A Black Baptist Anchor on Goodfellow Boulevard
On a working stretch of Goodfellow Boulevard in north St. Louis, a brick church has stood for generations as a spiritual and civic anchor for the 27th Ward. New Northside Missionary Baptist Church, often shortened to NNMBC, has been gathering worshipers at 8645 Goodfellow Boulevard since the mid-twentieth century, and its roots reach back further still - to 1902, when Rev. George W. Clemons pitched a tent on the 2900 block of Semple Avenue and began preaching. That small start grew into the first Black Baptist church west of Kingshighway Avenue.
Today the church counts 530 active members, a leadership team that spans regional coalitions, and a long list of community ministries. Its motto - "The Church Where Everybody is Somebody Because CHRIST is All" - is painted into its identity and repeated from the pulpit, and visitors are greeted with the same warmth whether they come looking to learn, to heal, to serve, or simply to belong.
A Long Tenure Under Two Pastors
The church's modern history was shaped for nearly five decades by Rev. Willie James Ellis, Jr., who became pastor in 1963 and led explosive growth for more than forty-seven years. During his tenure the congregation moved to its current home on Goodfellow, grew past two thousand members, and built the New Northside Family Life Center, a venue dedicated to serving the surrounding community. In the early 1990s the church partnered with Volunteers of America to develop Northside Village Apartments in Jennings, providing low-income housing for seniors.
A new era of community engagement opened when Rev. Rodrick K. Burton became pastor in 2012. Burton holds a Master of Educational Ministry from Covenant Theological Seminary, where he also serves as a mentor and visiting instructor of applied theology. His reach extends well beyond the church walls: he is a member of the St. Louis Metropolitan Clergy Coalition, the Ecumenical Leadership Council, the Jennings Clergy Coalition, the Baptist Minister's Union of St. Louis and Vicinity, the Pastoral Fellowship of St. Louis, and the Cabinet of the Interfaith Partnership of Greater St. Louis. He is the author of "The Moral State of Black America" and writes columns for several St. Louis-area periodicals. Burton also serves as President of the St. Louis Airport Interfaith Chaplaincy, sits on the International Association of Civil Aviation Chaplains, and was named to the St. Louis Clean Air Advisory Commission, where he advocates for environmental justice. He and his wife, Carlotta Cheers Burton, are the parents of Zoe and Zarek.
Sundays: Sunday School at Eight, Worship at Ten
Sunday at New Northside begins early. Sunday School runs from 8:00 to 9:00 a.m. and is described by the church as "where learning begins for the week and carries you through." Classes stretch from Beginners through Primary, Junior, Intermediate, Senior, Young Adult, and Seasoned Saints of God, all built around Proverbs 22:6: "Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old, he will not depart from it." The Sunday School Ministry frames its work as accepting the Great Commission and planting seeds of wisdom with the Word of God "into the hearts of the young and old."
Church service follows at 10:00 a.m., with music led by several choirs and a worship style rooted in the Black Baptist gospel tradition. Ushers and Health Unit members are stationed to greet members and guests and model Christian fellowship, and Children 4 Christ provides a children's church component that draws younger worshipers closer to Christ through prayer and Bible study.
Wednesdays at Noon and at Seven
Mid-Week Bible Study is held twice on Wednesdays - a midday session at noon and an evening session at 7:00 p.m. Both are open to members and visitors. The teaching style leans on conversation and careful digging into the Word. "The goal of Bible Study," the church explains, "is to determine what the Bible says, what it means and how it applies to our life." Dictionaries, concordances, and Biblical maps support the study, with the Pastor directing the path of study followed by other minister leaders. Members and non-members who want a question answered during the Wednesday study can submit it through a Google Form by Tuesday noon so the Pastor can address it.
On the third Wednesday of every month at 2:00 p.m., the church hosts a Grief Recovery Session over Zoom, with a published Meeting ID and passcode. Associate ministers also lead a Ministers' Bible Study on the last Friday of each month.
The Spirits of New Northside and the Next Generation
One of the most recognizable ministries to come out of New Northside is a youth drumline called the Spirits of New Northside. Over a thousand young people have matriculated through the program, which teaches discipline, self-esteem, and dignity through music and marching. The church pairs this work with Expressions of Praise, a youth praise dance ministry that ministers through dance, step, and mime, and Voices of Victory, the youth choir that prepares the congregation to receive the word each Sunday.
The Family Life Center built under Pastor Ellis still anchors the church's youth and family work. During the COVID-19 pandemic, when the church paused in-person services from April to July 2020, the Child Development Center provided care for the children of essential workers and the Family Life Center continued distributing diapers to families in need. The St. Louis Health Department recognized the Child Development Center for its safe practices, and Pastor Burton and the Media Ministry were recognized for sharing accurate vaccine information with the community.
Choirs, Praise Dancers, and a Cadre of Lay Ministries
Music is woven through almost every corner of the church. The WJ Ellis Morning Gospel Choir and Voices of Victory lead congregational praise. The Male Chorus ministers through song. Divine Inspiration, the adult praise dance ministry, glorifies God through movement and ministers "with purpose and to worship God in spirit and in truth." The Media Ministry supports it all with audio and video production that carries worship beyond the physical walls of the church through social media and RightNow Media, a free streaming library of Bible study content the church makes available to its members.
A wide range of lay ministries keeps the work moving week to week. Boosters promote the spiritual growth and prosperity of the church. The Deaconess, Mothers and Ministers Wives Ministry assists with Baptism and the Lord's Supper and models Christian living from Matthew 5:16. Laymen coordinate the manpower of the local congregation. Sisters of Mercy devote their time and talents to those who are sick in hospitals or homes and to those who are imprisoned. The Ushers and Health Unit lead the first greeting when members and visitors arrive. The New Membership Class integrates newcomers through fellowship, Bible study, and ministry, while the Scholarship Committee provides financial support and spiritual connection to members attending colleges, universities, or trade schools.
