Fort Pierce honors historical church | St. Lucie County

FORT PIERCE – The mayor and City Commission here honored members of an historical African-American church congregation here with a proclamation detailing the legacy of an evangelical seed first planted in 1923 along 8th Street and later spreading to influence entire generations in another part of town as well.

While not quite as old as the city’s First Baptist Church and First Methodist Church – founded in 1887 and 1887 respectively – the Goodwill Presbyterian Church first began meeting on 8th Street just a few years after St. Anastasia Catholic Church built its iconic school building on Orange Avenue in 1914.

City Clerk Linda Cox read a proclamation into the record honoring Goodwill Presbyterian Church with its own special day during the Oct. 20 Fort Pierce City Commission meeting.

“Goodwill Presbyterian Church, located at 606 N. 29th Street in the City of Fort Pierce, has served as a steadfast house of worship and community anchor on the Lincoln Park side of our city for generations,” she said. “It lies within the Tropical Florida Presbytery of the Presbyterian Church USA. Historical records reflect Goodwill Presbyterian’s long-standing presence in Fort Pierce, including an early-20th-century listing at 523 N. 8th Street – evidence of the congregation’s deep roots and continuity of ministry in our community – and Goodwill Presbyterian Church has maintained responsible stewardship and civic standing as a Florida not-for-profit corporation since 1993 and previously through trustees incorporated in 1962.”

The resolution emphasized that those and other statistics demonstrate the church’s sustained governance in the service of its faith mission.

“The congregation has shown consistent compassion for neighbors in need,” she continued. “That was most notably in 2020, when church leaders and members contributed funds that helped eleven Fort Pierce Utilities Authority customers keep the lights on during a time of economic hardship. Goodwill Presbyterian continues to invest in strong pastoral leadership and connectional ministry, with recent presbytery actions recognizing Reverend Ronald Evans as Pastor in 2024; ensuring the church’s spiritual vitality and good order; and advancing the common good, promoting family stability and uplifting residents across generations in Fort Pierce through worship, outreach and partnership with city and county entities.”

Cox finalized the resolution with an emphasis on the local public servants who’d attended the church over the years.

“The church’s legacy is enriched by noted members whose public service reflects Goodwill’s values – including former City Commissioner Julius Lee and current City Commissioner Curtis E. Johnson, Jr. – whose commitment to servant leadership exemplifies the congregation’s impact on civic life,” she concluded. “Therefore, I, Linda Hudson, mayor of the City of Fort Pierce, Florida, do hereby proclaim Sunday, Oct. 26, 2025 as Goodwill Presbyterian Church Day in the City of Fort Pierce. I call upon all residents to join me and the City Commission in congratulating Goodwill Presbyterian Church on its 102nd Anniversary, honoring its faithful witness, historic resilience and continuing service to our community.”

After Mayor Hudson came down off the dais to present Pastor Evans a copy of the resolution, the latter addressed the Board that day.

“I would simply like to say on behalf of the Goodwill Presbyterian Church, its elders and its members that we thank the Commission for recognizing us for more than 100 years of ministerial service here in St. Lucie County, and in particular, the Garden Terrace community area of Fort Pierce,” he said. “It was in 1964/1965 when Goodwill Presbyterian Church moved from 8th Street to the Garden Terrace community. One of the first churches there, Goodwill Presbyterian Church has serviced that community since that time and even up until today. So, we thank you Mayor Linda Hudson and we thank you commissioners. May God bless you all.”

Commissioner Arnold Gaines, who was not mentioned in the resolution, immediately chimed in with how his much younger days were heavily influenced by the membership of Goodwill Presbyterian Church, some of who were standing alongside their pastor that day.

“You’ve heard me say several times that I’m a product of Fort Pierce and was raised during the time of Fort Pierce where you were raised by a village,” he said. “I’m looking at a lot of faces standing right there that were part of that village. I just want to say thank you church for everything you’ve done – not only for the City of Fort Pierce – but to little kids like me that you’ve got now sitting up here and doing things in our lives. I just wanted to personally say thank you to all you guys.”

Commissioner Johnson echoed those sentiments.

“As stated in the proclamation, Goodwill was the church that raised me,” he said. “Many of these that are standing before you were important to my life at a very early age and as a very young man. The person that I am today and the ability for me to serve this community, I owe it to the people that are standing here. They encouraged me and instilled in me the confidence to be able to do what I do today. So, that church that always had the motto, Goodwill, the church where everybody is somebody and Jesus Christ is Lord, is evident in what you see in my servant leadership. With that, Goodwill thank you and continue it on.”