The Reverend Dr. Stafford J. Wicker Announces Candidacy for Episcopal Service

The Mid Year Convocation of the Sixth Episcopal District was held in Valdosta, October 21, 2006, under the supervision of Bishop William P. DeVeaux and Dr. PAM DeVeaux.

In support of the Mid Year Convocation were Bishop Preston Warren Williams, II, Presiding Prelate of the Seventh Episcopal District and President of the Global Council of Bishops; Mother Wilma Delores Webb-Williams, Episcopal Supervisor; the Presiding Elders Council, Seventh Episcopal District; members from the six Annual Conferences of this district; and the Gospel Choir of Allen University.

Following the seating of the delegation from the 7th Episcopal District in the James Rainwater Convention Center, Bishop DeVeaux requested that the Rev. Stafford J. Wicker address the gathering. Accompanying Rev. Dr. Wicker to the lectern were Mrs. Constance Ann Belin Wicker, his wife; and their two daughters, Valencia and Lauren. Standing with the Wicker family were Bishop and Dr. DeVeaux; Dr. Daniel W. Jacobs, President-Dean, Turner Theological Seminary; 6th District presiding elders, clergy, and lay leaders; and stewards, trustees, and members of Antioch African Methodist Episcopal Church. Rev. Wicker announced compellingly, “I want to be a Bishop in the African Methodist Episcopal Church.” His words were greeted with cheers from those in attendance at the Mid Year Convocation.

In the spirit of good will, Rev. Wicker called to the podium Rev. Dr. Debra Grant and Rev. Isaiah Waddy, both of whom are candidates for the bishopric from the 6th Episcopal District. He acknowledged that he is not running against anyone, but alongside them; and he hoped that they would also adopt his thinking in this regard. He was pledged the support of both the 6th and 7th Episcopal Districts.

The Reverend Dr. Wicker received his first pastoral assignment in 1984 to Turner Chapel AME Church in Roseland, LA where he remained until 1987. While at Turner Chapel he accomplished the much needed building of a new sanctuary. In 1987, he was transferred from the 8th Episcopal District to the 6th Episcopal District where he was later assigned to the Toomsboro Circuit. In 1988 he was appointed to Mt. Zion AME Church in Mansfield, GA. During his tenure there the mortgage was liquidated, and the church moved from worshiping two Sundays to four Sundays and became a Station. In 1990 he was appointed to Mt. Carmel AME Church in Atlanta in the Thomasville Community. In 1992 Bishop Donald G.K. Ming assigned him to Antioch AME Church.

At Antioch, he led the church to acquire 32 acres of land on S. Hairston for future development, valued at $750,000. This purchase made Antioch Church the largest landowner (67 acres in Stone Mountain) among African American churches in Stone Mountain. The church also acquired, under his leadership, a property at 4730 Elam Road, also in Stone Mountain, to be used as an Antioch Annex, with a property value of $2.3 million and at a purchase price of $.25 million. The property has a newly renovated sanctuary with full equipped kitchen, a fully operational Day Care Center, before and after school programs, a 5 bedroom rental house, baseball field, and two playgrounds. The acres on S. Hairston now house the first phase of the Antioch Manor Estates, a senior housing development. Phase II, The Antioch Summits, are scheduled for construction to begin in the fall of 2007. Groundbreaking has taken place for the expansion of the Antioch campuses, to include the construction of a new multi-functional building and the combining of the S. Hairston and Elam Road campuses to serve the needs of our community and our membership. Church growth has risen from 176 members in 1992 to nearly 2600 members today.

There is no question as to if The Reverend Dr. Stafford J Wicker is qualified for the bishopric. He values the people and appreciates the church for all it can and will do in the lives of the people. From humble beginnings in the small town of Greensburg, LA to the hallowed halls of Wilberforce University and those of Turner Theological Seminary, The Reverend Dr. Stafford J Wicker has prepared himself to be a Bishop in the African Methodist Episcopal Church. He finds comfort in knowing that he is called to assist God in the perfecting of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ. His parting words to the energized gathering were “Make me a Bishop, and I will make you proud!”

By Staff Writer, Jarrett Britton Washington.