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WHEREAS, Rev. W. W. Clark founded the St. Paul African Methodist Episcopal Church in 1846 with eight other people as a pioneering African-American church on the south side of the Monongahela; and,
WHEREAS, St. Paul AME Church held worship services in Pittsburgh's South Side Flats neighborhood for its first 54 years, starting in a building on Wright's Way and eventually moving to a site at Sarah and South 13th streets; and,
WHEREAS, when the congregation outgrew the South Side location, St. Paul AME Church moved to the Hilltop Neighborhoods, settling first in Allentown before building a new facility dedicated in 1918 at Sylvania Avenue and Montooth Street in Beltzhoover; and,
WHEREAS, for 82 years at its Beltzhoover location, St. Paul AME Church provided additional services to the community including a daycare center, Boys and Girls Scouts clubs, a Health Care Center and a food pantry; and,
WHEREAS, St. Paul AME Church moved back to Allentown in 2000, setting up its current location at 400 Orchard Place to meet the needs of the growing congregation; and,
WHEREAS, under the leadership of Rev. Cheryl Ruffin, who became the church's first female pastor in 2010, St. Paul AME Church has expanded its outreach and community service efforts through a weekly Prayer Walk, a Community Picnic, the 5 Loaves and 2 Fish Soup Kitchen and the Green Up Pittsburgh: Edible Garden “Seed Time and Harvest” Community Garden; and,
WHEREAS, St. Paul AME Church is celebrating its 167th anniversary this year with a three-day celebration July 19th thru 21st; and,
NOW, THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, that the City of Pittsburgh recognizes St Paul AME Church's centuries-long commitment to serving the religious and social needs of the South Side and Hilltop neighborhoods; and,
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NOW, THEREFORE BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the Council of the City of Pittsburgh does hereby declare Tuesday, July 16, 2013 to be “St. Paul AME Church Day” in the City of Pittsburgh.
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