit union was chartered in 1973. In 1980, Reverend McCarley’s vision for housing for low income families became a reality and was named McCarley Gardens.
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In 1994, Smith became the president of the Progressive National Baptist Convention, an activist organization comprised of 2.5 million members and 2000 churches throughout the world.
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The Rev. Bennett Walker Smith, 68, who emerged as a powerful national leader, died Aug. 7, 2001
Rev. A. Charles Ware
1926-1998
Rev. Ware was the son of a sharecropper. He was born in Macon, Mississippi Dec 26, 1926 and grew up in the cotton fields of that area. He served in the US Army before becoming a Baptist Minister. He received his bachelor of divinity degree from Daniel Payne College in Birmingham, Alabama, a diploma in theology from J. Campbell School of Religion in Memphis, Tennessee and a doctorate of humane letters from Tennessee Baptist School of Religion. Before coming to Buffalo Rev. Ware served as Pastor of Eastern Star Missionary Church in Toledo, Ohio. Earlier he served churches in Mississippi, Arkansas and Tennessee.
In Buffalo he served twenty years as Pastor of the Friendship Missionary Baptist Church at 402 Clinton Street, Buffalo NY. Rev Ware was a Pastor who did everything possible to help members become more active in the church and participate in activities of other churches. Rev. Ware was moderator of the Western District Baptist Association; a member of the executive board of the Evangelistic board of the National Baptist Convention USA and a life member of the NAACP. He was also well known for his tireless efforts and concerns to improve life in his church's neighborhood, which was one of the poorest in Buffalo. Rev, Ware was 71 years of age at the time of his death on July 21, 1998. He is buried in the Rosewood Mausoleum at Forest Lawn Cemetery, Buffalo, NY.
Rev. Dr. Ivery, Sr.
1938-2020
Dr. Ivery Daniels was born in Timmonsville, South Carolina on June 11, 1938, the son of the Late Henry Daniels Jr. and Alberta Daniels, he was raised in Buffalo, NY where he attended Buffalo Public School #75, Hutchinson Central Technical High School and Erie Community College before pursuing a career in Sociology and graduating from State University ofNew York at Buffalo;
Dr. Ivery Daniels served faithfully as an Ordained Deacon after uniting with the White Rock Missionary Baptist Church, Dr. Daniels acknowledged his call to the Ministry in 1967 and was elected and installed as Pastor in November of that year.
Dr. Ivery Daniels has been a tireless worker in the vineyard, he has also been blessed to serve on several Community Advisory Boards and has received many Awards and Recognitions for his Kingdom Work.
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On January 26, 2020, our Lord saw fit to grant peace and eternal rest to our beloved.
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Rev. Dr. Clay Evans
1925-2019
Clay Evans was born on June 23, 1925, in Brownsville, Tennessee, to Henry Clay and Estanauly Evans. He was a graduate of Carver High School, then he moved onto Chicago Baptist Institute for seminary education.[5] He attended Northern Baptist Theological Seminary, along with The University of Chicago Divinity School.
He was ordained as a Baptist minister in 1950, and he founded Fellowship Missionary Baptist Church in Chicago, Illinois, on September 10, 1950, with five founding members. His sermons were broadcast on radio and television.
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In 1965, Evans joined the Reverend Jesse Jackson Sr., to promote the civil rights movement in Chicago. In 1971 they founded the Operation PUSH coalition to encourage black self-help. Evans served as chairman of the organization from 1971 and 1976 and became its chairman emeritus.
He led his church until December 8, 2000
Evans married Lutha Mae Hollingshed on October 15, 1946; they resided in Chicago, Illinois. They have five children, seven grandchildren, three great grandchildren and one great great granddaughter. Evans's death was announced on November 27, 2019.[1] Evans's funeral was held on December 7, 2019.
Rev. Edward D. McNeely
1910-1977
The Rev. Edward D. McNeely served as Pastor ,of Pilgrim Rest Baptist Church, Memphis, Tenn., and was called to serve the Friendship Missionary Baptist Church, Buffalo, NY in 1948.
On November 10, 1952, the Church entered into a building contract for the present sanctuary. Ground was broken on June 7, 1953 and on August 7, 1954, following a parade and motorcade; the Friendship Church marched into their new sanctuary.
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He married the former Mamie Ruth Watkins a native of Henning, Tenn in 1945.
Rev. McNeely passed away on August 30, 1977.
Bishop Nathan S. Halton
1953 - 2006
Nathan S. Halton was born in Detroit, Michigan to Mary Lou Halton, and the late Bishop, His Grace, Stanley Halton. He was the oldest Son of twelve children with a steep indoctrination in Pentecostalism that stimulated an environment filled with study of the word and prayer.
Bishop Halton had accepted Christ as Lord in his teenage years. The transforming power of Jesus Christ shaped his personality and life, steering him to his sovereign purpose and ultimate fulfillment which was a lifetime of service in ministry.
A graduate of Empire State College with a degree in Business Administration, the dutiful minister prepared himself for what was to become a socially relevant ministry with Pentecostal fervor and apostolic leadership. The balance preparation of the sacred and secular positioned the charismatic leader to construct a ministry platform that would benefit the constituency of the saints for decades into the new millennium.
In January of 1975 Nathan S. Halton, was united in Holy matrimony to Antoinette M. Churchwell. To this union were born four daughters Leah Marie Halton, Rachel Lynette Ellis, Natina Elizabeth Halton, and Mary Loretta Halton. In addition to the four daughters, Bishop Halton and his wife opened their family to two additional daughters.
In 1977, the Lord directed his servant to move to the City of Buffalo, New York; he closed his business, sold his properties and moved his family from Cleveland, Ohio. In December of 1981 he opened the doors of his home for prayer and bible studies. After several months of fellowship and demonstrative presence of the Lord’s favor, The Greater Faith Bible Tabernacle Church, Inc. was established.
The ministry grew along with the needs of the community and through the sagacious leadership of the Lord’s anointed other ministries were birthed, including: The Breath of Life Ministries, Inc., Breath of Life Media, Breath of Life Day Care, and Educational Center, and the Greater Faith Housing Corporation, in addition to Para-church ministries serving the community at large; a respected community leader, an untiring activist, he served as a City Charter Review Commissioner for three-years.
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​ Nathan S. Halton, a bishop in the Lord’s church was summoned to eternal rest and reward on Saturday, May 27, Two-Thousand and Six in the year of our Lord.