MMDLU Conference 2025

Pastor Edward M. Hendricks, Jr.
Moderator of The Association

Bishop James Colman Jr.

Providence International Church
Lynchburg, VA

Pastor Marvin St. Macary

Ramp Church International
Lynchburg, VA

Bishop Marshall D. Mays

Pastor of Otterville Baptist Church,
Bedford, VA
Ivy Hill & St. Paul Churches
Amherst, VA

Rev Dr. Waddell G. Jones, Jr.

The Reverend Dr. Waddell G. Jones, Jr., is the youngest of three children born to Waddell Gerald Jones, Sr., and Geneva A. Jones. From 1998-2000, Rev. Jones served as the youth minister at Faith Outreach Community Center in Gladys, Virginia. He was licensed on November 12, 2000, and ordained by the New Free Spring Baptist Church in Rustburg, Virginia, on April 29, 2001. In July 2002, Reverend Jones was called to pastor the Promised Land Baptist Church in Moneta, Virginia, where he served for five and a half years. Rev. Jones was then called to pastor the New Free Spring Baptist Church in Rustburg, Virginia, in December 2007 and was installed as the eighth pastor on January 20, 2008. On July 23, 2023, Rev. Jones was installed as pastor of the Moral Hill Missionary Baptist Church in Axton, Virginia. Pastor Jones is a graduate of William Campbell High School in Naruna, Virginia. He also attended Ferrum College. He is a graduate of the International Seminary in Plymouth, Florida. He holds degrees from the Virginia University of Lynchburg, formerly known as Virginia Seminary, including a Certificate in Ministry, a Bachelor's in Religious Studies, and a Master of Divinity (Cum Laude). Pastor Jones was awarded an honorary Doctorate of Divinity degree from Bethlehem Bible College and Seminary in Roanoke, Virginia. He earned his Doctor of Ministry Degree from Virginia University of Lynchburg. He completed his doctoral work as a Leonard N. Smith Fellow at the Leonard N. Smith School of Religion at Virginia University of Lynchburg, Virginia. His dissertation focus was entitled “Sports Evangelism: Evangelizing the World Through Sports.”

Dr. Jones is very active in the community. He currently serves as a trustee for The Baptist Center of Virginia and Virginia Union University. He has served as a trustee at Virginia University of Lynchburg, Vice Chairperson for Preachers United for Christ, Concerned Ministers for Christ, Moderator of the Moneta chapter Passion Week, Moderator for the Central Virginia Passion Week, Moderator of the Peaks of Otter Baptist Association, Vice Moderator of the Otter River Baptist Association, Young Pastors and Ministers Department of the Virginia Baptist State Convention, Vice Chair of the Home Missions Department of the Virginia Baptist State Convention, and President of the Moderators Department of the Virginia Baptist State Convention. Dr. Jones has delivered messages at State Conventions, Local Associations, NAACP, High School Graduations, Denominational Meetings, and Churches throughout  America.

He has a tremendous passion for God’s Word coupled with a love for God’s people. He has a contagious spirit of generosity that flows through every facet of his ministry. He is married to Linda Michelle Smith Jones and they are the proud parents of two children, Marcus (Jasmine) and Trinae (Travis) and five grandchildren, Malaya, Malachi, Mia, Micah and Mar’rion. 

Rev. Samuel Shaw III

Pastor Samuel K. Shaw III began his preaching ministry at the New Weeping Mary Missionary Baptist Church in Chesapeake, Virginia under the pastorate of Dr. John C. Smith.  He accepted the call to Pastor in 1999. Pastor Shaw previously led three churches (one of which he founded) by helping to broaden the horizons of God’s people by teaching them to tap into their true God-given potential and by enhancing their focus and knowledge of Christ.  

Pastor Shaw has recently been called to be the Senior Pastor of the Stoney Branch Baptist Church in Gates County, NC and also the Founder/CEO of Perfecting Kingdom Life Ministries, which is a new and exciting virtual worship experience.  He brings to the ministry extensive leadership skills, a team ministry prospective, ability to restructure and organize, technology concepts, ability to foster church community relationships, and a heart for millennials.  

Pastor Shaw believes in the holistic approach to ministering to God’s people and he has a passion for learning opportunities to enhance his ministry.  He returned to school and received a Bachelor’s Degree in Biblical Studies, a Master’s Degree in Christian Counseling, and he is also certified as an Expository Preacher by the E.K. Bailey International Conference on Expository Preaching and Teaching, Dallas, TX.    

