A 200-Year Story on Guy R. Brewer Boulevard
Macedonia African Methodist Episcopal Church, the third oldest church in Flushing, was established in 1811. Its early congregation was made up of freed African slaves, Native Americans, and white worshippers gathered in a common cause. At the first A.M.E. conference in Philadelphia, Richard Allen, founder and first bishop of the African Methodist Episcopal Church, commissioned the Rev. Henry Hearden to plant churches in New York. Hearden became Macedonia's first pastor.
Over the decades, three of Macedonia's pastors rose to become bishops of the A.M.E. Church: the Reverends William Paul Quinn, Japeth P. Campbell, and Richard Franklin Norris. During the long depression of 1928 to 1940, the Rev. William McKinley Dawkins shepherded the church through a season of remarkable growth. Property was acquired, a building was erected, membership swelled, and Missionary Grace Wares was sent into the mission fields of Africa. The people pooled what they had for the upbuilding of God's kingdom, and countless souls were added to the roll.
In 1957, under the Rev. Grady Grant Crumpley, a recreational and educational center was completed next to the church, and its doors have stayed open to every facet of the community ever since. Later, under the Rev. Richard Franklin Norris, the Bowne Street parsonage mortgage was retired, a new parsonage in Jamaica Estates was bought and paid off in a single year, the Paul Quinn Federal Credit Union was established (still the only black-owned financial institution in Flushing), and the church marked its 175th anniversary.
Rev. Dr. Richard O. McEachern: A Pastor and a Builder
Bishop Richard Franklin Norris appointed the Rev. Dr. Richard O. McEachern as Macedonia's pastor in June 2009. An Itinerant Elder of the A.M.E. Church, he previously pastored First Hempstead A.M.E. Church on Long Island and Bethel Tabernacle A.M.E. Church in Brooklyn. A native of Winston-Salem, North Carolina, he earned a Bachelor of Science in Architectural Engineering from North Carolina A&T State University, and both a Master of Divinity and a Doctor of Ministry in Urban Ministry from New Brunswick Theological Seminary in New Brunswick, New Jersey.
Before entering full-time ministry, Rev. McEachern spent 23 years with Turner Construction Company, rising from Cost Engineer to Director of Community Affairs. He now serves as President of Macedonia Plaza Community Development Corporation, which delivered 143 units of affordable housing in a $45 million project completed in December 2014, and as President and CEO of Macedonia Community Development Corporation. He is a member of Community Planning Board 7, the A.M.E. Board of Trustees, the Board of Examiners for the New York Annual Conference, the Ministerial Alliance of New York City and Vicinity, the NAACP, and Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Inc. He is married to the Assistant Pastor, Rev. Dr. Ellen Canty McEachern, and they are the parents of two children, Nia and Richard II.
Sunday Worship and Church School
Sunday worship at Macedonia begins at 8:30 a.m. at 106-16 Guy R. Brewer Boulevard in Jamaica, Queens. Church School gathers at 2:00 p.m. the same day. A mid-week Noonday Service meets in the middle of the week, and on the third Sunday of each month, a Morning Prayer Service opens the day. Bible Study is part of the church's ongoing program of formation, and the Lay Organization and Class Leaders keep members connected throughout the week.
Worship is also livestreamed on the church's Facebook page and YouTube channel, with a listen-only phone line available during the service hour for those joining from afar at 1-701-802-5123 with access code 3058271#. All phone participants enter the line muted.
Feeding the Neighborhood
Macedonia Community Development Corporation, led by the pastor, distributes food to more than 400 community residents each week through its Food Pantry Program and serves hot meals to more than 100 people each Sunday through its Soup Kitchen Ministry. A Healing Hearts Ministry walks alongside those carrying private burdens, and Woman-to-Woman, Inc. accompanies women in the community. Girl Scouts, Inc. also meets on the Macedonia campus, extending the church's reach into the lives of young people across the neighborhood.
Macedonia Plaza, the 140-unit affordable housing complex opened in December 2014 under Rev. McEachern's leadership, remains a flagship of the church's community footprint. It stands as the visible fruit of a ministry that takes the gospel beyond the sanctuary walls.
Music, Dance, and the Arts
Music carries Macedonia's worship. The Macedonia Inspirational Choir, the Male Chorus, and the Praise Team lead the congregation each Sunday, while the Dance Ministry and the Unspoken Praise Mime Ministry offer other ways to glorify God with the body. The Music & Arts Ministry coordinates them all, and a Media Ministry and CD Ministry carry the sound of worship beyond the building. A Print Ministry and Public Relations team keep the work visible.
Ministries for Every Age and Stage
For women, the Grace E. Wares Women's Missionary Society, the Gathering of Sisters Ministry, and the Women's and Health Ministries create spaces for fellowship, study, and service. The Grace E. Wares WMS Scholarships and the Rivers/Webb Scholarship extend the work into education. The Men's Fellowship builds brotherhood, while the Young People's Division and the Youth Council develop the next generation. The Macedonia Christian Institute welcomes new members into the life of the church, the Culinary Ministry feeds events and gatherings, and the Christian Education Department and Church School provide formation for every age.
Rev. Dr. Ellen Canty McEachern, the church's Assistant Pastor and First Lady, advises the Grace E. Wares Women's Missionary Society and the Women's and Health Ministries, and facilitates "Led by the Spirit Ministry," a caring and sharing support group. She is the Bereavement Ministries Coordinator for the New York Annual Conference of the A.M.E. Church, appointed in fall 2019, and developed the HELPS Ministry (Healing, Empowering, Lifting, Parishioners Spiritually) from her doctoral research. Rev. Sharon Y. Grizzell, ordained in 2005, joined Macedonia in December 2011 and serves as Associate Minister.
What Macedonia Believes
Macedonia teaches the historic articles of the A.M.E. faith. There is one living and true God, known in three persons as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Jesus Christ is truly God and truly man, rose bodily from the dead, and ascended into heaven. The Bible contains all that is needed for salvation, and the Old and New Testaments together offer eternal life to humanity. Salvation is by faith in Christ alone, and good works are the fruit of that faith.
Two sacraments are observed: Baptism, open to infants, children, and adults as the sign of the new birth, and the Lord's Supper, in which the bread and wine are symbols of Christ's broken body and shed blood, given to all the people in both kinds. The church does not believe in purgatory or the worship of images, relics, or saints. Public worship is conducted in a language the people can understand. Marriage is not forbidden to ordained ministers, and the rites and ceremonies of the church, while they may vary by place, are to be faithfully observed.
A New Edifice for a Continuing Mission
Macedonia marked 200 years of service in 2011 with worship services, a parade, a street re-naming, a commemorative postage stamp, youth festivities, and a Wall of Merit ceremony. The congregation is now in a season of building once more. As the church has written, "the vision of a new church becomes a reality as we embark on the building of this new edifice. We are committed, audacious, and dedicated, leaning on Almighty God, who is able to keep us from falling."