The Reverend Martin Childs, Jr. is the Pastor of the Pilgrim Rest Missionary Baptist Church in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Prior to serving at Pilgrim Rest, he served as the Pastor of the Victory Church, and the Director of Ministries, a full-time pastoral staff position, at the Tabernacle Community Baptist Church. In these positions, Reverend Childs endeavored to serve the church and community through pastoral care, church ministry development, outreach ministry and community development. Before entering the ministry, he was an Elementary School Teacher in the Milwaukee Public School System.
Reverend Childs received the Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Wisconsin – Milwaukee in Elementary Education, the Master of Divinity Degree and the Doctor of Ministry from Garrett-Evangelical Theological Seminary in Evanston, Illinois.
Reverend Childs is active in the church and community through his teaching and preaching ministry. Reverend Childs has taught in the Wisconsin General Baptist State Congress of Christian Education, The National Baptist Congress of Christian Education, the Sunday School Publishing Board Conference, the Milwaukee Theological Institute and was a Guest Lecturer in the Marquette University Department of Theology. He has also facilitated a number of workshops and conferences.
Reverend Childs is honored that Pilgrim Rest has embraced the mandate to take ministry beyond the walls of the church building. Most notable are their Mission Trips to Uganda, East Africa; Mission Trips to the Mississippi Delta; The Resting Place (Opening the church to provide food and overnight shelter for the homeless from December through March); The Harrington House (Transitional housing for young women and children), Emergency Housing for persons in transition and adoption of an elementary school.
Pilgrim Rest has also established a 501.c.3 community development corporation named, Nehemiah, Inc., that is rebuilding the walls of our community one brick at a time through a Summer Learning Camp, Prison Aftercare Ministry for men, Business Incubator, and Housing.
Reverend Childs states, “I believe that the church possesses the power necessary to stabilize the downward spiral of hopelessness and despair that is prevalent in many communities. Even more, the church possesses the vision requisite for the transformation and re-unification of our communities.”
Reverend Childs is married to Thresessa, and they are the proud parents of two adult children: Martin, IV and Cierra Andrae.