Pastor Shaw spends an enormous amount of time sharpening his knowledge of God’s Word in order to remain true to his commitment to fulfill God’s will by taking the Gospel of Jesus Christ into the world of the unconverted and equipping the Christian church to do the same.  Pastor Shaw’s goal is to prepare Gods’ people as stated in Ephesians 4:12 -- “For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry for the edifying of the body of Jesus Christ”.  

Elder Samantha Carter

Elder Samantha Carter is a native of Washington DC. She graduated from Randolph Women’s College with her Bachelor’s in Psychology and from Liberty University with a  Master’s in Marriage and Family Counseling. She became a licensed minister in 2015 and was ordained an Elder in 2022. She currently serves as the Superintendent of the Youth and Young Adult Ministry at Shekijah Preparation Assembly. Elder Carter believes that everything God does is right and his timing is perfect. 

Elder Dezmond Jones

Elder Jones became a licensed minister in 2013 and ordained elder in 2025. He is married to the love of his life, LaToya Jones, and they have 3 beautiful daughters. For 18 years ( and counting) he has coached indoor and outdoor track, alongside football, for Nelson County High School. He also works as a mental health and substance abuse counselor with Intercept. Elder Jones loves God with passion and shares the good news of the gospel just the same! 

Rev Tina Watson 

Tina Watson is a Pastor and Teacher, who is sought out for revivals, conferences, and lectures globally. She is a native of Greenville, North Carolina and a "daughter" of the Philippi Church of Christ where she was baptized and mentored for ministry by her deceased and former pastor Dr. Randy B. Royal. In 2008, Tina co-founded and led the congregation of the Friendship Community Baptist Church for eight years in Greenville, NC. Her passion for outreach to the lost, the least, and the left out was the catalyst for the unprecedented growth experienced by the church. July 2, 2017, Tina was elected as the Co-pastor of the Zoar Baptist Church and became the first female to serve in the pastorate of the 152-year history of the church.

Tina attended Shaw University in Raleigh, North Carolina where she majored in Religion and Philosophy. She is a graduate of the Samuel Dewitt Proctor School of Theology at Virginia Union University Richmond, Virginia earning two Master Degrees simultaneously, a Master of Divinity and a Master of Arts in Christian Education. She has dual ordinations by the Baptist & Disciple of Christ Church Denominations and is also a board-certified Master Nero-Linguistic Programmer and Life Coach.

In 2001 Tina resigned from her management position at Proctor & Gamble and became the founder and CEO of her own business, Door to Door Cleaning LLC. With entrepreneurship in her DNA Tina began four additional businesses, Door to Door Transportation Service, Joy Ride Taxi & Trucking, Need A Ride Transport Service, and New Direction Life Coaching inc. She is a member of The Dialectical Society, The Coalition for Education & Economic Security, Uniting Sisters, The Northampton County Planning Board, and the NAACP.

Tina is married to her best friend and ministerial companion Cornell Watson Sr. They live in Charlotte, North Carolina.

Bishop James Colman Jr.

James E. Coleman, Jr., the son of the late James Edward Coleman, Sr., and Lauretta Atkinson Coleman, was born October 4, 1965, in Richmond, Virginia. He graduated from James Madison University receiving a B.S. with a double major in public administration and political science. While at James Madison, Coleman became the first African American to be selected student leader of the year. He went on to graduate with honors receiving his Master of Divinity degree from the esteemed Samuel DeWitt Proctor School of Theology, Virginia Union University. While at Virginia Union, Coleman served as the president of the Theologue Fellowship. Coleman later graduated from the prestigious Duke University Divinity School receiving a Master of Theology degree. He received his earned doctorate from United Theological Seminary in Dayton, Ohio. Coleman’s dissertation is the basis of his first published book as an author entitled Return of The Men. He has done further study at Harvard University Divinity School/Kennedy School of Government as a graduate of the 2001 Summer Leadership Institute.

Dr. Coleman is the founder and senior pastor of Providence Transformation Church International (Baptist) Inc. in Lynchburg, Virginia. The ministry has a widely viewed television broadcast on WSET ABC 13 called Good News for Today. He is also the Chairman of the Board of Generations & Greatness which is affiliated with the church. Beyond his local church, Coleman currently serves as the President of The Baptist General Convention of Virginia which is comprised of 1,0079 churches. He serves as a Bishop in Kingdom Builders Global Fellowship headquartered in Houston Texas. Coleman is employed as the Virginia University of Lynchburg Dean of the Leonard N. Smith School of Religion, Faculty Chair and Compliance Officer. He serves his alma mater as a member of the Board of Trustees at Virginia Union University in Richmond, Virginia. Dr. Coleman also enjoys serving on the boards of the Farr Foundation, Rush Homes, Truist Bank, and Virginia Interfaith Center for Public Policy. Coleman is now a member of the Lynchburg Sphex Club.

