MEET THE PASTOR
Roderick D. Dawson is a native of Houston, Texas. He attended public schools in the Houston Independent School District and is a graduate of Waltrip Senior High School.  Rev. Dawson received his undergraduate degree from Texas Southern University and is currently pursuing a Master’s Degree from the Houston Graduate School of Theology.

Rev. Dawson hails from a family line of Gospel ministers, following the examples set forth by his father and grandfather.  He received his call in the ministry at the age of seventeen (17).   Through the African Methodist Episcopal Church, he has had opportunities to serve in numerous pastoral capacities.  His most recent pastoral charge began November 15, 1997 with St. Paul A.M.E. Church in Houston, Texas. He is married to former Stacey Lynn Pryor and has two boys Marsalis and Madison.

Rev. Dawson is the youngest pastor of the oldest A.M.E. Church in the city of Houston.  He has been a dynamic blessing to the St. Paul family and its vision for God’s people.  Under his leadership, St. Paul has begun to delve further into the call to “nurture and meet the needs of the community”.  Under Dawson’s leadership, St. Paul has made a major transition to the Northwest Houston suburb of Greenspoint, St. Paul continues to experience spiritual as well as numerical growth with current membership spanning from the four quadrants of Houston.  In 1998, Pastor Dawson was instrumental in the establishment of the St. Paul A.M.E. Church Community Development Corporation.  St. Paul’s CDC collaborated to provide Day Care and After-school Program services to children in Houston’s First Ward community.  Collaborative partnerships included projects with Avenue CDC and The Duncan Community Project.  A June 2000 community growth and expansion feasibility study of the First Ward area, led to a transitional move for the church and the CDC, targeting Northwest Houston.  In June 2001, relocation was completed to the Greenspoint area, a Northwest Suburb of Houston.  St. Paul A.M.E. and its community projects began their grounding within the new community through Thomas Gray Elementary School in Aldine Independent School District.  In June 2002, St. Paul opened a new worship center, day care facility, and community projects offices at its current location, 1554 Gears Road in Houston.  In November 2002, The Master’s Anvil Community Development Corporation became the official operating name of the CDC project.  In keeping with values established through God’s Word and the elemental founding principles of the A.M.E. Church, The Master’s Anvil CDC as a community outreach and social ministry endeavors to serve all people with freedom from discrimination and prejudice.  Our goal is to eradicate social injustice and to rebuild broken lives by actively encouraging involvement and developing projects to meet the needs identified within the community.  Year 2008 priorities include Child Care expansion, groundwork for primary education (grades K-3) and the beginning of Phase II of a tri-fold building project under Pastor Dawson’s leadership.

The vision of St. Paul A.M.E. Church is founded on I Chronicles 22:5a (KJV):  “And David said, Solomon my son is young and tender, and the house that is to be builded for the Lord must be exceeding magnifical, of fame and of glory throughout all countries.”