FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
COGIC’s PRESIDING BISHOP BLAKE HONORED
AT 2009 INAUGURAL BANQUET IN MEMPHIS
Quadrennial Election Yields Exemplary Leader for 6.5 million followers of Pentecostal faith
(March 31, 2009 – Memphis, TENN) In celebration of the re-election Presiding Bishop Charles E. Blake Sr. of the Church Of God In Christ, Inc. (COGIC) during the 2008 Quadrennial election at the 101st Holy Convocation in Memphis, the supporters, members and leadership of COGIC will host the Glorious Inaugural Celebration Dinner at the Cook Convention Center on Wednesday, April 15, 2009 at 6:00 p.m.
Blake is the 7th Chief Apostle of the COGIC denomination, an international philanthropist and a national icon. Along with leading the fourth largest Pentecostal denomination in the nation, he also is the head pastor of West Angeles Church Of God In Christ in Los Angeles, California with a membership of over 25,000. West Angles has also been recognized as one of the fastest growing churches in the nation, with extensive ministry and outreach services including television and radio broadcasts. It also provides more than 80 programs for the psychological, social, and economic enhancement of the community.
In 2001, Blake founded Save Africa’s Children, which is a program of the Pan African Children’s Fund that has assisted over 400 grassroots and faith-based projects in Sub-Saharan Africa. As founder and CEO, Bishop Blake oversees the support of more than 200,000 children throughout more than 23 nations on the continent of Africa. One of his main goals is to use this program to spread awareness of the fact that ninety percent of children orphaned by AIDS globally live in the Sub-Saharan. Blake also sits as the Chairman of COGIC Charities Inc. Board of Directors, a non-profit founded by the late Bishop G. E. Patterson. This non-profit organization raises millions of dollars for scholarships, disaster funds and community relief programs both domestically and globally.
Blake was also a significant figure for many in the faith-based community during the 2008 Presidential election. He was one of only four highly-regarded religious leaders, who served as featured speakers at the first-ever Democratic National Convention interfaith gathering in Denver, Colorado. He used this platform to proclaim his pro-life Democrat status and to plead with then Senator Obama to uphold his promise to reduce abortions and ensure viable alternatives. Blake has since then addressed President Obama again and is confident that new legislature will emerge to help the unborn.
“This is a wonderful opportunity for all of the Pentecostal faith members and supporters around the world who embrace Presiding Bishop Charles E. Blake as our spiritual leader to show our elation for his re-election by rallying behind him. We lift him up and pray for his continued strength in these days of need,” said, Bishop P.A. Brooks, General Chairman of the Glorious Inaugural Celebration Dinner, First Assistant Presiding Bishop and founding pastor of New St. Paul Tabernacle Church of God in Christ.
About Church Of God In Christ
The Church Of God In Christ is the fourth-largest Protestant religious denomination in the United States with an estimated membership above 6.5 million members. COGIC headquarters are located at Mason Temple in Memphis, Tennessee.
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