Dr. Coleman has formerly served in numerous capacities. He is the immediate Past Chair of the Lynchburg City School Board Representing District 3. He has served on the Executive Committee of the Virginia School Boards Association and the Executive Committee of the Virginia High School League. Coleman is a former Lynchburg City Planning Commissioner. He has served as Chaplain, Lynchburg Sheriff’s Department and National Associate Chaplain, Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. He served for ten years as a member of the Lynchburg Central YMCA Board of Directors and on the Lynchburg Youth Services Board. Coleman is a former national board member of Reverend Al Sharpton’s National Action Network.

His awards include Who’s Who in American Colleges and Universities, Outstanding Men of America, 1988 National Alpha Phi Alpha College Brother of The Year, Governor’s Fellow, Lynchburg Police Department 2009 Citizen Award, the Lynchburg NAACP Humanitarian and Freedom Fighter Awards. Dr. Coleman has been honored to speak at such places as the Pentagon, United States Department of Agriculture, National D-Day Memorial, and the Redeem the Dream March on Washington.

Dr. Coleman is married to Dr. Patricia Denise Williams Coleman, and they have six children and six grandchildren.

Rev Dr. Travis T Judkins

The Reverend Doctor Travis T. Judkins is the Senior Pastor of the Cool Spring Missionary Baptist Church in Gaston, North Carolina. A licensed minister since the age of 14, making him the youngest minister ever licensed in the history of the historic First Church of Newport News (Baptist). Established in 1864 by the late Rev. Dr. Thomas Henry Poole, First Church is the oldest form of organized religion within the original city limits of Newport News, Virginia. Since that time, he has grown to become a well-traveled speaker, preacher, teacher, administrator, scholar, and pastor. He has pastored churches throughout the states of North Carolina and Virginia.

Dr. Judkins has always been an advocate of education, which has often brought attention to his unique oratorical ability, keen intellect, and photographic memory. He holds the Associate of Arts degree in Liberal Arts & Sciences; Bachelor of Arts degree in Sociology; and the Master of Arts degree in Organizational Management, all from Virginia University of Lynchburg. His professional seminary training was completed at Shaw University Divinity School in Raleigh, North Carolina, where he received the Master of Divinity degree in Hebrew Bible/Old Testament. As a Kingdom Diversity Scholar, he received the Doctor of Education degree from Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary in Wake Forest, North Carolina. Presently, under the supervision of noted New Testament scholar, Professor Ernest van Eck, Dr. Judkins is working towards the completion of his Ph.D. in New Testament from the University of Pretoria in South Africa. A profound believer in the power of language, he has trained as a linguist with language competencies in biblical Hebrew, biblical Greek, Aramaic, Arabic, Ugaritic, Latin, and French. Furthermore, he has contributed to the theological academy presenting academic papers, book chapters, journal articles, lectures, and workshops.

The work of Dr. Judkins is visible not only in pastoral ministry and scholarly contributions, but he has also given much time to community involvement. He has provided service to numerous boards and organizations over the years, some to include: Vidant Hospitals Advisory Board; Generations Community Credit Union Board of Directors (formerly St. Luke Credit Union); Virgina Center for Inclusive Communities Board of Directors; American Baptist Churches, U.S.A.; National Baptist Convention, U.S.A., Inc.; and, he is a most proud member of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc.

The Reverend Dr. Melvin T. Blackwell

Dr. Blackwell is the Senior Pastor of Little Zion Baptist Church in Smithfield, Virginia, where he has faithfully served since 2004. He currently resides in Chesapeake, Virginia, with his lovely wife, Jackie. Together, they are proud parents to four adult children: Alexandria, Melvin II, Marcus, and Nijeria. Dr. Blackwell holds a Doctor of Ministry degree from Virginia University of Lynchburg and a Master of Divinity degree from Richmond Virginia Seminary. He also holds a Bachelor of Science degree from Elizabeth City State University (an HBCU) and two Associate of Science degrees from the College of the Albemarle in Elizabeth City, N.C. 

Dr. Blackwell is affiliated with numerous organizations, including the Metro Ministers’ Conference of Virginia, where he served as the immediate past 58th President, and the Virginia Center for Inclusive Communities—formerly the Virginia Conference of Christians and Jews—where he served as the immediate past Tidewater Board Chair. Additionally, he is a member of the General Board of the Baptist General Convention of Virginia, the Executive Board of the Hampton University Ministers' Conference, the Board Chair of the Theological Scholarship Foundation, Inc., the Advisory Panel of Bank of America, and the Board of Visitors at Elizabeth City State University. He is also a proud member of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc.

