HLS 161ES-208 ORIGINAL
2016 First Extraordinary Session
HOUSE RESOLUTION NO. 12
BY REPRESENTATIVE JONES
COMMENDATIONS: Commends the Reverend Dr. Winston Christopher Ridley, Jr.
1 A RESOLUTION
2To commend the Reverend Doctor Winston Christopher Ridley, Jr., upon the occasion of his
3 visit to the great state of Louisiana and fellowship with Mount Esther Baptist Church
4 of Morgan City.
5 WHEREAS, Winston C. Ridley, Jr., was baptized at the age of thirteen at Jerusalem
6Baptist Church in Duquesne, Pennsylvania, which provided a rich and firm foundation of
7religious training; and
8 WHEREAS, in 1980, Jerusalem Baptist Church granted Rev. Ridley a license to
9preach, and he became an associate minister; after six years of training in the ministry,
10Rev. Ridley was ordained to preach by the ministerial staff at Rodman Street Missionary
11Baptist Church in Pittsburgh and held the position of associate minister until he was called
12to pastor Mount Olive Baptist Church in Coraoplis, Pennsylvania, where he served with
13dedication and distinction for fourteen years; and
14 WHEREAS, following the leadership of the Holy Spirit, Rev. Ridley accepted an
15invitation to preach in October 2000 at The Greater First Baptist Church in Washington,
16D.C.; by May 2001, he was installed as its pastor; and
17 WHEREAS, Rev. Ridley immediately employed new ways for the church to
18biblically, culturally, and technologically minister to the needs of its members and
19community, and while diligently working with his congregation through the years, he
20labored and achieved a master of divinity degree in 2006 and a doctor of ministry degree in
212011 from Howard University School of Divinity; and
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HR NO. 12
1 WHEREAS, the Reverend Doctor Ridley is the proud husband of Bonita LuRose Lee
2Ridley, an accomplished coloratura soprano, pianist, and organist; Mrs. Ridley holds the
3office of National Coordinator/Chair of the Ministers' Wives and Widows of the National
4Baptist Convention, USA, Incorporated; and
5 WHEREAS, Dr. Ridley has enhanced his ministry through memberships with the
6National Baptist Convention, USA, Incorporated, the Hampton University Ministers'
7Conference, the Missionary Baptist Ministers' Conference of Washington, D.C., and
8Vicinity, and the Interfaith Council of the mayor of Washington, D.C.; Dr. Ridley also
9serves on the board of directors of the Council of Churches of Greater Washington, D.C.;
10and
11 WHEREAS, the ministry of Dr. Ridley has expanded beyond the walls of The
12Greater First Baptist Church to the European continent, where he and the Fellowship Choir
13of the church ministered to the people of Düsseldorf, Germany, and Stockholm, Sweden; and
14 WHEREAS, the Reverend Doctor Ridley will preach the Word at the seventeenth
15pastoral anniversary of the Reverend Doctor Charles Oatis, Sr., pastor of Mount Esther
16Baptist Church in Morgan City, and it is with great joy and gladness that the citizens of
17Louisiana welcome Dr. Ridley to the state to celebrate this happy occasion.
18 THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the House of Representatives of the
19Legislature of Louisiana does hereby commend the Reverend Doctor Winston C. Ridley, Jr.,
20upon his momentous visit to the state and to the pulpit of Mount Esther Baptist Church in
21Morgan City and does hereby express best hopes and prayers for God's continued guidance
22upon his ministry and his life.
23 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a suitable copy of this Resolution be transmitted
24to the Reverend Dr. Winston C. Ridley, Jr.
DIGEST
The digest printed below was prepared by House Legislative Services. It constitutes no part
of the legislative instrument. The keyword, one-liner, abstract, and digest do not constitute
part of the law or proof or indicia of legislative intent. [R.S. 1:13(B) and 24:177(E)]
HR 12 Original 2016 First Extraordinary Session Jones
Commends Rev. Dr. Winston C. Ridley, Jr., upon the occasion of his visit to Louisiana and
the Mount Esther Baptist Church in Morgan City.
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