Rev. Dr. Allen J. Sims, Sr. installed as Pastor at Historic Dexter Church
It was a very happy day at Dexter Avenue King Memorial Baptist Church in downtown Montgomery, as church members celebrated the formal installation of their pastor, Reverend Doctor Allen J. Sims, Senior. The congregation filled the pews Sunday afternoon. Sims began his tenure in November of last year and is now officially Dexter’s 29th pastor. A licensed social worker with three decades of experience, Sims is also an adjunct professor at Selma University’s Ministry Training Institute and a U.S. Army veteran. He is married to Marcella Tolver Sims and has five children and six grandchildren. In Alabama, he previously pastored churches in Marion, Abbeville, and Montgomery. Sims says that each of those roles helped shape his spiritual experience and prepared him to serve others.
“I’m humbled, I’m grateful, I’m very thankful for God – that he allowed me at this time to shepherd this flock. And so, I’m just overwhelmed with joy. And I appreciate God. Some of my goals are to let people know in the tri-county area, that we are not a museum – that we are a living, thriving church. We want to welcome everybody and anybody, no matter what your status is in life; you are welcomed here at Dexter,” Sims said. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was the 20th pastor at Dexter Avenue King Memorial Baptist Church.