Dr. Blackwell is the founder of Back Home Ministries, which focuses on kingdom-centered teaching, training, technology, and publishing. He is the creator of the Pastor’s University Lectures and the Forward Leadership Equipping Conferences for Pastors and Church Leaders. Renowned as a lecturer and workshop facilitator, he is also the author of BodyShift: A Model to Shift Church Members into Lifetime Kingdom Disciples. Pastor Blackwell embraces his global missionary calling by supporting and periodically traveling to Kenya, Africa. Ultimately, Dr. Blackwell hearts’ desire is to remain obedient to what God commanded unto him one early September morning in 1998; “Walk in My ways, Follow My commandments, Feed the Flock”. 

Marvin St. Macary

Marvin St. Macary’s journey from the entertainment industry to the pulpit is a testament to the transformative power of God’s calling. A graduate of Fordham University (Theater Arts & African American Studies), Marvin began his career working alongside icons such as Sean "P. Diddy" Combs and director Hype Williams, producing music videos for global superstars. Yet in 2006, amid a thriving career, he experienced a profound spiritual awakening that redirected his path toward full-time ministry.

Relocating to Lynchburg, Virginia, Marvin became an integral part of Ramp Church International. He was ordained as a Deacon in 2012 and elevated to Elder and Executive Pastor in 2014 under the leadership of Bishop S.Y. Younger. For over a decade, Marvin has faithfully overseen the church’s ministry operations, leadership development, and spiritual growth initiatives.

Known for his ability to blend deep theological insight with practical leadership, Marvin empowers individuals to grow spiritually, personally, and professionally. He also integrates the arts with ministry, writing and directing productions such as The Witness, inspired by William Seymour and the Azusa Street Revival.

In 2025, Marvin released his latest book, Beyond the Dream: Fulfilling Your Purpose, offering readers spiritual wisdom and practical strategies to pursue God-given purpose.

Marvin holds an MBA in Marketing from Liberty University, further equipping him to advance both ministry and entrepreneurial endeavors.

Alongside his wife, Ashley, Marvin leads the Marriage Ministry at Ramp Church International. Together, they conduct marriage retreats and provide faith-based guidance to strengthen couples and cultivate healthy, God-centered relationships.

Beyond the church, Marvin engages in entrepreneurial ventures, including M. Saint Photography and The Saint Collection—a faith-based streetwear brand co-founded with Ashley and their daughter, Gabrielle. He is also a sought-after speaker, equipping students and emerging leaders with life skills and leadership principles.

From Hollywood sets to the house of God, Marvin’s life reflects a relentless pursuit of purpose, divine alignment, and a commitment to inspiring the next generation.

Bishop Marshall D. Mays

Bishop Marshall D. Mays is the Pastor of the Otterville Baptist Church, Bedford, Virginia, the Ivy Hill and St. Paul Baptist Churches, Amherst, Virginia. Bishop Mays is the Vice President of Academic Affairs in the Virginia University of Lynchburg Leonard N. Smith School of Religion.

Bishop Mays has been a lifelong learner and lover of higher academia. His early education occurred in the Amherst County Public School System. He is the recipient of the following degrees, the Associates of Arts in Liberal Arts and Sciences, the Bachelor of Arts in Theology, Master of Divinity, and the Doctor of Ministry from Virginia University of Lynchburg. He is also a graduate of Eastern Theological Seminary with a Master of Religious Education Degree. As a result of his commitment to education and ministry he is the recipient of two honorary degrees and numerous awards. In addition, he has had post-graduate study at Liberty University. 

Bishop Mays was elevated and consecrated as Bishop of Education of the Ecumenical Global Mission Alliance Reformation, Bishop Carol Baltimore, Presiding Prelate on Saturday, April 5, 2024, in Baltimore, Maryland. 

Bishop Mays has served as the President of the Mt. Pleasant Baptist Sunday School Convention of Central Virginia and Moderator of the Peaks of Otter Baptist Association, Bedford, Virginia and the Rockfish Baptist Association of Central Virginia, and Head of the Moderator’s Council of the Virginia Baptist State Convention. He also has served as Advisor for the Deacons and Deaconess Ministry and Assistant Statistician of the Virginia Baptist State Convention. Bishop is presently serving a second tenure of Peaks Otter Baptist Association, Bedford, Virginia. He is the author of three books “Decently and In Order:  An Administrative Handbook and Guide for Small and Rural Churches,” and “Decently and In Order:  A Study Guide for the Deacon and Deaconess;” and “Serving Together: Pastors and Deacons in Cooperation, Not Conflict.”  

Bishop Mays is married to the former Florence McDaniel, and he is the father of five daughters and the grandfather of ten grandchildren and two great grandchildren.