Reaching Into the 27th Ward and Beyond
If the sanctuary is the spiritual heart of New Northside, the 27th Ward is its workshop. The church runs a Food Pantry that supplies food baskets to church members and the surrounding community, anchored in Deuteronomy 15:11: "the poor shall never cease out of the land." It also houses the Project Downtown Community Emergency Diaper Closet, a partnership that provides a one-time service of fifty free diapers per child and connects families with longer-term suppliers like Parents as Teachers. The diaper closet is open Monday through Friday from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Since 2012, New Northside has worked to reduce infant mortality through the Triumph initiative, partnered with Barack Obama Elementary to raise attendance, and served the Jennings and St. Louis Public School Districts to meet homeless students' needs. The church piloted violence de-escalation work with Better Family Life and continued that work with CURE Violence under the Urban League. Older adults are served through a partnership with OASIS that offers exercise and education.
Interfaith engagement is part of the church's DNA. New Northside is a member of the Interfaith Partnership of Greater St. Louis, an affiliation that deepened after an arson attack on the church in 2015. The church also partners with Metropolitan Congregations United, the 24:1 Clergy Coalition, the St. Louis Metropolitan Clergy Coalition, the Ecumenical Leadership Council, the Jennings Clergy Coalition, the 27th Ward Clergy Partnership, the Pastoral Fellowship of St. Louis, and others. New Northside hosts Meacham Theology Institute, which provides affordable graduate training to communities of color, and was part of the coalition that pushed St. Louis to become the first Missouri city to commit to one hundred percent renewable electricity. On the national stage, Rev. Burton joined Archbishop Mitchell Rozanski, Imam Muhamad Hasic, and Rev. Gabrielle NS Kennedy in a video campaign encouraging COVID-19 vaccination.
Women of the Church: To Restore, To Rebuild, To Renew
The Women's Retreat is one of the most visible efforts on the church calendar. Founded in 2016 after Minister Nikeisha White felt the Lord prompt her in 2011 to bring a women's retreat to New Northside, the gathering is held at the Pallottine Renewal Center in Florissant and is built around three words: Restore, Rebuild, Renew. The retreat offers spiritual renewal, fellowship, and time for women to draw closer to God. Retreatants can register for an overnight package or a commuter package that includes meals, a T-shirt, and full access to the program.
A standing committee of churchwomen plans the retreat year after year. Minister Nikeisha White serves as the visionary. Chevelle Stewart, a retired St. Louis Public Schools coordinator of afterschool programs and the church's 2nd Vice President of the Deaconess Board, chairs finance and leads Divine Inspiration, the adult praise dance ministry. Amelia Hill, a thirty-plus-year member of the choir, leads activities and vendors. Hope Young, a longtime member and member of the choir, serves as photographer, videographer, and web designer. Alison Cole, a board-certified Music Therapist, leads praise and worship. The retreat also honors the memory of Beverly Foster, who retired as Accounts Payable Supervisor with St. Louis Public Schools after twenty-one years and served on the Usher Board, WJ Ellis Morning Gospel Choir, Sunday School, and Trustee Board before her passing.
What New Northside Believes
The church's doctrinal statement is built around six anchors. The Bible, based on 2 Timothy 3:16-17 and Hebrews 4:12, is "inspired by God, without error and the authority on which we base our faith, conduct and doctrine." Salvation, drawn from John 3:16-17 and Romans 10:9-10, is found by faith in what Jesus did on the cross, with belief in His resurrection and return. The Godhead, anchored in John 10:30 and Colossians 2:10, is one God in three persons - Father, Son, and Holy Spirit - with Jesus Christ as the Son who came as Savior of the world. Water baptism, from Matthew 26:19 and Romans 6:4, is a symbol of the cleansing power of Christ's blood. Communion, based on Luke 22:19 and 1 Corinthians 11:24, is a regular act of remembering what Jesus did on the cross. Finally, every believer is called to a growing relationship with God by obeying His Word, yielding to the Holy Spirit, and being conformed to the image of Christ.
The Purpose sums it up in four lines: Revere God, Respect His Son, Respond to His Spirit, Obey His Holy Word. The Vision is "Restoring our Community by Restoring our Relationship with God through Jesus Christ." The Methods are to transform lives through the teaching and practice of God's Word, and to restore families and communities through prayer, service, and education.
Getting to Goodfellow, Giving, and Staying Connected
New Northside sits at 8645 Goodfellow Boulevard in St. Louis, Missouri 63147, with the church phone line at 314-381-5730 and the office reachable at nnmbc8645@yahoo.com. Sunday School opens at 8:00 a.m., morning worship begins at 10:00 a.m., and Wednesday Bible Study convenes at noon and 7:00 p.m. The church posts updates on Facebook, Instagram, X, and YouTube, and a small library of recorded sermons by Pastor Burton is available online.
Gifts can be made in person during the 10:00 a.m. Sunday worship, by mail to the church address with checks made payable to New Northside M.B. Church, or through Givelify on a phone app or online, using a debit or credit card. A small set of sermons - including "Bible Users," "Faith and Friendship," and "Mustard Seed Faith" - is available for listening. RightNow Media is offered as a free resource for members who want a deeper library of Bible study content at home. The church also keeps an annual calendar that lays out the year's events, ministries, and rhythms, from the Wednesday Grief Recovery sessions to the spring retreat at the Pallottine Renewal Center. Wherever a visitor arrives from, the message is the same: "Everybody is Somebody because CHRIST is All."